NYC FC coach Nick Cushing denies punching teenage Toronto FC player

New York City FC manager Nick Cushing has denied the allegation that he punched a Toronto FC player in March.

The allegation was made public over the weekend by Toronto manager John Herdman, who accused Cushing of punching an unnamed 19-year-old player at half-time of a game between the two teams earlier this season.

Related: Chaotic melee breaks out after NYCFC hold on to beat Toronto at BMO Field

“I categorically deny any involvement or any incident where I have punched or assaulted any Toronto FC player or staff member,” Cushing said at a press conference on Monday. “I am shocked, personally. I’m upset by the allegation.”

Cushing said he has not been contacted by MLS and was not made aware of the accusation until Saturday.

The two clubs were involved in an on-field brawl on Saturday after New York’s 3-2 win at BMO Field. The bad blood dates back to New York’s 2-1 win on 16 March when there was an altercation in the tunnel at half-time at Yankee Stadium.

“There was nothing in it. It was two teams that are fighting for three points,” Cushing said of the March altercation before the rematch this weekend.

This weekend, Herdman and Toronto club captain Jonathan Osorio described a more physical confrontation in the March game.

“When we hear that the coach and three of their players corner a 19-year-old [player] of ours, by himself. That’s when there’s a problem,” Osorio said. “And I think that kind of carried over [into Saturday’s game], probably from their side as well. … We were just letting them know that we didn’t forget about that.”

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Osorio did not identify the 19-year-old but Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, who scored in the seventh minute at Yankee Stadium, was the only 19-year-old in the Toronto squad for the March game. Herdman said the player in question was “cornered and punched in the face”.

Herdman confirmed on Saturday that Toronto requested camera footage from the Yankee Stadium tunnel, and that the available film was sent to the league office.

NYC FC have asked MLS to investigate. The league has yet to comment.

Cushing has been head coach of NYC FC since 2022. The Englishman was previously in charge of Manchester City Women.