"Just So Wrong": Karl's outrage after dad banned from playing footy with son
<p>In what experts are calling “a shock loss for common sense”, a Queensland dad has found himself in hot water for the most egregious of playground crimes: having a wholesome moment with his own child.</p>
<p>Dean, a footy-loving dad from the Sunshine Coast, was left gobsmacked when a casual morning pass around with his “footy mad” son was blown the full-time whistle, by the school's own referees, no less.</p>
<p>“He said, ‘Dad can we just stand over on the grass there and pass a ball to each other,’” Dean explained to Karl Stefanovic on the <em>Today</em> show. And that’s exactly what they did – for all of one or two minutes – before a teacher intervened to declare the unregulated father-son bonding session a health hazard.</p>
<p>“She said, 'It’s not safe to be over here because you’re unsupervised at the moment,'” Dean recounted. “And I said, 'Well, look, I’m supervising my son, so no need to worry about his supervision, consider him supervised.'”</p>
<p>But the staff member was unmoved. According to Dean, the kicker came when she added: “It’s unfair on the other children who don’t have their parents here at the moment to play with them.”</p>
<p>That’s right: fatherly love, now officially a competitive advantage in the playground.</p>
<p>The situation escalated faster than a second-half comeback, with the deputy principal allegedly taking the opportunity to sideline the young player while dad was off stashing a backpack, delivering an impromptu post-match debrief that left the child confused and visibly upset.</p>
<p>“I didn’t understand why he (principal) wouldn’t come speak to me. … I left at that point,” Dean said, still flabbergasted.</p>
<p>The unnamed school has, according to Dean, developed a bit of a reputation for treating physical activity like it’s full-contact cage fighting. “I know that after school they don’t want kids playing sport,” Dean claimed. “I think now the school’s pulled back, they don’t want kids playing on the playground, they don’t want them playing on the oval, on any grass patch. Now they come to the point where you’re not allowed to pass the ball to your dad.”</p>
<p>Next week’s ban: blinking more than three times during recess.</p>
<p>Dean says he and other parents had previously let it all slide, but the idea that adults now require adult supervision while supervising their own children was the final straw.</p>
<p>Enter<em> Today</em> show host and national voice of incredulity, Karl Stefanovic, who gave the incident the full Stefanovic treatment.</p>
<p>“It feel like April Fool’s Day, doesn’t it?” he said. “I mean, it’s just so wrong, a father can’t kick a footy with his son or his daughter, it’s crazy stuff, mate.”</p>
<p>And the final punchline?</p>
<p>“We did reach out to the school and we got told we couldn’t kick the footy with them either,” Karl added, with a smirk that echoed around the nation.</p>
<p>While the school has yet to make a public comment, one can only hope the next school newsletter doesn’t come with a warning: “No running. No fun. Supervision mandatory, even for supervising.”</p>
<p>In the meantime, Dean remains undefeated in backyard one-on-one, and his son still just wants to have a kick with Dad. Is that really so dangerous?</p>
<p><em>Images: Today show</em></p>
