No charges for cheeky Tarrant

The Darwin politician allegedly punched by Freo forward Chris Tarrant ($311,700, fwd) says he doesn't want police to charge the former Magpie - good news if Taz is holding down a spot inside your DT's forward 50. Before you breathe a sigh of relief, though, remember that the Dockers were pretty heavy-handed when fellow forward Jeff Farmer played up earlier this year. Tarrant's worth more to the Dockers than Whiz ever will be, but you can still expect to see the susposed bum-barer sidelined for at least a few weeks.

Definitely out for a forecast two months is Port Adelaide onballer Steven Salopek ($287,900, ctr). Like Taz, Salopek was averaging 80 DT points a game before he fractured his ankle in Sunday's big win against Essendon. The affect his absence will have on DT stars Kane and Chad Cornes is likely to be minor, but one beneficiary could be Domenic Cassissi, who pocketed a chunk of his 133 points after Salopek departed.

Whether Nathan G. Brown ($235,600, fwd) repays the faith of the 7000 DT coaches who stuck by the Richmond star throughout his injury run remains to be seen, but he gets his chance on Friday night. Tigers coach Terry Wallace today confirmed the former All-Australian will play against Melbourne. Plough also said that potential ruck hero Troy Simmonds ($300,300) will line-up for VFL affiliate Coburg this weekend.

Elsewhere, Essendon ruckman David Hille was slapped with a one-game ban for his biffo with The Chad, while Western Bulldogs baldie Nathan Eagleton has been sentenced to two games for striking Tarrant. He'll contest the charge next week.

Merv Gray.