TORONTO - Arland Bruce said it was a tribute to Michael Jackson.
The CFL called it "excessive actions" and fined the Toronto Argonaut slotback an undisclosed amount Thursday.
The incident happened during Toronto's 30-17 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Wednesday.
After
scoring on a 21-yard pass from Kerry Joseph to put Toronto ahead 6-0,
Bruce removed his helmet, shoulder pads and uniform top, then laid down
in the end zone.
Bruce said he was simply honouring Jackson's
memory by pretending to be buried. The game's referee saw it
differently and gave Bruce two objectionable conduct penalties.
"The
commissioner has always said he wants the players to have fun, but you
can't go over the line," said a CFL spokesman. "It's not always easy to
draw that line, but when you remove your equipment to lay down and
delay the game, like he did, that's where we draw the line."
The Argonauts said they support the league's ruling.
"The
issue has been addressed internally by head coach Bart Andrus and his
coaching staff and the club is confident that any future touchdown
celebrations by Argonauts players will be conducted within the rules of
the CFL game," the team said in a release.
"It should be noted that Arland apologized of his own volition to his teammates in today's team meeting."
In an interview after the game, Andrus said he had spoken with Bruce.
"I
made the mistake of telling him in camp that once he got to the end
zone I didn't care what he did," Andrus said. "But he's straight with
it now and I think next time around he will celebrate in an appropriate
manner."
Copyright 2007 - MOP Squad Sports
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