A father fears his 11-year-old son's passion for football has been tarnished after he was struck in the head with a golf ball and other fans were sprayed with beer and hit with cans and bottles during the Newcastle Jets' heartbreaking loss to Sydney FC in the A-League Men's semi-final on Saturday.
Kurri Kurri man Andrew McHenry and his son Bentley and other family members were sitting in Bay 9 of McDonald Jones Stadium, situated next to the Bay 10 away section for Sydney FC.
Following Eli Adams' wonder strike to level the scores at 1-1, Mr McHenry said Bentley was struck near his ear by a golf ball thrown from the bay of Sydney FC supporters. Other witnesses in Bay 9 reported seeing golf balls thrown and being sprayed with cups of beer.
Bentley was treated by medical staff at the stadium with an ice pack, and Mr McHenry spoke to police. He has also since sent emails to the Jets and Sydney FC about the incident.
"The golf ball at the game that hit my son in the ear on the side of the head - if that was inches either way, that's his temple," Mr McHenry said.
Bentley plays under-12s for the Kurri Kurri Roosters and is a keen Jets fan and describes departing striker Lachlan Rose as his favourite player.
Mr McHenry said he and his son attended most home games this season, plus away matches in Sydney, Gosford and Melbourne.
However, he is concerned the traumatic experience has destroyed his son's enjoyment of the game.
"There are other kids there that are getting discouraged away from the game," he said.
"They got turned away from the game that night because of how violent and how shitty the behaviour was from the fans.
"And at no stage am I protecting Jets fans. If they acted the same, I would want them gone too, but the fact is that my son was turned away from the game, from that night, that one game."
Police confirmed they received a report that a child was hit in the head with a golf ball or another object and he was treated for a minor injury but left with his parents.
A few people were removed from the stadium by security and police. Police said, overall, there were no major problems for a crowd of 25,082.
Jets supporter, Neal Connolly, was sitting in Bay 9 with his daughter, who is five months pregnant. His daughter was struck in the head by a half-full drink bottle following Newcastle's goal.
Mr Connolly said the Sydney supporters created an aggressive atmosphere and security was lacking given the size of the crowd.
"I thought there might have been a bit more of an aggressive presence in place to control them," Mr Connolly said.
"It's just a little bit disappointing. I saw a couple of kids crying. They were intimidated about what was happening. People were ducking in their chairs all the time because of these bloody bottles."
Even fans in the corporate box were not immune. Charlestown mother Ellen Madden was hit in the mouth by a full beer can that was launched into an open-air box above Bay 9 following Adams' goal.
She was left with a split lip in front of her son and a bunch of his friends and their families.
"I just obviously turned to celebrate with my son and then just copped a can to the face," Ms Madden said.
"It's just kind of flown straight past and just hit me in the lip."
Ms Madden said she could see "mayhem" unfold from the box earlier in the second half when Sydney scored.
"There were kids that got hit in the head with water bottles and you could see the parents pulling them out and walking them up the concourse to kind of take them out."
Newcastle woman Vanessa Swilks was sitting in Bay 9 and was sprayed with beer during the match.
"Families were leaving with their kids because the kids were crying," Ms Swilks said. "It was completely traumatising."
The Newcastle Herald contacted the Jets and A-League for comment.
Venues NSW, which manages McDonald Jones Stadium, it was were investigating the incidents.
"Venues NSW has a zero-tolerance approach to anti-social behaviour and we have in place strong processes to identify, respond to and resolve incidents," the spokesperson said.
"Venue management is closely reviewing CCTV footage from Saturday's semi-final and is working with NSW Police to identify those responsible for unacceptable behaviour in the venue.
"Any offenders identified will be banned from the venue for up to 24 months and may face fines and further action as part of the police process."
