Tim Watson believes West Coast had no need to apologise for teammates yelling out Fremantle’s Andrew Brayshaw’s name while Andrew Gaff was lining up for a goal at training.
The Eagles posted a video on their Instagram story where ruckman Nathan Vardy called out Brayshaw’s name twice to put Gaff off while kicking for goal.
The reference, of course, relates to the incident in which Gaff broke Brayshaw's jaw in the Derby last season resulting in an eight-game suspension.
Watson believes the behaviour was harmless.
“My view is this, okay, Andrew Gaff did something that was wrong,” he said on SEN Breakfast.
“He hit Andrew Brayshaw. He got whacked for that, he missed a Grand Final.
“Andrew Gaff isn’t making fun of what he did. Players are doing what players do.
“They’re thinking: ‘Okay, what’s the worst thing we can say to this bloke as he comes into kick for goal? We’ll try put him off by saying Andrew Brayshaw’ .
“Do they need to apologise for that? Honestly, have we got to that point in our lives where we need to apologise for that type of behaviour?
“They’re not even making fun of Andrew Brayshaw.”
After footage emerged of the taunts, Fremantle coach Ross Lyon was quick to disapprove of the behaviour.
"I have been made aware of it. I've heard the video,” he told Channel Seven.
"In light of how serious that injury was, and the incident, it’s really disappointing.
"But I'll leave that with West Coast."
The Eagles responded yesterday with an apology, with coach Adam Simpson saying he was disappointed in Vardy’s behaviour.
"(It’s) really disappointing for us from a club point-of-view,” he said.
“We've got to be pretty honest with that, that was a mistake, we apologise to Andrew and his family and to Fremantle as well.
"It was inappropriate and we shouldn't have done it.
"We need to look at that (a club sanction). It's not ideal. It's not something that we condone.
"We'll work through that with our leaders. It's pretty fresh, we only found out about it yesterday afternoon. Really disappointed in how it transpired, so we need to educate him."
Gaff echoed Simpson’s sentiments and said he would speak to Vardy about his taunts.
"It's disappointing. I didn't know about it until I got a call at 5.30 last night. I didn't hear it," he told Perth radio station Mix 94.5.
"It's disappointing, no doubt. It's poor taste and disrespectful to Andrew, more than it is to me.
"I'll have a chat to, if you know who it is, at training today and we want to apologise as a club for that. It shouldn't happen."
The reigning premiers host Essendon at Optus Stadium tonight.