Stevens, Carey in heated exchange

WAYNE Carey and Anthony Stevens had a verbal stoush at a premiership reunion celebration on Saturday night, but sources denied there was any potential of violence.

The conversation came almost 20 years after it was revealed Carey had an affair with Stevens’s former wife, Kellie, in 2002.

It’s understood the conversation centred on Stevens’s mental health, which included Carey (pictured) talking about dealing with his own mental demons resulting from the affair scandal.

The conversation was broached first by Carey.

Sources denied there was a near physical altercation that needed to be stopped by premiership teammates at the Yarraville Railway Hotel.

It’s understood that after words were said, they moved on and shared a beer together.

The players had gathered on Saturday night to celebrate the 1996 premiership. It’s not known if the incident was the reason why Stevens did not appear at the cavalcade of players ahead of Sunday’s game against Sydney.

Stevens, now a club director, also was not in the team photo taken on the ground.

The club said Stevens, who was interstate on Monday, was unable to attend on Sunday because he was ill.

Carey was in the photo holding the 1996 premiership cup with former coach Denis Pagan.

The scandal, which rocked the Kangaroos and forced Carey to quit the club, returned to the public eye in February this year when Carey spoke of the affair on SAS: Australia, which screened on Channel 7.

Carey called the affair the “biggest regret of his adult life”.

“One of the biggest stories was when I slept with a teammate’s wife,” Carey said on the show.

“It’s haunted me for over 20 years.

“I was in self-destruction mode and I guess my life started to unravel.”