Violence At The Snake
Bite Classic
Will Utah clubs ever be invited anywhere?
(From the November 2004 Rugby Magazine)
In
August of this year Rugby Magazine attended the National Club 7s
in Park City, Utah and one of the teams that attracted our attention was the
Provo Steelers. The only previous time we had seen Provo was on Saturday at the
2000 Aspen Ruggerfest when three members of the Utah-based team were arrested
and charged with third-degree assault following a particularly vicious on-field
brawl with the Denver Barbarians. The police directed the Steelers to leave
town that day and the three arrested players subsequently received suspended
sentences and were directed to perform community service.
The
behavior of the Steelers at this year’s National Club 7s in Park City was
exemplary and in Tongia Vaitaki they had, in this observer’s estimation, the
most talented player in the competition.
But
in late September the following reports regarding Boise’s Snake Bite Tournament
found their way to our offices.
Boise,
ID
September 25, 2004
Tournament Director’s Report (Part I)
From: Matt Genetti
To: Tournament Participants
Date: Sunday, September 26, 2004
We
would appreciate your feedback and constructive criticism as to what you liked
and disliked about this year’s Snake Bite Tournament.
With
multiple requests and in light of recent events, we will no longer allow men’s
teams from Utah into our tournament. I felt they deserved a chance to prove
people wrong and they failed to do so. We want quality rugby and enjoy games
that are hard-hitting and competitive, but we cannot have teams in our
tournament that will allow their players to escalate a situation by kicking
opponents in the head and punching those who aren’t looking.
Next
year’s tournament will be held on the weekend of September 24-25.
From: Matt Genetti
Date: Wednesday, September 29, 2004
In a
semifinal between Snake River Reunion (all retired ruggers) and Provo, the
match was in it s final ten minutes with Provo being in full control with a
four try to zero lead. Provo’s frustration with the ref (their contention) came
to a boil when an altercation broke out between the two sides.
It was
your typical rugby fight with two guilty parties until a few Provo players took
it upon themselves to kick a Snake River guy already on the ground (opening a
huge gash on his head) and punching guys when they weren’t looking (one got his
front teeth knocked out and the other was knocked unconscious).
These
chicken shit acts are what set Provo apart from other clubs. When I reported
these actions to their club representative (who was unable to attend) he
stated: "When it’s on, anything goes."
I
fully agree with defending yourself and your team, but this does not include
taking shots at someone who cannot see you or defend themselves. When a guy is
down, don’t kick him and if a guy is posing no immediate threat, don’t punch
him.
The
cops and paramedics were called and charges will be filed as one of our guys
will have thousands of dollars in dental work needed (he was just trying to
point out to the refs the Provo guy that kicked our guy in the head when
someone whacked him).
Provo
came to our tournament saying they wanted to compete nationally, as they did in
7s this summer, and they wanted to prove they could stick to playing rugby. But
this ‘anything goes’ attitude is something they cannot seem to shake and should
keep them out of organized rugby.
Provo Steelers’ Version
From: Rich Paongo,
Provo Steelers
To: Matt Genetti, Snake Bite Director
Date: Tuesday, September 28, 2004
You
guys have an awesome tournament and I wish to thank you for the opportunity we
had to play in it this year.
I also
wish to apologize for the inappropriate actions of my players. I had just
subbed out and when I caught my breath and turned around, all hell had broken
loose. When I finally got in, I knew I could control my players. I grabbed a
handful and walked them off to our sideline and things ended.
Unfortunately,
it was a little too late. Had I been in there in the first place, I could have
avoided what happened. I subbed out because we were in control of the game
(four tries to 0 with five minutes left) and our captain had a few key players
sub out so we could save some energy for the final.
It’s
no excuse, but my guys were just way too frustrated by the repeated penalties
the ref kept calling against us. It just seemed he didn’t like us or had a chip
on his shoulder against us. So when one of our guys got an uppercut to the lip
while running with the ball, that gave them the excuse to retaliate.
