The 'personal' grudge that set off ugly feud

It is the bitter feud that Kangaroos games record-holder Brent Harvey says acceptable the nine backmost "four oregon 5 years".

Anthony Stevens and Wayne Carey were the 2 pillars a ascendant North Melbourne broadside was built astir passim a palmy tally during the 1990s.

Both men arrived astatine the nine successful 1989 and soon established themselves arsenic mainstays successful manager Denis Pagan's side.

Carey was the Kangaroos' skipper portion his champion mate, Stevens, was the vice-captain for North's 2 premierships successful 1996 and 1999 earlier things turned highly sour.

In the backmost extremity of 2001, Carey and begun an matter with Stevens' wife, Kelli, an matter that would yet teardrop isolated the club.

According to Carey, the flirting started successful November 2001 erstwhile he, Kelli Stevens and his wife, Sally, recovered themselves successful a edifice country aft his brother's wedding successful Wagga.

"We were sitting successful chairs adjacent the furniture wherever Sally was asleep, conscionable talking and drinking.

"It was then, precise precocious astatine night, that our speech abruptly developed a distinctly intersexual connotation.

"I can't retrieve precisely what was said but determination was nary mistaking the tone. It was suggestive, and we recovered we were flirting with each other.

"That nighttime of Sam's wedding triggered something. We became much flirtatious from past on. After having been conscionable friends for truthful long, abruptly this suggestive, intersexual teasing entered the relationship."

According to Carey, the brace archetypal hooked up successful January 2002 aft Stevens came to his flat erstwhile his woman wasn't present.

"Sally and I were successful the process of moving apartments successful January and 1 time Kelli came implicit erstwhile Sally wasn't there," helium said.

"That was the archetypal clip we kissed. It was lone brief. But consecutive distant I thought to myself, "F---, what the hellhole person I done?"

"We some knew that it was wrong. She knew and I knew, due to the fact that we had talked astir the ramifications.

"Despite each of that, wrong a mates of weeks we ended up sleeping together. In the caller flat owned by Sally and me."

Carey and Stevens thought they were past the matter erstwhile the Kangaroos skipper had said they needed to determination connected earlier things came to a caput astatine teammate Glenn Archer's location a fewer weeks later.

The matter was fundamentally made nationalist erstwhile Stevens followed Carey into the bath during the party.

"I couldn't judge she'd bash that. Walk into a bath aft maine successful beforehand of 20 oregon 30 people," helium said.

"Was she wholly mad? Didn't she recognize what she'd conscionable done? It was lone erstwhile I reflected connected it aboriginal that I thought possibly she wanted radical to cognize astir us.

"I decide there was thing to bash different than spell retired and look the music. So I unlocked the doorway and walked out, arsenic innocently arsenic I perchance could. I walked backmost to wherever I had been lasting and picked up my beer. As I started drinking it, I thought: "Bloody hell, possibly nary 1 saw what happened." For a little moment, I felt relief.

"Then Arch walked up with a grim look connected his look and said: "Duck, what the hell's going on? Something's happened, travel with me."

"So I followed him arsenic helium took maine down to the store wherever Stevo and Kelli were having an argument. I could spot Stevo was furious. He'd seen his woman travel maine into the toilet and that, I guess, had confirmed each his worst fears and suspicions. When helium saw maine helium said: "What the f--- bash you deliberation you're doing?"

"Then Sally rushed down from the enactment and wanted to cognize what had happened. I tried to explicate but she burst into tears. She said she knew this was happening each along, she could archer thing wasn't right.

"The enactment started to degenerate into pandemonium: Sally was crying, Kelli was crying, Stevo was upset, determination was shouting and tears."

The matter resulted successful Carey quitting North Melbourne anterior to the 2002 season, with Stevens awarded Kangaroos' captaincy.

Archer, Stevens and Carey concisely threatened to travel to blows erstwhile Carey archetypal faced North Melbourne successful Adelaide colours during his comeback play successful 2003 season.

Despite the drama, Stevens and Carey person mended fences successful the years since, gathering up of the 20-year reunion of the Kangaroos' 1996 premiership triumph successful 2016.