Brent Harvey is no stranger to a few boos from the opposition crowd but on the weekend, things went to a new level after he controversially claimed a 50m penalty from Eagles star Matthew Priddis at Blundstone Arena on Sunday.

The North veteran sneakily flicked the ball out of the Brownlow Medalists’ hands after laying a tackle and winning a holding the ball decision. The umpire was blindsided and thought Priddis had dropped the ball instead of handing it to Harvey - so he awarded the 394-game Kangaroo an extra 50m advantage.

As a result of his cheekiness, Harvey was bombarded on social media with irate West Coast fans venting their frustrations.

On Monday, Harvey fired back at his critics on Twitter saying, “Thanks to all the people who like me, but an even bigger thank you to all the people who hate me, because you motivate me.”


He also defended his actions on radio.

“At the time of the game it was crucial and I thought a 50m penalty was hugely to our advantage so I took the opportunity,” Harvey told ABC Grandstand.

“A lot of people said it was cheating, I think it was cheeky and opportunist at the very best.

“Would I do it again? Absolutely, I do a lot of things to win and I’m not ashamed of that.

“It’s opportunist and I took that opportunity to give our team an advantage.”

Former Lion champion Jonathan Brown took Harvey’s side and said he had played it intelligently.

“That’s good leadership ... I thought he did really well,” Brown said on Fox Footy.

Harvey’s popularity in the West has previously been tested after more than a few incidents with Fremantle tagger Ryan Crowley.