Aussie Chelsea striker Sam Kerr faces court in London


Sam Kerr arrives arrives at court in London. Photo: AAP
Chelsea striker Sam Kerr has appeared in court charged with alleged racially aggravated harassment of a police officer.
The captain of the Australia women’s national soccer team, the Matildas, attended a hearing, wearing a black coat and a white jumper, at Kingston Crown Court on Tuesday (UK time).
Kerr, 31, is charged with causing a police officer harassment, alarm or distress under Section 4A of the Public Order Act during an incident in Twickenham, south-west London, on January 30, 2023.
She was charged with using insulting, threatening or abusive words that caused alarm or distress to the constable during a dispute over a taxi fare. Kerr had been out celebrating Chelsea’s FA Cup victory over Liverpool with friends at the time of the alleged incident.
Kerr, who was not charged until January 21, 2024, is accused of calling the officer a “stupid white bastard”. Her lawyers dispute she used the expletive.
The all-time leading Australian international scorer pleaded not guilty at Kingston Crown Court in March last year.
Her trial is scheduled to start on February 3.
Tuesday’s court appearance came a couple of months after the Matildas captain revealed her partner Kristie Mewis is expecting a baby.
“Mewis-Kerr baby coming 2025!” Kerr posted on Instagram in November.
Mewis and Kerr met in 2020 before becoming a couple a year later.
Kerr proposed to Mewis in September 2023.
Kerr plays for Chelsea, but has been sidelined since tearing her anterior cruciate ligament in January.
The injury ruled her out of the Paris Olympics, and the Matildas struggled in her absence on the way to bombing out in the group stage.
No timeline has been set for her return to competitive soccer.
-with AAP