AFL champion Brendan Fevola breaks down on air over death of great mate, Troy Selwood

AFL legend and radio star Brendan Fevola has broken down on air over the death of his great mate, Troy Selwood.

Selwood and Fevola lived with each other when the latter moved to Queensland ahead of the 2010 season to play for the Brisbane Lions.

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Brendan Fevola pays tribute to great mate Troy Selwood.

When the world learnt of Selwood’s shock death on Tuesday, Fevola was obviously devastated.

Heartbroken, he then appeared on his radio show on Fox to share his pain.

As he attempted to compose himself, Fevola took a deep breath and then said, “God ... umm ... yes ...”

“Yesterday was a bit of a tough day and I apologise for this morning, I’ve been a little bit off, I haven’t been myself. I had a really close friend pass away yesterday,” Fevola said on Wednesday.

Upon seeing his emotion, Fevola’s Fox colleague, Fifi Box, told him to pull out.

“You don’t have to talk about it ... you don’t have to talk about,” she said.

But Fevola continued, his voice trembling.

“I lived with him in Brisbane. It’s in the news now, his name was Troy Selwood,” he said.

“Troy is a ripper. I was going through a bit of a tough time when I was up in Brisbane and he was the bloke that was there for me, which meant a lot to me.

“He obviously has got a couple of other brothers who obviously play sport, and Maree and Bryce (his mum and dad) who I was speaking to yesterday ... it’s just a real shock.

“In the footy world we can have this persona that we’re tough and that we can handle anything, but we are human.

“We don’t really speak about our feelings often … that’s not just in the footy world, but it’s men in general.

“So obviously he was going through a bit of a tough time, and it ended yesterday, but … he’s got two young kids.”

Fevola’s voice continued to shake.

“Umm … it’s just really upsetting … shattering … you just think, what could you have done? But you can’t do anything … it’s so hard.

“He was only 40.

“You’ll hear stories about him, and no one will say a bad word about him.

“He was just one of the real good ones. It’s just sad.”

Fevola then took another deep breath and his colleagues felt his pain.

Troy is a member of the AFL’s famous Selwood family, the identical twin of West Coast premiership player Adam, and brother of Geelong champion Joel and former Eagles and Cats midfielder Scott.

He played 75 games for Brisbane between 2005 and 2010.

Another Lions champion and former teammate, Jonathan Brown, said Troy “had a beautiful soul about him”.

“He loved life, he had a great smile and he was a very empathetic bloke as well. That is why teammates loved him and everyone in the footy club loved him and everyone he met loved him,” Brown said on Nova.

Brown also revealed how Troy was given the nickname ‘Bunno’.

“Craig McRae, one of the funniest characters I played with, now the Collingwood coach said, ‘Well, Troy Selwood, he needs a nickname. Selwood. Where do you sell wood? Bunnings’.

“And that’s how he got ‘Bunno’ and it stuck for the rest of his footy career.”

After the death the Selwood family said in a statement they were “heartbroken by the loss of our son, brother and father”.

“We will miss Troy more than words can express,” the statement said.

“Troy was a much loved and loving member of our family. Over the course of his life, Troy brought joy and light to all who knew him.

“He was a loving son of Maree and Bryce, a supportive and caring brother to Adam, Joel and Scott, and a doting father of beautiful children Tom and Sadie. “We will miss Troy’s bravery, his humour, his deep thinking, his love and compassion. Troy had a generosity of spirit, cared deeply about people and strove to make the lives of others better.

“We are grateful to all those that have supported Troy throughout his life, and we know that his many friends, teammates and colleagues will miss him greatly.”

If you need help in a crisis, call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For further information about depression contact beyondblue on 1300224636 or talk to your GP, local health professional or someone you trust.