A pair of Adelaide Crows teammates have clashed in a pre-season bust-up but some former AFL players are not convinced it is such a bad thing.

Tempers flared after mall forward Ned McHenry was tackled by ruckman Riley O’Brien, with vision from 9 News Adelaide capturing the heated exchange.

The duo had to be separated and have since been reported to be in “good spirits” according to 9 News Adelaide.

While teammates clashing can be a sign of tension, former AFL players Kane Cornes and Ryan Fitzgerald saw the positive side of the tussle.

“This is what you want to see, you can see in Nicksy’s reaction at the end!”

Brisbane Lions great Jonathan Brown had a similar take to Cornes and Fitzgerald when it came to that clash, arguing the scuffle was a “good sign”.

“I reckon you’d be pretty happy if you were Matty Nicks as a coach, just to see a bit of fire in the belly and get them ready for Round 1,” Brown told On The Couch at the time.

“Obviously you don’t want to see the punches thrown in the games next week, but (it’s) not bad to see.

“They’re wanting to compete. They’re just excited to be back out there … They’re competing against each other for spots and Hartigan and Frampton could be on the edge – and I’m seeing a bit of fire and intensity in training. That’s a good sign for me.

“I’d rather see that than have to give my players a kick up the a*** to go a bit harder at training.”