What Chris Fagan told 'hot under the collar' Dayne Zorko in fiery exchange during loss

Brisbane coach Chris Fagan has revealed he told former club captain Dayne Zorko to "calm down" in a tense boundary-line exchange captured by broadcast cameras.

Zorko gave away a free kick at a critical point in Brisbane's clash with Collingwood at the Gabba on Thursday night, won by the Magpies 16.9 (105) to 7.11 (53).

The premiership-winning Lion objected to not receiving a free kick for a tackle he deemed to be high.

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Umpire Nick Foot responded by giving Collingwood a free kick for what he said was "abuse".

Only a minute later, Zorko was chased down by Magpies speedster Bobby Hill and Collingwood booted a goal via Nick Daicos on the back of it, which extended the visitors' lead to 20 points.

Zorko was then substituted off and Fagan, standing on the boundary with his headset on, fired up at the veteran.

Zorko turned away with an incredulous look and trudged off.

"He was a bit hot under the collar at the time, and I just said, 'Mate, you'd better calm down, just calm down', so it wasn't anything more than that," Fagan said in his press conference.

"I don't know whether it looked like it was any more than that, but it certainly wasn't.

"I'm not going to say that's why we lost."

Leigh Matthews, the AFL icon who led Brisbane to three flags between 2001 and 2003, found the exchange intriguing.

"They're short conversations, particularly if they're a little bit unfriendly," Matthews said on the Fox Footy coverage.

The clash between the Lions and Magpies, a rematch of the 2023 grand final, resulted in Brisbane's first loss of the season.

Collingwood opened its campaign with a 52-point defeat to GWS but has since chalked up five wins on the bounce, defeating Port Adelaide, the Western Bulldogs, Carlton, Sydney and Brisbane.