THE SQUIZ
After weeks of enthusiasm for Aussie soccer, Saturday night’s pitch invasion at the Melbourne Derby of the A-League Men’s tournament has left the sport in tatters. Football Australia CEO James Johnson yesterday condemned the actions of those involved at the Melbourne Victory v Melbourne City game and outlined 3 investigations in response. Victory will be issued a “show cause” letter asking the club about its role in what went down. Another probe will endeavour to identify the individuals involved, and the 3rd will consider the result of the match itself after play was abandoned. Victoria Police are also investigating and have released photos of those involved but are yet to make any arrests.

WHAT’S THAT ALL ABOUT?
The thing to know is that last week, officials made a decision to hold A-League grand finals in Sydney for the next 3 years under a $12 million deal with the NSW Government. It breaks the tradition of the highest-ranked team hosting the event, wherever they are in Australia. A fan walkout was expected during Saturday night’s game to show their displeasure with the decision, but violence erupted when spectators from the Victory end of the stadium stormed the pitch. City goalkeeper Tom Glover and referee Alex King were injured in the scary scenes that unfolded. Melbourne Victory boss Caroline Carnegie says she’s “disgraced and appalled”, and Football Australia insists “strong sanctions” will be handed down. But commentators and former top players say it’s ruined the positive momentum from the Socceroos’ terrific performance in Qatar.

SPEAKING OF THE WORLD CUP – WHO WON?
Those willing to brave a very early alarm this morning – or stayed up all night – have been rewarded with a thrilling final between France and Argentina that saw their stars shine. At stake: Argentina was chasing their first title since 1986, and France was hoping to become the 3rd side in World Cup history to win back-to-back World Cups. Argentina was in control of the match until France staged a massive comeback, with Kylian Mbappé scoring twice in the final minutes of regular time to level the score 2-2. Argentina went ahead in extra time thanks to Lionel Messi, and then Mbappé scored again for France taking the match to a penalty shootout. And from there, Argentina was able to take it out. Coming in 3rd place was Croatia, who defeated Morocco 2-1 yesterday morning – their coach Zlatko Dalic called it “bronze with a golden glow”. So that’s that for another 4 years – bring on the Women’s World Cup being staged here and in Kiwiland in mid-2023…