Umpire Hayden Meyer has revealed he “felt threatened and intimidated” by the behaviour of Hawthorn players in the preliminary final.
Chaos erupted with seconds remaining in the clash after Meyer awarded a free kick against the Hawks for holding.
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Brisbane kicked a goal to go in front as a result, sparking bedlam around the MCG, off the field as well as on it.
Two Hawthorn stars, James Sicily and Tom Barrass, confronted Meyer, with Sicily seen barking into his ear.
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The pair have since been fined for their actions, but perhaps have got off lightly given Meyer’s latest revelation.
“I was a bit taken aback, to be honest, because in my mind I thought I was 100 per cent sure it was a correct free kick,” the umpire said.
“I just wasn’t expecting two players to come up to me like they did on the day. It did surprise me a little bit, but I felt like I handled it pretty well in the situation post-game.
“I felt threatened in the situation. The abuse that came my way, I felt threatened. I can’t repeat it (what was said) on the microphone here.
“I expressed exactly that, the language and the way those two players — James and Tom — came at me, I felt threatened and intimidated in that situation.
“I spoke to (umpires boss) Steve McBurney the day after and gave my view on the situation and how I felt and what occurred.
“He then transferred that to ‘Swanny’ (AFL footy operations boss Greg Swann) and the MRO to eventually come up with the decision around the fines.”
Meyer also revealed Barrass reached out to him to apologise for the incident, which only served to rile up the Hawthorn crowd.
Missiles were thrown onto the field, some of which targeted the umpires as they made their exit.
“I haven’t heard from James, no, I have heard from Tom, yes,” Meyer added.
“Tom contacted Steve McBurney to ask to speak to me and apologise. We teed up a time yesterday for us to have a conversation over the phone.”
Originally published as Umpire Hayden Meyer reveals he “felt threatened” by Hawthorn stars as ugly scenes erupted