Cromwell parent who witnessed a brawl at a youth match in Wanaka on Saturday says the finger of blame cannot be pointed at any one person or side and there is nothing to be gained by complaining to the Otago Rugby Football Union.
The Otago Daily Times reported yesterday the mass fight had broken out towards the end of a game between an Upper Clutha under-16 side and a Cromwell under-18 side at the Upper Clutha grounds.
Police were called and a Cromwell player was dealt with for assaulting a Wanaka player. The Upper Clutha club has since initiated a complaint to the ORFU. The complaint is being assessed by a complaints review officer to determine whether it will proceed to a hearing.
Christine Thian, the mother to one of the Cromwell players, disputed the "one-sided" comments made in yesterday's ODT article by Upper Clutha parent Bob Robertson, who said Cromwell players had instigated the brawl and it was not the first time he had seen aggressive behaviour from young Cromwell sides.
Thian said overall the match had been "a good game", but some missed calls by the referee had caused tension on the field, which then "just took on a life of its own".
It was impossible to say who had started the brawl, as "they were all in there.
"It was certainly not just Cromwell. The fists were going every which way," she said.
"It wasn't just kids ... there were some adults from Upper Clutha throwing punches, as well.
"I'm not saying it was right. It was definitely not a good look, at the end of the day. But there was no innocent party in that whole scenario."
Thian said the Cromwell captain had apologised to the Wanaka side at the afternoon tea following the game and the incident should have been resolved on the day, rather than involving the ORFU.
"Everyone's got a version and they're all different ... so I just don't know what it's going to achieve by getting the union involved."
ORFU operations manager Richard Perkins confirmed an incident report from the Upper Clutha club and a referee's report had been lodged as part of the complaint and he expected to receive a hearing determination today.
The union's judicial committee had sanctions which could be imposed on people identified in the incident but it was "probably not right to talk about the sanctions until we determine what took place".
