The Saskatoon Hilltops are getting ready to play for the national championship but tonight the team is dealing with the fallout of an off-field incident that happened last month.
The Hilltops have confirmed that on Oct. 14, one of their players was taken to hospital after losing consciousness when he was taped to a pole by some of his teammates.
The incident occurred after practice at the team’s training facility.
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According to reports, the player told an offensive joke and his teammates taped him to a pole as punishment.
The player wound up losing consciousness after choking on the tape around his neck.
Paramedics were called to the scene, and the victim was taken to hospital in stable condition.
Saskatoon police confirm they subsequently opened an investigation, which concluded that the two players responsible did not intend to cause injury.
The victim asked police not to pursue the matter further.
Meanwhile the Hilltops have confirmed that the two players involved in the taping have been suspended indefinitely.
No names have been released but head coach Tom Sargeant said the offending players have a combined eight years with the team while the victim is a Hilltops rookie. He added that all three players and their families are involved in an ongoing mediation process that included a face-to-face meeting.
“We remind our players constantly about being role models, doing the right things and being great when the best is needed, and obviously that didn’t take place a couple weeks ago but we’ve certainly addressed this with the team. They understand what’s in front of them into the future and the expectations that consistently have always been here,” Sargeant said.
The Hilltops executive board met Wednesday night to determine how to move forward both in dealing with the Oct. 14 incident and what, if any, measures need to be put in place to prevent any similar incidents in the future.
“The players all sign a code of conduct before the beginning of the year. They all know what their responsibilities are. Obviously this was not part of that but we’re going to take all necessary precautions to make sure that something like this doesn’t happen again,” said Chris Hengen-Braun, one of four operations directors who sits on the board.
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The news of the incident comes as the Hilltops are preparing to travel to Langford, B.C. next week to take on the Westshore Rebels for the Canadian Junior Football Championship.
The team is expected to release a full statement on Thursday.
Ryan Flaherty contributed to this story
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