Carlton coach Michael Voss expects a forthright response after revelations of vile threat levelled against him

Carlton coach Michael Voss has delivered a stern “you don’t belong here” message in response to receiving a vile threat from a fan that is now being investigated by the AFL integrity department describing it as part of football’s “dark side”.

The threatening text message was left on the MCG’s anti-social hotline service during the Blues’ loss to Collingwood last Friday night and referenced a “brutal end to his life”.

It was passed on to the AFL and then the Blues and, while not treated as a credible threat, was enough for the MCG security team to pass it on.

Voss said he “dismissed it” at first but then decided it was something that couldn’t be tolerated and he hoped for an expected “forthright response”.

The Blues coach delivered a passionate response on Wednesday morning, declaring the “passion” of fans shouldn’t be about anger.

Voss said he still saw that hope in some supporters – the ones he coached for – but had no time for the “the dark side of football”.

“It (that first football) sort of really inspired me to ultimately follow my dreams … then I have also seen the dark side of football as well, where we blame, we become victims,” he said.

“This environment where it’s quite toxic and we think by showing passion is about anger, it’s not about that at all. When you see both, it’s what you choose for me.

“When I turn up … I look at that four-year-old and think about what families are and communities and how we bring people together and what we want our environment to be.

“ … There’s a way we need to behave, there’s a way we need to go about it, and when things are tough, you’ve got to show that support the right way, not the wrong way.

“If that’s a measure for some people on what it should look like, then I am sorry you don’t belong here.

“We’ll move on and make sure we bring a supporter base that will support in the good times and support in the bad.”

The Blues have been under siege from fans as their season falls apart, with aggrieved supporters spraying graffiti over walls at the club’s training venue in Carlton after a loss to Port Adelaide.

Those messages actually showed support for Voss but called for the board to be sacked.

Voss also called out the “ripple effect” of media scrutiny and how it could lead to extreme actions, declaring he immediately thought of his family when he was notified of the threat to his life.

“It reaches deeper,” he said.

“There’s a flow-on effect and the first thing you always think about is the person beside you or the family member or the team because as result of what I do, and you appreciate there’s an element of scrutiny that comes with that, but then there’s a part that is completely unacceptable.

“I think we can all agree that part is unacceptable and we don’t tolerate as an industry and we leave that with the AFL integrity department at the moment and I expect a pretty forthright response.”

Voss was eager to move on from questions about the threat but said no threat, opinion or like button would control the type of coach he wanted to be.

“I guess the last week forces you to reflect on that … I think we’ve got an amazing group of people, an amazing group of players,” he said.

“We’re facing quite a challenging period of time, there’s opportunities within that, and that’s hard to not really go past that and work out, ‘How do I show up today? What’s the best version they get of me?’

“I’m in control of that. No one gets to determine that, not an opinion, not a like button, I get to control how I want to be and the attitude I want to bring.

“I’ve never been more forthright and more confident in our direction and what we need to do – but also in this building is an amazing group of people.”