Football Federation Australia is investigating after a fan was ejected from Sunday’s A-League semi-final at Sydney’s Jubilee Oval amid accusations of heavy-handed policing which left the man’s daughter, who has special needs, “traumatised”.
Rory Carroll, a Sydney FC supporter, said he was trying to take his daughter, who has Down’s syndrome, to the disabled toilet when he was told by security staff he could not do so as it was in a restricted zone.
A number of police officers were called to attend the scene and Carroll, who said he had not been drinking because he was driving on the evening of the game, can he heard on a video taken by another crowd member questioning the decision not to let him and his daughter through.
“The disabled toilets, because my daughter needs it, are right there and they won’t let me take my daughter through,” he said. “That’s what this is all about. You guys want to kick me out because he said so [as he points at security] and I can’t take my disabled daughter five metres.”
Carroll and his family can then be seen being escorted from the stand by several police officers (witnesses claim there were up to 10) to a chorus of boos from the crowd.
I am heart broken over this....
— Melissa Barbieri (@Bubs_11) May 12, 2019
I want to know what happened to them. How can we make it up to them?
Fly them to Perth @tpignata9 🙏 please someone 💔 https://t.co/6QcQtdwC85
New South Wales police confirmed the incident and said the man was ejected because he refused to cooperate with their requests, but denied the police response was over zealous.
“A reasonable amount of police to ensure they can do their job safely and effectively would be within those numbers,” Assistant Commissioner Mark Walton said on Monday afternoon. “I wouldn’t describe it as heavy handed or over the top.”
Walton said Carroll wanted to access the grandstand because “there was a greater variety of beer available than there was in the outer grandstand area where he was seated”. That information, Walton said, came from a written “security record” provided to him by security staff at the ground.
But Carroll denied he had been drinking on Monday night, as he took his responsibility as a designated driver seriously. “I needed to go and check the same toilet that my daughter uses for it’s cleanliness,” he said.
FFA issued a statement on Monday afternoon to confirm there had been dialogue with Carroll following the incident, and that it was continuing to review the matter, having received multiple stadium security incident reports.
“There are conflicting accounts and a potential misunderstanding of the circumstances that led to the eviction,” the FFA statement read. “FFA will seek further discussion with stadium management and police to seek clarity around the level of response used to evict a single person. FFA continues to work with all parties, including the fan, to resolve the matter.”
FFA board member Remo Nogarotto indicated he backed action on what he said is a longstanding issue of the treatment of football fans.
“My position on the deliberate profiling of football fans is on the public record but this goes well beyond the pale,” Nogarotto tweeted. “Our game needs to escalate this politically and demand policing in line with other sports.”
Carroll said he and his family had been excited to attend the game against Melbourne Victory, which Sydney FC won 6-1, but the experience soured their evening and even prompted him to consider his future attendance at A-League games.
“My daughter had not stopped talking about [the game] and got dressed into her SFC gear,” he tweeted. “Unfortunately that’s not how our night ended. I had to console crying girls, and put up with multiple police cars monitoring my movements as we exited the stadium.”
10 Uniformed Police and 4 security guards evict a father who wanted to take his disabled daughter to the closest toilet. @ALeague @9NewsSyd @SydneyFC #SYDvMVC #BigBlue #ALeague pic.twitter.com/MdXZSCv2Rq
— Tom Miles (@TomMile43729676) May 12, 2019
