Brother takes blame
THE brother of a man accused of assaulting a veteran Cairns rugby league star has claimed he was the only one to have a fight with him that night.
Keith William Addo, 36, has pleaded not guilty to one count of grievous bodily harm against former Brothers rugby league A grade coach Robbie Swain which left him with a broken jaw.
The veteran second-rower suffered a broken jaw following an altercation in the carpark of The Pier on September 3, 2017, after the club lost a Cairns District Rugby League A Grade semifinal.
Mr Addo’s brother Wayne took to the witness stand during a trial in the Cairns District Court yesterday and said he challenged Mr Swain to a fight.
He said the pair were involved in an altercation outside the Brothers Leagues Club earlier in the night where Mr Swain had attempted – and failed – to “roundhouse kick” him but fell over.
Wayne told the court he and another man called Keith and their cousin Francis and the group followed a taxi containing Mr Swain and several other players into town before he challenged him to a fight.
“I asked Robbie if he wanted to squash what we started at Brothers,” he said.
Sections of his police interview were read out in court where he described being urged by a mate to fight Mr Swain as drove to The Pier.
“(He said) yeah Wayne, when he gets out of the cab just go and bang him,” his statement said.
“(I said to Mr Swain) come on Robbie, let’s go, you want to fight, let’s squash it.
“I don’t know who threw the first punch, I was just angry.”
Wayne said he and Mr Swain “shaped up” to each other before the fight broke out.
He said he did not see Keith punch Mr Swain.
“I fought Robbie that night and no one else,” he said.
But National Rugby League development officer Atul Chowdhary, who was Brothers’ reserve grade coach at the time, said he saw Keith hit Mr Swain to the side of the jaw.
“It was badly broken, the jaw was just hanging down,” he said.
“His teeth were out. He couldn’t close it. It was just hanging to one side.”
The trial continues today.