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Kyle Langford exchange with Collingwood fan leaves AFL world divided

The Essendon player had a contentious run-in with a spectator during the Anzac Day clash.

sam goodwin
Sports Editor
·4-min read
Kyle Langford, pictured here with the perfect response to an unruly Collingwood fan.
Kyle Langford had the perfect response to an unruly Collingwood fan. Image: Channel 7

One unruly Collingwood fan threatened to steal the limelight in a classic Anzac Day clash on Tuesday after a fiery exchange with Essendon forward Kyle Langford. The spectator found himself with the ball after Langford was awarded a free kick in the first quarter, and held it out as if to offer it to the Bombers player.

But just before Langford's hand touched the ball, the fan threw it away to the ground so Langford had to pick it up. The fan then gave Langford the universal symbol of 'up yours' as the Bombers player walked away.

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But Langford would get the last laugh after slotting the goal, pointing to the fan with a huge grin on his face. “He turns to the bloke who wouldn’t give him the ball and says ‘have some of that’," James Brayshaw said in commentary for Channel 7. Brian Taylor added: “And a nice civilised manner he did it in as well.”

The exchange left fans and commentators heavily divided, with many seeing it as a funny moment between a diehard fan and a rival player. However others felt the Collingwood fan went too far and thought he should have shown some respect.

Rudi Edsall of Triple M wrote on social media: “That was great gear from all involved. Classic Anzac Day moment.

The Collingwood fan, pictured here giving Kyle Langford a piece of his mind.
The Collingwood fan gave Kyle Langford a piece of his mind. Image: Channel 7

Football commentator Jordan Kounelis tweeted: “Brilliant s***housery from Langford and that fan. 1-1 draw”. However others weren't as impressed, with commentator Darren Parkin labelling the spectator a "d***head."

Collingwood pull off extraordinary comeback on Anzac Day

Collingwood went on to produce a stunning last-quarter surge to stun Essendon by 13 points in front of a record Anzac Day crowd at the MCG. The match lived up to the immense hype as Magpies youngster Nick Daicos put in a famous performance to lead his team to their fifth victory of 2023.

Trailing by 28 points at three-quarter-time, the Magpies stormed home with seven goals to none in the final term to steal victory 13.12 (90) to 11.11 (77). The crowd of 95,179 eclipsed the previous record of 94,825 set during the first Anzac Day blockbuster between Collingwood and Essendon in 1995.

Daicos finished with 40 possessions and kicked two vital goals in the last quarter that earned him his first Anzac Day Medal at age 20.

In just his second season, last year's Rising Star winner has been prolific in almost every game he has played. His Anzac Day display has seen him surge into the favouritism for the Brownlow Medal.

Essendon turned a two-point half-time deficit into a 28-point advantage by the final change after surging with 6.3 to 1.3 in the third. But exhilarating comebacks have been a trademark ofor Collingwood since Craig McRae took over as coach ahead of the 2022 season.

"I don't know where, but it's up there," McRae said when asked where the win ranked in his career. "I've got to say to the record crowd, thank you to the Collingwood supporters ... you can just see the players growing in confidence from the energy from the crowd.

"We have this thing that we want to play the minutes, so you've got to play the minutes to beat us and we start the game with that as a headline."

with AAP

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