Media Street: TV and radio personality Andy Maher involved in heated confrontation with footy fan at MCG

Front Bar co-host Andy Maher was accosted by a drunken fan at Carlton’s win over Melbourne on Saturday, now he’s called out the MCC members and the drunken fans at the footy.

SEN host Andy Maher says there are too many “blokes going to the footy getting drunk” after he was at the centre of an alcohol-fuelled confrontation with a fan on Saturday night.

Security ejected the man who got in the face of Maher while he was sitting in the Olympic Stand at the MCG with his three daughters watching his beloved Carlton play Melbourne.

The Front Bar co-host said it wasn’t the first time he’d been close to incidents with drunken fans while at the footy with his family.

“There’s too many blokes going and getting (drunk) at the footy these days. There’s too much of it,” Maher said.

“There’s too many blokes going to the footy – go to the footy and having a few beers, by all means – but why do so many people have to go to the footy and get three sheets to the breeze? Why does that happen?

SEN radio host Andy Maher. Photo by Michael Klein

“Why can’t you just go to the footy and have a couple of beers? Why do you have to come along and get yourself munted and then make a fool of yourself and ruin everyone else’s experience.”

Maher and his daughters had earlier taken part in Carlton’s ‘Race for Respect’, a run on the MCG at quarter-time as part of the club’s Respects Game.

He said they were “freaked” out initially in the incident which occurred in the dying minutes of the game with comedian Dave Hughes also witnessing the unruly behaviour.

“It was the last three minutes of the game and I noticed there were two blokes who were pretty pissed,” Maher said.

“Dave Hughes was sitting four rows behind me and my attention was caught by Hughesy saying, ‘You can’t say that to the old bloke, you’ve crossed the line, take it back, apologise’.

“Then this bloke looked up at me and saw me sitting there and I said, ‘Mate, just shoosh’. That was it.

“Then he came over to me and said, ‘Andrew Maher, I know you. You will listen to me’. He was pissed and wouldn’t sit down so then he got chucked out.

Andy Maher's incident with footy fan

“They (his daughter) were a bit freaked out to be honest and then they realised everything was OK.

“As it was happening I was making sure they were Ok, keeping an eye on him to make sure he didn’t decide to do anything silly.

Maher said some of the previous incidents had happened in the exclusive MCC members area.

The MCC confirmed the man had been evicted immediately following the incident but said no further action would be taken against him.

“The MCC is aware of the incident that occurred in the Olympic Stand on Saturday night,” a club spokesperson said.

“We are committed to upholding a high standard of safety and security at the MCG, and the normal process was followed during this incident where the patron in question was escorted from the stadium.”

MCC members have been allowed to take drinks to their seats since crowds returned after the pandemic, and a 2023 members’ survey found that 65 per cent of members were happy with being able to consume alcohol in their seats.

Alcohol-free bays remain on the first, second and fourth levels in the members’ reserve.

The MCC will hold a vote on a number of proposed rule changes at its annual meeting in August in a bid to take a harder line on poor behaviour by its members.

Members can currently only face sanctions including expulsion if they are found to have “wilfully infringed” any of the club’s rules, but under the proposed changes members could face penalties for misconduct simply if they have “breached” the rules.

The proposed rules were the outcome of a “comprehensive review” of the club’s laws which president Fred Oldfield said had spanned more than five years.

“These updates strengthen member discipline and integrity expectations around the use of member cards and the overall member misconduct process,” an MCC spokesperson said earlier this month.

Originally published as Media Street: TV and radio personality Andy Maher involved in heated confrontation with footy fan at MCG