Sports Rugby-Union

Referee assault halts Ba Tikina Championship matches

Referee assault halts Ba Tikina Championship matches
Photo: Ba Rugby Union

Two assaults on referees during the Ba Tikina Championships during the final last Saturday, led to the respective games being called off.

The Ba Rugby Union says they strongly condemn any physical or verbal assaults by players, officials, or spectators against match referees or assistant referees.

They say appropriate disciplinary action will always be taken.

The Ba Rugby Union say Busa captain and No. 8, Isimeli Burogo, punched match referee Tomasi Vale after receiving a yellow card for arguing when the referee awarded a penalty to Yakete in the Shield final.

They say in the second incident, Navala fullback Romulo Laitia ran toward match referee Iliaseri Rokodrakia and began punching him, believing a forward pass against Sorokoba early in the third-place play-off match was wrongly called.

They also highlighted that police officers attended the scene and took the offending players to the Ba Police Station.

The Ba Rugby Union say they are looking at ways to prevent such situations from happening again.

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