Collingwood coach Craig McRae has hit out at Adelaide fans repeatedly booing Isaac Quaynor during the Magpies’ 34-point win on Thursday night.

It comes after Quaynor was the Magpies player on the receiving end of Izak Rankine’s homophobic slur in the Round 23 Adelaide-Collingwood match last year.

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In his press conference on Wednesday, Crows coach Matthew Nicks asked for fans to “be respectful”. Instead, the parochial home crowd targeted the Pies defender.

“Quaynor (is being) booed every time he gets the football,” Fox Footy caller Mark Howard noted in the first quarter on Thursday night as Quaynor often found the footy.

“The Adelaide Football Club asked the supporters not to do it after the last qualifying final. Unfortunately, they’re continuing with that act.”

Post-match, speaking to Fox Footy’s Mark Howard and Jack Riewoldt, McRae found it hard to summon the words to express his obvious disappointment with what played out.

“I’m just not sure how the world works when someone’s been vilified (to then be booed),” McRae said.

“How does that become … I’m on the bench early (in the game) and I started to really … I love to protect our boys. I don’t know what that looks like, but it was a really strange one for me.

“And he must’ve had the ball a lot early, because he got booed a lot. Credit to him, we love our own, we’ll get around him, support him.

“I’m just not sure how that works, in the world we live in. It’s a strange one.”

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Nicks, meanwhile, in his post-game press conference, wasn’t anywhere near as strong when probed about the fans’ behaviour.

“You look at that – I mentioned it during the week, about why we play footy, why people come to the footy; it’s about entertainment, it’s about enjoyment, passion,” Nicks said.

“The game is a passionate game, and sometimes we lose our way in that a little.

“And with the backdrop, and I guess the background leading into this game, it’s not ideal the way it played out tonight.”

After last year’s qualifying final, where the booing began, Nicks did not comment on the behaviour which saw him criticised by many observers.

Craig McRae speaks out against the booing Isaac Quaynor received on Thursday night.Source: FOX SPORTS

Howard, after the McRae interview, was also left perplexed.

“He’s been the victim of a homophobic slur, and he’s been booed by the crowd,” Howard said on Thursday Night Footy on Fox.

“I’m sure the Adelaide Football Club will make a strong statement about it, but there’s been a history in our game in the past. As the coach said, it’s hard to fathom.”

Triple Richmond premiership star Jack Riewoldt added: “Adelaide came out pre-game and said that they didn’t want to see this, but sometimes the more you tell people not to do stuff, they then do the opposite.

“I thought it was really disappointing.

“It would have been a huge challenge for (Quaynor) to get on the plane and come back to this ground. Obviously, he’d played in a final here last year as well, but he’s coming back to a place where that incident did happen.

“I thought he handled himself excellently. I thought Craig handled himself really well then, too, because he is super protective.

“Coaches treat their players like sons in the men’s game … it would be so frustrating. It’s so hurtful for Isaac and also Craig.”

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The booing persisted but got quieter as Collingwood dominated Adelaide, with the Herald Sun’s Jon Ralph earlier addressing the situation at half-time.

“The booing of Isaac Quaynor is sheer lunacy, given that he of course was the innocent victim of the homophobic slur last year in Round 23,” he said.

“It’s not what he (Izak Rankine) would want, and it’s certainly not what Matthew Nicks asked for as recently as yesterday, when he said ‘let’s have some respect for the Collingwood players’.

“After the booing of last year’s qualifying final, Craig McRae said how disappointed he was by it.”

Former Carlton coach Michael Voss added: “Why you’d even try and go down that path I’m not sure; I don’t know what you’re trying to achieve. Just move on.”