The moment that led to an epic half-time spray from Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell has been revealed, after his stern words to ruckman Lloyd Meek.
Plus, the latest on cost concerns regarding Tasmania’s Macquarie Point Stadium. MORE IN AFL DAILY
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Mitchell responds to locker room spray | 06:58
A rogue Lloyd Meek handball on the cusp of half time during Hawthorn’s Round 7 victory over Gold Coast last weekend has been revealed as the catalyst behind an epic Sam Mitchell spray.
Footage of the Hawks mastermind yelling at his key ruck was shown on Fox Footy’s Super Saturday Live during their main break, as Mitchell addressed the midfield group.
Speaking to Fox Footy’s AFL 360 on Tuesday night, injured Hawks star Will Day recalled how he saw the moment play out back in Melbourne.
“I was sitting at home watching with a few of the other boys, and we saw the spray at half time. We were trying to decipher what it was and who it was about,” Day said.
“I think our mids just had a pretty poor period for a little bit … he got pretty fired up. I thought the boys responded really well, and we got it back on our terms after that.”
Seven’s Kane Cornes elaborated on the incident, pointing towards a handball during red time that kicked it all off.
“Just before half time, they had conceded three goals in a row, and Lloyd Meek does a (handball out of a tackle),” he said on Tuesday night.
“When they’re in red time there is an instruction not to handball the ball backwards because that invites the pressure from the opposition. With 15 seconds to go in the first half, Lloyd Meek grabs it out of the ruck, handballs it back, the turnover (ends in an opposition) goal with four seconds left on the clock.
“His teammates had all told him: ‘that’s not in line with team instructions’ before Sam Mitchell had got to him.
“Mitchell goes to him, gives him a spray, Lloyd Meek goes back and says ‘look we’ve addressed this, we’ve done this, and that led to what we saw, the hug after the game.”
Razor on CONTROVERSIAL umpiring calls | 05:34
‘NO WAY, SORRY’: $3B ‘RUMBLING’ THAT CONTINUES TO HOVER OVER AFL’S 19TH TEAM
Concerns over both the cost and timeliness of Tasmania’s proposed Macquarie Point Stadium continue to linger in the background ahead of the Devils’ 2028 entry into the AFL.
Speaking on Fox Footy’s Midweek Tackle on Tuesday night, host Lauren Wood broke down the damning numbers that continue to worry, on top of an already-tight timeline the league has made clear it must be done by.
“Serious concerns have emerged surrounding the Macquarie Point Stadium in Tasmania. I’ve spoken to a number of people down on the Apple Isle over recent days, including the Honourable Ruth Forrest — an independent MP,” Wood said.
“It emerged in recent days that the tender to build the stadium was down to two firms essentially; one of which involves a Chinese state-owned construction company with an Australian subsidiary.
“Ruth has a number of significant concerns, and she’s not the only one, surrounding the (stadium) vote in particular was that it was going to be built for Australia, by Australians, for Tasmanians … it was not what we were sold in the first place when we were voting.
“The other thing of course is with the ongoing war in Iran and the Middle East conflict, the cost this is going to reach. It’s sitting at about $1.13 billion at the moment. The escalations could potentially come with steel, other supplies and labour … it’s just one to keep on the radar.
“There are some rumblings occurring around this tender process, which won’t be awarded until the end of the war.”
With the current figure of $1.13 billion already not ideal for some, Sydney Swans chairman Andrew Pridham believes that the final cost, inclusive of all internal facilities, could be close to three times that.
“Andrew Pridham believes it could cost $3 billion for the whole lot, which would of course include the high performance centre,” Jon Ralph said.
“There are so many more impediments to just rolling out a nice stadium and everyone’s happy. There’s going to be so many dramas.”
Fellow Herald Sun journalist Scott Gullan added: “The biggest drama is 2031, it needs to be built by then. There is no way, I’m sorry. Brisbane Olympics have got to get theirs happening. This stadium won’t be ready; the ripple effect is the drafting and luring of players.”