There are plently of talking points after Round 3 of the AFL, including whether North ruck Tristan Xerri deserved more than three weeks for wiping blood on an opponent, and if Carlton fans have been the most hard done by over the past decade.

Let’s get to this week’s overreactions column, where we judge the biggest takeaways as legitimate or irrational.

Carlton fans have been the most hard done by supporter base over the last 10 years

On Sunday afternoon at the MCG, Carlton led Melbourne by 43 points and appeared to be cruising to victory. Two hours later, the entire playing group cut a dejected figure, trudging off the field having just been beaten by 23 points. A 66-point swing against a club many expect to finish the year in the bottom six is both unexplainable and inexcusable. Even worse? It’s been a trend over the past 18 months!

Since 2016, the Carlton faithful have seen just two finals series after one of the longest rebuilds ever. So do the fans take the title of most miserable in footy?

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Verdict: Overreaction

Okay, this one probably is an overreaction. After all, North Melbourne does exist, and the Kangaroos haven’t featured in finals in basically a decade. Even the club’s most recent final was a disaster, losing to the Crows by 62 points in 2016.

And then there’s Essendon. The effects of the supplements saga were felt for years and the Bombers still feel as though they haven’t fully recovered. The club has played three finals in 10 years and lost all three. Now they are riding a 16-game losing streak and heading towards a full 12-month period without a single win. Their list is in limbo, and the decision to ‘rebuild’ was really only conceived last year.

But after North Melbourne and Essendon, you can certainly make the case the Blues are next when it comes to the league’s most hard done supporters. West Coast? Won a flag in 2018. Richmond? Please.

Has Carlton been perennially dire? No. But that’s probably why they’ve caused so much pain. For at least five of the last 10 years they’ve been widely viewed as a legitimate chance at challenging for a flag, and yet aside from a run to a preliminary final in 2023, they have basically nothing to show for it.

The inevitable game script this team follows week after week also makes for grim viewing for supporters. You know thew story: look like world beaters in the first half and basically stop playing in the second. Coughing up leads has become as predictable as Michael Voss’ dated game style.

So perhaps Blues fans haven’t had as much to complain about as some other supporter bases, regardless of how frustrating they are week to week.

Tristan Xerri deserved a minimum four-game ban for wiping blood on Andrew McGrath

North Melbourne ruck Tristan Xerri was sent directly to the AFL Tribunal for serious misconduct after allegedly wiping his own blood onto the face of Essendon captain Andrew McGrath. As expected, just about everyone in the footy world has weighed in on what an acceptable penalty should be.

On Monday evening the Tribunal handed down a three-game for Xerri, meaning he will miss North Melbourne’s upcoming clashes against Carlton, Brisbane, and Richmond. But was the penalty enough?

Verdict: Not an overreaction

Tristan Xerri was handed a three-game ban by the AFL tribunal for wiping blood on an opponent. ESPN/Getty Images

Disgusting. Dirty. Completely and totally inexcusable.

We’re really not sure what Xerri was thinking when he got in the grill of McGrath, touched his own bloody nose, and then wiped his hand on his opponent’s face. Not since Nathan Buckley wiped blood on Cameron Ling in 2002 has footy seen such an unhygienic incident.

“It’s something that we don’t want to see,” AFL CEO Andrew Dillon said on Sunday. “It’s not something we want to see on our fields.”

Andrew, we couldn’t agree more. But three weeks feels a bit light, if we’re being honest. The league really should have made an example out of Xerri and handed down a much sterner ban. Let’s just hope this serves as a warning for the entire league and that the next culprit is hit with a more severe punishment.