Ricky Stuart told rival NRL coach Des Hasler to ‘fuck you’ during heated clash outside the dressing room – despite the pair having been friends for 30 years

They are old friends and teammates from State of Origin and Kangaroos, but there was no love lost on Sunday between Ricky Stuart and rival NRL coach Des Hasler in an explosive showdown away from the TV cameras.

The Canberra great and his Gold Coast coaching rival exchanged barbs following the Raiders’ controversial 21-20 victory which saw a Titans field goal attempt snuffed out by an offside player – without any penalties.

Stuart said Hasler was “on another planet” after the Titans mentor criticized Kasey Badger’s officiating.

Hasler said his performance was “pretty bad” after his team conceded five penalties to three and allowed eight set restarts to the Raiders’ side.

Stuart hit back and accused the Titans of “cheating” by battling his players for long periods as they attempted to play the ball, suggesting they could have received “10 or 12 more set restarts.”

Titans coach Des Hasler is an old friend of Stuart’s and went to the locker room after his press conference to tell the Raiders coach what he had said.

It can now be revealed that the warring coaches had a private confrontation outside the dressing room.

Multiple witnesses confirmed the tunnel confrontation which ended with Stuart allegedly saying “fuck you” to his Gold Coast counterpart, Hasler, according to News Corp.

This is despite the couple having a long-standing friendship that dates back more than three decades.

Stuart and Hasler were the starting halfbacks for the New South Wales Blues in their must-win State of Origin II match in Melbourne in 1990.

The Raiders escaped with a narrow victory despite the Gold Coast Titans shooting on field goal to win just in front of the sticks.

With Hasler nursing a leg injury sustained early in the match, Stuart streaked away for a 70-yard try, showing Queensland winger Les Kiss a pair of clean heels, to help win both the match and the series.

Following this performance in Origin, Stuart and Hasler were chosen for the 1990 Kangaroos tour of Britain and France.

The confrontation took place after Hasler tried to do right by his old friend.

The Titans coach went to the Raiders’ hangars after he exploded in the post-match press conference and wanted Stuart to hear it first from his mouth.

However, Stuart didn’t take the gesture well and reportedly hit back: “Damn, we should have had 15 more ‘six-mores’.” I’m going to go hard (during his press conference).’

Hasler (left, obscured by the referee) and Stuart (right) were the starting halves for the New South Wales Blues in State of Origin II in 1990.

Stuart was named man of the match in that clash, which saw him race 70 meters to beat Queenslander Les Kiss and score a vital try for the Blues.

The match was not as kind to Hasler, who suffered a leg injury but was chosen for the Kangaroos tour later that year with Stuart.

To compound the problem, NRL head of football Graham Annesley confirmed on Monday that Raiders fullback Chevy Stewart was offside when he blocked Titans captain Kieran Foran’s field goal attempt at the 87th minute.

Annesley’s stats also showed the Raiders were offside 10 times without penalty, but overall they were onside 94 percent of the time, compared to 89.4 percent for the Titans.

Hasler, who joked that he would be fined $25,000 for his speech, said “some” of the sanctions were justified.

“Some of them leave us in combat positions all the time,” he said.