Parents’ behaviour halts game

An under 8-year-olds’ rugby game had to be called off in Auckland after parents ran on to the field screaming and swearing.

The match between teams from Ponsonby Rugby Club in the central city and the Waitemata Rugby Football Club from Henderson was abandoned six minutes before fulltime because of the incident.

A report has been sent to the Auckland Rugby Union (ARU), which is investigating.

Eyewitnesses say it began when two of the children got into an altercation.

A Ponsonby spectator allegedly rushed on to the field and manhandled one of the Waitemata players.

The situation then escalated, with parents ‘‘screaming and swearing’’, one witness said.

It didn’t result in violence, but ‘‘the language and the threat of it was more than enough’’, the witness said.

‘‘I’ve never seen anything before in my life.’’

The ARU confirmed it had received Ponsonby’s report and was waiting for a similar report from Waitemata.

Waitemata’s junior club captain happened to be at the game and was able to diffuse the situation, the club’s chairman Mark Mallabar said.

The incident wasn’t ‘‘a major major’’ but the behaviour was unacceptable and unseemly, Mallabar said.

The ARU had strong protocols and handbooks were given out to players and parents which outlined the expected standards.

‘‘I’ve seen it every year somewhere along the way. ‘‘It’s got to be stamped out,’’ he said. Another Auckland club had sandwich boards at junior games saying, ‘‘this is for the kids, it’s not the World Cup’’.

‘‘I’m going to get a couple at our club, too,’’ Mallabar said.

The ARU said it had a process in place to deal with such incidents and that process was under way.

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