Collingwood star Brayden Maynard has spoken publicly for the first time since his incident with Melbourne’s Angus Brayshaw.
Maynard was at the centre of the AFL spotlight all week long after being sent directly to the Tribunal following his hit on Brayshaw in the opening quarter of the qualifying final clash.
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Brayshaw was left unconscious and took no further part in the match, with his future in the game potentially up in the air.
Maynard faced the AFL Tribunal where after a lengthy hearing he was cleared of any wrongdoing, freeing him to take part in Collingwood’s preliminary final.
On Friday, the Pies defender fronted the media, where he addressed the issue for the first time.
“I’m glad it’s all done, it’s been a s**tshow this past week so just glad everything is done,” he said.
“Not going to lie it’s been a very big week, especially mentally. I don’t want to touch on it too much but I had a few moments there where I wasn’t going great but my sole focus has been on Angus and his family.
“Some of the stuff, I try my best to stay off of the media and out of it but it’s hard when there is a lot going on.
“I’ve tried my best to just move on and I’m glad it’s done.
“I’ve been really close with Angus for a while, I’ve checked up on him a couple of times. I love the guy like I said and it’s been pretty full on. I’m just glad to put it to bed and off to the side now.”
A visit to Brayshaw throughout the week reportedly ruffled some Melbourne players feathers, Maynard said he was there only to check on his mate.
“I just wanted to check on his wellbeing, his welfare and on Danielle (Frawley, Angus’ fiancee) as well although she wasn’t there,” he said.
“My love and my support and my genuine care is for Angus’ wellbeing and his families.
“I don’t know why or how some of the stories have come out, but when I saw some of them I thought what the hell is that.
“I know what I did is right and just the media all around it I’ve just tried to block it out which I’ve been able to do, but it does get to a stage where it does take a toll and I’ve done my best to forget about it.”
While the AFL ultimately elected not to appeal the Tribunal’s decision, they did flag a review of players’ duty of care towards their opponents will take place before the 2024 season.
A league statement flagged a review of how incidents like Maynard’s attempted smother would be policed heading into next season.
“The health and safety of players in our game will always be the AFL’s priority and regardless of the tribunal outcome this incident will be subject to close examination at the end of the season,” the statement read.
AFL football boss Laura Kane said if rules were tweaked around players’ duty of care over the off-season, it would not be simply to address the specific scenario involving Maynard and Brayshaw.
“We review all rules and regulations, so the process that we go through at the end of each season is not contained to one incident, necessarily,” she said.