Of course a coach would say he is supportive of his player, the same way all of us as partisans of NZF would have been quick to support the boys and believe they are have done the right thing. But I really do doubt that the majority of people in the world will agree, if they have no particular dog in the fight and once they hear the details.
I'm not as quick as a few others in this thread to believe that this man, in his heart, despite his experience as a minority in a society which some in this thread have been very quick to label as racist, is a bigot who thinks Michael Boxall is racially inferior to himself. All I know is it seems almost certain at this point that he used a word that is widely considered acceptable for black people to say, and I have no right to say that that is wrong or was used with racist intent. Even if he did, you could never prove it. I think the All Whites have messed up badly here.
I've also been wondering why it was Joe Bell who led the boycott, and not Darren. Perhaps Darren did not agree with the stance? He's certainly been very quiet.
I'm not as quick as a few others in this thread to believe that this man, in his heart, despite his experience as a minority in a society which some in this thread have been very quick to label as racist, is a bigot who thinks Michael Boxall is racially inferior to himself. All I know is it seems almost certain at this point that he used a word that is widely considered acceptable for black people to say, and I have no right to say that that is wrong or was used with racist intent. Even if he did, you could never prove it. I think the All Whites have messed up badly here.
I've also been wondering why it was Joe Bell who led the boycott, and not Darren. Perhaps Darren did not agree with the stance? He's certainly been very quiet.