It sounds like cooler heads have prevailed at the Melbourne Football Club, with teammates Max Gawn and Steven May reportedly burying the hatchet following their fiery on-field clash on the King’s Birthday.
Tempers flared at full time during Monday’s one-point loss to Collingwood, as stories began to circulate post-game that things weren’t quite right (again) behind the scenes at the Demons after May exchanged words with his captain amid some push and shove.
Simon Goodwin fronted the press on Friday to discuss the Dees’ upcoming trip to face Port Adelaide on Sunday, before the discussion quickly turned to whether he’d addressed both players privately.
"They know they didn't quite get it right on the day, but they're incredibly close," Goodwin told reporters.
"It says a lot about our footy club, about where we're at and where we're going."
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"They had a chat themselves, but I've also sat them down and I've also addressed it with the group.”
Goodwin is no stranger to May’s antics, having weathered his drunken, public altercation with another teammate, Jake Melksham, during the 2022 season.
Gawn, who was partly responsible for the Round 13 loss when his intended torpedo with seconds remaining found the waiting arms of a Collingwood player, said earlier in the week that he’d spoken to May through text and that it was important to defend him.
“I think it says (a bit about) both of us; we were both extremely disappointed in that last 30 seconds. I thought my reaction was really poor,” Gawn told Triple M.
While Gawn couldn’t recall exactly what was said, the skipper wore the blame, saying he was sick of losing to Collingwood and that May was being unfairly judged by fans and those in the media.
“I’m here to defend Steven. He’s copped it a little bit in the media over the last 24 hours. If he had his time again, he might not do it on the final siren with a camera there.”
With time of the essence, the Dees head into Sunday’s game at Adelaide Oval as slight outsiders against a Port side that has equal aspirations to get its season back on track following a 16-point win over GWS in Canberra last week.
"We need to start getting some positive results and that's what we're going after,” Goodwin finished by saying. "We address things and we keep going forward."