WINTON UNDER-11S NEARLY RIOT AFTER HALF-TIME ORANGES REPLACED WITH "BUDGET BLOODY MANDARINS"
Club treasurer defends the swap. Sideline dads defend nothing of the sort.
Right, so I heard this from a bloke who was there. Winton Rugby Club's under-11s got mandarins at half-time on Saturday. Not oranges. Mandarins. The sideline nearly went up.
Freezing morning down at the Winton grounds. Southerly coming off the paddocks (reminds me of a game I covered in '74, but that's another yarn). Kids come off expecting oranges. What they get is a Pak'nSave bag of mandarins that a mate reckons were on special because they were on the turn.
Dad on the sideline — Wayne someone, works at the freezing works I think — lost it. "What the fuck is this," he said, holding up a mandarin like it owed him money. "My boy's playing rugby, not having afternoon tea." Another dad, name of Grady, backed him up. "Oranges. It's always been oranges. You don't just change it, ay."
The treasurer reckoned oranges had gone up to "a stupid price" and mandarins were "nutritionally the same, basically". Did not land. One of the netball mums told him he was carrying on like a tosser and if he couldn't budget for citrus he shouldn't be near the sausage sizzle float either. Fair point.
The ref, about nineteen, tried to start the second half and got told by three dads to "give it a minute, mate". He gave it several. A mate at the desk reckons a mandarin got thrown, and not gently.
Mandarins are off the menu next week. Treasurer's under review, whatever that means at a club that runs on a chilly bin. Reminds me of the pier back home. Anyway. Your shout.
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Reader Letters
Kathy_Joy
Mandarins aren't that bad, folks!
jimbob23
Mate, mandarins are disgusting compared to good oranges.
Hank_Retired
Bloody hell, what is this world coming to when kids throw a tantrum over mandarins! Back in my day, we didn’t even get halftime fruit. You were lucky if the water wasn’t just an old garden hose running to a tap! These kids don’t know they’re born!
angryFather007
Surely the treasurer can budget better? Oranges aren’t bloody gold.
conspirist_croc
Do you reckon the treasurer's secretly pocketing the orange fund?
MumOf2_Winton
Kids should be grateful they get anything at all! Do they even know how to peel a mandarin properly?
sportsdad56
Do people really think mandarins can replace oranges? What’s next, giving them cabbage instead of sausage rolls at the after-match feed?
linda_U11coach
I heard it wasn't even all the dads, just a vocal few causing a stink!
tired_in_riccarton
CITRUSGATE!
Garry (Halswell)
Absolutely ropeable! Wouldn't have happened at Old Boys RFC.
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