Oliver and the Carlton supporter were involved in a heated verbal exchange during Melbourne's eight-point win.

It remains unclear what was said, but the AFL have investigated the matter and insisted the exchange should not have happened.

"It was the AFL’s view that players should not engage with the crowd in such a manner at any time and the player had been counselled on this by the Club following discussions with the AFL, and the club had apologised to the patron," the AFL wrote in a brief statement.

General manager of football operations Josh Mahoney said the whole playing group had been spoken to about interacting with the crowd and that "no positives" could come from such exchanges.

“Clayton let his emotions get the better of him and should not have reacted in the manner that he did," Mahoney said.

“In this instance, Clayton has heard a sledge from that general section of the crowd and has reacted directly to the fan in question in an unprofessional manner.

“Clayton acknowledges that the man in question did not use a profanity and accepts his fault in the situation.

"As a club, we apologise for the offence caused and Clayton understands this should not occur again.”