Like I
said, I am not finding an excuse; what my players did was not rugby and very
inappropriate. A few bad apples have spoiled it for the rest of us who truly
love this game.
From:
Rich Paongo, Provo Steelers
To: Pacific Coast/Utah Rugby Unions
Date: Thursday, September 30, 2004
This
letter serves as the official report of the Provo Steelers regarding the Snake
Bite Tournament in Boise, ID on Saturday, September 25, 2004. I wish to
preface the letter by stating that they have a great tournament, play some
great rugby and we highly recommend it to anybody.
The
Steelers were part of Pool D along with UVSC and the Boise Lions. We easily won
both games and advanced to the semifinals where we faced Snake River
Reunion.
During
the game against Snake River, our players’ frustration increased from the poor
officiating. The ref called at least 20 penalties or infractions against us in
the first 20 minute half. I bring this up to convey the frustration we felt
from the unfair officiating.
I
asked the ref at halftime to call it both ways and expressed that his calls
seemed a little one-sided for the home team and that our guys were getting very
frustrated.
We led
at intermission and the Steelers opened the second half with two more
unanswered tries. With the game pretty much over and decided, one of our
guys recovered a grubber kick along the sideline where the Snake River
supporters were standing. The whole incident started when a Snake River
player tackled our guy as he was running with the ball, with an uppercut to his
face (verified by the touch judge, Larry Seger). Our guy collared the
Snake River guy and a little shoving match resulted.
At
that moment, a member of the Snake River team, who wasn’t part of the game, ran
in from the sidelines and sucker-punched the same guy (also verified by the
touch judge). Our guys then attacked the guy who ran in from the outside.
Snake
River’s second team also ran onto the field. I am not sure whether it was to
fight or to try to control the fight, but it looked bad that two teams were
rushing to the fight when we only had a few guys. I made sure nobody ran into
the field from our sideline.
First,
Snake River started the fight. We reacted to the blatant uppercut by the Snake
River guy.
Second,
if the onlooker hadn’t rushed the field and punched our guy, the uppercut would
have been swept under the rug and the shoving match would have been
dissolved.
Third,
when Snake River’s second team rushed the field - whether it was to participate
in the fight, help one of their teammates, peace make, or whatever - you do not
leave the sideline. It is easier to control a few guys than trying to
control three teams (the two Snake River teams and the Provo Steelers). We felt
defensive when we were outnumbered and rushing the field just fueled the fire.
The
Steelers are at fault for being very loyal; you will not find a more loyal
group of guys. However, that means you are either a friend or an enemy. So when
Snake River’s second team and supporters rushed the field, that just meant more
enemies and our guys felt more threatened when they were outnumbered.
As
punches were flying, you were either a friend or an enemy. And if you were not
a friend, you had better get off the field because you were a threat to
our team. And since there were the equivalent of two Snake River teams to our
one, we felt we had to defend ourselves.
It was
mainly four individuals from our team that did all the fighting. Two of them
play for another team in Salt Lake City and joined the Steelers just for the
tournament because we were short of players.
We
regret this incident occurred and welcome any suggestions.
Tournament Director’s Report (Part II)
From: Matt Genetti
Date: October 2, 2004
It is
unfortunate that Rich actually believes Snake River started it and that the
Provo players were just defending themselves.
First, Snake #15,
Mike Flowers, was playing wing and ran in (from the wing position) to defend
his teammate Travis Crawl and his brother Bob Flowers, who were already on the
ground being kicked. Some Steelers may have reacted to Mike’s arrival, but that
was no means the beginning of what happened.
Mike
Flowers was defending his brother in a fight that was already initiated by
Provo players on the far sideline, away from Provo, so the Steelers could not
see from their sideline position. Travis Crawl, who had been punched by a Provo
guy, took him down and then got kicked in the head while on top of the Provo
player (possibly the only one-on- one fight that occurred). All this happened before
Mike Flowers came in.
