Wallace slams Pie fans
04 July 2006 Herald-Sun
Rebecca Williams
RICHMOND coach Terry Wallace delivered a broadside at Collingwood supporters yesterday as Tigers midfielder Chris Newman began his recovery from an horrific broken leg.
An angry Wallace claimed Newman was heckled by Magpies supporters as he was taken from the field on a stretcher after breaking his left leg in a sickening collision with Leon Davis.
Newman had surgery to insert a rod in his tibia and have his fractured fibula realigned on Sunday night.
Wallace and Richmond players yesterday visited Newman at the Mercy Hospital, with the 24-year-old reported to be in good spirits.
But the same could not be said for Wallace, who hit out at the behaviour of Pies fans.
``People might call me soft or weak like some of the Collingwood supporters called Chris yesterday, which was pretty disappointing on his way off,'' Wallace said.
``They suggested that he was fairly weak for his actions and I thought that was pretty disappointing.
``When you know that someone is seriously injured like that, for his mother and himself to be very aware of that, I think that's pretty poor form.''
Newman's injury has been compared with that of fellow Tiger Nathan Brown, who broke the same bones in his left leg in a similarly gruesome incident in Round 10 last year.
Brown also had a metal rod inserted in his leg, but Wallace said Newman's breaks were cleaner.
Wallace expected Brown, who is starting to recapture his best form after missing games this season through soreness in his leg, to play a key role in Newman's rehabilitation.
``Browny will be able to let him know all of the signs of what's normal, what's expected and the trials and tribulations of it,'' Wallace said.
``We really found it difficult with Browny's. We went to Europe to find out about the soccer player, (Frenchman Djibril) Cisse, who had done a similar injury.
``We went across there to find out how his rehabilitation went, so we had to search far and wide.
``But this time around we don't have to go quite as far, just in our own back yard. Browny will be a big help in that way.''
One of Newman's visitors yesterday was teammate and housemate Brent Hartigan, who broke his right foot playing for Coburg in the VFL on Saturday.
Hartigan, who is expected to miss at least six weeks, was considered a strong chance for a senior call-up this week.
``The interesting sideline to the story is that (Newman's) likely replacement this week would have been Brent Hartigan and they live together in the same house,'' Tigers football director Greg Miller said.
Newman is expected to spend the next few days recovering in hospital.
Wallace said he remained hopeful Newman would be able to return at the start of next season.
``The biggest frustration that we've got with (Mark) Coughlan and Newman, is not only is it impacting this year, but it has the ability to impact next year,'' he said.
Wallace said he was unsure if spearhead Matthew Richardson would be fit to play in Saturday night's clash with Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium.
Richardson, who had pins removed from his fractured wrist last week, failed a fitness test last Friday.
http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/footy/common/story_page/0,8033,19674082%255E19742,00.html
