WIBU to tell this boy off?

[DunelmDoris]

So I'm waiting for 7 (nearly 8) yo DS to come out of the boys changing room after his swimming lesson. He's taking ages so I open the door to shout him to hurry up and I can hear them all shrieking and mucking around.

Then I hear DS yell out in pain and start crying. I go in and find one of the other boys had whipped him around the back with his goggles (he has two big weals). When I asked the other boy if he had done it, he said yes but only because DS had thrown the goggles.

I was really cross, so I told the boy here has done something very wrong, even though DS should not have thrown the goggles it wasn't OK to hurt someone, and I made him apologise to DS. I helped DS get dressed then made him apologise to the boy for throwing the goggles. Then I told the boy again that if someone behaves badly towards him he should get an adult, not take it as a reason to hurt someone, and that if it happened again I'd be talking to his mother (who I barely know).

Now I'm worried I overreacted and frightened the other boy. But I'm genuinely crap at confrontation and although I really instinctively needed to defend DS maybe I shouldn't have told the boy off myself, and should have gone to get his mother.

Being a childminder, I've had to deal with situations a bit like this quite often. If I'd been you I would have explained to both boys that they were in the wrong. I would have pointed out to my child that he shouldn't upset other children by messing with their belongings and told the other child that he should have asked an adult for help instead of hitting someone.

I would have said I thought they had both learned an important lesson, asked them if they would like to apologise to each other, finished with a cheery smile and a "I'm glad that's sorted out. See you next week".

Next week I would either dish out a loud reminder about just concentrating on getting yourself changed as they go into the changing rooms or go in and supervise myself if that would be seen as appropriate by the staff.

I didn't say that the OP was calm, I said that I hoped she had calm. Nowhere does she say that she is angry (only cross), and she does say that she told the boys off (wait a sec, just going to check this)(on the app, so can't C&P)

OP says "I wasn't aggressive, just firm"

I'd have told him off too, if he'd marked my son, OP.

And fought fire with fire if his mother then come talking to me in a steely manner.