A coach and a referee traded blows during a youth flag football game in Massachusetts last week, and a group of adult spectators had to physically separate them while the kids watched from the field. Footage of the scuffle is making the rounds, and the parents who saw it live were reportedly not thrilled.
What's been reported:
- The fight involved referee Jeff Etienne and a coach from the Massachusetts Outlaws, according to WCVB, as relayed by the Daily Mail.
- The coach has not been publicly named.
- Eyewitnesses told WCVB the coach shouted in Etienne's face over a call, and the ref responded by shoving him.
- The Outlaws said in a statement that the coach was upset about a blitz-related call that went in their favor, then flipped to the other team within the same play.
- The team said things "escalated quickly and got physical," and the game was stopped.
- Etienne said he was defending himself but acknowledged he should have walked away.
- Video shows adult spectators pulling the two men apart as several children looked on.
The context: A flag football game is a sport where nobody is allowed to tackle anybody. Two grown adults apparently missed that memo. Disputed calls are a staple of youth sports, and officials getting heat from the sideline is nothing new. Officials physically responding is a different story, and it's one that puts the referee on the hook right alongside the coach.
Based on the reporting available, the Outlaws' statement did not mention any discipline, and the source does not detail any consequences for either man. The part everyone agrees on is that the kids were standing right there for all of it.
The one person who handled the situation well was the parent who figured out the best move was to physically get between two adults who had stopped acting like it.
Source: Daily Mail Online