Nick Becker: Auckland FC CEO on the violent confrontation between Auckland FC and Western Sydney Wanderers fans

Auckland FC says a fan was involved in an assault that left a man hospitalised. 

Police are considering charges against a 46-year-old man after the attack at Saturday's match against Western Sydney Wanderers.

Eight people were evicted from Mount Smart Stadium and two were arrested - and a visiting Wanderers fan needed facial surgery. 

Auckland FC CEO Nick Becker says the accused man doesn't represent the club. 

"We've got a great set of hardcore fans - known as the Port - who I think do everyone in Auckland proud. And it's certainly not one of them, it's not someone they would associate with and it's definitely no someone we want involved."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Is there a risk that we are not just fostering
football fans but also a bit of hurligan culture in
New Zealand? Did you see this? At the weekend? Orkanley
Sea fans and fans of the Western Sydney Wanderers threw
cans at each other after the game and during the game,
and there were children in the stands. A forty six
year old has been arrested for an alleged assault, which

(00:22):
resulted in an Australian man requiring facial surgery. Several children
were reported to have been just meters from some of
the beer cans that were thrown. Nick Becker is the
AUK and f CEO with me tonight.

Speaker 2 (00:34):
Hi Nick Eden Ryan, how are you? Yeah?

Speaker 1 (00:37):
Good? Thank you? So is this all getting out of
control or is this a one off? How do you
say it?

Speaker 2 (00:42):
I think it's definitely a one off.

Speaker 3 (00:43):
You know, we're obviously extremely disappointed about what happened, but
then we do see it as a very isolated incident.
You know, we've had up until yesterday, well sorry Saturday,
we had eleven games, over two hundred thousand Orkan f
C fans through the door and no one's like this.
So unfortunate that incredibly unfortunately it happened, and certainly we're

(01:05):
going to take the appropriate actions to get the person
banned who was involved in the in the fight that
ended up with the gentleman guinea of broken jaw. But
we're incredibly disappointed with that going on. But it's certainly
not reflective of what happens at our home games.

Speaker 1 (01:17):
And from where from the stadium yep, So.

Speaker 2 (01:21):
He'll be banned. So he's been arrested the police.

Speaker 3 (01:24):
It's at least for prosecution deside of what they want
to do and then but we've already agreed with the
stadium that he'll have a two year banning from the stadium.

Speaker 1 (01:32):
And is this a key with is this an auklative
C fan?

Speaker 3 (01:37):
As we understand it, it was an incident involved one
of the away fans and one of the home fans.

Speaker 2 (01:42):
Correct. We don't have any details on the guy.

Speaker 1 (01:45):
Right, so you don't know whether he's one of your
fans or whether he's one of theirs. Because the guy
was hurt was Australian, right, so you kin't of assume, correct.

Speaker 3 (01:52):
So I know there's definitely it was definitely a home
and away fan incident.

Speaker 1 (01:56):
Right, so it was it was an Auckland f C
fan salts in Australian.

Speaker 3 (02:02):
Yeah, but we don't call them an organ f C fan.
Was that's certainly not what we're about. You know, we're
a club that has you know, we're proudly built up a.

Speaker 2 (02:09):
Very family friendly environment.

Speaker 3 (02:11):
We've we've got a great set of hardcore fans known
as the port who I think do everyone in football and.

Speaker 2 (02:18):
Everyone in Auckland proud. And it's certainly not one of them.

Speaker 3 (02:20):
It's not someone that they would associate with, and it's
definitely not someone that we want involved now.

Speaker 1 (02:26):
Just a loser who went too far? And what absolutely
so what about what about the cans? Because I saw
I watched a video and I saw kids sitting there
and someone's throwing cans and I'm thinking, you know what
a dropcake? But are you allowed cans in the in
the stadium?

Speaker 2 (02:41):
There's very good question.

Speaker 3 (02:44):
I believe you can buy an open can from from
the concessions. But yeah, that sort of behavior is really
disappointing and and it's sort of it's one that will
certainly review and reconsider where we put when there's large
groups of of traveling fans. Certainly ones that come from
a club that has had a reputation for some anti

(03:06):
social baby from their fan group. We will look to
kind of really lock that down a lot more than
we did on Saturday, and I guess we take that
as a huge learning and to move forward.

Speaker 1 (03:18):
All right, Nick, nice to have you on the program.
That's Nick Becker from Auckland FC. He's the chief executive.

Speaker 2 (03:23):
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