FC Groningen and NEC struggle with stopped duel: ‘A few tons of damage’

FC Groningen and NEC are struggling with the tightened measures of the KNVB that ensure that matches can be stopped and stopped more quickly. Both clubs had the dubious honor of being involved in the first stopped Eredivisie match last weekend after the introduction of the new policy.

“We wonder whether the current consequences of the policy that has been introduced are in proportion to the consequences for the club and supporters, who are in the same boat together,” says a spokesman for the Groningers.

The game was stopped because a fan from Groningen threw a cup of beer at a linesman. According to the club, the stopped match will result in a loss of “a few tons”.

The club wonders whether it is reasonable to recover the damage from an eighteen-year-old sinner. “The club thinks it is still too early to anticipate this and does not want to make this decision so soon after the disrupted evening.”

NEC director Wilco van Schaik sympathizes with the people of Groningen. “The club and the other 20,000 supporters have become the victims of this anti-social behaviour.”

Although the damage to his club is less because NEC was the away club, Van Schaik is also affected by the suspension of the match. “It is very annoying from a sporting point of view, but it is also bad for our supporters. They pay thirty euros and spend hours on the bus for an eighteen-minute game.”

The director also finds it difficult to determine who should pay for the costs. “You can’t make that person pay for everything yourself and as a club you can’t ban that one crazy person.”

Nevertheless, he thinks it is good that the measures are being adhered to so strictly. “You now have to take action to nip the behavior of misbehaving supporters in the bud. If you implement these rules, you also have to implement them. I think it’s really anti-social that people throw things on the field.”

Groningen also emphasizes that it distances itself from spectators who throw objects towards the playing field. “Players and umpires must be safe on the pitch at all times.”

It also became clear last weekend that the rules are not always applied in the same way in practice. During the FC Twente-Sparta match (3-3), objects were thrown at Spartan Shurandy Sambo, partly because the goal scorer was ostentatiously cheering for the Twente audience.

According to a spokesman for the KNVB, that match should also have been stopped. “We are not going to explain every specific situation, but this is clear.”

He also criticizes Sambo’s behavior. “If we are all working together to keep misconduct out of the stadiums, provoking supporters will not help.”

In Groningen, according to Van Schaik, it was soon clear that the match would be stopped. “The referee was convinced.”

This is confirmed by a spokesman for the mayor of Groningen, Koen Schuiling, who is ultimately responsible for public order. “The mayor was known as part of the security triangle and he decided it was responsible to let people leave the stadium earlier.”

This decision could have been different if, for example, there had been another major event in the city. “After all, you have to mobilize the police earlier to manage the flow of supporters,” the spokesperson continues.

Van Schaik hopes that supporters and all those involved will learn from Saturday’s events. “If you make these rules, you know that matches will be stopped. You have to experience this to tighten up the policy. There is continuous evaluation, so that clubs and well-intentioned supporters will no longer have to be victims.”

He does not want to dwell on the incident for too long, but he still has one thing to say: “We let it get too far. We really have to start behaving normally again in the stands. It is not normal that you throwing things on the field. You don’t do that in the theater either.”