The AFL Premiership Cup found itself in the possession of Australian tennis star, Daria Gavrilova and what she decided to do with it has landed her in hot water.
The world number 26 was reportedly under the scrutiny of the Richmond Tigers players following an unruly photo she had taken with the cup.
AFL Journalist Damian Barrett uncovered the story and detailed how the situation surfaced last night on The AFL Footy Show.
“She managed to have the [premiership] cup for some period of time late last year and while she had it, she chose to use it in a way which, it’s probably fair to say, angered the Richmond football players," Damian Barrett told The AFL Footy Show.
“She used it, for what we’ll describe as ‘household chores’ on this particular occasion -- she used [the premiership cup] around the house for some laundry, maybe some washing."
Despite Barrett neglecting to outline what the photo depicted specifically, Tigers players were reportedly unhappy with her actions and decision to capture the moment with an alleged photo.
“They saw that photo in a very different lens to the one which Gavrilova had taken the photo, but she very innocently and playfully did what she did with the cup," Barrett said.
The scandal was also smoothed over with the assistance of a Richmond employee, who was also a friend of Gavrilova and had to act as the intermediary between the two after the players began chasing her down for an apology.
Barrett mentioned that Gavrilova did offer Richmond an apology after the club and its players scolded her for the incident.
“They sought an apology, and it was given, but in their eyes it was a tad flippant,” Barrett said.
“That then impacted on Kate Sheahan, a friend of Gavrilova’s who’s also an employee of the Tigers. Senior players had to speak to Sheahan to thrash this matter out."
The 24-year-old seems to have mended ties with the Richmond Football Club for now, so here's hoping the premiership cup can stay out of any more scandals until this after this year's AFL Grand Final.
