Greek police arrest PAOK fan for anchovy stunt

Police in Thessaloniki have arrested a PAOK fan accused of dumping a crate of fish on the visiting Olympiakos bench, in a stunt that delayed a tense Greek Cup semifinal for more than an hour. (InTime Sports, Yorgos Matthaios/AP)

THESSALONIKI, Greece — Police in Thessaloniki have arrested a PAOK fan accused of dumping a crate of fish on the visiting Olympiakos bench, in a stunt that delayed a tense Greek Cup semifinal for more than an hour.

Another six PAOK supporters were arrested during clashes with police before and after Wednesday’s match, which PAOK won 1-0 to advance.

The game was repeatedly halted by brawls on the pitch, with three players sent off, while PAOK fans in the stands lit thousands of flares, and several were thrown on the pitch.

Police said Thursday a 34-year-old man covered the Olympiakos bench in several kilograms of anchovies just before the game. Olympiakos’ home ground is in Athens’ port of Piraeus, and its supporters are nicknamed "anchovies."

PAOK plays Panathinaikos in the April 26 final.

When submitting content, please abide by our submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.