Shame on Prek Pra

The outnumbered military police try in vain to control the situation in the grandstand

Prek Pra are well known for their vocal supporters and their large numbers of Muslim followers who come and watch all of their matches at the Olympic Stadium but what we witnessed at the end of yesterday's game has no place in football. Displeased with some of the match officials' decisions, a handful of Prek Pra followers decided to express their anger by throwing water bottles from the grandstand as the match ended and the players and officials were about to leave the pitch area. Players took cover as a barrage of water bottles rained down, injuring one of the ball-boys on the leg. As half a dozen military police moved in to stop the disturbance, it escalated and the police were surrounded, outnumbered and were forced to withdraw. The vociferous Prek Pra fans continued to voice their outrage which had now turned its wrath onto the police before the team's manager calmed the situation down and the fans dispersed. From my viewpoint, the fury displayed by a couple of females in the crowd egged on the others and the police then exposed themselves with their ineffectual handling of the situation. There were not enough police officers to handle the size of the crowd and their 'bull in a china shop' attempt to diffuse the angry fans only inflamed them. The whole episode brought considerable shame on the Prek Pra supporters and may necessitate segregating their fans at future matches. Football has appeared to act as a catalyst for the Muslim community in Prek Pra to openly display their support for the football team but yesterday exposed how easily that can be used as a vehicle for public disturbance, which is a road Cambodian football does not want to go down.

The Prek Pra manager El Fatel (in light shirt) confronts the Prek Pra followers

The Prek Pra crowd surge forward to confront the police with some of the agitators in shot

Confrontation in the main body of the grandstand as the police beat a hasty withdrawal

The helmeted military police move into the crowd to dispel the initial disturbance