Chiefs players under investigation

NEWS: Chiefs chief executive Michael Collins has responded to allegations that his franchise’s players may have been involved in unruly behaviour at the team’s hotel following their Super Rugby Aotearoa final defeat on Saturday.

The Chiefs were defeated 24-13 by the Crusaders in the Super Rugby Aotearoa final at Orangetheory Stadium in Christchurch over the weekend, ending their fairytale run from winless easy beats to competition finalists.

Hours after the loss, the Chiefs held a function at the Novotel Hotel on Cathedral Square, where players and staff members of the side were staying during their trip to Christchurch.

The evening then took a wild turn as hotel guests complained after they were allegedly kept awake throughout the course of the night by intoxicated, misbehaving attendees of the function.

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One complainant told Stuff that the behaviour of the drunken culprits, who were reportedly seen naked in hotel corridors, was “a bit pathetic” as they banged on the walls, gathered in hallways and were talking “really loudly” on the 12th floor of the hotel in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Stuff also reports that there was a trail of broken glass and vomit left for hotel workers to clean up, with a Novotel staffer revealing there had been at least four complaints from different rooms throughout the night.

However, the Chiefs told Stuff they were “confident our people were not involved” and were investigating the matter, a sentiment reinforced by Collins in a statement released publicly on Monday.

Confirming that the franchise had received a formal complaint from a member of the public, Collins maintained that, after investigating the matter, those directly associated with the Chiefs were not responsible for the misconduct at the hotel.

“We have thoroughly worked through the guest’s complaint and, in particular, the descriptions of the people involved,” he said.

“While we will continue to investigate with our players and staff, we are confident that based on our inquiries to date none of our people were on the 12th floor or were involved in unruly behaviour that upset other hotel guests.

“We are extremely sympathetic to the guests on the 12th floor who had their sleep disturbed on Saturday night and Sunday morning.

“If the team were responsible, we would take immediate and swift action. At this point in time all the facts gathered suggest that we are not responsible.”

When approached by reporters at Christchurch Airport on Sunday, Chiefs head coach Clayton McMillan said that he was “totally unaware” of any incident at the hotel.

“We had a private function last night and everyone was on the bus this morning, that’s all I know.”

The Chiefs are due to fly out to Perth on Wednesday ahead of their opening Super Rugby Trans-Tasman clash against the Western Force on Saturday.

Source: Stuff & Rugbypass