NRL fan brawl allegedly sparked by ‘racist’ comments, court told

A brawl in the stands of a Sydney NRL match game last weekend which left one woman concussed was allegedly sparked by ‘racist’ comments, a court has been told. Here’s the latest.

A brawl in the stands of a Sydney NRL match game last weekend which left one woman concussed was allegedly sparked by “racist” comments, a court has been told.

Six people have been charged following the incident between Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs supporters at the Bulldogs v Knights game around 8.15pm on April 6, where the woman and a 21 year-old man were allegedly assaulted.

Mohamed Elrabaa and Ahmed Taleb, both 21, appeared at Parramatta Local Court on Saturday after the pair were arrested in Bankstown on Friday and each charged with assault occasioning aggravated bodily harm in company and affray.

Court documents reveal the brawl was sparked when the man and woman allegedly became involved in an argument with a companion of Elrabaa and Taleb, who has also been charged over the incident, telling him to “shut the f..k up and just watch the football” after he made comments to Knights fans in the stands.

The documents state the couple were still sitting in their seats after the game when the third man allegedly commented “if that was my girlfriend and she was yelling at another guy, I would crack her in the head” to them, before making an alleged threat to “crack” the other man over the head.

Bulldog Max King is tackled by the Knights defence during the round five NRL match, before an alleged brawl erupted between fans in the stands. Picture: Getty Images

The court documents allege the woman then turned to the group of supporters, which included Taleb and Elrabaa, and said to several women in the group, “Did you hear that? He likes to hit women”, before the couple were called “racists” and a physical confrontation erupted.

Taleb is alleged to have picked up the man “above his head and slammed him on the ground”, according to the documents, before Elrabaa and the third man kicked and punched him, while the woman was pushed against a wall by three other women and punched and kicked.

Defence lawyer Ahmed Dib. Picture: Supplied

She then fell and the group allegedly began stomping on her, leading her partner to climb over her body to shield her.

Court records state the couple sustained “cuts, grazes, bruises and swelling” to their heads and bodies, with the woman transported to Concord Hospital for a concussion.

High-profile defence lawyer Ahmed Dib, who represented Taleb and Elrabaa in court on Saturday, applied for bail on his clients’ behalf, telling the court the facts submitted by police prosecutors “did not paint the full picture” of “racist” remarks by the injured couple.

The Crown did not oppose Mr Dib’s application for Taleb and Elrabaa, with Magistrate Christopher Longley approving conditional bail for both men.

The bail conditions include that both must avoid contact with the victims and other involved individuals, and do not attend any future NRL games.

Both Taleb and Elrabaa will next appear at Burwood Local Court on April 17.

The third 21 year-old man, a 35 year-old woman, a 37 year-old woman and a 38 year-old woman were also charged over the incident and remain before the courts.

Do you have a story for The Daily Telegraph? Message 0481 056 618 or email [e-mail]