Taunt against Blues lands Tiger in hot water
RICHMOND forward Shai Bolton has found himself in hot water with his teammates and coach after an unusual taunting incident that went against the Tigers’ team ethos.
Bolton was in space running into an open goal early in the final quarter at the MCG on Thursday night when he held out the ball with his left hand and poked out his tongue in the direction of chasing Carlton defender Sam Docherty.
Richmond co-captain Toby Nankervis said his teammate had “overstepped the mark” and the incident went against the Tigers’ desire to be a “really humble football club that plays footy in the right way”.
Coach Damien Hardwick backed the sentiment, labelling Bolton’s actions a “mistake”. “It’s not us,” Hardwick said. “It’s not what we’re about and he’ll be regretful, no question.
“He’ll be accountable and responsible for it and it’s certainly not part of who he is and who we are. So we’re disappointed, but we’ll work our way through it and support him and he’ll learn some lessons from it.
“It’s not a great look. “It’s not what we stand for.” Hardwick said frustration was no excuse for the incident.
“One of the things we always want to do is honour our competition,” he said.
The Tigers scored a 15-point win over the Blues in what was their sixth victory in seven matches. However, the triumph was soured by a recurrent hamstring injury for swingman Noah Balta.
Balta left the field clutching his right hamstring in the final quarter, having suffered an injury to the same hamstring only three games ago, against Hawthorn in round 9.
“It’s always a concern when a player reinjures,” Hardwick said. “The significance will be multiplied because it’s a recurrence. So it’s disappointing.”