'Shut the trap up': Footy legend's brutal serve for Eddie McGuire

Shane Crawford has advised Eddie McGuire to “shut the trap up” after the Collingwood president was again made to eat his words over the weekend.

McGuire has seemingly put his foot in it amid a number of controversies at Collingwood during the coronavirus crisis, and did so again in relation to Nathan Buckley’s breach.

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Buckley and assistant coach Brenton Sanderson earned the club a $50,000 fine ($25,000 of which is suspended) after playing a game of tennis with Aussie great Alicia Molik.

The Collingwood duo had been given permission to play tennis, but the protocol breach was made when they involved someone from outside of the club’s coronavirus bubble.

An embarrassing situation became even more embarrassing considering McGuire’s comments just 24 hours earlier in which he said hub rule-breakers can “go home” if they don’t follow the league’s guidelines.

“That rule book is not how do we get around every rule, that’s the rule book you live by. And if you don’t like it, we’ll arrange for you to go home,” he said on Saturday.

Shane Crawford tells Eddie McGuire to stop

McGuire defended his comments on Monday in light of Buckley’s breach, but according to Crawford it might just be time for Eddie to keep quiet.

“I think that happens with Eddie at times,” Crawford said on Channel Nine’s ‘Full Time’.

“Eddie puts everything into Collingwood, you know how much he loves them and he really does bleed black and white.

“So you’re certainly getting where he’s coming from but sometimes it’s best the presidents just shut the trap up. Just for a little while, until you sort of work things out; especially when you’re going through a few bumpy periods.”

Crawford said he and some other players had to pull former president Jeff Kennett into line during his time at Hawthorn.

“A situation like Jeff Kennett ... he’s been awesome for the Hawthorn Football Club and what he’s brought to the club,” Crawford said.

“But we had an issue there for a little while where every week, Jeff was a story and players were having to defend what Jeff was saying.

“It became a bit of a distraction; after a long time, it wasn’t as though there was one or two things being said. Every week, there was something else.”

“I remember as players, I think it was Luke Hodge at the time, I think he had to go and have a good chat to Jeff and say, ‘Can you pull up just a tad? We love ya, we adore you, but you’re just putting a bit too much pressure on our side and we have to defend everything you’re saying’.”

Caroline Wilson defends Eddie McGuire

McGuire drew more criticism last month when he defended vice-captain Steele Sidebottom, who was suspended for four games after a drunken virus breach in which he was taken home by police.

Many thought McGuire was being hypocritical considering his harsh comments earlier in the year about incidents involving Jack Steven and Lachie Hunter.

“I didn‘t like his response to the Steele Sidebottom issue. I thought he embarrassed his club and made it worse for his club,” Caroline Wilson said on ‘Full Time’.

“In this one, I agree with everything he’s said. I think the AFL should have been tougher and I think Nathan Buckley owes him an apology.

“I think Nathan has actually let his whole club down, he‘s let his players down … and he’s really let his president down.

“He‘s gone soft on Nathan. He did say from now on they should be sent home and he’s rescinded that with Nathan, but people would beg the question why Nathan got such a relatively limp fine.”