LONDON: Chelsea striker Sam Kerr said she “feared for my life” while she and her partner were in the back of a taxi moments before one of them smashed the vehicle’s rear window.
The Australia international is on trial charged with causing racially aggravated harassment to police officer Stephen Lovell during an incident in south-west London in the early hours of January 30, 2023.
It is alleged Kerr, 31, and her partner, West Ham midfielder Kristie Mewis, had been out drinking when they were driven to Twickenham Police Station by a taxi driver who complained the pair had refused to pay clean-up costs after one of them was sick, and that one of them smashed the vehicle’s rear window.
Kerr told a jury at Kingston Crown Court on Wednesday that she had put her head out of the window when she began to feel sick before the driver “rolled it up” and began to “drive dangerously.”
She added the dangerous driving continued for 15 to 20 minutes, saying: “I was terrified for my life. Everything was going through my mind about being in a car with a stranger I deemed to be dangerous. There was no reasoning with him. It was his way or nothing.
“Kristie asked him to stop the car but there was no change to his driving. We had no idea where we were.
“Kristie was very distressed. She was crying and scared. I’ve never seen her like that before and it made me more scared.
“I started to realize how serious the situation was. It put me in protective mode... he had the power over us... I deemed him to be dangerous because of the driving, but also because he could have taken us anywhere.”
Kerr said the pair tried to open the doors and windows several times, but they remained locked.
Mewis eventually “kicked out (the window) with her boot” which led Kerr to feel “relieved,” but she added: “We didn’t get out straight away as the car was still moving.”
On Tuesday, the court was told Lovell first saw Kerr as she crawled through the smashed taxi window outside the station.
A “heated” discussion about the incident ensued between Kerr and the police, during which she allegedly became “abusive and insulting” toward Lovell, calling him “stupid and white.”
Kerr made her debut for current Women’s Super League champions Chelsea in 2020. She is currently out of action with a knee injury.
Chelsea star Kerr ‘feared for my life’ during taxi ride
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Chelsea star Kerr ‘feared for my life’ during taxi ride
- Kerr told a jury at Kingston Crown Court on Wednesday that she had put her head out of the window when she began to feel sick
- She added the dangerous driving continued for 15 to 20 minutes
PSG penalty hero Safonov out until next year with broken hand
- The Russian saved four penalties in a shootout in Qatar on Wednesday
- “Matvei Safonov has suffered a fracture to his left hand following the match against Flamengo,” the club said
POISSY, France: Goalkeeper Matvei Safonov, the star of Paris Saint-Germain’s Intercontinental Cup win, has a fracture in his left hand the club said on Friday.
The Russian saved four penalties in a shootout in Qatar on Wednesday as PSG edged Brazilians Flamengo to lift another trophy.
“Matvei Safonov has suffered a fracture to his left hand following the match against Flamengo,” the club said in a statement. “A further update will be provided in three to four weeks.”
The announcement came on the eve of the trip to face fifth-tier Vendee Fontenay in the French Cup. Either nominal number one Lucas Chevalier or third-choice Renato Marin will be in goal.
The injury ends, for now, a potential debate over who should start in goal for the European champions.
The 26-year-old Safonov started the season as the number two but match-winning exploits in Qatar followed several impressive displays standing in for Chevalier, who injured his ankle at the end of November after a shaky start to the season.
Chevalier, who turned 24 in November, was acquired in the summer because coach Luis Enrique liked his footwork with the ball but he has sometimes looked less reliable stopping shots.
