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SINGAPORE: On Sunday, the Lions were knocked out of the AFF Suzuki Cup, losing to Vietnam at the National Stadium — but it was on terraces, and not the pitch, that Singapore lost the plot.
Violence broke after the end of the semi-final second leg match, with punches thrown along with bottles.
Most of the trouble occurred around and outside the East Entrance, where both the die-hard Singapore fans and 5,000 Vietnamese fans were seated.
“The Singapore fans were throwing rubbish and water bottles at us as we were leaving through the East Entrance,” said Mr Duong Tuan Anh, :24, a software engineer.
“A big group even ran towards us, punching and kicking. All we could do was try to pull our friends out of and run.”
The poor behaviour of local fans started even before the match did.
Said Vuong Dao Nghe on the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) post-grad football forum: “The Singapore fans screamed vulgarities and booed during the (Vietnamese) national anthem.”
But it was after full time that things came to a head. When bottles were thrown at them, said Duong: “Some of us got angry and ran across, then a fight broke out. It was quickly broken up by the security personnel.”
The scuffles continued on the way out of the East Entrance, to as far as the overhead bridge linking the stadium to the old People’s Association building.
“My friend and I were attacked on the overhead bridge,” claimed Pham Mahn Tung, 27, a PhD student at NTU. “The Singapore fans used punches and kicks, but fortunately we were not seriously injured.”
In response to queries, a police spokesperson said: “We responded to calls of people fighting near the East Entrance of the National Stadium and at the PA carpark, but upon arrival officers observed that there was no commotion at both locations.”
It is rare for the stadium to see such a large number of away fans, and that combined with the Lions’ loss could have sparked off the ugly scenes.
Singaporeans whom TODAY spoke to condemned the actions. “We should not condone such behaviour, it is totally unacceptable,” said civil servant Rashid Osman, 32.
Student Rishi Shankar Pandey, 15, said: “I saw a Singapore fan running into the Vietnamese crowd with a flying kick, causing the Vietnamese man’s face to bleed. This is really stupid, we should learn to lose graciously.”
The Football Association of Singapore (FAS) was quick to condemn the actions of local fans involved. Saying they were “extremely disappointed”, FAS spokesperson Eric Ong added: “Fans who come for football games should have a good experience and we regret that for some of our visiting fans, their experience was marred by the disgraceful and unsporting actions of these senseless minority amongst the spectators. To the Vietnamese fans, we offer our sincere apologies.”
For Pham, the whole episode was a shock. “I have been in Singapore for more than six years, and I believe it to be a very peaceful community. This is the first time I’ve seen something like this happen here ... I hope there will be more security personnel the next time.”
In England, some clubs hold the home fans in their seats while the away fans exit the stadium first, to minimise risks of a clash. Duong believes that could have helped the situation here. “The worst thing was that the Vietnamese fans and the Singapore fans left at the same time – maybe if that didn’t happen, this might not have been so bad,” he said.
The FAS urged the relevant authorities to “take the necessary action” on those involved. “We will continue to review our security operational procedures and take the appropriate action when required,” said Ong. - TODAY/sh
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