There was one question that wasn't asked when the AFL fined Travis Cloke $1500 for wearing an illegal glove.
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Who actually alerted the league?
The Age can reveal that Essendon captain Brendon Goddard asked the Bombers to seek clarification from the league as to whether the glove Cloke was wearing was legal or not.
The reason being – Goddard also owned the glove but was under the impression that it hadn't been approved for AFL use.
That phone call from Essendon prompted the AFL to conduct its own investigation and thus conclude that Cloke's glove was illegal.
Cloke, who had been dropped twice during the year and was struggling for form, took 12 marks and kicked four goals in Collingwood's upset win over Greater Western Sydney in round 16 - a game in which he wore the glove in question.
That glove, made by Nike, is designed for NFL players in America to give them extra "stickiness" in their palms.
The glove is made mainly from silicone and is often worn by wide receivers in American Football.
Goddard was sent that glove along with several others eight months ago by Nike, but after training with this specific glove he was told it was banned under AFL rules and hence didn't wear it.
The Bombers stand-in skipper hadn't been told officially that it wasn't allowed, and so when he saw Cloke wearing it while watching the game on TV, he asked a member of the club's football department to clarify the status of the glove's legality.
That prompted the AFL to conduct its own investigation.
The fine of $1500 handed to Cloke as a result of the incident has since been widely labelled as light.
Since being stripped of the glove, the Magpies forward has taken 10 marks and kicked two goals in two games.
In a statement when the fine was made public, AFL Football Operations boss Mark Evans said: "The AFL had received a formal written reply from the club and player Cloke and had decided a sanction on the club was appropriate after the glove he wore had not been cleared as compliant."
The Cloke incident is expected to make clubs and players far more prudent with the use of gloves and any other kind of equipment.
Hawthorn had written approval from the AFL for Jonathon O'Rourke to wear a glove in the round 17 win over Sydney, which was played on the same night that Cloke and Collingwood were sanctioned.
