Union Berlin appeals court ruling over Bochum goalkeeper being hit with a lighter. american football news
Union Berlin appealed against the decision to award the match to Bochum after their keeper was hit with a cigarette lighter in December.
Union Berlin is appealing a decision by the German Football Federation’s sports court to award Bochum a 2-0 win after Bochum’s goalkeeper was hit with a cigarette lighter during a Bundesliga match in December.
“It is bad enough that people repeatedly throw objects on stages, in indoor areas or on the pitch at concerts or sporting events. Unfortunately, there is nothing any event organizer can do to stop this,” union President Dirk Zingler said late Thursday.
Earlier, the sports court had awarded Bochum a win over Union instead of the 1–1 draw played by the teams on 14 December.
The game was almost over when during extra time Bochum goalkeeper Patrick Drews was hit by an object thrown from the crowd. Referee Martin Peterson suspended the game and escorted both teams off the field after Drews sat down and received medical treatment.
Bochum did not want to restart the game, but it restarted about half an hour later, with striker Philipp Hoffmann replacing Drews for the remaining three minutes. Both teams agreed not to try to score goals – which was also an issue for the court.
“Such agreements are contrary to the basic principles of sports competition,” said Court President Stefan Oberholz. Oberholz said that the union was responsible for “undermining the Bochum team” because the object was thrown by a union supporter.
Zingler thinks otherwise. “A true anti-sports scandal occurred today on the field and in the court,” Zingler said, suggesting that Bochum had blown the incident out of proportion.
Zingler said, “Whether one side has a disadvantage or weakness, whether the game is abandoned or continued should always be the sole decision of the referee.”
“If the beneficiary party can declare itself weak, then we no longer need impartial referees and the door is also open for fraud or dirty tricks. The disadvantaged parties will never be able to prove the contrary.”
