Stalemated game between NAC and Willem II to be played without an audience
NOS Football––Customized
The match between NAC and Willem II will be played without an audience. The KNVB reports that. The date and time will be determined early next week.
The Brabant derby was halted Friday night when Willem II held a 1-0 lead after objects were thrown onto the pitch for the second time. That was in line with the KNVB’s new, stricter measures.
Watch the reaction of NOS Sport analysts and NOS editor Stan Rombouts to the suspended match below:
The Keuken Kampioen Divisie game was first halted in the 77th minute because fireworks had been thrown onto the pitch. When the game had just resumed, Elton Kabangu scored for Willem II and NAC supporters threw plastic cups at the celebrating players. At that, the referee took the teams off the field for good.
Lighter incident
The Football Association announced the tightening of measures following the “lighter incident” during the Feyenoord-Ajax cup match.
A match is immediately stopped when a player or referee is hit from the audience by an object, as happened to Ajacied Davy Klaassen in De Kuip.
For only throwing objects without hitting anyone, players and referees go to the dressing rooms the first time and the game is temporarily stopped. On a second occasion, the game is stopped immediately.
The latter scenario occurred when cups of beer were thrown onto the field.
‘We shouldn’t look away anymore’
Mayor Depla of Breda thinks what happened is terrible. “But it is good that intervention has taken place. This behavior must stop, we must not look away anymore,” he told NOS. He praised the KNVB, which immediately applied the tightened rules. “It should have been a popular party with 19,000 people,” Depla said. “A lot of well-intentioned supporters are being duped, we have to stand up to the hooligans.”
Depla believes it is important that the perpetrators be caught and punished. It is certain that there are images of at least some of the suspects, Depla said.
‘Let this be a warning’
Chairman Matthijs Keuning of Supporters Collective Netherlands says the referee had no choice but to stop the match. “This measure at least creates clarity. You already see that most supporters don’t find it acceptable and they also address the people who throw things. You get more of the norm that it is no longer acceptable, whereas before there was an atmosphere that it could still be funny or fun to throw something. So let’s hope this has an effect.”
Completely preventing supporters from throwing something on the field and then halting the match is not possible, according to Keuning. “For the majority it will work fine, but with a measure like this you are dependent on the weakest link. Surely there is not one person among those 18,000 people who throws something in emotion and after a few beers. If the serious supporters continue to speak out against this and throwing objects becomes truly undesirable, then hopefully you will be less likely to do it anyway.”
