BUENOS AIRES, May 1 (Reuters) - Boca Juniors have called on their supporters to help find the spectator who threw a lump of ice which struck a linesman during a Libertadores Cup game with Cruzeiro, ending the match a minute early.
Club president Pedro Pompilio said he was stunned that the
ice cube, which left the linesman with a cut on his forehead,
had been hurled from the most expensive seating in their stadium
in Wednesday's game.
Titleholders Boca were leading the Brazilian side 2-1 when
the incident happened in the second minute of injury-time in
front of the VIP boxes.
Referee Jorge Larrionda, who had signalled three minutes of
injury-time, immediately blew the final whistle.
'It was a huge disgrace. From the part of the stadium you
would expect to set an example comes a person who has put the
club at risk, with unpredictable consequences,' Pompilio told
Radio La Plata.
'This person has morally damaged the club and its members
and he hasn't respected the 45,000 people who were in the
stadium.
'We were stunned that this happened in the private boxes and
we are hoping that some member can rise to the occasion and help
us find the culprit and expel him.'
Pompilio added: 'The closed circuit cameras do not film this
part of the stadium because it's not considered an area of
conflict.
'We know it came from this area because you don't find ice
cubes of that size in other parts of the stadium.'
Standard practice in South America is for the result to
stand in such circumstances, although Boca could face a home ban
in the future.
Three years ago, Boca's match at home to Guadalajara in the
same competition was called off in the second half because of a
crowd riot. The club escaped with a three-match home ban.
Argentine soccer suffers from chronic violence, largely
blamed on organised supporters clubs known as barras bravas.
