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New Zealand cricket team management have denied accusations that players racially abused catering staff before last week's World Cup Super Eights clash with the West Indies.
The Antigua Sun newspaper today carried a front page report accusing unnamed players of saying "Good morning niggers" to employees of the Goddard Catering Group shortly before the start of last Friday's match at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Ground.
In a report headlined "Racist Remarks .... Kiwis deny using the 'N' word to caterers", the Sun reported the International Cricket Council (ICC) had mounted an investigation after a complaint had been lodged by a staff member.
New Zealand team manager Lindsay Crocker today rubbished the report, describing it as "grossly embellished".
He said he had investigated the issue with the ICC's Cricket World Cup operations director Michael Hall.
Crocker said staff members had been interviewed after they thought they heard the word "nigger" used during a private conversation between three or four squad members.
He said the trio could not be identified by the staff and he was satisfied the term was not used or directed to employees.
"We became aware of a rumour circulating among the catering staff that there was a racially based comment made in the players' lounge as everyone was assembling," Crocker said.
"We talked to the catering staff and we quickly found there were three or four people in the room at the time. They weren't able to tell me who they were, they indicated they were older members of the group.
"The three had been talking on the other side of the room and the catering staff thought they heard this one word 'nigger' in the conversation.
"They weren't sure if they heard it accurately, they didn't hear any other comments, and the comments weren't directed at the catering staff," Crocker said.
"It became clear to Michael (Hall) and myself there was no great substance to this. There was no complaint or allegation from staff whatsoever.
"As far as we were concerned it died then and there."
However, four days later the New Zealand team are front page news and find their reputation sullied by the allegations.
"It was an enormous surprise to see those rumours have been embellished the way they were," Crocker said.
"The report was grossly embellished based on a rumour which is utterly inaccurate."
Crocker admitted the multicultural team's reputation had been compromised by the incident.
"When it appears in the papers it gives credence to it just by appearing in print, that's my disappointment," he said.
Crocker said he considered it "highly" unlikely any member of the squad would use the racial slur.
Hall told the newspaper the incident was a "misunderstanding" while a spokesman for the catering company in Barbados was unaware of any complaints made by staff at the venue.
The current New Zealand tour party includes a player of Indian descent, Jeetan Patel, and part-Samoan Ross Taylor.
Maori pace bowler Daryl Tuffey withdrew from the squad due to injury after the group stage in St Lucia last month.
- NZPA
