Game abandoned over hurt lineswoman to be continued
The Disciplinary Committee of the Super League reached a scandalous decision on Tuesday forcing the continuation of the match between Aris and Asteras Tripolis that had been abandoned late in the first half at Thessaloniki when a bottle thrown from the stands injured an assistant referee.
The referee decided to stop the game for good in the 42nd minute when lineswoman Chrysoula Kourobilia was hit by a bottle from the home fans at the Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium with the score at 1-0 in favor of Asteras.
The league organizer’s disciplinary committee ruled that the match should not have been abandoned and will continue from the minute it stopped and with the score as it stood at that point.
The committee did not explain how it reached its verdict, but Kathimerini understands that the reasons on which it was based were the fact that the soccer code provides for matches to continue unless an official is injured — and Aris claimed the lineswoman was not — and that even in that case she could have been replaced by the fourth official. However, this normally applies to injuries from natural or accidental causes and not from fan action.
Aris received a one-match home ban and a 55,000-euro fine.
The Super League will now have to schedule the rest of the game, having already postponed the 29th round from April 11 to April 18 owing to the 24-hour delay to the Levadiakos vs Xanthi game last Sunday due to strong winds.
The match at Livadia eventually took place on Monday, with Levadiakos winning 2-0 through goals by Stefano Napoleoni and Zdravko Popovic.
