A referee and a coach from the Massachusetts Outlaws got physical during a youth flag football tournament in Revere over the weekend, and parents had to wade in to break it up. The whole thing went down in front of players in a tournament that includes girls divisions starting at six-and-under, per Hoodline, citing the New York Post and WCVB.
What we know:
- The scuffle happened at the Ghost Town Showdown at Harry Della Russo Stadium, a venue locals call the Boneyard.
- Referee Jeff Etienne, a 20-year flag football official, and an unnamed Outlaws coach were the two involved, according to WCVB.
- The Outlaws organization said the coach was frustrated with the officiating and disputed a blitz call that swung in the opponent's favor.
- Witnesses told WCVB the coach got in Etienne's face and yelled, and Etienne pushed him.
- The game was stopped immediately. Parents separated the two, and some pinned the coach to the ground before leading him away.
- It's unclear whether either man was hurt.
- Etienne told WCVB he should have walked away, as he has in past disputes, and called it a mistake and the first incident of its kind in his two decades of officiating. The two reportedly apologized to each other once things cooled off.
- A grandparent who saw it told WCVB they were outraged.
The bigger picture
Revere is the latest entry in a rough season for adults at kids' games. Five days earlier, Maryland police investigated a parking lot fight after a girls flag football game between Poolesville and Clarksburg high schools, one in which a cowbell reportedly became a weapon. In late August, a brawl between coaching staffs at an 8-to-10-year-old game in Western Pennsylvania left seven coaches suspended. Three people were charged or cited: Dequay Canton faces a third-degree misdemeanor, with arraignment set for November 25, per CBS. Joseph Kubiak and Frank McGrath of the Keystone Oaks staff received summary disorderly conduct citations.
Officials are walking away from the job at a steady clip. The National Association of Sports Officials says more than 70% of new officials quit within three years, citing abuse from coaches and parents. NASO tracks 23 states with laws covering assault or harassment of officials.
In Massachusetts, simple assault and battery carries up to two and a half years in a house of correction or a $1,000 fine, per the Serpa Law Office, and can escalate if serious injury results. No charges in the Revere incident have been reported.
The timing is awkward for the sport. Gov. Maura Healey asked the MIAA on October 9 to recognize girls flag football as a varsity sport, pointing to growth from eight teams in 2023 to 90 by 2026, according to Mass.gov.
The call that started it all was a blitz penalty in a flag football game. Nobody wins that argument, least of all the six-year-olds watching from the sideline.
Source: Hoodline