By DAVID NAGEL
NO, not this weekend!
There is no place for an after-the-siren brawl, especially the one that took place between Narre Warren and Cranbourne players and spectators at Fox Road on Saturday.
The timing of this brawl, just 36 hours after the football world learned of the devastating loss of Adelaide Crows coach Phil Walsh, well it just leaves a sour taste in your mouth.
While the rest of the football world was, quite literally, united as one, locking arms in a show of unprecedented unity, two clubs decided to turn back the clock and hang a dark cloud over the game.
And about the only thing that insiders and outsiders from both clubs could agree on after Saturday’s clash was, “We’re no angels,” but that’s where the acceptance stopped and the finger-pointing began.
The wash-up of the controversial finish to what was already a brutal game of Australian Rules football is this.
South East Football Netball League (SEFNL) operations manager Liz Triffitt has called in an independent investigator, who will make recommendations to SEFNL, who will then decide whether to proceed, and hand the matter over to AFL South East, who conduct tribunal hearings.
Under AFL Rules, the independent investigator has up to 21 days to make the final recommendations.
But first, the tribunal has a date on Wednesday night; a separate matter from the investigation, where Cranbourne full-forward Marc Holt will challenge his two-game suspension for a charge of striking Narre Warren’s George Angelopoulos during the final quarter.
And the final matter, of which we’re sure, is that Cranbourne Football Club president Shane Baker has emailed a letter to SEFNL, expressing the club’s disappointment at an alleged incident that took place between Narre Warren coach Chris Toner and Cranbourne players Mathew Fletcher and Martin Leinmueller.
Baker confirmed the club had sent a letter to the league, but refused to elaborate further on the matter.
“There are elements with what happened after the game that we were disappointed with and the matter is now in the league’s hands and they’ll deal with it how they see fit,” he said.
Toner denied he was involved in an incident with the Cranbourne players.
“It’s in the hands of the league, so I can’t say too much, but these players are like sons to me,” he said.
“I won’t apologise for sticking up for my players, that’s who I am, and that will never change.
“If I’m guilty of pushing my way in to protect my players, then throw the book at me.”
For more of the SEFNL round 11 action, see inside Sport.
