Video shows pre-game incident sparked Philippines brawl

EXCLUSIVE footage has shown the moment the spark was ignited prior to the Boomers and Philippines now infamous brawl.

The Philippines' Jason William, centre, jumps to hit Australia's Daniel Kickert centre left as others rush to break the brawl during the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers Monday, July 2, 2018 at the Philippine Arena in suburban Bocaue township, Bulacan province north of Manila, Philippines. Australia defeated the Philippines 89-53 via default following a brawl in the third quarter. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)

PHILIPPINES coach Chot Reyes stated after the game that Boomers player Daniel Kickert had hit several players during the warm-ups.

“The reality is, Kickert was hitting our players during the warm-ups,” Reyes said. “He hit Carl Bryan Cruz, he hit Matthew Wright, he hit Pogoy, and he hit Calvin Abueva, during the warm-ups.

“So, when he did that, the foul of Pogoy on Goulding was called a foul; offensive foul, it was a basketball play. But, he was the one who came in, then (Kickert) decked Pogoy, for the fifth time. You can’t expect to do that to a team for five times, and not expect to be, to retaliate.

“So, that’s what happened. Unfortunately, that triggered entire brawl, and unfortunate as it is, like I said, it’s something that, you have to be there to know what really went down.”

Read: Ugly brawl could end in legal battle

Basketball Australia CEO Anthony Moore dismissed Reyes’ allegations surrounding Kickert’s pre-game antics.

“We absolutely refute that. It’s a conversation we’ve had with team management,” Moore said.

Footage of the incident prior to the game has now been revealed which show an altercation, however the coaches memory is well off.

It shows Boomers players going through layup line drills with the Philippines players edging over the halfcourt line.

As Kickert comes jogging back to the end of the line, a leg from an unidentified player can be seen being stuck out attempting to trip up Kickert.

After regaining his balance Kickert then turns to the players and shoves a different Filipino player in the back.

From there both teams are seen coming face-to-face, but things never reach the heights they would during the chaotic third quarter.

Busted. Completely unnecessary trip in the warm-up line. Even before the tip-off the #Philippines were going the gee-up. https://t.co/01WmZL9gVS @mattlogue7 @telegraph_sport pic.twitter.com/mDI9IgtnZr

— Peter Brown (@SydneyEditor) July 3, 2018

A Boomers player speaking under anonymity said Kickert had previously asked the players to move back before the trip occurred.

“Kicks asked them to move during lay-ups and they didn’t,” an unnamed player told The Daily Telegraph.

“And then the next time he ran back they tried to trip him and everyone came together.”

The incident led to genuine concerns of player safety for the Boomers and saw them remain in the arena for several hours after the game.

Concerns were so dire the group may face further danger that the decision was made to switch hotels directly after the game.

Players on Tuesday afternoon were spotted at the airport waiting to board their flight to head back to Australia.

LOOK: AUS Boomers spotted at NAIA. | via Ariel Fernandez pic.twitter.com/2SjXHOPzI6

— Manila Bulletin News (@manilabulletin) July 3, 2018

Read: ‘Disrespectful’ Boomers move

It is expected FIBA and Basketball Australia will come down hard on those involved, with disciplinary action looming for Daniel Kickert and Thon Maker.

“We pride ourselves on what a product we are so I’m certainly confident that Basketball Australia and particularly FIBA will deal with this very, very harshly,” NBL boss Larry Kestelman said on SEN’s KB and The Doc.

“If Daniel Kickert is ruled that he did something inappropriate, well, he will have to deal with those circumstances.

“There were other incidents that I’m sure will be looked at prior to Daniel’s.”

Boomers players will now await the findings from the investigation, while there have been calls for charges to be laid over a sickening hit from an official on Nathan Sobey.

Originally published as Video shows pre-game incident sparked Philippines brawl