– It’s absolutely crazy! If this happens on the street, then it’s straight to prison. That’s what Jan-Eirik Thorberg, sporting manager at Hallingdalen FK, says. On Thursday evening, his team met Club Seminario from Uruguay in the round of 16 during the Norway Cup at Ekebergsletta in Oslo. It was more of a fight than a football match. And for the first time in this year’s tournament, the police had to intervene in a match. According to Thorberg, it started “okay”, before it slipped completely. – Such behavior does not belong anywhere. I have never experienced the husband, says Jan-Eirik Thorberg, photographed here on a previous occasion. Photo: Øyvind André Brusletten – We had a tremendous advantage. The opponents understood that. Then they started running out of time, bad tackles and so on. Seemed like they were going for penalty kicks. But eventually it became quite intense and many tumults. According to the Hallingdøl manager, the police and people from the Norway Cup quickly arrived to calm the mood during the first half. But when Hallingdal went up 1-0 early in the second half, “it completely took off”. The police confirm that they went onto the field after the match, but that it was for preventive reasons. Here you can read the full response to the police: This is the police’s description of the row – In the match between Hallingdal and Club Seminario, several red cards were handed out. It created commitment and a slightly high temperature in the dynamics between the players on the pitch. The police experienced this as sporting frustration over the referee’s decisions, and have not observed actions that would indicate that the police should intervene during the match. After the match was over, several players retreated towards the referee, and patrols present then went between the referees and the players to prevent any confrontations, says Hanne Finanger, who is section leader of the preventive department in the Oslo police district. – Have you received any reviews? – We have so far not received any reviews on the relationship. – The HFK coach felt that the players and he received death threats. Do you see this as serious? – The police understand that some may have found the situation frightening, but it is not our opinion that kicks, punches or death threats should have been carried out. – What would you have done if this happened somewhere other than on the football field? – From the police’s understanding of the situation, the dissatisfaction expressed during the match was within the referee’s sporting authority to handle, which he did. When the police, after the match had been called off, went out onto the pitch, this was done as a precaution to avert a potential unwanted incident, says Finanger. Red cards and police protection – There was kicking, ball-throwing, punches in the face, pinching – in addition to ugly tackles. Our players are lying down and being stepped on. One gets hit when he runs away… it was chaos. Absolutely crazy. – What about your players? – I think our players were very disciplined. It is difficult for the judge to catch everything, there were many tricks that were invisible to him. It is a complete scandal and does not belong anywhere. But several of the players were scared, and asked to be replaced. In the middle of the second half, the match was stopped for several minutes, and the police had a chat with both teams, says Thorberg – who adds that it didn’t help much. According to the sporting director, around ten police officers were present when the match was called off. The referee had until then handed out a total of four reds to the Uruguayan team. Hallingdalen’s team just before the start of the match. The players are between the ages of 15 and 19. Photo: Gunn Anita Sporan – It was violent stuff. After the match, the Uruguayan players went towards the referees, but the police were able to evacuate them. It was uncomfortable for many of our players. They did not want to play anymore, because they believe the opponents made death threats. It was just a matter of running to the bench and getting police protection. – How were the death threats made? – It happened several times, in English. Both towards our players and the public, actually. They also did the gun sign. They also splashed water on the police, there was zero respect. Very turbulent, says Thorberg. In the heat of the match – What happened was that there was a very high temperature during the match, says Domingo Martinelli, who is in the coaching staff of Club Seminario Domingo Martinell says that it was hot during the match, but no bad blood further. Photo: Domingo Martinelli / Privat – Several cards were handed out, the police calmly came onto the pitch and had a conversation with both teams. The match ended without any further problems, he continues. When asked by news if he understands that the other team felt threatened, Martinelli replies that there may have been feelings expressed in the match, but that there was no bad blood between the teams afterwards. – We had a conversation with someone from the HFK coaching staff after the match, where we agreed that everything was fine, and we wished them the best of luck going forward, says the Uruguayan. The team intends to submit a report on the match, but they do not intend to file a complaint. – We want to clarify that what happened is not good for any team, and to ensure that everyone is on the same wavelength, says Martinelli. He praises the police and Norway Cup for how they acted in the situation. The Hallingdal manager says he doesn’t know what the police got away with, but that it was nice they were there as support after the match. – I see that the team is from a seminary in Uruguay, which has fostered several presidents. But I’m not sure if there will be any presidents from that team there, says Thorberg. – No case has been opened Chairman of the Norway Cup, Øystein Sundelin, tells news that they are satisfied that the police were on the spot quickly during yesterday’s match. – But it was no more serious than two teams boiling over after a match. When news made contact, Norway Cup had not received reports from any of the teams. – After they have arrived, the case goes on to the jury. But as I understand the police, they have not opened a case on this, says Sundelin. Chairman of the Norway Cup, Øystein Sundelin, says it is up to a separate jury to decide whether there will be consequences for any of the teams. For now, the chairman does not know the outcome. Photo: Hallgeri Aunan He emphasizes that close dialogue and cooperation with the police is important to avoid such incidents. – If serious incidents occur outside the track, it is potentially a police case that will be dealt with accordingly, he says. The match ended 1–0 to Hallingdal FK. On Friday afternoon, they met Sandviken, which ended with a 4–3 victory for the Bergen team. Published 02.08.2024, at 16.01 Updated 02.08.2024, at 16.03
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– It was just a matter of running to the bench and getting police protection – news Buskerud – Local news, TV and radio
