Parent accused of tripping up 9-year-old football player who was running for touchdown
A parent was accused of tripping a nine-year-old boy who was running for a touchdown during a school American Football game.
The under 10s match had been taking place between the Racine Eagles and the Milwaukee Colts in the US, and the 41-year-old man had reportedly become 'upset with a play' during the match on August 22.
Video of the incident circulated widely, going viral on social media, with the man tripping the boy while he was on the pitch.
The boy had run to the left end when the man, understood to be a parent from Milwaukee, stepped onto the pitch and tripped him up, with both of them falling to the ground as a result.
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The coach for Racine, Channing Schultz, had been on vacation when the incident happened, but said that multiple parents from children on the team had contacted him after the incident, which he called 'disgusting'.
“I was filled with anger, it was disgusting," he told CBS 58. "It was the most cowardly act I’ve ever seen. For him to just do it with so much intent and he was committed. No words can fix that at all.”
Speaking to FOX, he said: "I have seen adults fight, I have seen fights at youth events, I have seen stuff happen, but I have never in my life seen a grown man come on the field."
Schultz went on to say that the child is tough and was alright and praised him for getting back up again to play.
"He’s a tough kid, he is doing fine," said the coach. "All my kids are special, but he’s one of my kids that has a natural God-given ability, and it didn’t surprise me that he got up and was ready to play again.
"He is a very soft-spoken kid, you wouldn’t know if he was happy or sad, but he is the hardest worker extremely talented."
The parent had reportedly walked away from the pitch following the incident, and was subsequently stopped by police officers after travelling a short way from the school where the match had been taking place in a traffic stop.
Following the stop, officers reportedly said that the man was 'cooperative, admitted to the act and acknowledged he was wrong'. They added that officers gave him a citation for disorderly conduct before he was allowed to go.
A spokesperson for the Milwaukee Colts team told CBS 58 that the man who tripped the child during the match is not a coach for the team.
They also said that he has been 'removed from the game and the remainder of the season', adding: "That’s the league responsibility to keep spectators separated from players."
Schultz said that he is worried because his team is scheduled to play the Colts again in two weeks' time, and said that his priority is making sure that his players are safe.
Kit Roberts