Max Gawn has shut down any talk of a rift with Simon Goodwin while conceding the Melbourne coach spoke out of turn on Sunday.

Goodwin surprised the AFL community after the Demons’ 59-point defeat to North Melbourne when he claimed Gawn’s performance had been affected by an unspecified off-field situation — something that had not been public prior to the press conference.

Gawn has now confirmed the issue is an illness in the family dating back to the start of 2023, adding it did not affect him on the field.

Goodwin’s comments were described as “awful” by Nick Riewoldt on Channel 7’s The Agenda Setters, and it was the St Kilda great who first asked Gawn how he is during a Tuesday morning radio appearance.

“I’ve been asked that a bit over the last 24 hours (laughs). I am OK,” Gawn said on Triple M’s Mick in the Morning.

The 33-year-old said he has had “some ups and downs throughout the journey” but is in a “really good spot and so is the family member at this point”.

“It did sort of escalate over the last three or four weeks, back to a steady state now,” he added.

Gawn backed Goodwin as a “father figure” but was adamant he was simply beaten by opposing ruckman Tristan Xerri and the Kangaroos.

“On those comments, I love that my coach loves me and it clearly shows that he cares. He’s 100 per cent right, there are reasons behind performance issues for players,” he said.

“That wasn’t me on the weekend — I put myself in a good position to play. I just got beat. We all just got beat apart from Kade Chandler, to be honest.

“I won’t hide behind that (family illness) — but I understand what my coach was doing. He is a father figure for me, he was showing love, he was showing care and I appreciate that.”

Asked directly by Riewoldt if Goodwin had apologised, Gawn suggested there had been no need for the coach to do so.

“We spoke a lot yesterday and we speak every single day. There’s no issue with me and Goody,” he said.

“I can clearly see what he was trying to do. He was trying to show me love, support and care, and I don’t mind. I spoke to that family member yesterday, they don’t mind. It’s fine.

“I think if we all went back to the start of the press conference he’d potentially just say I got smashed by Xerri. I also don’t mind how it’s played out.”

Gawn said he had never sought to make the family member’s health issue public.

But he has openly discussed the family matter with his closest teammates and colleagues over the past two years.

“That’s what is important and probably what put me in a good spot throughout this whole time ... to be able to put myself in a good place to be the best captain, player and teammate I can be,” Gawn said.