Moran defends Calombaris as court date over alleged A-League grand final incident looms

HE may be copping a pasting on social media for his brain snap at last week’s A-League Grand Final but George Calombaris has a fan in fellow chef Matt Moran.

Matt Moran (r) says it’s time to give fellow Masterchef judge George Calombaris (second from right) a break.

HE may be copping a pasting on social media for his brain snap at last week’s A-League Grand Final but George Calombaris has a fan in fellow chef Matt Moran who thinks his former MasterChef stablemate deserves a break.

“I feel sorry for the poor fella,” says Moran, who appeared on Ten’s flagship cook-off for three seasons between 2010 and 2013 before jumping ship to Foxtel.

“It had to have been tough for him. You know, he’s the No. 1 ticket holder for the Melbourne Victory. His team just got beaten. He’s minding his own business and some guy starts going him ... I think, leave the poor fella alone.”

Calombaris now has a tense wait to see if a magistrate will be just as sympathetic when he fronts up to the Downing Local Court on June 29.

In crowd footage of the incident, fans at Allianz Stadium are heard baiting the chef, with one heard yelling “pay your staff, you dodgy bastard” — a reference to an internal audit which revealed Calombaris underpaid staff at three of his Melbourne restaurants.

Celebrity chef George Calombaris was escorted from Allianz Stadium following an alleged altercation with a fan.

Calombaris then appears to charge the man and shoves him in the chest before walking away as police approach.

If found guilty the Greek celebrity chef faces penalties including a maximum two-year prison term or fine.