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Melbourne Victory face the prospect of playing out the rest of the season without their fans, following the calamitous and violent scenes of Saturday’s A-League derby with Melbourne City.
Penalties and arrests began to trickle in in the wake of ‘Aussie rules darkest day’, with Football Australia (FA) confirming on Tuesday night that two people were receiving lifetime bans, with more likely to follow.
The FA have yet to announce any penalties the club itself would face, with Victory granted until 9am Wednesday to respond to their Show Cause notice.
A significant fine, the reduction of points and the exclusion of fans from their matches are some of the punishments that the club can face.
More than 150 Melbourne Victory fans stormed the pitch in violent and ugly scenes at the club’s derby with Melbourne City. Both the fans and the club face severe sanctions
Victoria Police are seeking information on the man in the photo who was seen throwing a trolley during the riots.
The Victory will play their next match, incredibly, another Melbourne derby, this time against Western United, on Boxing Day.
Asked if Victory could face the prospect of playing out the remainder of the season behind closed doors, Football Australia boss James Johnson admitted it was something the game’s governing body would have to look into.
We know there’s a game on Boxing Day. That will factor into our considerations. We have to see what sanctions could be applied in the interim,” he said on Channel 9’s Today show on Wednesday morning.
‘Their [Victory playing with no crowds] One possibility, but I’m not going to comment on that. I haven’t even seen Melbourne Victory’s response.
“We have to see that response and give the club that has responded the ability to go through a process of natural justice.”
While he was loathe to admit any penalties while awaiting Victory’s response to Show Cause’s notice, Johnson confirmed that a variety of penalties would be considered.
Football Australia chief executive James Johnson was loathe to be pinned to confirm whether Melbourne Victory would be able to play behind closed doors for the remainder of the season, but ultimately conceded it was something the organization had to look into.
“There are a variety of financial and sporting sanctions that we will look at, but first we need to look at the response and understand what Melbourne Victory’s view is on it.” That’s called natural justice,’ he said.
“However, what I can say, in terms of what we are trying to achieve through the sanctions, is that we want to make sure that we prevent this type of behavior from happening again.
“We want to make sure that we hold the club accountable for the actions of some of its spectators.
“Thirdly, we want to give the community confidence that they can come to football matches and that’s what we’re looking to achieve through the sanctions process against Melbourne Victory,” Johnson said, while community confidence in the A -League collapses. scary bass.
Victoria Police have charged 13 people for their role in Saturday’s violent pitch invasion and more arrests are expected (people wanted by police, pictured)
The FA boss also said that any potential financial penalties would likely be very severe; and the eighth-place club may even face point deductions.
‘There are financial sanctions that can be implemented. That can be in the range of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars,” Johnson said.
“When it comes to sporting penalties, we can see potential point deductions.”
It comes as the number of people charged over the violent pitch invasion has risen to 13 after 10 more people were charged on Wednesday morning.
More than 150 Melbourne Victory fans stormed the field and destroyed the LED advertising signage.
They include two men, ages 23 and 26, charged with violent disorder, criminal mischief, unlawful assault, and a host of other crimes.
A 17-year-old youth is charged with a citation for reckless conduct endangering serious injury and issuing an ignited distress signal, for an incident in which a cameraman was struck by a flare.
Five other men in their 20s and an 18-year-old were charged with entering the competition space, disorderly conduct, disrupting a match and disorderly conduct, while another 20-year-old man was charged with issuing a warning signal. help lit.
Another 18 people have also been identified following public appeals and more charges are expected to be filed in the coming days.
Melbourne City goalkeeper Tom Glover suffered a concussion and severe facial laceration requiring stitches after a fan hit him with a metal container filled with sand during the violent pitch invasion.
Importantly, the four men allegedly responsible for the attacks on Melbourne City goalkeeper Tom Glover, referee Alex King, a cameraman and two security have all been charged or identified.
All have been rescued and will appear in Melbourne Magistrate Court in February.
The researchers also posted images of six other men they need to talk to.
Approximately $150,000 worth of damage was caused at the location and about 80 sparklers or fireworks were ignited, according to police, who were pelted with poles and bottles as they responded to the chaos.