Södertälje went towards victory in the meeting with AIK.
Then the match was paused after pyrotechnics were lit in the stands in the final minutes.
– The stands must be emptied and we are waiting for the go-ahead from the security department to start the match, referee Stefan Johansson told TV4.
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AIK looked to be headed for a heavy away loss in the summit meeting with Södertälje SK. Then, with less than five minutes left in the match, boring scenes unfolded inside the Scaniarink.
After pyrotechnic pieces were lit in the away section, smoke spread inside the arena, whereupon the refereeing team decided to call off the match.
After a long wait, an announcement was made stating that the AIK section would be emptied before the match could be resumed.
– It’s getting frustrating here now. I spoke to the Södertälje players who say that it’s just a matter of sending an AIK player, maybe Gynge, someone who goes up and talks about, said TV4 Play expert Fredrik Söderström during the break and continued:
– I can understand that reasoning from that side. The AIK players probably think that that is a different matter than what they actually have to deal with. But the bottom line and the feeling is that the players don’t want this either way, when there’s this kind of delay.
In connection with the interruption, the head referee Stefan Johansson also gave his view on the events and what is required for the match to be resumed.
– It’s really unchanged, right now the ball is in the safety department’s court. The stands will be emptied and we are waiting for the go-ahead from the security department to start the match, Johansson told TV4.
After the announcement went out in the arena, however, there was limited activity in AIK’s grandstand section, which made the interruption longer and longer. But after a lot of back and forth, the match could finally be completed.