Former chief urges change

FORMER Gold Coast Rugby League supremo Tom Marzella believes competition officials must learn from their mistakes in handling the infamous brawl that marred last month’s A-grade grand final.

Two players – one from Runaway Bay and a spectator who plays for Mudgeeraba – were last week handed huge bans for their roles in the sideline scuffle during Burleigh’s win over Bay at Pizzey Park.

Investigations found the incident to have been started by rowdy fans, with members of the Seagulls bench retaliating.

Marzella said while there was a large security presence provided by the Gold Coast Rugby League, there needed to be more competition officials on-hand to manage tempers flaring.

“Where were the officials to control that?” said Marzella, who pointed to the loss of experienced administrators during an overhaul of the competition’s board structure last December.

“The players left the bench because they got upset about some banter from some people in the stands. Who is there controlling that?

“In years gone by we had a couple of league officials walking around … if that was happening and that got out of control, it should have been hit on the head.

“At the end of the day they had a lot of security guards there, they looked good with their bright fluoros but it’s not up to them to control banter.

“If the banter was a little bit over the top, all it would need is for somebody from the league to go to the club and say listen, talk to your little group there and tell them to pull their heads in.

“That’s all it needed.” However, Marzella claimed it is the responsibility of players to appropriately deal with barbs from the crowd.

“If it was just old fashioned banter that has been around for decades, it isn’t right that the players reacted to it,” he said. “As long as it is not racial or offensive, I don’t see a problem with it.

AT THE END OF THE DAY THEY HAD A LOT OF SECURITY GUARDS THERE, THEY LOOKED GOOD WITH THEIR BRIGHT FLUOROS BUT IT’S NOT UP TO THEM TO CONTROL BANTER

“Reports I have received is there was no racial stuff.

“Yes I have heard there was a little bit of offensive language but then again that has been around for decades.

“Can you imagine somebody yelling out to Konrad Hurrell, ‘I don’t like your hairdo’ … and Konrad Hurrell taking offence and belting somebody.”

Marzella however did defend the league’s move to withhold the names of the two players banned.