The vexed issue of the illegal AFL bump is set to come under scrutiny again, with weekend reports of Port Adelaide's Daniel Motlop and Hawthorn's Clinton Young providing the newest test cases.

The AFL appeals board's decision last week to clear Collingwood skipper Nick Maxwell over a collision with West Coast youngster Patrick McGinnity which the tribunal had deemed worthy of a four-game ban has left confusion over what constitutes a fair bump.

But, while Maxwell escaped a ban, both Motlop and Young seem likely to face stints on the sideline.

Skilful forward Motlop had both feet in the air when he crashed into Sydney's Jesse White, after the Swans youngster had handballed in the opening quarter of their NAB Cup clash in Canberra.

Motlop was immediately reported for charging.

Hawks premiership wingman Young was booked for rough conduct for his bump on Melbourne's Aaron Davey in the first quarter of their match in Launceston on Saturday.

Davey marked above his head, with Young crashing into the Demon's body after arriving late at the contest, in an extreme version of the controversial tunnelling tactic.

Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson said it was up to the tribunal to decide, but players should not be treated too harshly for choices made in an instant.

"You've got a split second, like we saw with the Nick Maxwell case, you've got a split second to make a decision," Clarkson said.

"It's very easy after the game to pull down video analysis and cut the game down.

"The decision's made in a short space of time and the intent is to force a contest and play the game hard and sometimes the guys cross the line, sometimes they don't.

"We'll let the tribunal work that out through the course of the week."

Melbourne ruckman Paul Johnson was also reported over contact with Hawthorn skipper Sam Mitchell in the opening term, but it appeared an innocuous incident.

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