Port Adelaide ruckman Paddy Ryder snapped and struck an opponent after being frustrated at frequent niggling, Power assistant coach Brendon Lade says.
Ryder faces certain sanction from the AFL match review panel after striking Adelaide's Riley Knight during Port's loss on Saturday night.
Ryder has a clean record but his blow which felled Knight behind play could lead to a suspension when the panel releases its findings later on Monday.
Adelaide's Knight had blocked Ryder before Port's sole recognised ruckman responded with a crude hit.
Lade, a former Port ruckman, says opponents will use the blocking tactic repeatedly on Ryder.
"Teams probably think it wears the opposition ruckman down over a period of time and hopefully they will snap - and unfortunately Paddy did," Lade told reporters on Monday.
"If you watch the incident where Paddy got reported, just before, Riley Knight bumped him.
"So it's just little things like that that annoy the opposition. A lot of teams would do that now when the other team only has one ruckman."
Lade said Ryder's response was uncharacteristic in the ruckman's 191-game AFL career.
"It's a rare moment for Paddy," he said.
"I don't think you've ever seen that in his ... career.
"He's a player that genuinely goes for the ball and plays the ball hard.
"He knows what is wrong and right. He was disappointed."
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