GREATER Western Sydney has slammed suggestions it strategically uses runner Nick Maxwell as a '19th man' in games, saying recent commentary over Maxwell's role had unfairly disparaged him and the club.
In the wake of the Giants' one-point loss to Carlton at Etihad Stadium on Sunday:
- Channel Nine highlighted Maxwell's positioning at Carlton kick-ins, with footage showing the former Collingwood captain placed himself along the edge of the centre square at eight of the Blues' 11 kick-ins.
- SEN commentator Danny Frawley called for the AFL to crack down on runners spending too much time on the ground, saying Maxwell coached GWS players and blocked space as a '19th man' at opposition kick-ins.
- Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley suggested some clubs strategically placed runners in parts of the ground at stages during games.
GWS football manager Wayne Campbell told AFL.com.au on Wednesday such commentary was "extremely uneducated".
"The reason Nick was standing there was because in the JLT series an AFL match-day manager told him it was the best spot to stand for kick-ins because the ball generally doesn't go there.
"If you stand on the 45 (degree angle) that's generally where the ball goes, if you go outside the boundary line you get cleaned up by the boundary umpire, so he was told go there," Campbell said.
"The AFL have sent us a letter saying they now want him to stand back from the boundary line (at kick-ins), which is perfectly fine.
"But to insinuate that we've put him [along the centre square] is wrong, it's not a tactic by any means. There was no instruction by the club for him to be filling a gap or anything like that. In fact, we didn't know he stood there until the whole thing has blown up.
"We think most of the commentary around this has been very, very unfair on Nick, and the club by extension. It's inferring we're cheating, which is grossly unfair.
"Nick is an outstanding person with a very, very solid reputation over a long period of time and it's a poor reflection on us as well. It's all been pretty disappointing."
AFL.com.au reported on Tuesday the League had launched an investigation into Maxwell's performance in last Sunday's game after the umpires' post-match notes mentioned the amount of time the Giants runner had spent on the ground.
Campbell confirmed the club had subsequently received correspondence from the AFL, which, in addition to addressing Maxwell's positioning at kick-ins, had:
- Identified four instances in last Sunday's game where Maxwell appeared to be coaching players on the ground as opposed to carrying out the runner's role of delivering messages from the coach.
- Reiterated the guideline that runners should come on the ground to deliver messages from the coach and then come straight off.
Campbell said the Giants had yet to watch the video of Maxwell's alleged coaching given the club's staff were on leave during this week's bye, but would do so early next week and, if necessary, take action to ensure Maxwell didn't coach on the ground again.
The Giants footy boss also noted the AFL had not raised any specific concerns that Maxwell was spending too long on the ground as a runner.
"On the weekend, he had to deliver multiple messages. It might have been to bring a forward off, tell the mids to swap and bring a defender off," Campbell said.
"Rather than delivering one message and coming back off and going out and delivering the next one, he's delivered them all at once. That's a more efficient use of time, I would have thought."
An AFL spokesman said the League had given GWS "a first and final warning" that Maxwell had to perform his role and go straight on and off with messages.
