Question Number: 31686

Other 8/7/2017

RE: Adult

Dogan of Famagusta, North Cyprus asks...

hi
what should referee do if a fan throws a knife to the pitch?
https://www.dreamteamfc.com/c/news-gossip/275517/ricardo-quaresma-plays-with-knife-during-turkish-super-cup/
regards

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Dogan,
I am rather surprised the match was not suspended and security brought in? If it was simply a lost item found on the pitch in a park we might wonder but at a stadium it was tossed there AFTER the match started. Was the knife thrown at a player or at an official but missed? I know of several incidents where coins were thrown along with bottles forcing referees to abandon matches flares and exploding firecrackers but a knife is just that much more scary!
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi
For me the game is over and we go home. There is no place in the game for fans throwing offensive weapons on to the field of play.
Perhaps at the Pro level the referee might take all the players off the field of play and speak with the police commander in charge of security along with the home team security officials and the match commissioner. If they can guarantee player and officials safety then the referee might allow the game to resume.
There are plenty of examples of games being abandonded for fan misconduct.