Toulon owner Mourad Boudjellal has said the club will consider suing the Leicester fans who accused Delon Armitage of verbal abuse after the French side’s loss to the Tigers earlier this month. The accusations have led to a hefty 12 week ban for the fullback, who has a chequered disciplinary past.
The incident took place after the game, when Armitage took a wrong turn on the way to the dressing room and ended up in a supporters’ bar. An angry exchange ensued, in which Armitage allegedly threatened to take a fan’s ““f***ing face off in the carpark” before calling the assembled fans, a group which included several children, “inbred c**ts”.
The disciplinary panel threw out a similar alleged incident from during the game for insufficient evidence, but decided this claim warranted a lengthy ban. It has prompted predictable fury from Toulon president Boudjellal, who has questioned the legitimacy of the claims and threatened legal action against the fans that made them.
Speaking to La Provence newspaper, he said: “It is incomprehensible! This is an extraordinary decision that is based only on allegations of two fans from the opposition where you can legitimately question their objectivity. There’s no formal proof, no official document, not even television images to attest to the validity of their testimony.
“We may even sue those two English supporters, for their false testimonies.”
Photo by: Patrick Khachfe / Onside Images
I just find this sad. I’ve been in plenty of bars after the match when opposition players have also been present and never seen anything other than good manners and good natured chat.
If Armitage did say what he is alleged to have said, then I cannot believe that he did so for no reason
Seems to me like both sides are to blame.
Armitage has history though – got thick with a couple of kids at a Leinster-LI pre-season game who cheekily asked for his jacket (they were about 9 or 10 or so) and he decided to verbally abuse them and fans/parents around them. Not the worlds nicest bloke by all accounts.
This ban is just the biggest joke ever. A British competition (at least the decision board under influence), a British commission, a “hated” British player playing for a French Team and based on testimony of drunk British fans… Are we serious here?
I don’t understand why the nationality of anybody involved is relevant. Also your assumption that the fans were drunk isn’t necessarily true.
A professional sportsman called a group of opposition fans ‘c**ts’ (a group which included young children) and was reprimanded. Seems perfectly fine to me, he should know better. He should have learned from his previous charges.
Nationality because English teams have always been considered differently in the Hcup and ERC, there are dozen of examples with unequal bans, selection of stadium for the final or poor referring. I agree that sportsman should be banned for that kind of behavior as they rightly did for Castrogiovani but in this specific case there is no official, vieo or camera to confirm it, only few Leicester fans and we all know how British hate Armitage (Doesn’t say he is a nice guy). We should stay on facts and in this case there is nothing serious.
But that’s all conjecture.
more reasons, as if any were needed, to show up the ridiculous of Toulon. A fantastic team for sure, yet not one of the current players would I welcome to Ravenhill. There’s too much money floating around their coffers and they believe their own hype. I was deighted when Tigers took them apart. Delon is his own worst enemy, and even if provoked by a few Tigers fans, he should have walked away. 12 weeks is heavy but not his first offence, at least Castro apologised and was contrite.
As NM said Armitage has form……boy does Delon have form!
He is supposed 2 b a professional rugby player!!!
But just look at Armitage’s record…..
Banned for pushing a doping official (a doping official for God’s sake!!!)
3 bans in 2011 for foul play
He’s got a record as long as his arm that one!
Add to that his showboating/gloating at the opposition and their supporters when he or a teammate scores a crucial try.
result=He just makes himself a target even more.
Perhaps Armitage should change his name from Delon to Dylan and shift to playing hooker instead.
He may get fewer bans…there again……..
To be fair I met Armitage once and he swore,/was rude and agressive to me simply because I introduced myself to him in a nightclub.
Totally believe this story and doubt the fans had to do much. Ban is pretty fair if he spoke like that in front to fans, including children.