Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick has brushed off an altercation between star recruit Christian Petracca and young gun Leo Lombard during Saturday’s loss to Carlton.
Premiership favourites early in the season after a superb start in March, the Suns’ 13-point defeat to Carlton at Marvel Stadium on Saturday has virtually eliminated them from the wildcard race.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Lombard claps back at Petracca
Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today
The Suns have now suffered nine straight losses, which Hardwick has declared the most important part in the club’s history.
But while the big picture is bleak, there was also worrying signs on the field with Lombard and Petracca involved in a fiery exchange during the final term.
Trailing by 12 points with seven minutes remaining, Lombard and Petracca both hunted a loose ball in the forward line with the youngster ultimately winning possession before being caught holding the ball.
Petracca then had a few choice words to the 19-year-old, which he didn’t appreciate.
You don’t have to be a lip reader to decipher the two words Lombard said back to the Norm Smith medallist with the teenager appearing to say “f**k you”.
Petracca could be seen talking and gesturing to the Lombard, who just ignored the premiership player.
Hardwick was asked about the incident post-match, but didn’t appear to have seen it.
“The game requires feedback, how you respond to feedback is something Leo as a young player, will get better at. I’m not privy to the conversation, we’ll talk about it during the week, but it happens 1000 times over the course of the weekend,” he said.
Hardwick labelled the spirit in the group as “strong as ever” and insisted the players hadn’t “dropped their bundle”.
“These nine games might be the most important in our club’s history,” he said.
“People sit there and go, ‘what are you talking about?’.
“Well, I’ve been in situations before where situations like this have occurred, and you get the greatest growth from your darkest times.
“We’re learning things along the way … success isn’t linear, but it might be the thing that actually sparks this into something pretty special.”
Hardwick admitted he could draw parallels between this year and Richmond’s infamous 2016 campaign, before he coached the Tigers to three premierships in four seasons.
“For whatever reason, we’re not playing as well as we’d like,” Hardwick said.
“We’re not quite where we need to be, but we’re not as bad as what the record would suggest.
“What we’ve got to do is keep turning it up, keep getting to work, keep believing in what we’re doing, and keep pushing that barrel up the hill.”
North Melbourne great David King said the Suns need to get to the “core of these problems”.
“Damien Hardwick will say that happens 100 times a game — and maybe it does, but not to that level,” he said on Fox Footy.
“Not a senior player chasing back in and barking back in while a young player’s on the ground.
“I understand feedback can be harsh and severe … but not a senior core 30-year-old to a 19-year-old, 20-gamer.”
— With AAP
