Punched junior referee Kurt Portsmouth returns to duties a week after incident

THE 16-year-old referee who was bashed in a junior rugby league game last weekend has vowed to continue chasing his dream of making it to the NRL as a professional referee.

Kurt Portsmouth, 16, was punched while refereeing a rugby league match last week. Picture: Tim Hunter

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THE 16-year-old referee who was bashed in a junior rugby league game last weekend has vowed to continue chasing his dream of making it to the NRL.

Kurt Portsmouth will bravely return to refereeing this morning at the same ground where he was allegedly punched in the face by a Gymea Gorillas trainer in an under-12s game last weekend.

His quick recovery has stunned junior officials, who were anticipating he would be sidelined for weeks and possibly suffer psychological scars from such an incident.

Kurt Portsmouth, 16, was taken to hospital last weekend.

In his first interview since the incident, the Year 10 student ­declared it would not discourage him from chasing a professional career as an NRL referee.

“I’ve wanted to be an NRL referee since I was 12 and nothing has changed,” he said.

“It’s actually a really enjoyable thing to do and I’ll come back stronger and better.

“I’m getting out there again on Sunday (today).

“I’m just doing a touchline and then hopefully back in the centre next week.”

The teenager said it’s important other young referees are not turned off by what happened.

“I definitely don’t want anyone else to be deterred from refereeing,” he said.

“It’s gone big in the media because it’s such a rarity. I just see it as a stepping stone along the road.

“The support has been overwhelming — I’ve had thousands and thousands of messages.

“It makes a huge difference to know that the community is right behind you.”

Earlier this year, Kurt trialled the new Go Pro cameras brought into the game as a safety measure for referees. Picture: Adam Taylor

He said, however, his approach may change in dealing with dissent issues as a result of what happened. “My wariness level will be higher than in the past,” he said.

“And my approach to how I handle certain situations will change in the future.

“I don’t look for confrontation but I’ve never had an issue with speaking up if I see a coach or trainer acting in an inappropriate way. I’ve always had a strong stance about not copping abuse from coaches and trainers but I’ll just go through the ground manager in future.”

Gymea trainer Jucy Talau, 34, has been charged. Picture: Adam Taylor

The Gymea trainer, Jucy Talau, 34, appeared in Sutherland Local Court last Wednesday charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

His lawyer indicated there would be an application for the matter to be dealt with under Section 32 of the Mental Health Act.

Talau has already been banned for life by the Cronulla junior rugby league.