Sam Kerr to deny she called white cop ’bastard’

Matilda’s captain Sam Kerr’s alleged insult against a police officer has been thrown into question, as she tries to get the case thrown out of court.

Sam Kerr’s legal team is expected to challenge claims reported in The Sun UK that she used the phrase “stupid white bastard”.

The Australian on Friday revealed that the Matilda’s captain had not disputed using the word “white” when a addressing a police officer after a night out with friends, but denied using the word bastard.

The allegation stems from an incident involving two police officers who were called to the scene of a dispute over a taxi fare.

Kerr, 30, pleaded not guilty on Monday to a charge of intentionally causing racially aggravated harassment, alarm or distress to a police officer.

The Chelsea striker, who is of Indian descent through her father Roger who was born in Kolkata to an Indian mother and English father, is said to have been sick in the back of the cab, according to The Sun crime reporter Mike Sullivan.

Sam Kerr has played for Chelsea since 2020. Picture: Chelsea FC/Chelsea FC via Getty Images

She had been out celebrating a victory several hours earlier at Kingsmeadow stadium where she scored three times against Liverpool in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

The prosecution will allege Kerr verbally abused the police when they arrived to deal with the dispute in Twickenham, South West London, during the early hours of January 30 last year.

The prosecution will allege Kerr’s interaction with the officer was captured on police body cam video.

She has been charged with intentionally causing racially aggravated harassment, alarm or distress to the male PC under Section 4A of the Public Order Act 1986.
If found guilty Australia’s golden girl – who joined Chelsea in 2019 and has since scored 99 goals in 128 matches – faces a fine or a maximum jail sentence of six months.

Sam Kerr, bottom left, and her fiance, Kristi Mewis (second from bottom left) and Mewis’ West Ham teammates during a night out in London. Picture: Instagram

Kerr, who lives in a luxury one bedroom apartment in Battersea in South London, was summoned via postal requisition to first appear at Wimbledon magistrates’ court in January – a year after the incident.

The case was committed to Kingston crown court where she appeared via videolink on Monday.

She spoke to confirm her name and pleaded not guilty.

There is a possibility the matter will not proceed to trial. On April 26 her legal team will apply to have the case struck out of court on the grounds of abuse of process, notably with police and prosecutors having taken a year to lay the charge.

On Monday, judge Judith Elaine Coello said she understood that Kerr’s defence would be that she did not intend to cause alarm, harassment or distress to the police officer and that her behaviour was not racially motivated.

The unusual delay in charging the Matilda’s captain was reportedly caused by a disagreement within the Crown Prosecution Service lawyers on what offence to prosecute her for.

At a press conference on Thursday Chelsea manager Emma Hayes swerved questions on whether Kerr informed the club of the allegation of racially aggravated harassment made in the UK, saying only: “Sam has our full support, she knows that ….

“Yes, it’s a difficult time for her.

“What I can say is that I know she’s pleaded not guilty. And I don’t want to do anything to jeopardise anything for Sam by speaking about it.

Chelsea’s manager Emma Hayes said Sam Kerr had the club’s “full support”. Supplied

“But she has our full support and she knows that and it’s really important I get that across.

“There’s something I really, really value you know, there’s difficult moments, tough times.”

She went on: “That’s what my role is in this football club, it’s to make sure I look after our people and I just want to be clear that Sam will be fully supported by me and everybody else at Chelsea.”

Chelsea FC espouses “a zero-tolerance approach to discrimination on and off the pitch”.

The club website says: “We will always challenge inappropriate behaviour and the propagation of negative and toxic cultures in football”.

On Wednesday, Football Australia confirmed it had now spoken to Kerr but declined to say what was said. FA made it clear there would be “no further comments from us”.

Neither Kerr’s barrister Grace Forbes nor her manager Niki White would comment.

The Matildas captain is currently recovering from an ACL injury. Picture: AFP

It is believed Chelsea has freed up Kerr from attending the team’s next matches against Manchester on Thursday and Everton on Sunday afternoon local time.

It is likely she will attend her fiance Kristie Mewis’s game when West Ham plays Chelsea on March 24 at Chigwell Construction Stadium.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he would not comment on legal matters before a foreign court, but praised Kerr for her “exemplary” conduct in his personal interactions with her.

“I will say this about my contact with Sam Kerr, who was our flag bearer at the coronation, I think my contact with her was exemplary,” he said.

“She did Australia proud at that time.

“My contact with her has been delightful.”

Kerr has campaigned passionately against racism in the past.

She and the Matildas team posed with an Aboriginal flag ahead of their match against New Zealand in 2021.

“We wanted to do something that was important to us and show unity within our group,” she had said.

Kerr was selected to bear the Australian national flag at Prince Charles’ coronation at Westminster Abbey in May.

She is currently sidelined with a long-term cruciate ligament knee injury sustained during a warm weather training camp in Morocco in January.

Originally published as Sam Kerr to deny she called white cop ’bastard’