Footy star in fiery exchange with AFLW skipper

Two AFL stars had a brief, yet bitter feud on Twitter on Sunday afternoon.

Collingwood AFLW captain Stephanie Chiocci and Western Bulldogs star Taylor Duryea had evidently both settled in for what became a thrilling battle between the winless Carlton and surging Gold Coast Suns.

The two teams went the distance, with a late snap from Suns young guns Jack Bowes in the dying seconds of the game breaking Carlton hearts.

The moment which left Chiocci and Duryea at odds though, came less than a minute earlier in the game, when Carlton rising star Paddy Dow made a crucial error with less than 40 seconds to play.

“Paddy Dow handballing inside to a teammate under the pump when he had runners on the outside … 40 seconds to go … my goodness gracious me,” Chiocci wrote in a since-deleted tweet.

The Collingwood captain was challenged by fans, insisting she was simply “stating the facts” before Duryea weighed in.

The former Hawthorn dual-premiership player didn’t hold back in replying to Chiocci, saying it was unhelpful for players to criticise others.

“Steph the last thing a young player (AFL or AFLW) needs is other players “stating the facts” on Twitter” he wrote.

Controversy as Suns ‘exploit’ rule

Confusion erupted in Gold Coast’s thrilling last-gasp win over Carlton, with many believing the Suns deliberately flouted the new 6-6-6 rule in the final seconds.

Jack Bowes’ last-minute snap pinched a two-point victory for Gold Coast and cruelly kept Carlton winless on Sunday.

Bowes put the Suns in front with just 10 seconds to play, but controversy erupted from the ensuing centre bounce when Gold Coast fell foul of the 6-6-6 rule.

Many believed Carlton should have been awarded what could have been a match-changing free kick, but umpires simply dished out a warning.

However in bizarre scenes, the Suns actually appeared to have an extra man in their own forward 50, rather than up back defending their lead like many thought.