A Central Otago rugby coach has admitted assaulting his 11-year-old son after blaming the boy for the team losing a match.
The man, whose name is suppressed, arrived home heavily intoxicated on June 11, verbally abused his son, grabbed the boy around the throat and later head-butted him, prosecutor, Sergeant Ian Collin, told the Alexandra District Court yesterday.
"The boy's team had lost its game and he blamed his son for the team losing," Sgt Collin said.
Although the boy was not injured, he was "extremely frightened". The boy's mother had intervened during the incident.
The defendant told police he had not head-butted the boy, "just pressed his head against the victim's head".
Counsel Phena Byrne said the victim wanted to have contact with his father.
Judge Stephen O'Driscoll convicted the man and remanded him on bail, to reappear on September 23 for sentencing.
The pre-sentence report was to include a drug and alcohol assessment, he said.
