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Fans need to grow up
In the coming days, I'm sure we'll all be hearing a lot about who threw the first punch in Wednesday night's Kingston at Newburgh girls basketball game that was stopped with 1:12 left in the fourth quarter when fans spilled onto the court after two players got involved in a fight.
Kingston folks will say it was a Newburgh player. Newburgh fans will say it was the Kingston player. I wasn't there, so I don't know who started the altercation.
Nor do I really care.
As detestable as it is that two kids started a fight during a game, I'm angered even more by the actions of fans and parents from both teams after.
Here's the video shot by Freeman reporter Mike Stribl, where security had to remove fans from the court. There are plenty of images of adults getting physically involved in the altercation.
A year ago, the Kingston and Newburgh boys basketball teams were involved in a similar altercation at Kingston's Kate Walton Field House. The final 14.2 seconds of that game was never played because fans spilled on the court after players got into a fight.
A month later, those two teams played under increased security in Newburgh. On Tuesday, they returned to Kate Walton Field House, where security was increased and the crowd as limited to 1,000. There were no incidents at either game.
I know things can get heated between players in games, especially when you're talking about the intense rivalry between Kingston and Newburgh. But I thought parents were supposed to be the adults here.
Parents need to get control of themselves or maybe we should, as both the Kingston and Newburgh coaches suggested, start playing these games in an empty gym.
And that would be the saddest part of it all.
Kingston folks will say it was a Newburgh player. Newburgh fans will say it was the Kingston player. I wasn't there, so I don't know who started the altercation.
Nor do I really care.
As detestable as it is that two kids started a fight during a game, I'm angered even more by the actions of fans and parents from both teams after.
Here's the video shot by Freeman reporter Mike Stribl, where security had to remove fans from the court. There are plenty of images of adults getting physically involved in the altercation.
A year ago, the Kingston and Newburgh boys basketball teams were involved in a similar altercation at Kingston's Kate Walton Field House. The final 14.2 seconds of that game was never played because fans spilled on the court after players got into a fight.
A month later, those two teams played under increased security in Newburgh. On Tuesday, they returned to Kate Walton Field House, where security was increased and the crowd as limited to 1,000. There were no incidents at either game.
I know things can get heated between players in games, especially when you're talking about the intense rivalry between Kingston and Newburgh. But I thought parents were supposed to be the adults here.
Parents need to get control of themselves or maybe we should, as both the Kingston and Newburgh coaches suggested, start playing these games in an empty gym.
And that would be the saddest part of it all.
posted by Ron Rosner at
11:57 AM
2 Comments:
Bad Parenting is a vicious cycle. Those parents who felt the need to throw a punch at a player,or jump onto the court and act like a juvenile are the same idiots that would show up as spectators to a Beacon basketball game 16 years ago and start riots. It clearly seems to be a way to act in Newburgh when talent doesn't quite win a game, or someone else's talent shines a bit brighter then yours...acting like a hoodlum might make people fear you, but after that moments over...who walks away with a brighter future!?
I was at that game in Kingston last year. It was sad to watch the fighting, the dogs, the cops, the bad sportsmanship, but yes, we got the message and this year, we ALL behaved ourselves. It was in large part due to limiting the crowd, the increased security and most of all, the players themselves...they have been playing so well...and we Tiger fans are proud of them. Why screw it up by acting like morons? I am happy to sit and just watch the kids play. They are good, very good, even Newburgh. I don't get the fighting...it's not like there's a money purse involved here and the schools would get new sound systems or needed funds. Nope. It's just plain ignorance and fear. No one likes to lose, but it happens. Get over it. Cheer. They're only kids for a short time. Smile and say "thanks for the great game, win or lose." But hey, I'm a Tiger fan, we can take a loss and so can the kids..because by playing well and being good sports, we don't lose...we win. We all need to remember it's a game. If it were upstate against downstate, we'd be playing together! So, let go or be dragged.
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