AFL club’s social media joke backfires badly as fans take it seriously and lash out at the team for crossing a line Social media 'joke' from Gold Coast Suns wasn't well received Move came after $3750 fine for defender Ben Long Supporters lashed out at the attempted banter on X By Andrew Prentice And James Cooney For Daily Mail Australia Published: 23:49 EDT, 3 July 2024 | Updated: 23:49 EDT, 3 July 2024 e-mail View comments The Gold Coast Suns have come under fire from footy fans after the club's social media joke backfired in spectacular fashion. The AFL fined defender Ben Long $3750 this week for a striking offence involving Collingwood enforcer Brayden Maynard in last Saturday's win over Collingwood. Taking to X on Wednesday, the Suns ' lightheartedly said the club wanted fans to help Long - who earns a reported $325,000 per year - to pay off the penalty.
'In light of the Ben Long appeal being unsuccessful we will be starting a @gofundme to help Longy pay off the $3,750 fine,' the original tweet read. It didn't take long for footy fans online to voice their anger. 'Isn't that salary cap infringement?,' asked supporter Todd Davey.
'Suns should lose premiership points for this,' posted another fan, before a third weighed in with: 'Shouldn’t you worry about making a final series', a reference to the club never finishing in the AFL top eight dating back to their inception in 2011. Many other fans expressed similar views, writing 'Suns should lose premiership points for thi.
