Swans and Freo fans at war over cancelled pub booking
A pub brawl has broken out between thirsty Sydney and Fremantle fans ahead of Friday night’s preliminary final – and at the centre of it is a sabotaged sesh on the sauce.
The brawl – which, it must be noted, is entirely verbal – escalated after the leader of Fremantle’s Sydney supporters group made a booking of 80-plus people at Redfern’s Bat & Ball Hotel.
Swans fans in full voice at the SCG. Cameron Spencer/Getty Images
Said pub is a designated ‘Swans friendly venue’. It is a popular watering hole of choice for the Swans faithful before home games.
So when the administrator of a Swans Facebook group boasting almost 30,000 members caught wind of the looming Dockers takeover, he sprung into action.
Matt Donnelly confirmed with nine.com.au that he called the Bat & Ball Hotel and asked the venue to cancel the Fremantle supporters’ booking.
His request was successful.
Cue a radio rant.
“On Monday, I called up the pub and said, ‘I’m from the Freo Dockers group in Sydney, got 80-plus people’,” Liam Pack, the leader of the group, told Nova’s Nathan, Nat and Shaun on Wednesday.
“It was 100 per cent honest and transparent with the pub.
“Unbeknownst to me, it’s been cancelled.
“I’ve got about 100 text messages from fans that this one bloke’s taking credit for it. I’ve never seen the Sydney fan base this passionate. It’s about a bloody pub booking.”
Donnelly didn’t wish to comment when contacted by nine.com.au as he had already explained his version of events to News Corp.
The Bat & Ball Hotel. The Sydney Morning Herald
“I caught wind of a Fremantle-related group that had booked out the beer garden for 80 people, without telling the pub they were from Fremantle,” Donnelly said.
“So, the pub then cancelled their booking as a request from myself.
“I tried to tell them to go to another pub as this is our home base.”
Nine.com.au contacted the Bat & Ball Hotel for comment.
The warring Swans and Dockers supporters may need to break bread over a couple of Tooheys.
