Footage has emerged of an extraordinary mass brawl just seconds into the first league match two French clubs had played in 10 months.
It happened during last week’s Fédérale 3 fixture between Gan Olympique and Avenir Bizanos.
That's a derby match, with both clubs hailing from the Bearn province in the Pyrenees, and it didn't take long for local rivalries to spill over as the two teams returned to competitive action.
The incident stemmed from a reckless tackle by one of the Bizanos players straight from the kick-off, as he took out a Gan player off the ball.
After that, violence erupted amid scenes of mayhem, with fists flying as three separate fights broke out and players spilled over the touchline.
Each side had a player sent off as a result of the shocking flare-up - Bizanos prop Salim Barrara and Gan’s Bernard Sedze.
As for how the game finished, well Gan came out on top, winning 13-10 in a surprise result, with favourites Bizanos conceding more than 20 penalties.
It was some start to the season after 10 months without playing!
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