By 3 News online staff
A Taumaranui man was taken to hospital on Saturday with a kitchen knife stuck in his chest after a family dispute at a school netball game turned violent.
Ruapehu police area commander Inspector Steve Mastrovich says comments between men from opposing families at a netball match that morning developed into a fight early in the afternoon, Fairfax media reports.
On the sidelines of a children’s netball game, one man threatened to kill the other and called him ‘a nark’.
"The people who were threatened took umbrage at that and went back and spoke to the other family and friends," says Mr Mastrovich.
"They sallied forth to the other people's house – didn't take any weapons with them – but they had a couple of stubbies that they were drinking out of that happened to be to hand."
The fight began on Taupo Rd at around 1:30pm, and the arriving family began throwing bottles and pieces of wood at members of the other family.
One 18-year-old man living at the house then took what has been described as a large boning knife from the kitchen and stabbed another 18-year-old-man from the rival family.
The stabbing victim was rushed to the local hospital with the knife still protruding from his chest. He was then flown to Waikato Hospital to have the knife removed.
"The only real risk was, because of where the knife was, it could easily sever an artery," says Westpac Waikato Air Ambulance pilot Loren Haisley.
“If it severed that artery then it would have become far more critical,” he says.
With the knife removed, the man was said to be in a stable condition yesterday afternoon.
Mr Mastrovich says there is a history of feuding between the two families involved in Saturday’s fracas.
In 2009, a similar altercation took place after a girl from one family assaulted a girl from the other at the same netball courts.
One man has been arrested with regard to Saturday’s stabbing and three other family members have also been arrested, due to appear in the Taumaranui District Court today.
Mr Mastrovich says police are looking for several other family members and that it’s likely more charges will be laid.
3 News