Fans fume as Cunnington avoids suspension

Ben Cunnington has been let off with a fine for his gut punch on Bernie Vince, and fans have been left gobsmacked.

The AFL match review panel charged North Melbourne's Cunnington with striking Melbourne's Vince but the Roos onballer can accept a fine with an early guilty plea.

North forward Shaun Higgins can also accept a fine for striking young Demon Clayton Oliver in Sunday's spiteful encounter.

Melbourne defender Christian Salem was the only player to be suspended following round nine after the MRP offered him a one-match ban for striking Higgins.

Cunnington whacked Vince in the guts after copping some high treatment while taking a mark on Sunday.

Vince dropped to the MCG turf before being replaced, coughing and spluttering on the bench.

Fans have taken to social media in outrage at the decision to let Cunnington off:

Earlier on Monday AFL match review panel member Jimmy Bartel said he wants the league to introduce separate guidelines for non-football acts such as gut punches.

"(The table of offences) has become so small that they're all lumped in together," Bartel said on RSN radio.

"You could get a week for a sling tackle, because you've got to go through the boxes, but you could get a week for punching.

"It would be great if you had something called football acts and non-football acts. By that I mean when you're trying to execute a football act and something goes wrong, like we talk about sling tackles and shepherding and spoiling, it's graded in a certain way.

"Things like punching are not a part of our game."

AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan also said he's open to a rules crackdown on jumper punching, saying punches of any sort have no place in the game.

"I don't feel it's the look we want," he said.

"To the extent that our rules don't provide for it, we look to change them.

"I don't like players punching other players, regardless of where it is."

Fans also took to social media to condemn Cunnington during the game: