A heated clash between cross-city rivals has been elevated to a new level as the owner of the South East Melbourne Phoenix takes aim at United’s Chris Goulding.
Phoenix owner, Romie Chaudhair, labelled the United shooting guard as “weak” following an ugly incident on court.
In an attempt to win a rebound, Goulding became tangled with Phoenix centre Jordan Hunter and was brought to the floor in pain.
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Visibly upset, Goulding jumped to his feet to begin a fiery exchange with Hunter, who had removed himself from the key.
As tensions were diffused by teammates, match officials reviewed the incident and whacked Hunter with a foul.
A clip of the incident was posted on the NBL X account, which Chaudhair re-shared and replied to.
“Goulding constantly flops and cries about it, that shit is weak,” he wrote.
“Great win for SEM, they earned it, so proud of the effort, way to keep fighting.”
The comment is not the first time Chaudhair has taken a swipe at a United player, having accused Mason Peatling of using “dirty” tactics in 2023.
The incident was not enough to slow the Phoenix’s momentum as the club produced a 93-84 victory. It was the club’s first win in the past seven meetings against United.
The triumph comes just days after the club terminated the contract of coach Mike Kelly following five consecutive defeats to start the season. The club also was given the wooden spoon in 2023.
Goulding takes a shot against South East Melbourne Phoenix. Getty
Sam Mackinnon, who stepped into an interim role with the team, expressed his elation about the win.
“It’s been a clearly well-documented tough year,” he said.
“(Our focus was) on getting the group together, gelling and forgetting about the last week.
“Getting the chance to best imprint how I want us to play, our style, level of intensity and commitment, the guys have been fantastic.”