28-03-2025
Dad banned for screaming ‘you're a boy' at under-12 girl after ‘transgender rumours'
A parent has received an 18-week touchline ban after screaming 'you're a f-----g boy' at a player rumoured to be transgender in an under-12s girls rugby match between Rosslyn Park FC and Cobham RFC.
Graham Hall, whose daughter was playing for Rosslyn Park in a Surrey Cup match on January 26 at Covenham Grounds, accused the Cobham player of being transgender following a tackle by the abused player on his daughter.
Hall, 45, entered the field of play and, according to witness Dave Stewart, he 'screamed and shouted' at the abused player 'you're a f-----g boy and shouldn't be playing in a girls side... you are clearly not a girl and look what you've done'.
After the abused player left the field in tears, her father approached Hall and informed him he could not speak that way to his daughter, to which Hall reaffirmed his belief that the abused player was a boy and should not be playing in a girls team. The two parents then squared up before being pulled away.
The abused player was praised for later returning to the match. In her statement, she described unfortunately falling on the opposition player after a tackle who then screamed. After checking on her opponent, the abused player said that Hall shouted in her face 'that was f-----g unnecessary, why would you do that?' adding that Hall 'kept on saying I was a boy'. This led to the abused player leaving the field in tears, feeling 'scared and panicked' and struggling to breathe, before apologising to the opposition player after calming down.
She concluded: 'I love playing rugby for the Cobham team and we have got really good team spirit and look after each other through every moment. We always have loads of fun, and I am happiest when playing rugby.'
While Hall later apologised to both the abused player and her parent, when giving evidence he disputed the lawfulness of the tackle and denied swearing at the abused player, while admitting that he did swear at her father and should not have entered the field of play.
Asked about his comments, Hall claimed he heard information before the match that Cobham were fielding a boy in their girls team. Giving evidence, he accepted that 'he should not have listened to such rumours', having at the time believed that the abused player should not have been playing.
Hall continued to believe the rumours after the match and pursued his enquiries with the RFU about transgender regulations. Given the rumours, Cobham were asked by Rosslyn Park before the match if they were fielding any boys in its team, to which Cobham replied there were no boys in their girls under-12s team.
The disciplinary panel rejected Hall's account of what had occurred and described him as 'an unimpressive witness', while stressing that Hall's view of the abused player was based on 'on wholly unsubstantiated rumour and conjecture that was factually wrong'.
The panel was unanimous in its verdict that Hall had verbally abused the player, while praising the abused player for returning to the field and also the response of Hall's daughter, who suffered a serious injury and told the abused player 'it's OK, it wasn't your fault'.
Hall's conduct was described as 'disgraceful' and under Rule 5.12 – conduct prejudicial to the interests of the union and the game – was viewed as a top-end offence with a starting point of 24 weeks, reduced to 18 weeks given Hall's 'acceptance of some misconduct and his previous good disciplinary record'.
The sanction is intended to cover both training and matches and includes any clubhouse perimeter or balcony that is proximate to a rugby pitch or training area. Hall was also ordered to pay costs of £125 and has until April 8 to lodge an appeal.