Second, Snake River
had possession of the ball, not Provo, and a Snake player got punched in
the tackle.
Third, most of our
current Snakes, what Rich refers to as the second Snake team, were over at the
concessions or under the shade by our bus a field and a half away.
Fourth, not one guy
that was not in the game took a hit. If we had so many onlookers rushing in,
you would think one of them would have gotten punched. We simply did not have
any more guys on the field than Provo did, possibly less.
Fifth, I (as
tournament director) rushed onto the field when I saw Provo’s sideline
clearing. I rushed in front of them, yelling at them to stay off the field
(stating that I was the tournament director). I would have gotten jumped by
three or four guys except one of the Steelers recognized me and grabbed them,
saying: "Not him; he’s the tournament director."
I will
note that a few of their guys made an effort to control their players.
Sixth, our players
did rush the field in response to the Provo players coming out. But it
was not a full side, as most of our guys were resting in the shade for the
championship game. I yelled at my guys to stop and pushed one of them back.
This was until I saw the damage that had been done and knew my efforts were too
little too late.
At
that point I saw one of our guys go down (helping a teammate) and knew that
breaking things up was not going to work with the Steelers. Not to mention that
by turning my back I was presenting a big target.
Seventh, the ref is
not a Snake player, nor a Boise resident. Players in the US encounter a variety
of reffing styles and must adjust to the calls. These volunteer refs do their
best and although it may get frustrating, arguing or starting a fight will not
fix it, especially when you have the game in hand. The Steelers claim to have
played rugby their whole life (justifying their anger towards the ref), but if
they cannot accept the refs in US rugby, then they should consider boycotting
the game.
Eighth, as stated by
the ref and everyone except Provo, the Steelers were not involved in one-on-one
fights with an opponent who was ready to engage. They were seeking out kill
shots on guys trying to point out guilty parties, trying to break things up, or
trying to protect downed players. They came in numbers (never alone) on guys
who were not looking.
Now
they claim that their cheap shots were taken in "defense" because
they feared for their safety. Punching and kicking an opponent who cannot see
you is not defending yourself or your team. It is an act of a coward who wishes
to cause harm to his opponent. I’ll state again, most of the Snake Reunion guys
who got blindsided were trying to defuse the situation and not making
aggressive moves!
Ninth, if they were
not guilty then why did one of our former players, Sefo Insenio, rush
two of them away from the pitch when the police arrived and why were others
hiding?
If you
take Provo’s blatant cheap shots out of the game, you have one or two red
cards, the game continues and both sides are to blame.
Referee’s Report
From: Craig Parish
Date: October 3, 2004
I have
been a referee allocator since 1996 for the Pacific Northwest RFU and allocated
all officials for this one-day event. As the #3 official, I slated myself into
the semifinal between the Snake River Reunion side (old boys) and the Provo
Steelers.
Boise’s
Pat Ryan had the other semifinal and Murray McDowell, a ranked official here on
vacation from NZ, had been slated for the final. We were on pitch #4, the
furthest from the tournament’s command center, over 120 meters away. We
were short of refs, so we used club TJs as the three other pitches were active.
Things
looked good for the majority of the day for both clubs in question. Snake’s old
boys did well in pool play without incident. Provo seemed poised to go all the
way to the final after cruising through pool play, with a lone yellow card in
their first match refereed by Spokane’s Sean O’Connell.
Snake River Reunion vs Provo Steelers
We had
a very on-again, off-again first half as continuity was lacking in nearly all
phases of play. Snake River had around 75% of the possession, but were not
turning it into points. Each time they gave it up, Provo would put together a
quick and decisive counter attack that either ended in a try or significant
field position. Though Provo didn’t seem to have any shortcomings
defensively, I couldn’t talk many of the arriving Provo players into
adopting an on-side position at the majority of breakdowns.
