By Alesha Capone
A TEENAGER has been banned from all basketball venues across Victoria for seven years, after he instigated a violent confrontation at a recent Werribee game.
The penalty was imposed on the 17-year-old male by the Basketball Victoria tribunal on 15 August.
Basketball Victoria’s operations and governance manager Gerry Glennen said the incident occurred while the teenager was watching a Werribee Basketball Association game on 19 July.
Mr Glennen said after an “on court altercation” broke out between some players at the Werribee Sports and Fitness Centre during a game, the young spectator entered the arena.
After being asked by a referee to leave the court, the 17-year-old “severely abused the referee” and was again asked several times to exit.
But Mr Glennen said the teenager, who sat on the player’s bench, “abused them with obscene language” and then “chested the referee”.
He then stepped forward, raised his hands, pointed at himself, the referee and then towards outside.
Mr Glennen said the teenager was reported to Basketball Victoria and the tribunal found him guilty of bringing basketball into disrepute, assaulting and threatening an official, putting an official in fear of impending violence and unsportsmanlike behaviour.
He was banned from all basketball venues across the state for seven years as a result of his behaviour.
Star contacted the WBA president Mark Hall last week but he declined to comment on the issue.
However, Mr Glennen said a seven year ban was “fortunately very rare” among the state’s basketball community.
“It’s quite a long ban, but some have been banned for longer,” he said.
“To my knowledge, it’s one of the biggest bans which we’ve had in Werribee.
“He would be one of the youngest we’ve had, especially for that period (seven years).
“Spectators get banned occasionally, there are two stages, people can be suspended and then banned.
“But if it’s spectators, they usually get banned because there is no point suspending them.”
Mr Glennen said Basketball Victoria took part in a State Government initiative two years ago to “quell spectator behaviour” across a range of sports.
He said since then, the organisation has seen a reduction in the amount of spectators appearing before the tribunal.
