Alajuela Down 3-0 Against Municipal
by Rod Hughes
ALAJUELA—This is obviously NOT Alajuela’s year to shine, although usually their fans are better behaved. But this week, the winningest soccer side in the country (historically) found itself down 3-0 in the battle for third place in the UNCAF regional tournament.
So disgusted were a few Alajuela fans when the Municipal of Guatemala side went ahead late in the match, 2-1, that they invaded the field and confronted police. In the ensuing mele, 17 policemen and 15 fans were injured. The local press reacted with horror at the blow to the national image—the largest newspaper, La Nación, carried a headline that read: ¡Que Verguenza! (For Shame!)
The soccer commissioner Bertie Chimilio from Belice, penalized Alajuela’s minority of riotous fans, who insulted Alajuela players, the front office and the coaches as well as causing damage in the stadium. He took Alajuela’s goal, adding it to the Guatemalans’ score. FIFA, the world soccer federation, holds the home team strictly responsible for maintaining order in its home stadium. And this will not be the end of matters. Swift FIFA justice has levied a $10,000 fine and banned international games from Alejandro Morena Soto Stadium for six months.
The match itself was nearly ignored in the aftermath, a pity because Municipal played well and the game was filled with surprises, especially in the first minute of play when Alajuela’s Roy Myrie netted a left-foot goal after barely a minute of play! It was not for another 35 minutes that Municipal’s Mario Acevedo fooled Alajuela’s goalie Wardy Alfaro to even things up. Then at minute 80, Freddy Garcia took a pass from Acevedo and won it for the Guatemalans.
At minute 81 a small group of fans called El Doce (the Twelve) arose as one and caused hell to break lose, suspending the match and all but knocking Alajuela out of the tourney. Police moved to block them, but they dispersed and entered at different points of the pitch perimeter. We hope they are proud of themselves because no one else is.
Update: Police are convinced that the invasion of the pitch was premeditated. A leader of the rowdies was caught trying to sell an ID card of a partner in the soccer club before the game and was taken to the front office to be confronted by an angry club management, police told the newspaper La Nacion.
The fan, identified by the initial “R”, was berated by club officials for trying to sell an ID card of another person (illegal) and the card confiscated. “R” angrily responded that the deal was simply to raise enough money for fans to travel to away matches. He was released.
But, police say, a fan heard “R” and his cronies planning to invade the pitch in the second half and, five minutes before the disruption was to occur, a fan told a stadium guard who alerted police. By then, “El Doce” had taken in their Alajuela banners in preparation. Police say they formed a force in front of where the group had been, but the gang had dispersed and jumped the barriers to converge on the pitch.
This is unlikely to impress FIFA, still stinging from the bad publicity generated by riots sparked by the “Hooligans,” a wild group of English fans, decades ago. Alajuela’s management is taking the situation seriously, appointing a committee to probe into stadium security, including a member of a private security company not involved with the club. With fans like these, who needs enemies?