ABC Motsepe League club Umsinga United supporters stormed onto the pitch and caused havoc at the Harry Gwala Stadium in Pietermaritzburg after their club were defeated and failed to get promotion to the Motsepe Foundation Championship (MFC) on Friday night.
Safa have vowed to ban those responsible for the disturbing, violent acts.
Umsinga, the favourites from KZN, were defeated 1-0 by Orbit College in the semi-finals. This means that Orbit were promoted to the MFC and the home side, Umsinga misses out on playing in the second tier of SA football next season
Umsinga fans then broke the fence and threw missiles onto the pitch, creating unsavoury scenes and embarrassing the SA football fraternity, resulting in spectators running for cover.
SAFA released a statement condemning the ugly incidents: “SAFA strongly condemns the violent acts of hooliganism and thuggery that took place during the ABC Motsepe National Playoffs semi-finals on Friday afternoon in Pietermaritzburg.
The chaotic scenes took place at the end of a semi-final match between Umsinga United and Orbit College at Harry Gwala Stadium on Friday. We have asked security and the referee for a full report and we will prioritise the investigation into this incident.
We will vigorously pursue this matter and any individual or club that is found to be guilty will be banned for these senseless acts. Such hooliganism has no place in football,” Safa said in a statement.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa.
