Queensland coach Billy Slater has been slammed by footy fans as a ‘hypocrite’ for bringing the suicide of footy great Paul Green into his clash with Aaron Woods, as his past sledging of a player with mental health issues resurfaces.
Social media users referenced how the Maroons boss had once been forced to apologise to rival Wests Tigers star, Cory Paterson, after taunting him about his struggle with clinical depression during a game in 2010.
Last week, Woods branded Slater a ‘grub’ in a rant about how he was wrong to drop Maroons veteran Daly Cherry-Evens for State of Origin game two.
The Triple M presenter then brought up the fact that Slater was once banned for seven games after kicking Wests Tigers forward John Skandalis in the head.
That provoked a fiery response from Slater on Tuesday as he blasted Woods by saying: ‘You don’t know what people are going through.
‘And although I might be able to handle it, the next person might not be. Maybe our last coach didn’t.’
Footy fans have branded Queensland coach Billy Slater (left) a hypocrite after he fired back at former NSW prop Aaron Woods on Tuesday
Woods (pictured) ignited a war of words between when he called the Maroons coach a ‘grub’ and brought up one of his shocking on-field acts
Slater brought up the tragic death of former Queensland coach Paul Green (pictured) when he made his angry statement at a press conference on Tuesday
The last remark was a clear reference to Paul Green, who was boss of the Maroons before Slater took over in 2023.
Slater issued a public apology for those comments on Wednesday and revealed he’d called Green’s widow Amanda to say sorry.
Now Slater’s sledging of Paterson is coming back to haunt him.
In 2009, the former Knights star revealed he had to have a break from the game after his battle with clinical depression left him feeling suicidal
Slater then told him to ‘go have a cry in your room’ during Melbourne’s 20-14 victory over the Knights in March 2010.
The former Storm star later apologised to Paterson, admitting he ‘overstepped the mark’.
Footy supporters with long memories were quick to bring up the sledge in light of Slater’s remarks about Green.
One fan wrote on X: ‘Billy Slater is not only a grub, he’s a hypocritical grub of the highest order.’
Footy fans on social media hit out at Slater following his comments about Green, referencing his sledging of Paterson while claiming the Maroons coach is a ‘hypocrite’
‘Billy Slater, who once sledged a player suffering depression with the choice words: ‘Go and have a cry in your room’ is now telling others to watch what they say and pulling the mental health card,’ another X user wrote.
‘What a COMPLETE grub. Will make it even sweeter when he suffers ANOTHER Origin series loss.’
Another footy fan claimed that Slater had tried to claim a moral high ground by bringing Green into the argument.
‘Billy Slater exploiting Paul Green’s passing to claim some lame moral high ground over a contrived #origin sledge is quite frankly pathetic and probably highlights the reason why he was called a grub during his playing days,’ the X user wrote.
One footy fan wrote: ‘Is this the same Billy Slater that sledged Cory Patterson [sic] about his battles with mental illness? F*** off mate.’
After the game against the Knights in 2010, Slater later revealed he had called Paterson to ‘clear the air’ and explained that there was ‘no ill-feeling’ between the pair.
He later issued a public apology to Paterson, stating: ‘I accept that in the heat of the moment on Saturday night, I overstepped the mark with a flippant comment I directed at Cory Paterson.
Slater taunted former Cory Paterson (pictured) about his mental health after the former Newcastle Knights star revealed he needed time out of the game due to severe depression
The Queensland coach (pictured playing for Melbourne Storm) later apologised to Paterson over the matter
‘What was said was insensitive given what Cory has been through over the past 18 months.’
The former Storm fullback added: ‘He accepted my sincerest apology and asked that we leave the issue alone.
‘It would be insensitive to Cory for me to repeat what was said.
‘The simple fact of the matter is I made an error of judgment and I intend to learn from this.
‘I fully understand that depression is a serious mental health issue in Australian society and if anyone has been offended by this incident, I am deeply apologetic.’
