13-year-old Tavin, a player for the U15 Brantford 99ers, was removed from the team after facing bullying from his teammates.
This comes after the loss of Foxmotors 12U player Natalia Moore, who also experienced bullying.
Highlights
- Shannon Cuthbertson, the mother of Tavin, shared a heartbreaking message on social media, calling attention to the extreme bullying her son endured.
- As a goalie mom, Shannon said she was sickened by the coach’s response.
- Courtney Rawson shared that Tavin had experienced things being thrown at his back while changing and pucks being slapshot at his head from just a foot away.
On January 6th, 2025, Tavin showed his mom disturbing screenshots of messages, which also came from some of his teammates, the coaches’ children.
The messages included threats of physical harm and bullying. One chat group was even named “Kill Tavin.”
Tavin’s mom reported the bullying to the Brantford police. The police officer responded by saying, “kids will be kids,” and gave the bullies a warning.
The issue was then discussed in a meeting with the coach and the hockey association, but he was cut off from the team instead.
Many Share Personal Experiences Of Bullying After Tavin’s Story Comes To Light
On January 26, Shannon Cuthbertson, the mother of Tavin, shared a heartbreaking message on social media, calling attention to the extreme bullying her son endured.
She described discovering a group chat on Tavin’s phone titled “Kill Tavin,” filled with disturbing messages from his teammates.
As a goalie mom, Shannon said she was sickened by the coach’s response. Instead of addressing the bullying directly, the coach ignored the situation and suggested Tavin leave the team.
The Brantford Minor Hockey Association also advised Tavin to step away from playing “for his safety” and sent a cease-and-desist letter to his mother. Meanwhile, the police refused to take action.
Shannon called for others to help share her story and raise awareness about the severity of the bullying.
Please Share!!!!
Shannon Cuthbertson
Can you imagine opening your child’s phone to find a group chat made that is named “Kill Tavin”. Can you imagine reading that this group of individuals are telling him they are going to rape him? That they are going to beat him, stomp him, mess with his gear. Put hot sauce in his water. Shoot pucks at his head. I’m absolutely disgusted after ready this has happened to a friend of mine!!
How is this ok? As a Goalie mom this makes me absolutely sick to my stomach! The coach refused to acknowledge or deal with these kids on his team and suggested this boy just plays somewhere else. Brantford Minor Hockey has suggested this child step away from doing what he loves “for his safety” then sent mom a cease and desist to shut her up. The police won’t do anything! This can not be ignored! I know kids are cruel but this goes so far past cruel! This child is fearing for his own life and these are very serious threats!
Please help me share this and get this out there!
If anyone has any suggestions on how to escalate this to see some kind of action and consequence take place for this boy please reach out!
So, people suggested reaching out to the parents of the children involved in the bullying, hoping they may not be aware of the situation.
“I hope this gets more attention and that action is finally taken. I played hockey in Brantford too and was bullied by players and coaches, but nothing was ever done about it.”
Clam Chowder
Similarly, in response, Courtney Rawson shared that Tavin had experienced things being thrown at his back while changing and pucks being slapshot at his head from just a foot away.
Rawson emphasized that this behavior is unacceptable, especially when treating your goalie respectfully.
he has had things whipped at his back while he was changing, pucks slap shot at his head a foot away. you don’t do that. you don’t do that to your own goalie ever.
Courtney Rawson
Another person came forward, hoping this situation would get more attention and that action would finally be taken.
They shared their own experience of being bullied by both players and coaches while playing hockey in Brantford, but nothing was ever done to address it.
Further, Tina Barraclough shared that her eldest son went through something similar last year, with the team manager bullying him along with the other kids.
She mentioned it was a challenging experience; he almost quit after that season. Thankfully, he now has a great coach and supportive teammates this season.
Additional Information
- The mother has not provided any updates since then.
- Many people have come forward to offer their support for Tevin.
