Anthony Stevens breaks silence over Wayne Carey’s affair with ex-wife Kelli

FORMER North Melbourne star Anthony Stevens has ­revealed Wayne Carey has never apologised to him for the 2002 extramarital affair with then-wife Kelli.

MAY 2, 2003: Wayne Carey (L) and Anthony Stevens clash during North Melbourne Kangaroos v Adelaide Crows at the Telstra Dome in Melbourne, 02/05/03. Pic George Sal. Australian Rules

FORMER North Melbourne star Anthony Stevens has ­revealed Wayne Carey has never apologised to him for the extramarital affair with his then-wife, Kelli, that rocked the football world in 2002.

Speaking for the first time about one of the AFL’s most sordid scandals, Stevens detailed his suspicions leading up to the discovery of the affair 13 years ago and the impact it had on his life, and those of his two children.

Stevens broke his silence for an episode of Open Mike with Mike Sheahan, which will air on Fox Footy at 9.30pm tomorrow, and says it is only now that he can speak about the events that changed his life.

The former champ also said:

HE never wants anything to do with Carey, but has a cordial relationship with his ex-wife for the sake of their two kids;

HE is still concerned when he sees people stroking Carey’s ego because it may allow his former teammate to believe he is “invincible” again;

THE culpability for the affair was solely with Carey and Kelli, saying he felt sorry for Carey’s then-wife Sally;

Anthony Stevens with then-wife Kelli at Wayne Carey’s wedding reception in 2001.

Wayne Carey and Anthony Stevens clash during a Crows match against the Kangaroos after the affair was revealed.

THE media storm that erupted after the news broke meant he and Kelli never had the chance to work on repairing their marriage, though they tried unsuccessfully for a time;

HE had never read Carey’s tell-all book, The Truth Hurts, because he believed there was a “fair bit of exaggeration in it”; and

GLENN Archer showed the true meaning of loyalty by barely leaving his side for almost a month after the incident to ensure he was fine.

Stevens said he remained hurt by the betrayal, but bemused Carey never said sorry.

“It’s the one thing he has never done,” Stevens said.

“He has never actually gone out of his way to say sorry — for whatever reason.”

So would Stevens accept an apology now?

“No, probably not. I’m still hurt from it, but I have moved on now,” he said.

Wayne Carey and Anthony Stevens in 1996, before their bitter feud.

Stevens, now 44, running his own business and living in Bendigo, said he had his suspicions “something was going on” between Kelli and Carey well before the night it was revealed at Archer’s home.

“I had known for a while, but until you can actually catch the individuals, it is pretty big speculation to query someone about that,” he said.

“In the end, I was the one that actually caught the two of them that night.”

Asked if Carey’s description of Stevens as having looked as if he had been “stabbed in the heart” after the affair was exposed was accurate, he said: “That’s very close to the truth. Loyalty is a huge factor in life, whether it is going into a marriage, or having mates, or playing at a football club.”

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