In the
first half, I spoke to the Provo captain twice and he to his players.
Both times we had periods of 2-3 minutes before the next similar penalty.
As the 20-minute half neared, I realized that tougher measures were needed.
The 10
meters of lost ground and lost possession didn’t seem to be working - so I
finally went to the cards - telling the captain (#10) that, "The next
offside player in the red-zone will go to the bin..."
He
told his players yet again and we made it to halftime without incident, 14-0
Provo.
Halftime
During
halftime I chatted with two Provo players who had questions about the seemingly
one-sided whistle I was using.
"When
you have the ball in hand, things are going well for you and it’s wonderful to
watch," I said. "But when you don’t have possession, I can’t keep you
at the last foot or coming in from the side, or sealing the ball, etc..."
Provo
seemed willing to take responsibility for the penalties and move on into the
second half with a renewed sense of propriety.
We had
a solid five minutes before two Provo players, ahead of the kicker, failed to
retreat. I verbalized for them to do so without success - so I blew the whistle
before any contact was made. The Provo players didn’t seem to understand the
call, so I spoke to the captain again and he to his players - heads nodded and
we played on.
The
breakdowns were becoming hotly contested and Provo took full advantage,
scooping up exposed ball and scoring from an amazing multi-phased attack yet
again.
Down
20-0 with less than 10 minutes to go, Snake River knew they were beaten, but
took solace in the hard hits they were laying-out at the breakdowns.
Conversation between the opposing players was plentiful and complimentary with
pats on the butt and helping hands up from a tackle here and there.
Snake
River won clean ball from a scrum 25 meters out from Provo’s goal and 15 meters
in from touch - and spun it. I had been on the put-in side and moved out
to the gain-line about 10 meters to the open side.
As the
ball was taken from the scrum, I didn’t see what Murray McDowell did on the
put-in side. "A Snake prop had shoulder-charged the Provo break who was
messing with him." McDowell later told me, "Both of these players
factored into what happened just moments later."
I
followed the ball out through three phases with Snake piercing the Provo line
and threatening to score from five meters. The Provo line lost their
composure and stepped up into an offside position once again.
I
verbalized for them to, "Get back on-side white, last foot!" My
arm went out to Snake as the white team didn’t respond: "Advantage green,
white offside!"
We had
a Snake maul three meters out with the ball clearly visible and playable. I
went to the open side to try and get the Provo players back to see if we could
facilitate a try - as it was clearly on. As I backed away from the line
and into more of a saddle position, the ball was still available at the back of
the maul.
Then I
spotted two Provo players stomping on a Snake player on the ground. My whistle
went immediately - but too late - as a Snake River player had jumped on top of
the maul and delivered a punch to the head of one of the stomping Provo
players...
That’s
when the state of affairs changed markedly for the worse. Punches were
exchanged by several players. I blew my whistle loudly several times and
instructed the teams to, "Grab your own players - get them back!"
We had
an uncomfortable ‘lull’ after the first round of physical reaction. I repeated
the instruction - but the touchlines were clearing on both sides now, and
everyone in proximity went into a ‘defensive mode’ (for lack of a better term.)
Fighting
erupted again as outsiders from both touchlines blended in with the players on
the pitch. The exchanges became more frantic as players were dealing with
the reality of being an aggressor, actively defending themselves, trying to
protect a mate, grabbing their own teammates, getting hit unprovoked or running
away.
Provo
then took it to another level, as they became very aggressive as a group. They
surrounded isolated Snake players - attacking from behind with punches and
kicks to the head. If Snake players went to ground, they would be kicked
in the head and ribs by a group of Provo players.
If a
Snake player looked aggressive, the Provo players in proximity would back up.
When that same Snake player looked to move on to protect, collect or reach one
of his own team, he would be attacked by those same Provo players as the Snake
player was otherwise engaged.
Groups
of Provo players circled the fray and then sprinted in to attack Snake players
who were otherwise engaged with one of their own or another Provo player. Those
Snake players would receive punches or kicks to the back or side of the head.
