Children among 10 injured as car crashes into rugby fans in Australia

Police say they arrested 18-year-old man driving vehicle and were investigating what happened

A vehicle drove into a crowd standing on a road to cheer on the Newcastle Knights rugby team north of Sydney on Saturday, injuring 10 people, including several children, Australian officials said.

Two of the injured – a 5-year-old girl and a 67-year-old man – were in critical condition, and the other eight were in stable condition at a hospital, according to New South Wales police.

Those in stable condition included another 5-year-old girl and a 2-year-old girl.

File: Fans wave and greet the Newcastle Knights team as they arrive with his team for a press conference ahead of the 2026 NRL Grand Final, at Martin Place on 1 October 2026 in Sydney, Australia

Police said they arrested the 18-year-old man driving the vehicle and were investigating what happened.

They said the crash was not believed to be related to terrorism.

Thousands had been cheering the team on this week as they trained, Australian Associated Press reported. Another large crowd was on the street Saturday morning to see the team bus off ahead of the rugby league finals match on Sunday.

Newcastle mayor Gavin Morris said in televised remarks it appeared the ‌driver lost control of the ​car that hit the crowd.

"It ‌appears that ⁠he was revving the car in ⁠some form," he said in televised remarks.

Thousands had lined the city's streets to farewell the Newcastle Knights rugby league team due to compete in the country's National Rugby League grand final in Sydney on Sunday, the Australian Broadcasting Corp reported.

(With inputs from agencies)