Lomax calls for more security after pitch invader hug

April 27, 2023 02:21 PM AEST | By AAPNEWS
 Lomax calls for more security after pitch invader hug
Image source: AAPNEWS

Zac Lomax has called for more security at NRL grounds after he was hugged by a pitch invader during St George Illawarra's Anzac Day NRL loss to the Sydney Roosters.

NSW Police spoke with Lomax after Tuesday's match, and a man has since been charged with common assault of the Dragons centre.

The man has also received a two-year ban from Allianz Stadium and has been fined, after the likes of James Tedesco and Daly Cherry-Evans expressed concerns about player safety.

Lomax said on Thursday he believed the incident had been somewhat blown out of proportion and he had no fear for his safety when hugged by the man.

Regardless, he believed more measures should be in place to prevent spectators getting close enough to contact players on the field.

"Ideally you'd want security guards there that end up stopping him before it ends up getting to that point," Lomax said. 

"I'd imagine in the future that there are probably going to be a lot more security guards there at all the games. 

"It's been blown out of proportion a little bit, but I reckon they've got to go back and have a look at it because security has probably got to be taken up a notch. 

"In regards to how I feel about it, it's no skin off my nose."

The NRL has had a spate of pitch invaders getting close to players in the past year, including a protester with a flare in Cronulla last year, but no players have been injured.

NRL CEO Andrew Abdo reached out to Allianz Stadium officials on Wednesday and was told by Venues NSW counterpart Kerrie Mather the matter had been investigated.

"You can't completely eliminate pitch invaders but you can respond to it in a timely way. I think her and I both felt like that didn't occur (on Tuesday)," Abdo said.

"She's taken a number of actions, which we are really supportive of, to ensure that doesn't happen again."

Lomax is the first to admit the Dragons have more pressing issues than potential pitch invasions ahead of Sunday's clash with Canterbury in Wollongong.

The Saints are rooted to the bottom quarter of the ladder with the Bulldogs, after three straight losses where they have scored as many or more tries than their opponents.

In another world, the Dragons and their under-fire coach Anthony Griffin could be sitting pretty with a 5-2 record.

"There are always what-ifs, but that's in the past." Lomax said.

"It's definitely hard when there has been so much attention on us. That attention has probably come because of losing a couple of games.

"We tend not to try and look into that too much. We just have to win more games of footy."


Disclaimer

The content, including but not limited to any articles, news, quotes, information, data, text, reports, ratings, opinions, images, photos, graphics, graphs, charts, animations and video (Content) is a service of Kalkine Media Pty Ltd (“Kalkine Media, we or us”), ACN 629 651 672 and is available for personal and non-commercial use only. The principal purpose of the Content is to educate and inform. The Content does not contain or imply any recommendation or opinion intended to influence your financial decisions and must not be relied upon by you as such. Some of the Content on this website may be sponsored/non-sponsored, as applicable, but is NOT a solicitation or recommendation to buy, sell or hold the stocks of the company(s) or engage in any investment activity under discussion. Kalkine Media is neither licensed nor qualified to provide investment advice through this platform. Users should make their own enquiries about any investments and Kalkine Media strongly suggests the users to seek advice from a financial adviser, stockbroker or other professional (including taxation and legal advice), as necessary.
The content published on Kalkine Media also includes feeds sourced from third-party providers. Kalkine does not assert any ownership rights over the content provided by these third-party sources. The inclusion of such feeds on the Website is for informational purposes only. Kalkine does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the content obtained from third-party feeds. Furthermore, Kalkine Media shall not be held liable for any errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in the content obtained from third-party feeds, nor for any damages or losses arising from the use of such content.
Kalkine Media hereby disclaims any and all the liabilities to any user for any direct, indirect, implied, punitive, special, incidental or other consequential damages arising from any use of the Content on this website, which is provided without warranties. The views expressed in the Content by the guests, if any, are their own and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of Kalkine Media. Some of the images/music that may be used on this website are copyrighted to their respective owner(s). Kalkine Media does not claim ownership of any of the pictures displayed/music used on this website unless stated otherwise. The images/music that may be used on this website are taken from various sources on the internet, including paid subscriptions or are believed to be in public domain. We have made reasonable efforts to accredit the source wherever it was indicated as or found to be necessary.
This disclaimer is subject to change without notice. Users are advised to review this disclaimer periodically for any updates or modifications.


AU_advertise

Advertise your brand on Kalkine Media

Sponsored Articles


Investing Ideas

Previous Next
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.