- A youth soccer coach was allegedly ‘knocked out’
- The incident occurred at a Under 10 tournament
- Auckland United condemned the incident
A youth soccer coach was reportedly knocked unconscious by a spectator who had allegedly “attacked her from behind” during a youth tournament at Keith Hay Park in Auckland on Sunday.
Police told the New Zealand Herald they are investigating the incident and making inquiries after the Ellerslie AFC coach required treatment in hospital.
According to reports from the New Zealand Heraldthe spectator, believed to be the father of a Papakura City FC player, had been “making threatening gestures” during the Under 10 semi-final match.
Some of those posters allegedly included a “throat-slitting motion” that was made towards Ellerslie spectators.
The attack reportedly took place while Ellerslie’s coach was heading to the bathroom after being hit. The tournament final was subsequently delayed by around 30 minutes as emergency services attended to the coach.
Youth soccer coach reportedly knocked unconscious by opposition supporter
The incident occurred at Auckland’s Keith Hay Park on Sunday during a youth football tournament.
Auckland United, which had hosted the tournament, said it had a “zero tolerance policy” towards such behavior and was “deeply disappointed by the incident”.
“We are aware of an incident following a Sunday afternoon match where an ambulance was called due to an altercation between two members of visiting clubs,” the football club said in a statement to the New Zealand Herald.
‘We maintain a zero-tolerance policy against bad behavior in gangs and are deeply disappointed by this incident. Auckland United prides itself on creating a safe and supportive environment for everyone and incidents of this nature have no place in sport.
“No Auckland United staff witnessed the incident first-hand and as the police are involved we will refrain from commenting further while the investigation is ongoing.”
Northern Region Football (NRF) chief executive Laura Menzies described the incident as “shocking” and added that “everyone should feel safe” at football events.
The park is located just southeast of Auckland city center and the event will be hosted by Auckland United.
“We have contacted all three clubs involved to offer support while the incident is under police investigation,” Menzies said.
Papakura FC issued a statement to the New Zealand Herald, stating: “We were deeply saddened to learn of the alleged events that occurred after one of our Junior Girls teams attended a festival over the weekend. Our deepest condolences to all involved .
‘Papakura City FC does not condone behavior that has no place in sport. As the incident is under police investigation, we are awaiting reports with complete and accurate information before beginning our own internal process.’
The coach is said to be recovering at home, and Ellerslie told the outlet that they are emotionally supporting both the soccer coach and her team.