AUSTRALIAN Idol finalist Matt Corby was reduced to tears yesterday after he was slammed by judge Mark Holden on the eve of the program's grand final spectacular.

Speaking live on Melbourne radio, Holden described the 17-year-old as a spoilt kid who had let himself down by not committing to his version of the winner's song 'Here I Am'.

He also questioned Corby's denial of his comments last week that he was not happy with the song.

Holden's hurtful comments were understood to have devastated an already edgy Corby, with publicists left to console the crying teenager after he heard the interview.

Speaking to Confidential from rehearsals at the Opera House yesterday, Corby admitted he was "shocked" by Holden's rant at a time when confidence was the key.

"It was pretty hard to swallow - I heard it on the radio and thought 'Oh bugger'," Corby said.

"It's not what you want to hear at this time, but at the end of the day it's all good because Mark doesn't vote - it's about the public now."

"But I'm still just a kid."

Despite their fierce rivalry for the Idol crown, Natalie Gauci threw her support behind her competitor yesterday - similarly questioning Holden's motive and attacking his healthy ego.

"At the end of the day I think Mark is just spinning his own publicity," Gauci said.

"The public know Matt by know and everyone knows what I think - I love him. The reality is we're both winners."

Not surprisingly, an emotional Corby yesterday wasn't feeling quite so confident that it would be his name called out as the winner of Australian Idol tomorrow night.

"Australia loves an underdog and Nat's definitely that - she's come out with all guns blazing."