Riot At Soccer Match

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31108, 11 July 1966, Page 13

Riot At Soccer Match

(N.Z. Press Assn.—Copyright)

SYDNEY, July 10. A mob forced four detectives to release a man they had arrested and handcuffed at a riot during a soccer match in Sydney yesterday.

There were riots also in Adelaide at soccer and Australian rules football matches. The policemen were hit by stones, punched and buffeted by hundreds of spectators, predominantly Maltese, during a fracas after the referee had ordered a home team player off the field.

The match, between second division teams Melita Eagles and Hornsby North at the outer suburb of Granville, ended in chaos after 20 minutes of the second half. The referee ordered a Melita player from the field, then a spectator rushed on to the ground and punched the referee.

Four detectives chased and caught the attacker, handcuffed him and took him to a dressing shed. The rioters started tearing down the shed with their hands and the detectives were forced to let the man go. One detective was punched and his glasses broken, and another was hit on the head by a stone.

Five cars of riot police rushed to the ground. The referee, whose name has been withheld by police, was taken to a nearby police station for safety. Earlier in the game, in one of a series of brawls three men involved in a fight were taken to hospital for first aid. Shot Fired In Adelaide a policeman had to fire a shot from his revolver to, quell a disturbance after a match. Six police were called to restore order after the Juven-tas-Hellas game, when a crowd of 200 persons began to boo the referee.

Police smuggled the referee from the ground.

One of the police fired his revolver into the air to try to stop the crowd getting out of control but even so the demonstration continued well after the game ended.

Supporters jumped the fence at an Australian rules football game to aid their teams as Port Pirie and Broken Hill players began a brawl before 2000 spectators. With five minutes left to play the game was stopped for several minutes as the players fought The umpire and team trainers pulled the players apart.