Former St Kilda and Fremantle coach Ross Lyon believes Leon Cameron and the Giants "humiliated" captain Stephen Coniglio by dropping him before their close loss to the Demons on Saturday night.
Coniglio, who the Giants re-signed for seven years last season, could only watch on as his side were dealt a huge blow to their finals hopes by falling to Melbourne by four points.
According to Lyon's, the selection call the Giants made was the wrong one.
"You know what you don't do when you're a leader - you don't humiliate, and the captain of your club has been humiliated," Lyon said on Triple M.
Lyon went on to discuss the joint role the captain and the coach should have at a football club, citing his own experiences as a coach.
"[It's] that singular-minded force and willpower that drags the group with them. I felt I was single minded with Riewoldt, Pavlich, and you drive the group. They're a real extension, captain and coach. Once that's broken, it's hard."
Moving forward, Lyon questioned whether Coniglio and coach Leon Cameron's relationship would ever be the same.
"Look, they signed him for seven years, so maybe it's culturally what's going on there," he said.
"It's a long way back from there, that bridge."
Lyon proposed that instead of dropping Coniglio, Cameron could have given him a defensive role to help him regain some form.
The Giants face the Saints in a must-win game on Friday night.
