Fight between Pamiers and Toulouse in amateur rugby: “My name is everywhere, it’s scandalous!” Player accused of hitting referee testifies
Since the chaotic end of the match between SC Appaméen and TOEC TOAC FCT on Sunday, Olivier Bertro, the back of the Ariège club, has been a bruised man. While social networks have ignited, the Ariège player wants to put things right. And he does not mince his words, determined to uphold his honor.
In what state of mind are you in the aftermath of the incidents which led to the stopping of the Pamiers-TOEC TOAC FCT match?
I have the same feeling as at the time of the facts. It is a real scandal. I’m on the ground, and as soon as I get up, the referee is totally against me. He takes me with his arm, pushes me. I tell him “let go of me, you are a referee”. Once, I take his arm off. He comes back to the charge, I remove his arm. He asks me to step back, I step back. I step forward, he steps forward and when we’re glued, he puts his face against my head on purpose. He then throws himself back saying that I punched his face. I’m sure he’s got nothing. It is clear, it will be demonstrated. He did it on purpose. He saw that he had attacked me and, to get out of it, he stuck against me and threw himself backwards. I never headbutted. I was slain, I had no more breath, he attacks me and, now, he says that it was I who attacked him. I am still very angry.
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You don’t want to come across as the ugly duckling.
I will pass for the ugly duckling if necessary but, there, that is not the case. It really annoys me. If I really wanted to hit him, I would have headbutted him and quit rugby. There, that is not the case. I will do everything to ensure that all the evidence shows that it was this person who attacked me and not me. It’s crisp and clear. If I had done it, I would have taken it all the way. Except I didn’t, and that drives me even crazier. I haven’t slept all night, I’m annoyed. At work, I only think about that, everyone calls me. My name is everywhere, it’s outrageous that I didn’t type it. When he saw that he was in contact, he threw himself. It shows in the video. When you take a whim, you don’t do what he did.
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Do you think that the video broadcast on social networks proves you right?
I said it at the end of the match, I hoped it had been filmed. If it hadn’t been, it was his word against mine and I know that a referee will have the most sensible word in relation to a player, unfortunately. This video proves me right. I can only save myself like this. You can see very well that he is stuck against me, that there are only players from my team around me. I’m tired of what happened just before. It is he who comes to attack me once, twice and the third time he throws himself back. Just before, there had been an altercation with another player and he said to the referee, “No. 15 started”. I went to see him and saw that he didn’t like it, he looked at me and said, “Wait for it.” He tutored me. Three minutes later, there is a fight and I find him. I thought it was the opposing coach who relieved me and who came to attack me. When I recognized the referee’s face, I said to myself “It’s not possible.” I’m going to show the marks I have and prove that it was he who assaulted me. There was no headbutt. Me, I have marks, he won’t have any.
What will be next?
I’m going to do things on my side, he on his. We’ll see what will happen. If I had done it, I would have given up, I would have done the Bonhomme. There, I absolutely want people to know what happened. I think I have my face lower than his. And when I get up, I feel my hair touching his chin. When he sent that, he throws himself back. I have this feeling.
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This case is taking on disproportionate proportions.
Completely. For me, touching a referee is out of the question. It happened to me to discuss with a referee during a match but I never attacked a referee. The person who is supposed to protect us is the one who comes to attack me. For me, it’s the worst feeling of injustice I’ve ever known. I am an educator of children who have problems and for whom injustice is inadmissible. For years, I’ve been trying to teach them how to deal with it, to tell them that there are always people who will protect them. And there, when I have this reflection in the mirror, really, I didn’t understand. When I saw him fall, I thought, “You’re done.” Ten seconds before, when he holds me by the neck and pushes me, if I fall on the ground, everyone makes fun of me and nobody talks about it. Except that I remain standing, that I come towards him, him towards me and that he falls. And we make a whole lot out of it.
You will fight to the end to defend your dignity.
For the moment, in my head, I know that it will be very complicated for me to return to a field. I know that the referees will have a word that will carry more than mine. Well, I don’t really believe that. But I want everything to be clear. I do not want this person to continue to referee on the pitch. Either there will be problems when he is there or he will be the one to create the problems. And that is unacceptable. I want him to understand that he screwed up. I’m not going to let myself go. I have always assumed what I have done. There, I did nothing. I’m more frustrated with that than the rest. I am overwhelmed. Luckily, there are images that show he made fun of me. I’m going to do things right, by the rules and prove to the young people I’m with every day that there is justice in life. And that taking the law into your own hands doesn’t work.