First a Jackie Chan kick on the ref, now this!

I received an unofficial report from the AFC Under 19 Australian Camp on the amazing events surrounding the Young Matildas game against DPR Korea

Report begins:

When you've been on a few football tours, you think you've probably seen it all. But on every tour, something from left field, or way out further, crops up to surprise and challenge you.


In the World Cup, we had several, but it was the 11th hour decision by FIFA to delay our game against Canada that was the most public. But that now looks like a pre-school playground spat in comparison to events last night.

Some of you may recall DPRK's astonishing behaviour at last year's Asian Cup in Adelaide, when a player chased down the referee with a high-flying Jackie Chan kick plus bottle throwing at the end of their semi-final match against China. It was the worst behaviour by team members I had witnessed live at a football game.

Until last night. DPRK has gone all out this time to - again - bring the game into disrepute. In the 80th minute, at 1-1, DPRK had a breakaway and when our defender challenged their striker she fell in the box. It was a hard but fair challenge. It was a fast breakaway after we had just had an attempt on goal, so the referee was more than 50m away. Any decision was really up to the assistant who was up with the play, and she did not signal any action.

In unbelievable scenes, the coach and a couple of other team officials ran onto the pitch demanding a penalty. The coach actually ran right up to the referee in a rather threatening manner - in the video you can see that his arm is poised to throw a punch. The match commissioner was in the middle of it and stadium security had to run on to the field to remove the team officials. At this moment, the referee was fully entitled to end the match, as both regulations stipulate and commonsense would suggest, it is totally not allowed for team officials to run onto the pitch and threaten the referee!

So what happens? The referee, in that atmosphere of intimidation, awards a penalty. The DPRK players and officials openly cheer. It's converted. We're all dumbstruck. Our players gallantly continued, and almost scored in the last minutes - due to the fracas, there was around nine minutes time added on. But when the full time whistle blew, our lot collapsed, there were many tears. And the jubilation shown by the DPRK team actually seemed rather distasteful in the circumstances.

It's been a long night. The result of 2-1 stands at the moment. We don't know what will happen next. Watch this space .....