A fourth-quarter tirade aimed at an umpire from Collingwood defender Brayden Maynard has proved costly as the Magpies fell short in Robert Harvey's first game as coach.
The Magpies fought hard in a topsy-turvy clash against Fremantle at Marvel Stadium, but were unable to secure the win, with the Dockers running out 14. 7. (91) to 12. 7. (79) winners at Marvel Stadium.
Collingwood went into the final change trailing Fremantle by three goals, but tied up the scores with three majors in the first five minutes of the final quarter to seize the momentum.
However, the match was turned on its head just minutes after young gun Trent Bianco tied up the scores, when Maynard gave away a free kick for front-on contact to Fremantle's Liam Henry on the defensive 50m arc.
Maynard was incensed at the decision, particularly after watching the replay on the big screen at the ground, and hurled abuse at the umpire, who gave Henry a 50m penalty, making the goal a certainty.
The 24-year-old was heavily criticised for his actions by Brisbane Lions great Jonathan Brown, who called his error "unforgivable".
"Brayden Maynard caught up in the emotion of the game, he's a leader, you cannot do that," he told Fox Footy.
"He hadn't given the ball back and he was remonstrating with the umpire, unforgivable, that is.
"Collingwood had all the momentum, he needs to be better than that. A lot of booing going on, but that was a free kick, it was front-on contact."
Following Fremantle's win, Geelong premiership great Cam Mooney admitted that Maynard's undisciplined act swung the momentum of the match.
"I can understand where he's coming from, he's frustrated and it's (in the) heat of the moment, but unfortunately that's where the game turned right then and there," he said.
"They had all the momentum, Collingwood, they were flying and then all of a sudden Henry goes in and kicks a nice and easy goal right from the goal square and the momentum turned back to Fremantle's favour."
Despite the loss, Collingwood displayed some promising signs in Harvey's first match, with Brodie Grundy and Taylor Adams making strong returns after being sidelined through injury.
Grundy finished with 22 disposals, 27 hitouts and two goals, while Adams tallied a team-high 32 disposals.
Fremantle was dealt a late blow in the lead-up to the match, with skipper Nat Fyfe a late withdrawal, but Andrew Brayshaw and David Mundy picked up the slack once again, grabbing 24 and 28 disposals, respectively.
Unfortunately for Fremantle, the win came at a cost with forward Matt Taberner substituted out of the game in the second quarter with a calf injury.
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