Topor-Stanley given one-match ban for Boxing Day red card

Western United defender Nikolai Topor-Stanley will a serve a one-game suspension, after being sent off in the reigning champions’ 1-0 win over Melbourne Victory on Boxing Day.

Topor-Stanley was dismissed in the 32nd minute after he collected Victory winger Chris Ikonomidis with a high boot.

The Match Review Panel (MRP) determined that the veteran centre-half had committed the offence of “serious foul play” and was offered a one-game ban as a result, meaning he will miss United’s clash with Brisbane Roar on Friday December 30.

This is the second time Topor-Stanley has been suspended this season, after he was sent off for a challenge on Garang Kuol in United 4-2 defeat to Central Coast Mariners in October – which saw him serve a three-game ban.

In a boost for United, they will regain fellow defender Leo Lacroix from a two-game ban, after he was sent off in their 2-1 defeat to Perth Glory earlier this month.

Meanwhile, Sydney FC winger Joe Lolley has accepted his two game ban, after he was sent off in the Sky Blues’ 3-0 defeat to Macarthur on Saturday for a dangerous challenge on Danny De Silva.

The MRP deemed that Lolley’s challenge was “serious foul play”, meaning he will miss Sydney’s clash with Newcastle Jets on New Year’s Day and Wellington Phoenix on January 7.