- Old Camberwell lost their under-19 grand final in chaotic fashion
- The team celebrated the victory prematurely and was sanctioned.
A major local final ended in chaos with fans flooding the pitch in a costly move for their team.
Players and spectators associated with Old Camberwell began celebrating after the final siren sounded during the VAFA Under 19 Division Two Grand Final against University Blues, believing they had won the flag by five points.
However, the referee had awarded a free-kick to the Blues moments before the siren sounded, and the penalty had been taken more than 60 metres from goal.
That gap would have been too great for the Blues to successfully overturn the five-point deficit given the torrid conditions at the Oval.
But the premature celebrations by fans and players proved incredibly costly.
At least four players were seen entering the pitch while a handful of others, not wearing club clothing, also entered the pitch.
The referee punished Camberwell for entering the field of play before the end of the match with a 50-metre penalty to the Blues, a crucial intervention that gave the Blues a real chance of winning.
Old Camberwell lost their grand final after celebrating victory too early
As a result, the referees gave the University Blues a 50-metre penalty and they went on to win the final.
This meant that the final shot of the match was within scoring distance.
Angus Watson was tasked with kicking towards goal from around 15 metres out directly in front of the posts and kept his cool to secure the title for his side.
After the ball went through the goalposts, the Blues fans stormed the pitch to celebrate and jeer Camberwell in the ultimate capitulation rarely seen before in football.
