A large brawl broke out during an annual charity hockey match between New York City police and firefighters on Long Island.For a police force often criticized about use of excessive force, you'd think these guys would know how to better behave themselves. Nope.
Videos posted online show players from both teams clearing the bench and throwing punches while referees are seen trying to break up the fights. Hockey sticks and gloves are seen littered about the ice.
Newsday reports the fights began during the second period of the match at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale on Sunday as both teams were tied 3-3. The NYPD eventually won 8-5. The fire and police departments both declined to comment.
Although witnesses said fan loyalties were decidedly even during the game, a YouTube video of the thuggish display captured fans loudly chanting “PD sucks, PD sucks” during the brouhaha.
The brawl led to a 25-minute delay as equipment was picked up and refs made laundry lists of penalized and ejected players.
The cop in the stands said he’s been coming to this NYPD-FDNY game for 20 years and had never seen a bench-clearing, cop-firefighter brawl before.
Despite numerous black eyes and bruises, no players appeared to be seriously injured.
I'm no cop-basher. Two of my good friends are cops here in the DC Area. Theirs is a difficult job, which is seldom appreciated. But come on, this sh*t right here is inexcusable. Grown men playing a glorified pickup game can't resist their own primal urges, even when the cause is for charity. Some are excusing this by noting that fights are commonplace in hockey, which is the dumbest cop-out I've ever heard. Bench clearing brawls occasionally happen in the NBA, but that wouldn't excuse a fight in a cops/firemen charity basketball game.
Let's just call this what it is, a bunch of jerks chanelling their inner Gretzkys and behaving like the very thugs they're supposed to be protecting the rest of us from.
Inexcusable.
