A country football player has been charged with assault and choking after clashes during a game in southern Western Australia.
The man was allegedly involved in two incidents during Sunday’s Lower South West Football League clash in Kojonup between the hometown Cougars and the Bridgetown Bulldogs.
Footage of two incidents during the game prompted public outcry and a police investigation.
A WA Police spokesperson confirmed Kojonup Police, with assistance from Busselton detectives, charged the man, from Cowaramup, with assault occasioning bodily harm and “impeding another person’s breathing or blood circulation by applying pressure to the neck”.
The Cowaramup man is accused of choking an opposing player. (Supplied)
On Tuesday WA Police Commissioner Col Blanch said violence on the football field was “not on”.
“You are not immune on the sporting field,” he said.
“We understand there are normal contacts in the spirit of play, but if it is outside of play and a deliberate targeted attack, then it is an assault.”
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Game ‘turned ugly’
Kojonup Football Club vice-president Matt Marinoni said the top-of-the-table clash was a “tense and fiery” game that “turned ugly”.
He said the umpires did not see the off-ball incident.
“Then there was a lot of noise in the crowd,” Mr Marinoni said.
“From there there was a bit of a wrestle and melee because we saw one of our teammates was on the ground, unconscious.”
That player is in good spirits and recovering from his facial injuries and concussion, but is “shaken”, according to the club.
A spokesperson from the Lower South West Football League told the ABC it was aware of the incident.
“The matter has been referred to the Country Football WA tribunal process and will be dealt with in accordance with the applicable rules and procedures,” the spokesperson said.
The league declined to comment further, in order to “preserve the integrity and fairness of the tribunal process”.
The Bridgetown Football Club said the matter was being dealt with by Country Football WA.
“[We] do not condone the behaviour shown during Sunday’s game,” the club said in a statement.
“This has no place in football and does not reflect the true values of our club.”
The 23-year-old is due to face the Katanning Magistrates Court in August.
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