Saturday’s A-League derby match between Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium was abandoned in the 21st minute after fans stormed the pitch and attacked a goalkeeper.
The match descended into chaos ahead of a planned 20th-minute walkout in protest of the Australian Professional Leagues’ decision to send the next three A-League grand finals to Sydney.
Both sets of active fans chanted “fuck the APL” before igniting flares and throwing them on to the pitch.
But the situation escalated when Melbourne City goalkeeper Tom Glover picked a flare off the turf and threw it back into the stand housing Victory’s active support, prompting dozens of Victory fans to storm the pitch.
They surrounded the keeper and started hurling abuse towards him before one Victory fan grabbed a metal bucket and threw it at Glover, hitting him in the face.
Match referee Alex King was also hit by the bucket, suffering a cut to his head.
Play was suspended for approximately 45 minutes before officials made the decision to abandon the game due to fears over player safety.
Arrests have already been made and more could follow.