Snake
River as a group did not aggressively seek out Provo players. Instead,
they heeded my call to grab their own and retreat. As they did this they were
attacked from behind or the side receiving punches or kicks to the side or back
of the head.
This
all took place in what seemed like half an hour but in reality was less than
four minutes. There was simply no stopping the militant actions of the Provo
players. I witnessed a few Provo players attempting to cease their team’s
actions - then a teammate would jump into the fray and that same idled player
seemed drawn in to ‘aid’ his teammate... and so it went.
I
stepped out of the middle of this melee to see it in total and get jersey
colors and numbers. I was writing feverishly as I saw each unconscionable
punch and kick to the head. Players I saw punching or kicking were White
(Provo) numbers: 5, 4, 15, 12, 7, 8, 13 & 9 and Green (Snake River) number
15 & non-numbered. Two or three additional players from each team took
aggressive action - but I was unable to get their numbers.
In the
3rd minute, I witnessed something that I’ll never forget. Grizzly prop Glen
Amador was leaning down to help a stricken Snake River teammate when he was hit
in the back of the head by two Provo players. Glen was stunned and went to his
knees. The same two players then punched him in the side of the head from
behind, knocking him to all fours - as he was clearly concussed. Then both
kicked him in the ribs from both sides.
I got
their numbers, threw down my pad and dove in on Glen who was now laying face
down. I knew I was going to get it - but couldn’t help it - I was in agony
watching. I curled up around Glen and told him to stay down. He kept battling
to get up and lifted me with him as he got to all fours.
I held
on and closed my eyes waiting for the worst. But it never came as we both
escaped. The remaining fights were abandoned within another minute. Glen’s
teammates came to collect him and, miraculously, he was able to walk away on
his own power.
I
found the Provo captain and we walked to the middle of the pitch to cool off.
We spoke calmly as four Boise squad cars arrived, called by a bystander with a
cell phone minutes before. Tournament Director Matt Genetti came over and we
had a harsh discussion as we tried to come to grips with the reality of the
moment.
I
spoke with the Provo captain for another 30 minutes before the police asked for
statements. In that time, the Provo skipper never took responsibility for his
team’s actions. He kept repeating that they were simply defending themselves.
"We
had to defend ourselves," he said, "We were afraid of getting beat
up."
I
offered to him that kicking a man in the head while he is down is not in any
way defensive in nature. He simply didn’t agree.
Some
of the injuries I witnessed were: bloody faces, facial lacerations, multiple
teeth knocked out, split ears and badly bruised heads. All belonged to Snake
River players.
Fights
on rugby pitches are very rare. I’ve seen my share and have been able to
identify the flash-points that lead to most altercations. As a player for eight
years and a referee for eleven, I’m experienced in sensing such moments in a
game. You can feel it after awhile - even if you have missed the root cause.
In
this case there were no signs that the match was out of hand, not in the least.
Yes,
Provo was repeatedly penalized, but they seemed to understand their
transgressions and played on. With a 20-0 lead and the game winding down, we
didn’t have an environment that would foster such actions by the side in the
lead. The referees, players and bystanders I spoke with never saw it coming –
and neither did I.
Punches
were thrown by both teams initially - that much is certain. However, at no
point did Snake River or their sidelines take on the role of the aggressor.
After the initial few stomps and punches, the Provo team and sidelines were
aggressive in nature and unwilling to stop unprovoked attacks on Snake players
or bystanders.
No
Provo players were on the ground being kicked by Snake River players. No Provo
players were punched or kicked from behind. No Provo players were stalked by
groups of Snake River players and attacked when they were otherwise engaged.
My
heart goes out to the players and bystanders whose rugby experience was sullied
by this event.
Craig Parish
PNRFU Referee Allocator
Level 1 & 2 Referee Trainer
Level 1-3 TJ Trainer