Fries, beer and a lighter. The projectiles fall towards Stéphane Panont, propped up along the sideline, his flag in hand. We play the 37th minute in Bastia, where the Corsicans welcome Lorient, Saturday November 23, in Ligue 2. Behind the assistant referee, Sporting supporters, upset by the red card inflicted on one of their players, go wild. Consequence: the central referee, Willy Delajod, says stop. The match is stopped for 35 minutes, before resuming and coming to an end.
“They were courageous,” judges the spokesperson for the Union of Elite Football Referees (Safe), Olivier Lamarre, who spoke on Sunday morning with the officials concerned and even mentioned the explosion of an agricultural bomb near the lawn. Until the end, they allowed the match to take place in accordance with the rules and in complete fairness. The public authorities insisted that this meeting resume, for fear of even greater security concerns. They heard this request after having had assurances of their safety. But even after that, we cannot say that people were very calm in the forum concerned…”