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Publishing date:
Oct 16, 2022 • 3 hours ago • 3 minute read • 
Catholic Central High in downtown London.
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Players on a London high school football team forced to forfeit a game after a hazing incident are speaking out, expressing regret and setting the record straight about what happened.
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Members of the Catholic Central high school senior football team, made up of Grade 11-and-older players, had 25 of its members temporarily removed last week in the fallout of a team party. The players sent a weekend statement to The London Free Press addressing the matter, which they say they don’t take lightly.
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“This event was never intended to be embarrassing or harmful to players,” the statement, signed by the CCH Crusader senior football team, said. “The CCH football team is a close-knit family and we don’t believe in putting our own teammates down to make others feel powerful.”
School officials learned of an Oct. 8 party where older senior team members selected rookie players and chose costumes for the latter to wear. Photos of the students later circulated on social media.
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In a letter to parents, the London District Catholic school board said neither the downtown high school nor the team’s coaching staff were involved in organizing the party.
In their statement, the players said the captains knew the consequences of hazing and “made it very clear to every veteran that this will not be tolerated during the party.”
The players say, after talking with members who attended the party, there was no indication the rookies “felt forced to wear or do anything beyond their personal comfort levels,” but said singling out younger players was still a mistake.
“We now understand that there was a lapse in judgment when rookies wore costumes. With that said, we want to assure everyone that nothing more than that occurred,” the team’s statement said, responding to rumours of more egregious conduct that were shared on social media following the players’ temporary suspension.
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The CCH team, a consistent powerhouse in London’s high school football scene, was forced to forfeit a scheduled game Friday against St. Andre Bessette secondary school after the 25 veteran players were made ineligible to play. St. Andre Bessette was given a 35-0 win.
The players involved will be required to participate in a training session on the dangers and impacts of hazing, a common form of bullying in which new members of a group are forced to perform humiliating tasks as a form of initiation.
No players involved in the incident have been permanently removed from the team. CCH’s next scheduled game is Thursday, Oct. 27, against Mother Teresa secondary school.
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Dear members of the community
This statement is in response to the CCH football gathering that occurred on October 8th.
The Crusader senior football team would like to issue a statement regarding the gathering and provide a more accurate account of what transpired.
On October 8th the team held a party to welcome new members to the team and bond as a team. This party consisted of students from grade 11 to 13. This event was never intended to be embarrassing or harmful to players. We now recognize that there are broader societal concerns around these types of parties due to some very unfortunate occurrences with football teams. Hazing is a big deal and should not be taken lightly.
The Captains of the team understood the consequences of hazing and made it very clear to every veteran that this will not be tolerated during the party.
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After talking with each player who attended the party, there was no indication that they felt forced to wear or do anything beyond their personal comfort levels.
We now understand that there was a lapse in judgement when rookies wore costumes. With that said, we want to assure everyone that nothing more than that occurred.
We have learned from our actions and take responsibility for what we did. We are issuing this statement to abate fears and make everyone aware of what really happened. Unfortunately this part of the story was not reported on the media release.
The CCH football team is a close knit family and we don’t believe in putting our own teammates down to make others feel powerful. We will move forward as a team and deal with anything more that comes our way and get through this a family.
Respectfully,
Crusader Senior Football Team
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https://lfpress.com/news/local-news/london-high-schools-football-players-speak-out-amid-hazing-fallout
