WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that the following article contains the name of a deceased person.
Port Adelaide forward Willie Rioli has launched an attack on Hawthorn in a now deleted social media post following Sunday night’s spicy Gather Round clash.
And the club has since responded, supporting Rioli but saying “social media was not the appropriate forum for Willie to share his emotions”.
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Rioli late in the fourth term of the Power’s 30-point win ran into an open goal before showing Changkuoth Jiath the ball. It caused Jiath to shove Rioli afterwards and give away a free kick as tempers flared, leading to another Rioli goal.
Rioli re-posed a video of his cheeky act in the now deleted Instagram story with the caption: “Play with fire, you’re gonna get burnt. My hatred for this club goes way pass last year antics, what they did to my dad, and my brother, is why I can’t stand them. Not the players. #Cococlub.”
Rioli’s late father Willie Snr, who died in 2022, was on Hawthorn’s playing list in the 1991 season but didn’t play a game. Rioli’s cousin, Cyril, was the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit against Hawthorn that was settled last year.
On Monday evening, the Power released a statement on the incident.
“Willie Rioli and his family continue to carry deep-seated pain and sadness from past family experiences,” a Power spokesperson said.
“Despite the depth of feeling Willie and his family have, social media was not the appropriate forum for Willie to share his emotions last night. Willie understands this.
“Willie’s welfare remains our priority and the club will continue to provide support for Willie and his family through this time.”
Rioli has also posted on social media showing the racist abuse he has received since posting about the Hawks, sarcastically captioning it “dubs in the chat”.
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