It turns out the feud between Sydney Swans co-captain Kieren Jack and his parents has been brewing for a while.
When Jack invited his girlfriend’s parents along to his milestone 200th AFL match, it seems unlikely he anticipated the fissure he’d cause in his own family.
The fallout began when his mother, Donna, tweeted her disappointment, “no appreciation for all the yrs (sic) helping you get there,” she wrote of his apparent thoughtlessness.
Jack’s father Garry, a rugby league legend, has now weighed in, saying the choice has devastated the family, despite being only the latest slight in an ongoing feud.
“We have been trying to fix this and sort it out for more than 12 months,” he told The Daily Telegraph.
“We have been aware of the problem but is has fallen on deaf ears. They are your kids and they can do what they want but, as parents, it hurts. It hurts us as a family, it cuts to your heart, it really does.”
Kieren Jack and Charlotte Goodlet. Source: Instagram
It's believed the source of the feud is Kieren's long term girlfriend, Channel Nine producer Charlotte Goodlet and, according to friends of the family, his parents have given him an us or her-style ultimatum.
Kieren Jack and Charlotte Goodlet's relationship on Instagram (post continues after video):
"I support Donna 100 per cent and support what she said. We have been trying to fix it and resolve it for a long time," Garry said.
Asked could the growing rift could be fixed, he said: "I don’t know. I wish I could say more but I am guarded."
Garry also confirmed the tickets were the hair that broke that back of an already strained relationship with their son.
"What brought it to a head was that this was Kieren’s 200th game on Friday and we said to the Swans that we would like to go to the game," he said.
"The Swans said they would call us on Monday and I was informed by (welfare boss) Dennis Carroll at the Swans that Kieren had given the tickets to Charlotte’s parents. That’s what brought it to a head."
Top Comments
Playing a family saga out on social media, indeed any media, is rather poor form in my opinion. Kieren appears to be trying to keep it private but the parents seem to want to hang their dirty laundry in quite the public place. That aside, ''it's him/her or it's us'', may actually work in some situations but I dare say most children would choose the romantic partner in such situations. I myself have recently separated from my wife and discovered my family basically could not stand her. I was quite shocked because they never conveyed or projected this whilst I was with the ex at all. I could sense them occasionally bristle at something the ex had said but they basically let the comment go. Not even to me in private did they actually voice their dislike of her. They didn't like her, nor did they like the changes they saw in me when I started going out with her, but I seemed happy so they just took a ''grin and bear it'' approach. There was no way they would ever have put me on the spot or made me choose. I was quite devastated to learn just how belittled my ex made my family, particularly my parents, feel.
Well, that's what happens when you give ultimatums. Sometimes they choose the other person. It's going to be a whole lot harder to fix this relationship now that you've dragged it all into the public eye.