Former North Melbourne champion Glenn Archer has been charged with unlawful assault over an alleged incident in a junior football match on Sunday.
He will appear in court on September 1.
EARLIER
A two-time AFL premiership player has been involved in a physical altercation at an under-15 local footy match.
Glenn Archer, a 311-game veteran with North Melbourne, is the champion in question, according to SEN Newsbreaker, Sam McClure.
“Yesterday in an under-15 game between Banyule and Park Orchards, there was an incident that saw a physical altercation between former North Melbourne champion Glenn Archer and a runner,” McClure told SEN Breakfast.
“As far as we can tell from the team sheets, Glenn would have been watching his son for Park Orchards. There were two separate incidents and Glenn was involved in both. One has led to someone dialling 000. There was a physical altercation between Glenn and the runner from Banyule. The one that got police called was a physical one and the police are investigating. The two clubs involved are dealing with the incident in house”
UPDATE
Archer has since spoken about the incident.
"I was watching my son play the under-15 game," Archer told SEN Breakfast.
"I was probably three-to-four metres from the boundary and an incident happened with some of the boys, having a bit of a punch on. It unfortunately happens in footy. The boundary umpire got involved, who was one of the parents of the opposition, grabbed a Banyule player and fended our player off with a forearm, which I saw him hit the kid in the head. So instinctively, I go into protective mood and jump the fence to protect the young boy. By the time I got over the fence, it’s over, so I just told the umpire off for getting involved and touching and hitting the player.
"That settled down and I jumped back over the fence. Half time rolls around and the opposition coaching staff was walking off, and their runner was screaming and swearing at me. I walked close to the fence to let him know the context of what happened. I was trying to tell him the boundary umpire hit the player. He hit me in the face, I fended him off and it turned into a screaming match. I thought no one will defuse this situation, so I got into the car and went home."
Archer also confrimed he hasn't been contacted by the police, the league or the clubs involved. However, the three-time All-Australian admitted he did the wrong thing.
"Yeah [I thought I did the wrong thing]," Archer said.
"I battled with myself. When you see a young boy get hit by a parent, it’s just an instinctive thing to jump and see what’s going on. In hindsight, I shouldn’t have jumped the fence. Five seconds after, you could see the boy wasn’t hurt, but at the time, I didn’t know that. I was trying to defuse the situation.
"If you have the benefit of pausing time and thinking through the situation, things get done differently. I shouldn’t have jumped the fence, but when you see the young boy getting hit, it’s what you do."
The 1996 Norm Smith Medallist also rebuked claims he punched anyone involved.
"It’s one of those situations where it’s really heated," Archer said.
"All I remember is the yelling and screaming. He got into my personal space, I pushed him off, and it got into a screaming match.
"I definitely didn’t punch him. We had a heated moment and people see things differently. I know exactly what I did and I’m not sure what everyone else thinks what happened."
Archer is also willing to cop any punishment comes his way.
"Hopefully it can just be worked out between the two clubs and if there is a sanction involved, I’m more than happy to take what comes because you shouldn’t be jumping the fence at a junior football game," he said.
"The boundary umpire getting involved caused the reaction and it creates a domino effect. Hadn’t I jumped the fence, there would be no domino effect."