Khoder Yaghi, an Australian referee, was left with a broken jaw after a player attacked him during a First Grade tie football match.
Yaghi was officiating the Friday evening First Grade tie between Padstow Hornets and the Greenacre Eagles at Padstow Park in Sydney, Australia when the incident happened.
At the end of the game, the referee was seen on the floor after a suspended player rushed to the pitch and attacked him.
In the video shared by Futballnews on Twitter, the referee was seen taking punches to the head as the player dragged him on the pitch.
Before on-lookers intervened, Yaghi’s mouth was filled with blood and he is said to have suffered a broken jaw and lost some teeth.
Yaghi can be heard in the video saying “he broke my jaw,” as he staggered to stand up.
The authorities in New South Wales, Australia have confirmed that they have arrested the 25-year-old attacker and taken him into custody.
The player was identified as a member of the Greenacre team and an amateur boxer named Adam Abdullah.
Khoder Yaghi is said to be recovering from the attack at Liverpool Hospital and is said to be warming up for reconstructive jaw surgery on Monday.
Greenacre Eagles confirmed in a statement that they would be withdrawing the team from the rest of the season after the incident.
The statement read: “As a result of the incident that occurred following the conclusion of the match, our club has made the decision to withdraw the team from the competition for the remainder of the 2023 season.”
“This serves as a reminder to all that violence will not be tolerated at our club.”
Authorities in the New South Wales, Australia also said that they are in the know of what transpired and have “zero tolerance for any antisocial behavior from any of its participants at any time.”
Khoder Yaghi in an interview told The Age that; “I asked about a ground official to calm him down, but this guy carried on … and he jumped over the fence and ran straight towards us.”
“[He] was swearing and abusing us badly for no reason. As he’s approaching us, he put his hands up to start [a] fight … I tried to push him away with my [45cm] linesman’s stick.”
“But this guy starts running around and tries to get behind me, as he [knows] he can’t get me face to face.”
“As I was having arguments with another player, this guy came from behind me and attacked me. Straight on my face. With his hands and legs all on my head and face.”
Adam Abdallah Denied Bail After Attack On Khoder Yaghi
Futballnews understands that a magistrate has refused to release Abdallah on bail – while his five months pregnant wife held back tears.
Adam Abdallah, who is 25 years old, was accused of storming the pitch and confronting a referee at the end of a match at Padstow Park.
As Mr. Abdallah appeared in court via videolink, more than a dozen family and friends filled the public gallery of Bankstown Local Court on Monday.
The Police however opposed the bail saying Abdallah would endanger the safety of the victim and community.
The police prosecutor said: “The concern would be if he is willing to show this level of violence over something so minor he would be a constant threat on bail to members of the community.”
The court heard that Khodr Yaghi suffered a fractured jaw, missed four teeth, and is currently undergoing surgery.
The Police prosecutor confirmed that there was ‘little to no provocation’ from the officiating referee who told Mr Abdullah to ‘please move away’ before he allegedly attacked him.
