Brenton Sanderson says Adelaide will educate its players to block or shepherd opponents rather than risk bumping.
The bump has been a hot topic this season with suspensions handed to Crow Richard Douglas and Fremantle’s Nat Fyfe dividing opinions in the AFL community.
Sanderson said while the bump isn’t dead, the message was loud and clear from the AFL.
“The bump is still very much alive in our game…(but) if you choose to bump and a player is concussed there’s going to be a suspension.” Sanderson said.
“When placed in that same situation again, the players will be instructed to shepherd or block the players run rather than bump.
“It’s just not worth it. We have to ensure we don’t lose players from bumping the opposition.”
Whilst disappointed to lose the 2010 Crows Club Champion for two matches, Sanderson said the AFL should be commended for working to protect players from head-high hits.
“It’s important we reduce the number of concussions in our game,” Sanderson said.
“We fully support the AFL in their endeavours to make sure the game is safer - we don’t want to see players with any head injuries.
“From the vision we had and speaking to Dougy and (Callan) Ward, we felt there was no clash of heads. However, the player was concussed.
“We understand where the game is at the moment and will coach accordingly from here on in.
“We’ll certainly accept the Douglas penalty and adjust the way we coach to ensure that we’re not put in that position again.”