‘I saw one go straight past me:’ Hawks star accuses Swans fans of throwing containers of soft drink
Hawthorn livewire Nick Watson has accused Sydney supporters of throwing a full soft drink container at him in a heated finish to their clash at the MCG.
Watson put the finishing touch on the Hawks’ hard-fought 14.15 (99) to 13.4 (82) win on Thursday night with a goal after the siren.
He was then involved in an animated exchange with fans in the section of the ground occupied by the Swans’ cheer squad.
“They were throwing Coke Zero cans out there … I saw one just go straight past me,” Watson told Nova on Friday.
“I dunno what happened with the guy but … it just landed right next to us.
“Lucky it didn’t hit any players, but yeah, a few players saw it.
“I mean, I was giving them heaps, but I’m not sure a Coke Zero bottle to the face in return would’ve been nice.”
A cult hero for Hawks supporters as well as one of the league’s renowned agitators, Watson regularly engages with fans on the other side of the fence.
“It’s good for the game. I feel like people like it,” he said.
“Sometimes in a close game like that it’s a bit of fun.”
Watson shook off heavy knocks to his hip and head in the third quarter, playing a key role as Hawthorn overran Sydney with 5.5 to 1.1 in the final term.
Both sides are among the 10 teams facing an early-season bye after featuring in Opening Round this month.
The Hawks have an 18-day break before their next outing, in the traditional Easter Monday clash with Geelong.
“We’ll not say it’s a disadvantage because we don’t want to have that mentality,” Watson said.
“But people can lose momentum, which is annoying. It’s so weird having a bye this early.
“I liked it [Opening Round] because we played in it, but I’m not fussed if it goes out of the game either.”