Abandonment at FC Utrecht v Go Ahead Eagles does not come as a surprise: 'We already knew this was going to happen'

Referee Martin van den Kerkhof expects the match between FC Utrecht and Go Ahead Eagles to be completed "sometime early next week". He abandoned the game between the two clubs on Saturday evening for good after just over an hour, after Utrecht fans repeatedly threw fireworks and cups onto the pitch. At that point, the visitors from Deventer were 3-1 up.

Shortly after half-time, Go Ahead had already stretched their lead to 2-0 and then 3-0 when Utrecht fans threw fireworks onto the pitch. The game stopped temporarily and resumed about 15 minutes later. Utrecht then pulled it back to 3-1, but things went wrong again.

Go Ahead's players held onto the ball so Utrecht could not restart play quickly. That sparked a scuffle, and frustrated Utrecht fans threw cups onto the pitch. The match was abandoned again. Shortly afterwards, it became clear that this time it was final.

"This is simply what we really do not want," Van den Kerkhof told ESPN. "The first time it is about the safety of players possibly being at stake. And the second time, throwing cups so massively, we do not want that."

"We leave that decision on whether or not to abandon the game to the local authorities. All of that has to be arranged, and public order outside has to be properly managed. That is why it took a little longer."

"It is up to match affairs to determine when we continue playing. But that will undoubtedly be sometime early next week. This is terrible. I am a football lover, and this simply has no place in it. It is a shame that it still happens from time to time."

Go Ahead captain Joris Kramer was involved in the scuffle after Utrecht made it 3-1, shortly before the game was definitively abandoned. "I take a tiny bit of the blame myself, because I provoke it myself," he admits. "I wanted to grab the ball for a moment, to give us time to organise everything. But of course they do throw it. That is a shame."

As for the trouble in the stands, Kramer said it was not a complete surprise. "It is a shame that this happens, but we did know beforehand that this was probably going to happen. We had already received some information in the group app this morning, from our security, that this would happen. And then it is a great shame that it really does happen. But you know that the chance of it happening is greater when it is 3-0."