Damien Hardwick fires back at 'disrespectful' Ross Lyon jab at the Suns, saying he should 'focus on their own backyard'

Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick has not held back in his response to St Kilda coach Ross Lyon's cheeky jab at the club on Sunday afternoon.

Speaking in the pre-game lead-up to the clash between the two sides, Lyon, completely unprompted, labelled the Suns the AFL's "nepo baby", likely in regards to the concessions they have received from their academy and their perceived soft fixture.

"Chock full of talent, aren't they, the AFL nepo baby," Lyon cheekily told Fox Footy.

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The game certainly went Gold Coast's way however, picking up an 80-61 win over the Saints.

In his post-game press conference, Hardwick fired back, talking about the difference between coaching Richmond and Gold Coast, as well as a shot at the miserly Marvel Stadium attendance for the Saints home game.

"It's a little bit disrespectful, I think," Hardwick told reporters post match.

"Trust me, I've been at Richmond and I've come to the Gold Coast, we don't get a lot.

"What St Kilda probably should do is just is focus on their own backyard instead of trying to bring everyone else down.

"They had 13,000 people here today. We'll just focus on Gold Coast. They should just focus on themselves.

"End of the day, first place you need to look is internally."

Hardwick when asked said he did not plan to reach out to Lyon or the Saints about it.

Gold Coast chief Mark Evans was equally unhappy in the aftermath.

"I thought the comments were offensive and out of line. If there is any club in the world that might have an understanding that progress isn't always linear, that would be St Kilda," Evans told SEN.