By Andrew Warshaw
April 23 – Israel Football Association (IFA) chairman Avi Luzon has commissioned an emergency committee to deal with mounting unrest after the sport reached a new low in the country’s domestic league.
A brawl at the end of Friday’s (April 20) game between Hapoel Ramat Gan and second division league leaders Hapoel Bnei Lod prompted Luzon to cancel the rest of the weekend’s league fixtures in the top two divisions.
Fighting broke out between players and club officials after the 1-1 draw between the two archrivals who are battling for the only promotion spot.
“I have called on Maccabi Haifa President Ya’akov Shahar…to head an independent panel of public officials that he will choose, and that will propose new and varied ways to fight soccer violence…and I am awaiting his answer,” Luzon said.
“I will ask the committee to make its recommendations of what needs to be done within 60 days.”
It was the second on-pitch brawl captured live on television in less than a month during a season that has turned into one of the ugliest in recent memory and has resulted in five teams being docked points for various offences.
The incident at Ramat Gan’s Winter Stadium came less than three weeks after another free-for-all between players and officials of Maccabi Petah Tikva and Hapoel Haifa.
Petah Tikva was docked three points for its part in the scuffle, only for the punishment to be deferred to next season.
The referee at the centre of the Ramat Gan-Lod clash Meir Levy called the player brawl the “most violent and disgraceful” scene he had experienced in 27 years as an official.
All in all, 12 players and Lod’s coach and assistant coach, as well as both clubs, face a date with the IFA’s disciplinary court on tomorrow.
Contact the writer of this story at zib.l1734798171labto1734798171ofdlr1734798171owedi1734798171sni@w1734798171ahsra1734798171w.wer1734798171dna1734798171