https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfzFWYRmv00
Greek fans are well known for putting on amazing displays at games, and PAOK Salonika are right up there with the best of them. Before the second leg of their Greek Cup semifinal with Olympiacos, the black and whites really turned on the pageantry.
It wasn't all innocent, spectacular fun, though. Some of the flares were thrown into the Olympiacos bench, causing predictable, fire-related bother. They also covered the same target with fish - yes, fish. The referee ordered the players off the field until the safety of all participants could be agreed. Greek football is no stranger to hooliganism and pyro, but the fish-throwing seems to be new development. A possible explanation is Olympiacos' 'anchovies' nickname - they're sometimes known as "Gavros".
PAOK fans covered the Olympiakos bench in dead fish today. The match was delayed for 75 minutes pic.twitter.com/rKM4CG0eFy
— Football Tips (@footballtips) April 16, 2014
Numerous fights broke out between the players during the second half and the referee allowed fifteen minutes of injury time. PAOK won 1-0 on the night and will face Panathinaikos in the final.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3G11obi0qM
I've personally seen a couple of hundred of these guys do their stuff during the Europa League match against Shamrock Rovers in 2011, and for such a relatively small, flare-free group they remain one of the most impressive, incessantly noisy and organised away fans I've witnessed in Dublin.
Earlier this week we took a look at the fanatical nature of Greek sports fans - not just at the football, but they can pull off serious displays at big basketball games, too.
[sportsgrid]
