A general fight broke out this weekend between fans and players of two teams during a Premier League Soccer of Quebec (PLSQ) match in Dollard-des-Ormeaux. Sanctions were announced on Wednesday against both teams.
Posted at 3:50 p.m.
“Of course, a match can be intense, but the events during this duel go far beyond the normal framework of a high-level match, and I strongly condemn them,” explained Thursday the assistant to the commissioner of the PLSQ, Martin DesGroseilliers. .
The affair occurred last Saturday evening, during a match between teams from Outremont and Saint-Laurent. In a video released Wednesday by VAT News, supporters can be seen pushing and hitting each other on the sidelines. Players then join the fray, which eventually turns into an all-out battle with dozens of people involved. In particular, baseball bats were used, confirmed police sources.
At the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM), spokesperson Mariane Allaire Morin explained that several calls were made to 911 last Saturday in connection with this case, around 7:30 p.m.
“When the police arrived on the scene, the altercation was over, the supporters involved had left, and there were no injuries. But despite everything, the referees decided to put an end to the game as a safety measure, ”she said.
Consequences
For the moment, no one has been arrested by the authorities, who have however opened an investigation. “There are probably assaults that have been committed,” admitted Wednesday the agent Allaire Morin, calling on any potential victim to come forward at his neighborhood station.
The PLSQ, a semi-professional league that has existed since 2012, claims to have inflicted “a defeat by default on both teams”, as “supporters and some players” from both sides “are jointly involved and responsible for this fight”. “In addition, the Coupe PLSQ semi-final match involving CS St-Laurent will be played behind closed doors, so without any spectators. The choice of land is to be determined”, continued the management, speaking of “unacceptable incidents”.
“Regardless of the level and the sporting challenge, the priority will always be the safety of players, referees and spectators during a game,” insisted Mr. DesGroseillers on this subject.
On social networks, several Internet users have condemned that such events give a bad image of the league, but also of the sport itself. The Lac St-Louis Regional Soccer Association also condemned the events that occurred on its territory, promising to “implement measures to prevent this kind of action from happening again in their region”.