Players have been taken off the pitch during an FA Cup tie between West Bromwich Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers after reports of fighting among fans in the stands.
The players were taken off the pitch in the 82nd minute, with Wolves leading 2-0 in the Black Country derby.
Police and security needed to rush to a corner of the ground supposedly holding home fans as the disturbance developed.
There appeared to be a lot of pushing and shoving in the stand.
Some West Brom players were concerned for family members seated nearby and went into the stand to remove their children.
Referee Thomas Bramall eventually took the players from both teams back to the dressing rooms.
There had earlier been pockets of trouble in other parts of the ground.
Flares were thrown in the away section after Wolves opened the scoring in the first half and objects were also thrown at Wolves’ Tommy Doyle as he prepared to take a corner.
The players returned to the pitch, to warm up, after around 15 minutes
ITV’s pitchside reporter, Katie Shanahan, said [before the players returned] the players are “waiting to get the go-ahead from the safety team”, [before re-starting].
She said the referee “can’t start the game again until he gets the go-ahead from the safety team. At the moment, it is not safe to re-start the match.”
ITV presenter Mark Pougatch said it came after trouble broke out in the Smethwick End and the Birmingham Road End of The Hawthorns stadium.
He said: “If the FA decide the game cannot continue, the FA Committee will decide at a later date whether the game will be re-played.”
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Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
