Footballer who floored female 'sexism row'
This is the moment that the female linesman at the centre of a sexism row is violently knocked to the ground by a Cardiff City football player.
Defender Kevin McNaughton is seen running to keep the ball in play when he appears to drop his shoulder and steer himself into Sian Massey.
She is hit with such force that her head snaps back and she is flung across the pitch.
Ungentlemanly McNaughton, 28, simply gets up and walks away without even checking to see if she is injured, let alone help her up or apologise and has since been backed by his agent.
Massey was at the centre of a row over comments made by Andy Gray and Richard Keys who said that women 'don't know the offside rule', ultimately leading to them losing their jobs at Sky Sports.
Video footage from Monday's match between Cardiff City and Middlesbrough shows McNaughton running for the ball to try to keep it in play, but he was blocked by opposing player Rhys Williams.
He manages to stop the ball from going over the line but then continues running at full pelt, and looks like he swerves, hurtling into Miss Massey.
She takes the full brute force of his shoulder barge and is sent flying to the ground without an apology or offer of help back to her feet.
Unlike many top-level players who might have responded to the knock by rolling around on the groud, Miss Massey takes the event in good humour and is seen smiling as she gets back up.
The football crowd cheered as she falls to the ground but, keeping her composure and professionalism, she gets back up and even gives a goal kick before having a chuckle with referee Graham Scott.
Another said: 'He makes the challenge on the Boro player and then deliberately side steps and increases his speed into the path of Sian Massey before using his body weight to barge her over.
'She's lucky not to have any broken bones.'
McNaughton's Facebook page was filled with insults from angry fans who described his actions as 'shameful' and 'sexist' and called for an FA investigation.
The incident happened on Monday afternoon when Cardiff was beaten 3-0 at home to Middlesbrough.
It ended Cardiff's hopes of automatic promotion from the Championship to the Premier League.
A club spokesman said: 'The ball goes back into play and he tries to follow the run of the ball. He doesn't do it on purpose. It is a game of football where players try to get the ball.'
A club source added: 'He doesn't need to apologise. You could even argue that Sian Massey was blocking the path of the player.'
John Viola, McNaughton's agent, said the allegations were 'absolute nonsense'.
He added: 'He is not that type of guy, he is the nicest player you would ever meet in your life so anyone suggesting he did it on purpose is crazy.'
When asked why he didn't stop to help her back to her feet or apologise he said: 'He was concentrating on the game. He is a focused footballer.
'I don't know (if he will be contacting her to apologise), I'm abroad at the moment and I haven't spoken to him about that.'
The incident has not been reported to the FA.
Miss Massey, who is hoping to become the only female in the Select Group of match officials, which presides over the Premier League, was unavailable for comment.
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