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“It’s not on”: Cornes and King react to the McRae-Kingsley bench incident
Andrew Slevison • March 10th, 2025 9:19 am
The AFL has said it’s not on, so it’s not on.
That is Kane Cornes’ reaction to Craig McRae and Adam Kingsley’s exchange on the interchange bench during Sunday’s clash between Collingwood and GWS at ENGIE Stadium.
Magpies coach McRae appeared to reserve some words for Giants tagger Toby Bedford who had given away a 50-metre penalty on Nick Daicos which resulted in a Pies goal.
Kingsley was quick to defend his player and seemingly told McRae to sit down, defusing the situation.
In the post-match after his side’s 52-point loss to the Giants, McRae played it down as “a bit of fun” between the pair who played against each other for many years at Port Adelaide and Brisbane, and also worked together at Richmond in 2019.
“I was having a bit of fun with him (Kingsley), he’s an old mate of mine,” said McRae.
“I was stirring, I just said, ‘We’re coming’, and he just had a bit of fun.
“He’s a bit more fiery than me. I’m a bit more humorous.”
McRae was asked if he was celebrating a 50-metre penalty against Bedford which prompted the incident.
“Oh yeah, I like to celebrate all the little things,” he replied.
“Nah, there was nothing to it. If you want to make it a story, it’s a nothing story.
“We’re old colleagues and I was just having a bit of fun with him.”
The incident was discussed on SEN Breakfast and Cornes believes that if the AFL chose to fine Port coach Ken Hinkley last year for words directed at Jack Ginnivan, then McRae simply must be sanctioned by the league.
“So Bedford drops Daicos, McRae celebrates and shoots some words to the direction of the Giants’ bench,” Cornes said on Fireball.
“Adam Kingsley didn’t look like he was having a bit of fun at all. I would expect that there is a sanction for this because it’s not on and the AFL have said that it’s not on.
“Hinkley was more demonstrative, but it was a much further distance, it wasn’t in play and on the interchange bench. He apologised straight after and didn’t brush it off as a joke.
“I’m not protecting Ken at all. I just think if you’re going to fine Hinkley for doing that, and the AFL are going to say that this is not on, then they have no option other than to fine Craig McRae.
“We’ll wait and see how they deal with it.”
David King doesn’t feel like it’s the biggest deal, however, certainly doesn’t want to see this sort of behaviour creep down to grassroots level.
King: “I’m not sure where I sit with it, I don’t think it’s a big deal, but I understand (the discussion).”
Cornes: “I didn’t think Hinkley was a big deal either, but the AFL does.”
King: “The only one that worries me is the lower level discussion.
“This is ugly at lower levels. If you’ve got benches going back and forth at one another it has the potential to be really nasty.”
He added: “I tell you what, he panicked, Craig, didn’t he?
“He (Kingsley) said, ‘Sit down, Fly’, and he went and sat down.”
