Beloved Carlton icon Brendan Fevola switched allegiances for a day, and he “absolutely loved it” — potentially offering a glimpse into the future for the now-media personality.
Ahead of a crunch AFLW clash against arch-rivals Carlton this weekend, 187-game Blues forward Fevola played the surprising role of Collingwood assistant coach during Thursday’s training session at Victoria Park.
Fevola initially made the appearance as a “punishment” after recently incorrectly speculating that chief executive Craig Kelly would resign from his Pies post, but he ultimately came to thoroughly enjoy the experience — and was left wanting more.
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“I had to go down and train with the girls at the AIA Centre, and it’s an amazing establishment … everything is black and white! I’m talking the chairs, the walls, it’s just Collingwood everything,” Fevola told The Fox’s Fifi, Fev & Nick.
“I felt quite sick, let’s be honest.”
But while Fevola made light of the longstanding Carlton-Collingwood rivalry, there was no joking about his enjoyment of the experience: “I know Craig Kelly did it as a punishment, but I absolutely loved it.”
A mic’d up ‘Fev’ was spent by the end of the session.
“Those 48 beers I had yesterday are starting to come up a little bit,” he joked, breathing heavily into the mic.
“I’ve been subbed out, I think — I’ve got a bib on. I’m knackered.”
Seven-time Blues leading goalkicker Fevola referred to himself as the Magpies’ “good luck charm” after the session — and they need one, as Collingwood currently sits dead-last on the AFLW ladder with just one win from nine games.
The Blues, meantime, have won just three of nine games themselves this season, but the black and white will enter as underdogs when the sides meet at Victoria Park this Sunday afternoon.
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Fevola’s coaching experience evidently woke a hunger inside of him to keep at it — so much so he asked if he could return to Pies HQ and do it all again.
“It makes me want to be a coach,” he said on Friday.
“You wouldn’t understand how much I loved it — I was up and about all day yesterday.
“Craig Kelly gave it to me as a punishment and I loved it, and when I left, I said ‘can I please come back?’
“Literally, I said to the coach (Sam Wright): ‘have me back’ … It doesn’t matter (that it was arch-rival Collingwood).”
The Pies’ meeting with the Blues on Sunday gets underway from 3:05pm AEDT.
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