Three men charged by Victoria Police for Melbourne derby pitch invasion
Three have been charged following the violent pitch invasion in Saturday's Melbourne derby.
Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City faced each other in the A-League at AAMI Park on Sunday.
Both sets of fans threw flares on the pitch in the first half. After a flare hit a pitchside cameraman, Melbourne City goalkeeper Tom Glover also threw a flare back into the crowd.
Fans reacted violently to this incident and some people stormed onto the pitch and Glover was hit in the face with a metal bucket. The referee Alex King was also struck and the Melbourne derby was abandoned.
Victoria Police confirmed on Monday that three men have been charged about allegedly striking Glover with the sand-filled bucket. One of them is also accused of assaulting a security guard.
All three men self-presented to police stations on Monday and have subsequently been bailed to appear at Melbourne Magistrates' Court on February 27.
"The charges come as detectives from the north west metro regional crime squad continue to investigate the entire incident as part of Operation Astute,"
said a police statement.
"More than 150 football fans ran on to the field during Saturday night's match after a significant number of flares were ignited and thrown through the crowd."
Glover was left with a cut to the side of his face and concussed.
"I think it is very disappointing for Australian football in general,"
Glover told the Nine Network.
"I'm okay. I can't train today because of protocols but I'll be back on the pitch tomorrow.
"The Socceroos (Australia men's national side) were on a high and we were kind of riding the wave of that. It was just a small minority which kind of ruins it."
Tom Glover also could face sanctions for throwing the flare into the crowd and Federation Football Australia is investigating the incident.
"The police are doing their thing. It's just getting back on the pitch and being ready for next week,"
he added.
"Police will be chasing that up so it's kind of out of my control.
"Sanctions are out of my control. My main focus is helping Australian football go in the right direction and not giving it a bad light."
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