Australian soccer match abandoned after goalie is violently attacked by fans who stormed the pitch

The A-League derby between Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory was abandoned after a pitch invasion turned violent

An Australian A-League club game between local rivals Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory was abandoned Saturday after a fan invasion of the pitch turned violent and resulted in City goalkeeper Tom Glover being hit in the head with a metal bucket. According to a report by ESPN, the pitch invasion was the culmination of a tense and unruly atmosphere stemming from the Australian Professional Leagues' decision to sell hosting rights to the league's Grand Finals to Sydney for the next three years.

Fans from both City and Victory began throwing flares onto the field well before a planned joint-walkout protest that was to take place at the 20th minute. Flares and small fireworks continued to be thrown throughout the match until Glover threw a flare that had landed near him off the pitch and back into Victory supporters.

Fans proceeded to storm the pitch in response, with one fan hitting Glover in the head with a bucket of sand designed to extinguish flares. Glover was rushed off the field by teammates, suffering a suspected concussion as well as a laceration on his head that required stitches.

City goalkeeper Tom Glover is assaulted with a bin as fans invade the pitch. What happened to just walking out? #MelbDerby pic.twitter.com/zzckclmwRS

— Neil Sherwin (@neilsherwin) December 17, 2022

In addition, referee Alex King, a camera operator for broadcaster Network Ten, and the game's referee coach were also roughed up in the chaos. King suffered a gash to the head from the bucket thrown at Glover, but he was described as being "more shaken than hurt". The match was subsequently abandoned in order to ensure player safety.

According to Victoria Police, approximately 150-200 fans stormed the pitch, and later destroyed sponsor boards and goals before being escorted off the field. No arrests have yet been made as a police investigation is ongoing.

The behavior of fans was condemned by Football Australia, with an official telling ESPN that the organization's "full force" of regulatory and disciplinary powers would be used regarding the incident.

"Such behaviour has no place in Australian Football, with a full Football Australia investigation to commence immediately, where strong sanctions to be handed down," read a Federation statement.