South Sydney coach Jason Taylor was upset at a perceived lack of respect from Parramatta for the six years he had served the club as a player and coach, leading to his confrontation with Eels counterpart Michael Hagan after Sunday's game at Parramatta Stadium.
Taylor did not return phone calls yesterday, but sources have told the Herald that he felt he deserved better from his former club than the pre-match warm-up drama that forced the Rabbitohs to prepare for the game on Old Kings Oval, behind the western grandstand at the stadium, despite it still being closed after recent bad weather.
Souths had been given permission by Parramatta to share warm-up space with the Eels on the manicured field behind the southern end of the stadium, but that situation changed on Sunday.
"JT rang [Eels football manager] Tony Zappia and asked could we use a bit of the field," Souths chief executive Shane Richardson said yesterday. "But they reneged on an agreement and we had to jump the fence and train on Old Kings Oval."
It is understood Taylor, who played one year for Parramatta, in 2001, and spent the next five years on the coaching staff - including the second half of last season as head coach - believed his time at the club should have counted for more.
Parramatta chief executive Denis Fitzgerald last night confirmed Souths had originally been given permission - on Friday - to warm up on the southern field, but that after further consideration, the Eels had chosen to reverse that decision.
"Michael Hagan wasn't aware of the original decision, and when he became aware of it, he said he wanted to have the oval solely for his team," Fitzgerald said. "It's not a full-sized field and not really big enough for two teams.
"Souths were told that at 1pm yesterday and could have warmed up on the main field, but they didn't want to do that."
Asked about the suggestion Parramatta had disrespected their former coach, Fitzgerald said: "I think it's still the same situation - that his behaviour was immature and petulant."
On the other side of the great coaching blow-up, Hagan yesterday responded to Taylor's assertion that he was "living off what Brian Smith built here [at Parramatta] while he's up in Newcastle rebuilding what you f----ed up".
Hagan told the Herald: "The only thing I would say in respect of that is that I think I left Newcastle on good terms and in good shape. The team finished in the top four and the Jersey Flegg team made the grand final, and some of the players from that team are now in first grade so I don't think he [Taylor] is qualified to say that."
Earlier, in an interview on radio 2KY, Hagan suggested Taylor had reacted badly to Souths' 18-12 defeat to the Eels.
"I think he was obviously upset with … no one likes to get beat, and I didn't feel great after the game on Monday night [when Newcastle beat Parramatta] either," Hagan said.
"But sometimes you have maybe got to deal with it a bit different, and he was pretty aggressive in the first instance, so it sort of escalated from there."
Asked if he and Taylor had a history of bad blood, Hagan replied: "There is always a bit of history. I mean, I would have played against JT at different times in our careers, so we might have had the odd run-in on the field."
The coaching stoush took another twist yesterday when Parramatta Stadium venue manager Luke Coleman said he would make an official complaint to the Rabbitohs after they ignored orders not to train on Old Kings Oval.
"They showed a total disregard for any kind of authority," Coleman said. "I was really disappointed with their mentality and their attitude.
"We were given notice by the Parramatta Park Trust, which have control over Old Kings Oval, that the oval was not to be used for the warm-up. That was made clear to the Eels and also to South Sydney."
The NRL yesterday chose not to take any disciplinary action against Souths or Parramatta for the expletive-laden battle between their coaches.
"Whilst this incident doesn't set a good example for junior coaches, we have decided that as the incident took place in the heat of the moment and not in the view of the general public, we're not going to take any further action," chief operating officer Graham Annesley said.
