Rugby team’s fly-tipping ‘a simple prank’
A ROWDY rugby team dumped a fridge freezer in a street after a pub crawl in a Cardiff suburb.
Aberdare RFC has admitted that members of its first team were involved in the fly-tipping prank – but have described the behaviour of players on Saturday night as “light hearted”.
The group was seen carrying a large upright fridge freezer with them on a pub crawl around Whitchurch, which was discovered on a street corner the next day.
Landlord of the The Maltsters pub on Merthyr Road, Colin Elson said: “I saw a coach turn up with what appeared to be some sort of rugby or sports team.
“They got off and a couple of older guys were with them. They got off the bus and they brought out a big upright chest freezer. A few of the other customers told me it was dumped along the side of the pub.”
Colin said he approached the group with another customer, Alastair Milburn, after a few of them had come inside and ordered a drink.
“They said it’s nothing to do with us,” he said. “So I said if you don’t sort it out then the police are going to be here. I told them it’s all on CCTV outside.
“Then they drank their drinks and left.
“They picked up the chest freezer and literally walked up the village with it.”
He added: “I don’t understand how they had an upright chest freezer on a coach. I’m not sure if the plan was to leave it there or to take it with them to every pub.
“Totally strange behaviour. Really weird. They weren’t misbehaving in my pub, in fairness. They were only here for 10 minutes.”
Aberdare RFC had beaten Cardiff Quins RFC 50 points to 15 in a fixture earlier that afternoon.
Whitchurch councillor Mike Phillips said he had received reports of a few disturbances on the street relating to the group on Saturday night.
He discovered a fridge freezer dumped on the corner of Merthyr Road and Church Road on Sunday.
“I’ve reported it to be picked up and asked if CCTV footage can be viewed to investigate,” Cllr Phillips said.
A spokesman for Aberdare RFC said: “Quite simply there was a rugby game which they played in and on the way up there was fridge freezer which they picked up out of a skip.
“They then went from one pub to another and left the fridge outside and at the end of a light hearted drinking session they put the fridge back into a skip.”
He added: “It was just a straightforward prank and nothing more than that.”