Coach Kelly behaviour 'idiotic': Bombers' Khan

A veteran player with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers is not rushing to defend former coach Mike Kelly, who was fired Thursday, the same day he was charged with assaulting an ex-girlfriend during an alleged domestic dispute at his U.S. home.

'Some sort of idiotic, boneheaded move wasn't out of his norm.' — Blue Bomber offensive lineman Obby Khan

Offensive lineman Obby Khan says the allegations against his former coach confirmed his low opinion of the man.

"Some sort of idiotic, boneheaded move wasn't out of his norm," Khan told CBC Winnipeg's local afternoon radio program in a live telephone interview Friday. "You guys knew all the stuff that he did during the year, during the course of the season, with players, with off-season stuff with fans. So it wasn't really that much of a shock to think that he could do something so idiotic."

The charges, one of assault and another of harassment, were laid Thursday by authorities in Bridgeport, Pa., where Kelly lives. He has a court appearance next week.

Troy Westwood, another player with the Bombers, told CBC in a noon-hour radio interview that the allegations are out of character with the man he knew.

"I hope the young lady involved is OK and I hope that they are able to have a decent relationship after this," said Westwood. "And I hope that Mike Kelly never finds himself in a situation like that ever again in his life."

Westwood added that he felt Kelly had made some poor decisions in how he conducted himself with fans and the media during his year at the helm. The coach, 51, became known for sharp outbursts and was fined $2,000 by the CFL for his "continued pattern of disrespectful behaviour towards the media."

Kelly, who spent one season leading the Winnipeg team, declined to comment Friday on the criminal charges. But when asked how he was feeling, he said that to call this a rough time would be the "understatement of the year."

Khan said the players he has spoken to are looking forward to next season without Kelly.

"I think the community and sponsorship and fans have lost faith in coach Kelly," Khan said. "So I think the board had to make some decisions to correct that. Because I think the damage of another year of this going on would have taken us 10 years to recover from."

Khan added that he and others would be happy to see Greg Marshall, a former defensive co-ordinator with the Blue Bombers, come in to coach the team.