Mac Andrew vs. Riley Thilthorpe clash: Gold Coast Suns back key defender in for wearing his ‘heart on his sleeve’

Mac Andrew and Riley Thilthorpe clashed all day, with the Sun having the last laugh – and letting his rival know about it. But Thilthorpe will ‘keep it in his memory bank’ for the next time.

Mac Andrew’s Gold Coast teammates have leapt to the defence of the key defender after his much-scrutinised post-siren coming together with Crows forward Riley Thilthorpe on Saturday.

Andrew and Thilthorpe exchanged words and entered a push-and-shove in the dying stages of the Suns’ controversial one-point victory at People First Stadium that was marred by a non-call to Izak Rankine which the AFL later conceded should have been paid.

After the siren Andrew approached Thilthorpe to shake his hand – a gesture not accepted by the Adelaide star given their earlier exchanges.

That led to the already-infamous image of Andrew giving a thumbs up to the face of Thilthorpe.

The Crows’ key forward was one of the best on ground on Saturday, booting five goals to almost drag his side over the line.

Mac Andrew and Riley Thilthorpe clash

But it was Andrew who got the final say, with a telling spoil in the final moments to deny Thilthorpe a potential matchwinning shot on goal.

Their exchange has divided opinion among fans and pundits but Andrew’s teammates say his actions are part of the reason why he is such a beloved member of the Suns.

“Personally I didn’t mind it,” Suns midfielder Sam Flanders said.

“We obviously don’t want to be robots.

“Mac wears his heart on his sleeve. For him to go out and do that – he backs up it with his performance – and he brings such a unique display of skills into our back unit, so if he does a little bit of that we don’t mind it. I think it is great for the game.”

Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick has been big on the Suns establishing an “identity” this season, which was debuted for the round one trip to Perth to face the Eagles when the entire team wore Detroit Pistons shirts.

It was a call back to the “Bad Boys” Pistons team of the late 1980s and early 1990s, known for their grit and aggressive play.

“Grit is one of our key words we want to live by and obviously Mac is showing grit in different ways to others,” Flanders said.

“To go along with the Bad Boys, that is what they used to do back in the day, so we are trying to bring as much of that to life as possible.”

“We love Mac. He is a very competitive player and you can see how passionate he is, that is what we love about him,” defender Bodhi Uwland added.

Mac Andrew and Riley Thilthorpe clash on Saturday. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty Images.

“I think the way he sets the standard in terms of his passion and competitiveness, it drives everyone else around him.

“He is a very competitive player and one of my favourite teammates to play with.”

When asked about the incident on Monday, Crows key forward Darcy Fogarty suggested Thilthorpe “might keep that in the back of his mind” for the next time the two sides play each other.

“That one might be kept in the memory bank by the big ‘Thilth’,” Fogarty said.

“It is a competitive game, it was hot so people were knackered and it went down to the final minute.

“People’s emotions run high and it might have gotten away from him (Andrew) a little bit, but we carried on a bit at the end as well.

“We want to be better than that and be humble in victory and defeat, but things happen.”

Midfielder Alex Neal-Bullen said he was “so proud” of how Thilthorpe carried himself in those moments.

“As a footy club we are really proud as to how Riley handled himself when the competitiveness was at its highest at the end of the game there,” he said.

“I can’t comment on another player at another club (Andrew) but I am so proud of how Riley handled himself.”