LET OFF
LEIGH GRIFFITHS will ESCAPE punishment from football authorities in Australia despite a bizarre bust-up with a fan this weekend.
Ex-Celtic star Griff, 32, moved to Mandurah City in the lower divisions in Western Australia last month after leaving Falkirk at the end of the 2021/22 season.
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His tenure Down Under got off to the perfect start when he scored on his debut.
But things turned sour in his latest outing for his new club when he raised his hands during a bitter altercation with a fan towards the end of the game.
Griffiths was walking towards the sideline to take a corner when a supporter shouted at him, leading the former Scotland striker to bark back before going over to remonstrate with him.
Another fan then intervened as with Griffiths and the first supporter pushed each other as tempers flared.
Despite the fiery exchange, Football West, the governing body for football in Western Australia, announced that they will not be seeking to punish Griffiths over the incident.
They said in a statement: “We have a zero-tolerance approach to abuse of players, coaches, match officials, spectators and any other people attending matches, and will investigate all official complaints.
“Football West greatly appreciates the work done by our ground marshals, who are generally club volunteers.
“Clubs are reminded that ground marshal duties include helping with the security of players, match referees and club officials.”
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Griffiths is now a free agent, having joined Mandurah City for just the final two games of their season in the hopes he could put himself on the radar of a club further up the football pyramid in Oz.
After completing the move, Griffiths said: “Australia is somewhere where I want to lay down my roots and continue my footballing journey, I've always said that.”
At Mandurah, Griffiths linked up with former Raith Rovers and Falkirk striker John Baird, who is manager at the club.
Baird admits some within Mandurah's ranks thought the signing of the ex-Celtic man was a WIND UP given his playing history.
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He said: “I would say it's that big that folk actually thought it was a wind up.
“We're lucky that we've managed to get a player of Leigh's calibre because he's in a transition of club's wanting him who are in the A-League.”
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