Workers heard coach call jogger derogatory remarks, and tell him to 'piss off' and 'fucking leave' during the confrontation

An umpire coach with four decades of service to Australian football was dismissed after CCTV footage captured him in a physical confrontation with a member of the public on a training oval.

The coach approached a jogger on 8 April 2025, asking him to leave as the venue was booked for umpire training, but when the jogger refused, the situation escalated into a physical altercation lasting several minutes.

The incident was reported through an integrity portal by the jogger, triggering an internal investigation that led to the coach being stood down on 15 April 2025 and ultimately dismissed on 8 May 2025 for breaching the code of conduct through threatening, intimidating and aggressive behaviour.

Background of the case

The coach's role was elite umpires coach and administrator under a fixed-term contract due to end on 30 September 2025. The contract permitted termination for serious misconduct or for conduct causing a serious risk to health and safety.

The coach had been employed for 40 years beginning in 1986, serving as an umpire from 1986-2015 and as a coach from 2016-2025.

On 8 April 2025 just prior to 5pm, the coach arrived at the oval to open it for umpires to use. At 6:10pm, the coach noticed a man running laps of the oval who he did not recognise.

The man was not wearing the usual attire which would have identified him as an official and instead...

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