ONE assistant coach and 16 Adelaide Crows players have been given what many view as a slap on the wrist after the group broke strict quarantine rules by leaving the Novotel Barossa Valley Resort to train in groups larger than two.

The coach, Ben Hart, took the most significant punishment as he was suspended for six weeks and barred from accessing club facilities or contacting players until June 22.

The group of 16 players, including regular seniors Kyle Hartigan, Tom Doedee and Lachlan Murphy, as well as first round pick Fischer McAsey and new arrival Billy Frampton, received a suspended one-match ban.

Veteran AFL journalist Caroline Wilson on Channel 9’s Footy Classified said it was a “very embarrassing day for the AFL” and that “every club (Wilson had) spoken to today cannot believe the league wasn’t harsher on the Crows”.

Since the incident, the training restrictions in question have been relaxed, allowing groups of up to 10 to train together.