MINETY flanker Lee Patterson is said to be considering legal action after being punched unconscious during a game on Saturday.

Referee David Wickes abandoned the Dorset & Wilts One North game against Trowbridge 2nd after 35 minutes because he said he could not guarantee the safety of the players.

Patterson, 22, was taken to Great Western Hospital in Swindon suffering from the effects of the blow, which left him with a gash on the side of his head.

Two Trowbridge players were sinbinned for fighting within the first few minutes of the match before more fights broke out, with Minety claiming Patterson was struck across the side of the head from behind while the ball was 30 metres away.

He was left unconscious and had to be carried off the pitch. The referee then stopped the game with Minety leading 14-7.

Minety coach Huw Jones said: “I have played senior and semi-pro rugby for a long while but I have never seen anything like that.

“It was just so frustrating because we wanted to play rugby but a small minority of their players were not interested in that.

“At the end I told my players not to form a tunnel and clap the opposition off like we usually do. I did not want to put them into a position where they were shaking the other team’s hands.”

Jones said the player is considering legal action.

“We have plenty of witnesses who saw what happened and if he decides to take further action then we will support him,” he said.

Wilts & Dorset general secretary Nick Dark said the league has yet to see the referee’s report.

He said: “The experienced disciplinary panel of Dorset and Wilts RFU would have jurisdiction to deal with this sort of incident upon receiving the referee’s report.

“The panel would convene a hearing to establish the facts by hearing evidence from the players and officials and to make a finding. The range of sanctions available to the panel could include fines, suspensions or deduction of league points.”

Trowbridge administration manager Chris Lamb said the club is investigating.

“It would be inappropriate to say anything else at this stage but we are looking into what happened. We have procedures to follow.”