St Kilda star Paddy Ryder tells online trolls to ‘SHOW YOUR FACE’ as the ruckman and his club strongly deny reports of an altercation along with teammate Bradley Hill
- Ryder and Hill were reportedly involved in an interaction with patrons at a pub
- Both players had been stood down as the Swans smashed St Kilda on Saturday
- The Saints denied an altercation was the reason the two did not play
- Ryder took to Twitter to call out AFL supporters claiming an incident took place
St Kilda star Paddy Ryder has called out AFL supporters claiming he was dropped from the side for getting in a bar altercation, demanding they ‘show their faces’
The veteran ruckman took to Twitter to strongly deny reports he was in an altercation with patrons at a Mordialloc pub along with teammate Bradley Hill on June 18.
Ryder and Hill along with another teammate, reportedly Ben Long, attended the venue after the club’s round 14 loss to Essendon the day prior.
Ben Long (left), Bradley Hill (centre) and Patrick Ryder (right) were reportedly involved in an altercation with patrons two weeks ago after the club’s loss to Essendon the day prior
St Kilda released a statement on Monday night, saying the trio had ‘a verbal exchange and disagreement with fellow patrons, [and] all three left the venue without a fight ensuing.’
The club issued the statement after rumours emerged Ryder and Hill missed the side’s 51-point loss to Sydney on Saturday due to the altercation.
Ryder missed the game due to being ‘managed’, while Hill is listed as missing due to ‘personal reasons’. Long played in the game.
Rumours had been swirling that Ryder and Hill had been stood down for disciplinary reasons, however the club’s statement categorically denied that was the case.
‘Reports this evening stating that Paddy Ryder and Bradley Hill were not part of the Saints’ Round 15 team due to disciplinary reasons are incorrect,’ it said.
Teammates Ryder (left) and Hill (right) are very close – the pair are actually cousins
Ryder took to social media on Monday night to deny, in the strongest of terms, that an altercation had even taken place.
‘I wasn’t involved in any altercation which has come through the media outlets tonight,’ he wrote on Twitter.
‘Just want to make that clear. Anyone have anything different to say please come forward, show your face and name yourself. I’ll wait. Good night all.’
Paddy Ryder took to Twitter to deny reports of an altercation at a pub two weeks ago
It’s been a horror month for the Saints on the field, who have lost their last three matches by a combined 107 points and have dropped out of the top eight.
They’ll face Carlton in a crucial clash on Friday night, with the club saying Ryder was available for selection, though it’s unknown as of yet whether Hill will play.