If the Chamois Niortais avoided the trap on the field this Saturday evening against Bressuire, it was on returning to the locker room that the National residents had an unpleasant surprise. For its entry into the running in the 5th round of the Coupe de France, Niort won in pain (2-1) against a team playing three divisions below it thanks to a goal scored by Tyrone Tormin in the 86th minute. But upon entering the corridors of the small Alain Métayer stadium, Philippe Hinschberger’s men were entitled to a special welcome.
Indeed, according to The Central Republic, the Niortais’ belongings were found stained with urine. The fault lies with a handful of individuals who entered the locker rooms by forcing an access door during the meeting, according to local media. A lack of respect which would have quite irritated the Chamois goalkeeper, Paul Delecroix, and the rest of the group.
Big anger from the Chamois Niortais, who noticed that we… urinated on their things in the locker room. This FC Bressuire-Niort ends with a strange atmosphere after the general brawl in the last minutes.
— Martial Debeaux (@mdebeaux) October 14, 2023
A version of the facts contested by Stéphane Viault, the president of FC Bressuire. The latter, always questioned by The Central Republic, considers that his opponents of the day before have exaggerated their story. “Making things worse and leading to this media proliferation, I think it goes too far. I feel that my club is being put at odds,” says the director of the amateur club.
A joint statement to bury the hatchet?
According to him, the locker room adjacent to that of the Niortais was occupied by young people. “The little ones who were in the locker room next door may have urinated in the shower before entering the field. At the end of the match, the Chamois took over the two changing rooms and the bags ended up in the showers” reveals Stéphane Viault. President Bressuirais, who did not note the presence of urine on the clothes but only on the bags, also certifies to our colleagues the absence of “possible access to the sides (of the locker rooms)”, protected by doors of security.
Already on the pitch, the end of the match was tense between the two teams, a general brawl having broken out in the final moments, leading to the expulsion of Niort striker Marks Inchaud and a Bressuire player. The two clubs are now considering publishing a joint press release to bury the hatchet.
