Adelaide: Collingwood champion Scott Pendlebury says Isaac Koener’s booing from the Adelaide Oval crowd on Thursday night says more about his teammate than it does about the fans.
Playing his 150th game, Quaynor was booed by large sections of the 50,109-strong crowd for each of his 20 disposals as the Magpies turned a 27-point first-half deficit into a powerful 34-point win over Adelaide.
Quinor was also targeted by Crows supporters in last year’s qualifying final, a fortnight after he was subjected to homophobic abuse by Adelaide star Isaac Rankin.
“I definitely felt it at the start of the game,” said Pendlebury, who had 29 disposals, six clearances and kicked a momentum-turning goal late in the second quarter.
“That probably says more about the crowd than it does about Isaac.
“Things happen all the time in footy, but I think as supporters across the board, and the league in general, we just have to get better.”
Pendlebury does not believe Quaynor was bothered by the hostile reception, but said he and his Magpies teammates will rally around Gunner Beckman.
“He’ll be fine,” said Pendlebury.
“Isaac probably knew it was coming. We’re all big boys and we’re going to go around Isaac, but he’ll be fine.”
Victorious Collingwood coach Craig McRae brought his daughter Charlie to the post-match press conference. He used the opportunity to talk about the values he instilled in his family around not encouraging sports people while questioning why Koener was being treated as if he had done something wrong.
“My little daughter is in the room — she’s 10,” McRae said.
“I teach him. [that] We don’t, that’s all I can control.
“It’s an interesting narrative as to why they would please him.
“My understanding is that he was a homophobic scumbag, and he’s being bullied for it? It’s an interesting world we live in.”
Unhappy with the behavior of these fans, McRae also made it clear that he bore no ill will to Rankin, whom he sought out after the final siren.
“I actually grabbed Isaac Rankine at the end of the game and said, ‘We’ve got a lot of respect for you, young man,'” McRae revealed.
“People are allowed to make mistakes – they are. We’re all human.
“We’ve got a lot of respect for him – he’s a sensational player.
“I don’t know him as a person, but the way he stood up and overcame what he had. [he] Took it on the shoulders – there’s something to be said for that.
“That’s life, isn’t it? Make a mistake, fix it and improve yourself.
“We were happy with our Isaac’s game tonight.
“We’ll get our arms around him [Quaynor] And show him how much we love him.”
Adelaide coach Matthew Nix pleaded with Crows fans during the week to respect Koener. The cries of his arms fell on deaf ears.
“Sports is a passionate game and sometimes we lose our way a little bit,” Nicks said.
“With the background and background leading up to this game, it’s not ideal the way tonight played out.”
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