The Canberra Raiders fan who was involved in an ugly incident with the referees at halftime of the Raiders vs Penrith Panthers at GIO Stadium has had his club membership revoked for 12 months
The fan was reported to have been abusive and spat at referee Ashley Klein as he was walking up the tunnel at the end of the first half. He was identified and removed from the ground by security and police.
The member cooperated with officials and the police while he was being removed from the stadium.
In a statement released by the Raiders today, CEO Don Furner said that the fan had immediately shown remorse for his actions and sent an apology letter to the club shortly after he was removed from the ground.
“The member involved in the incident yesterday sent the club a letter within hours of the game and has expressed remorse and has taken responsibility for his actions,” Furner said.
“The Raiders will not tolerate anti-social behaviour at home matches and pride ourselves on providing a safe environment for families to attend our games.”
The member’s actions after the incident were taken into consideration while deciding his punishment.
“We believe 12 months is a sufficient penalty for the incident and we will review his membership application after this time has expired. From what we understand from further discussions with the member and his family, this was out of character and he is genuinely sorry for his actions.”
To add insult to injury, the Raiders’ finals hopes are all but gone after losing to the Panthers in the final minutes of the game. Tyrone May scored the clincher for the Panthers with just minutes to go, and the men from the mountain held onto their four-point lead to narrowly win the game.
Tensions boiled over as the game finished, with Raiders fans and players clearly frustrated about their 2017 season.
To qualify for the finals, the Raiders must now win their two remaining games against the Knights and Storm all the while relying on a number of other results to go their way.
Reckon you can pick the winning team? Build your own dream team with Draftstars daily fantasy and compete on any match. For great odds on the NRL head on over to PlayUp. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.
1. Tigers earning their stripes The Tigers played Souths last year when the Bunnies were at their very highest point. Tim Sheens coached them…
It had all been going so well. Canberra were by far the better side for ten minutes, with Jamal Fogarty giving the Brisbane back…
Who are the hardest working big men in the NRL?
Graham Annesley has admitted the match officials got it wrong and the Titans should've been given a set restart after a Raiders player was…
Cranky old coaches Des Hasler and Ricky Stuart reportedly engaged in a post-match argument outside Canberra's dressing room following the Titans' controversial golden-point loss…
Ricky Stuart says Gold Coast coach Des Hasler is "on another planet" after the Titans boss blasted the refereeing in his side's golden point…
