A large brawl took place at a semi-professional football game in Manchester, New Hampshire on Sunday night. Two individuals were arrested by the Manchester Police Department following the outburst. Responding officers are asking for assistance from any spectators that were present at the game when the incident took place in an effort to aid their investigation.
According to preliminary reports, the Manchester Police Department received a phone call at approximately 6:00 PM Sunday evening indicating that there was a fight taking place at the West High School football field that involved players participating in a semi-professional football game. Upon their arrival on scene, Manchester Police found that the New Hampshire Wolfpack and the Whaling City Clippers had begun to brawl on the field prior to the end of their game. Multiple players on both sides of the issue have stated that the two teams have a longstanding grudge against one another. One member of the New Hampshire Wolfpack, who requested to remain anonymous, was quoted as saying, “They’ve been starting with us for the past three weeks, showing up at our games, running their mouths, starting fights with us in the parking lot. They’re poor sports.” A linebacker for the Whaling City Clippers, Kriem Bowman, mirrored a similar sentiment when he stated that tensions had been mounting between the two teams on the field during the entirety of the game.
A chiropractor for the New Hampshire Wolfpack, Eric O’Connell, spoke to reporters and indicated that the fight on Sunday night escalated quickly and that referees for the game stepped in in an effort to subdue the violence. O’Connell went on to say that despite the referee interference, “…it kept going and escalated into one of the other players being hit in the head with a helmet.” 26 year old New Hampshire Wolfpack player Michael Vinagro was arrested and charged with second-degree assault once police arrived on scene and identified him as the individual who repeatedly struck another player with his helmet. Team chiropractor Eric O’Connell said that the unidentified player was struck unconscious by Vinagro’s helmet. O’Connell worked quickly to secure the player’s neck and brace him until emergency responders could arrive. O’Connell went on to say that the player was not immediately responsive when he was asked questions by on site trainers. An immediate update on his condition has not yet been provided.
In addition to the arrest made to Michael Vinagro, a 24 year old player from the Whaling City Clippers was also arrested. Dagnir Tina has been formally charged with disorderly conduct. The exact events surrounding his arrest were not made immediately apparent by responding officers. No further arrests have been made at this time.
Clippers linebacker Kriem Bowman was visibly upset following the brawl on Sunday evening. He stated that while both teams had growing tensions, he did not want for either team to have a bad reputation following the incident. He expressed concern over his fellow teammate who suffered a concussion, and said that the teams were there simply to play a game. The simplicity of that game was ruined however, when sportsmanship quickly turned to violence.
Anyone with relevant information is asked to please contact the Manchester Police Department.
Additional information and quotes may be found at the following link: http://www.wcvb.com/news/football-brawl-in-manchester-results-in-two-arrests/35259480