Shane Mumford says he regrets sledging Lance Franklin about his mental health issues
SHANE Mumford, Will Minson, Heath Shaw and Sam Mitchell are just some of the players who have found themselves in hot water for sledging in the past.
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GREATER Western Sydney ruckman Shane Mumford says he regrets sledging Lance Franklin about his mental health issues.
Sledging is back on the agenda after Carlton captain Marc Murphy was clearly upset by verbal abuse directed at him by St Kilda players on Sunday.
While the AFL has clear rules that place any comments about race, sexuality or religion strictly off-limits, there are still some major grey areas.
The sledges towards Murphy were said to be very personal and related to his family.
While some fans and commentators argue what is said on the field should stay on the field, there have been incidents in the past that have clearly crossed the line.
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SHANE MUMFORD TO LANCE FRANKLIN
Mumford and Franklin were involved in the nasty exchange during last year’s qualifying final between the Giants and Swans.
The Giants ruckman admitted to club officials that he sledged Franklin, saying words to the effect of “good to see you’re not on holidays this year.”
A year earlier, Franklin had missed Sydney’s finals campaign to take time away from football to deal with mental health issues.
Mumford contacted Franklin in the days after to apologise.
“Heat of the moment you get a bit worked up and say things you would like to take back which was obviously the case with me last year,” Mumford said on Triple M.
“In the moment, you say it and you think back at yourself and think I probably shouldn’t have done it.
“I spoke with Buddy in the next couple of days and apologised and he accepted the apology. We moved on pretty quickly.”
“You’ve just got to hold back and try and keep your cool in the moment as much as possible,” he said.
WILL MINSON TO KANE CORNES
Former Western Bulldogs ruckman Will Minson attempted to apologise for an on-field sledge directed at Kane Cornes.
During the 2008 season Cornes’ one-year-old son was fighting for his life in hospital after being born with a rare heart defect.
In Round 14, Port played the Western Bulldogs in Darwin where Minson turned to Cornes and said: “Shouldn’t you be home with your dying son?”
Cornes told Mike Sheahan on Fox Footy’s Open Mike he was blown away by the sledge.
“I played with his (Minson’s) brother, Hugh, and I think their father had passed away so I said, ‘That’s a really strange thing to say. I know what you’ve been through’.
Minson attempted to call Cornes after the game to apologise but Cornes refused to answer.
WILL MINSON TO DANYLE PEARCE
Four years later Minson was handed a one-match suspension by the Western Bulldogs for an insulting sledge to then Port Adelaide player Danyle Pearce.
The incident left Pearce and his teammates outraged.
Although neither player has ever revealed exactly what was said, the sledge was related to Pearce’s mother.
In a press conference at the time, Minson choked up and was unable to answer questions at one stage when asked about his reputation.
“That (stigma) is certainly what I’m going to be dealing with for the rest of my life and it’s important I learn from this experience and I intend to do so,’’ he said.
DES HEADLAND AND ADAM SELWOOD
Former Eagle Adam Selwood was eventually cleared by the AFL tribunal for using insulting language towards Fremantle’s Des Headland.
In a two-hour hearing, the two players gave differing accounts of a nasty on-field incident which led to Headland punching and wrestling Selwood in 2007.
Selwood was alleged to have made comments about Headland’s daughter, a claim he denied.
SAM MITCHELL TO ESSENDON
Sam Mitchell had no issues getting stuck into some of his Essendon opponents during the club’s drugs saga.
The veteran incited Bombers players after a Matt Suckling goal at the MCG in 2015.
Mitchell was in a heated exchange with Essendon defender Michael Hibberd, one of the 34 players sweating on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, when he pretended to jab a needle into his arm.
Mitchell later apologised in a post-match interview, conceding the incident was “not appropriate.”
HEATH SHAW IN HOT WATER
Heath Shaw apologised to Sydney’s Tom Papley earlier this year for calling him a “f---ing retard”.
Shaw’s words were clearly heard on the television coverage when they were picked up by sound-effect microphones.
“Yes, I am a fiery person who plays with a lot of passion and emotion, but that is no excuse for my actions last night,” Shaw said.
“There is no place for comments of that nature on or off the football ground. It was an offensive remark that I should never have made.”
Originally published as Shane Mumford says he regrets sledging Lance Franklin about his mental health issues
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