Mark Brayshaw, father of young Docker Andrew, has opened up on his emotions during his son's altercation with Eagles star Andrew Gaff.
Gaff was handed an eight-match ban from the AFL tribunal on Tuesday night for the incident that left Brayshaw with a broken jaw and three dislodged teeth.
And his dad has spoken about how much he felt for Gaff in the aftermath.
โThe first I really knew about this, I got a phone call from the club doctor at the Dockers,โ Mark toldย SEN Breakfast.
โI used to be the finance guy at Freo, and Ken Withers (the club doctor) was there. Iโm a friend of his.
โHe rang me and he said, we think he (Andrew) has got a broken jaw, his teeth are pushed back, but itโs not too bad.
โI know that sounds silly, so I heard that, if Ken Withers thinks it isnโt too bad, it isnโt too bad.
โOnce Ken Withers gave me the comfort that Andrew was going to be ok, I started thinking of the bigger agenda.
โI suddenly started thinking at the time, you could just see the game change and the dynamic.
โI started to watch young Andrew Gaff and he looked horrible out there.
โI just thought, oh god. I knew the narrative would change.
โIt was just nasty and horrible.
โI found myself thinking, here is a young bloke who has made a blue, he has got free agency, he has got the finals and maybe the Brownlow Medalโฆit was just horrible.โ
Mark also revealed that he met with Gaff's parents and admitted he had to consider his other son, Eagles youngster Hamish, in the scenario.
โWe met the other day,โ Mark said of the parents.
โCraig (Gaff's dad), he rang me, and left a message. I called him back straight away. We had a really good chat.
โHe apologised and I said, itโs not really for me to accept it, but both of us, Debra (Brayshaw's mum) and I, accept your apology.
โPlease, in amongst all your considerations, donโt worry about us. I said, I wish I could shake your hand and have a beer about it in person.
โThe other dimension of this is my other son Hamish.
โHe gave me a lift home from the ground. By the time we got home, we had analysed it and he had some footage.
โYou can actually see my Andrew spread his legs a little bit and lower his centre of gravity.
โHamish said to me, Andrew Gaff is one of his best mates, he is just the most delightful bloke youโve ever met.
โMy Andrew has inadvertently has lowered his centre of gravity and a chest punch has become a face punch.
โWhen I spoke to his dad, I said, these things happen, he will be fine, but how are you feeling? He and his wife were upset and embarrassed and apologetic.
โItโs a horrible thing to be in.โ
