[imagesource: Twitter / @reverse_sweeper]

Football brawls are a dime a dozen.

Rugby brawls are less frequent now that players are so heavily sanctioned for violence, although never discount the French.

But cricket, the sport that still breaks for lunch and tea – surely not?

Enter players from amateur teams Hanford and Newcastle & Hartshill, with Staffordshire Police now calling for witnesses to come forward to shed further light on what happened at Hanford Cricket Club.

The home side won a closely contested match by two wickets but it’s events after the final runs were scored this past Saturday that has grabbed headlines.

The Mirror reports:

Punches are thrown and one man appears to be repeatedly hit with a weapon in a video from the crowd…

Hanford chairman Derek Adams said: “The league are investigating, the police are investigating, and the club are holding their own investigation. Further than that, there’s nothing to say until the police have spoken to us.

“The investigation is ongoing with the league, who I’ve been liaising with since the incident.”

It’s just not cricket, lads:

When you skip handshakes and go straight to the pummelling oppo with “sword” stage of post-match niceties.

Hanford 2s vs Newcastle 3s, @nsscpcl Div 6.

Apparently, no umpires. Home team won tight chase, 8 down, with 2 nick-offs near end not given by home players. A lesson there? pic.twitter.com/2YxbNUW6Li

— Scott Oliver (@reverse_sweeper) July 11, 2022

Here’s a YouTube video if you prefer:

Goodness, what would Geoffrey Boycott think? Well, given that he was convicted in 1998 of repeatedly punching his then-girlfriend and handed a three-month suspended jail sentence and a fine, he should probably reserve comment.

Sorry, Sir Geoffrey Boycott. I guess Theresa May can overlook an assault conviction.

Staffordshire Police released a statement saying officers were called to the ground at 6:18PM following “reports that a man had been assaulted with a metal bar”.

They confirmed that one man was taken to hospital for bruising and swelling. As things stand, no arrests have been made.

[source:mirror]