Napier man charged with assault during club rugby match in Waipukurau

The alleged assault occurred during a game on June 22 in Waipukurau between reserve grade teams Napier Technical and Central Rugby and Sports. Photo / File

Hawke's Bay police have charged a 24-year-old Napier club rugby player with assault over an incident that saw an opposition player concussed on a Central Hawkes Bay pitch.

The alleged assault occurred during a game on June 22 in Waipukurau between reserve grade teams Napier Technical and Central Rugby and Sports.

Central player McKenzie Oliver, 20, alleges he was struck from behind by a Napier Tech player.

Oliver was taken by ambulance to the Emergency Department at Hawke's Bay Hospital for scans. He was diagnosed with concussion and stood down from rugby for five weeks.

The game was abandoned after the incident.

Oliver, an apprentice builder, is the nephew of Hawke's Bay's Ken Taylor, who played a non-official test for a NZ XV against Fiji in 1980, and the son of Central Hawke's Bay netball stalwart Jeanette Oliver.

Police said the charged man was to appear at the Waipukurau District Court on August 12.