Eddie McGuire says escalating tensions could spark riot

EDDIE McGuire believes tensions over the Adam Goodes booing controversy are heading towards a violent conclusion.

ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA - JULY 15: Eddie McGuire President of the Collingwood Football Club leaves after the memorial for Phil Walsh service at the Adelaide Oval on July 15, 2015 in Adelaide, Australia. The Adelaide Crows coach passed away on July 3rd. (Photo by Daniel Kalisz/Getty Images)

COLLINGWOOD president Eddie McGuire has a scary forecast about the direction the Adam Goodes booing controversy is heading in.

The TV and radio personality this morning pleaded for Sydney Swans fans to reconsider plans to hurl eggs at any supporter heard booing at Goodes if and when he returns to play for the Swans, following his decision to take an indefinite break from the game.

A Swans supporter today claimed sections of the cheer squad intend to sneak eggs into the venue of Goodes’ first game back and throw them at booing fans.

McGuire said that act could spark a riot.

“Now you’ve got a situation where the Sydney Swans cheer squad have said they’re going to bring eggs to the game,” McGuire told Triple M today.

“That’ll cause a riot.

A Sydney Swans fan claims members of the cheer squad want to throw eggs at booing fans.

“Once it’s gone too far, once it’s got to a situation where a person is affected by it, well then you go, ‘Hang on, what’s the upside of booing Adam Goodes other than driving the bloke out of the game and now making it hugely uncomfortable for everyone else around there?’”

He said the situation is already out of the AFL’s control and called on fans not to escalate the already volatile situation.

“When all this started, we referred back to history as you should do and either learn from it or suffer because of it, and that is you do not do the interaction with crowds along the way and get yourself caught up in all this sort of stuff and now it’s out of control,” he said.

“It’s out of the hands of the AFL. There is nothing they can do about it now. The Sydney Swans are trying to do the right thing. Everyone is trying to do the right thing, but it’s now becoming a ‘you’re on my side or you’re not on my side’ kind of thing.

Adam Goodes has taken a break from the game.

“People are being called racists who are clearly not racists and other people are being called left-wing, bleeding hearts sort of thing when all you’re doing is showing a bit of empathy.

“There’s an argument on all sides. We could discuss for the next three hours and not get to a conclusion and not get to half of all the threads that are in this.

“There is one big thread that we need to get to and that is to get on and move forward.

“This is a question that doesn’t have an answer as far as I’m concerned. I don’t know, in a lot of ways where we’re heading with it.”

Originally published as Eddie McGuire says escalating tensions could spark riot