School’s National Championship 1st XV Coach Done for Assault

Robert Simpkins (a.k.a Robert Ngarimu) was a hooker for the Bay of Plenty Steamers NPC at one stage. 

 

Let's not forget North Harbour and The Chiefs for good measure. 

Since his retirement from the sport he’s now turned his hands, as in clenched, to coaching rugby. 

To the highest level you can in N.Z Schoolboys.  

He’s the coach of the current N.Z champs; Rotorua Boys High. 

Well up-till last Friday that was.  

Him and his old-man have just pled guilty to two charges of assault on a child under 14 and one charge of injuring to injure – if the later charge makes sense?  

Far be it for moi to suggest this affair may well make him an even more a suitable candidate to coach rugby in this country.

 

The gory details can be located here. 

(Alleged?) Thieving Maori All Black gets a second chance

Willie Ripia is a player who has donned the N.Z Maori jersey. 

Ripia ended-up at The Western Force in 2010 as part of a ‘foreign’ allocation Australian Rugby have that gives a pathway for overseas born players into The Wallabies.   

He was unceremoniously booted out of The Force at the beginning of 2012 after CCTV footage caught him flogging money from the wallets and kit bags of his own team mates!  

He denied the claims but couldn’t argue with the footage, said he had gambling issues.   

But who thinks ‘honesty and trust’ are necessary attributes of a professional rugby player?  

Last season Ripia was made the captain, of all things, of Bay of Plenty ITM team and now he’s got a Super 15 contract with The Highlanders.     

Thieving from your team-mates must be one of the lowest acts one can perpetrate, unless the sport is rugby where it’s clearly not an issue to anyone in N.Z.   

Simon Chisholm just can’t help himself!

His rugby legacy continues (read: here) propensity for violence seemingly knows no bounds.

Two questions...

 

Who is going to stop Simon Chisholm?  

What is going to stop Simon Chisholm?  

 

Simon Chisholm is an Embarrassment

 

 

SunLive29th April 2013 Te Puke rugby player Simon Chisholm was sent off for punching another player on Saturday in his second game after spending months recovering from a brain injury received in a king hit by another player last year. 

Simon was red carded for allegedly landing a straight left following earlier unsavoury incidents that were not picked up by match officials, according to a BOP Rugby report. 

 Te Puke player Simon Chisholm was red carded for punching another player at a game on Saturday. 

Te Puke Sports president Ashley Peat confirmed the red carding today, but didn’t see the game and hasn’t spoken to Simon.  

The match between Tauranga Sports and Te Puke Sports at Tauranga Domain was won 39-15 by Tauranga. 

Last year Simon pressed charges after he received a king hit during a match against Te Puna. 

Te Puna player Uenuku Pieta, 22, a farmhand, was charged with assault with intent to injure and was sentenced last month to 200 hours’ community work. He was also ordered to pay $500 reparation and received a year-long ban from playing rugby. 

Tauranga Sports president Trevor Grainger said after the game on Saturday the player was “okay”, and the incident is "ironic" given what happened to Chisholm last year. 

Te Puke Sports vice-president Graham Donald says the club will not comment until after Chisholm’s case is heard before the Bay of Plenty Rugby Union judiciary committee this week.

 

 

Boy did I get it wrong backing Simon Chisholm in a prior article.

I tried to treat him as a hapless victim of needless on-field violence.   

When in contrast and ironically he is made of the same cloth as the person who he took to court.

Simon Chisholm is an embarrassment.  

 

If there is any justice he'll be banned as well.

 

Thuggery to you and me but not The Bay of Plenty Rugby Union or The Judge

One has to feel for Bay of Plenty rugby player Simon Chisholm. 

Eight months after being punched unconscious during a senior grade game he suffers daily headaches and could die if he suffers another blow to the head. 

The player that punched him from behind in a cowardly attack was Uenuku Pieta, 22, who was playing for the Te Puna club & admitted a charge of assault with intent to injure. 

The Bay of Plenty Rugby Union has banned Pieta for this season - little more than a pathetic slap on the wrist given the severity of the on field assault.  

Chisholm can never play again and has on-going health issues.  

The Bay of Plenty Rugby Union may as well link their web site to the local soccer association given they have single-handily gifted the code a new crop of children.  

Patently The Bay of Plenty Rugby Union cares little for player welfare given a thug like Pieta will be roaming its playing fields in a little over 12 months.  

Now to the second point stemming from this case; namely the weak sentence.  

Mealy mouthed Judge Louis Bidois sentenced Pieta to a paltry 200 hours' community work on a charge of assault with intent to injure and ordered $500 reparation = piss all in other-words.  

What Judge Bidos is saying is to Kiwis with his weak sentencing is: assaults on a sporting field are different to those out in the public.  

You can do what you like on a sporting field and suffer next to no ramifications.    

What would I and most Kiwi's have expected to happen here? 

One: A Life Ban. 

Two: 12 months jail and reparations in five figures.   

Footnote: Back in 2007 here’s what The Bay of Plenty Times had to say about  Judge Louis Bidois “Returning to his roots, Judge Bidois was also welcomed home to Poututerangi Marae in Te Puna on Sunday - the home marae of his Pirirakau hapu of Ngati Ranginui” Te Puna? That name sounds familiar?