An assistant referee was today struck by a firework thrown during a Premier League football match.

David Bryan, who was running the line in front of Tottenham Hotspur fans at Aston Villa, was hit by a flare or smoke bomb thrown after Andros Townsend opened the scoring for Spurs in the first half.

Hundreds of thousands of TV viewers watched on Sky Sports 1 as the blue firework was launched from a section of Spurs fans in the Doug Ellis Stand during the game at Villa Park in Birmingham.

The restart after the 31st-minute goal was delayed after the incident this afternoon but Mr Bryan, who appeared to have been hit on the back of the neck, was fit to continue.

The Football Association and the Premier League, who have issued warnings about flares this season, are likely to investigate. A fan was led out of the stadium by police and stewards soon after.

A West Midlands Police spokesman said on Twitter tonight: ‘Police have arrested two men after a lit flare was thrown on the pitch during the Villa v Spurs game – the flare hit a linesman.

‘The two men aged 25 and 47 were arrested following the incident at Villa Park. Fortunately the linesman wasn’t injured.’ Spurs won the game 2-0, with Roberto Soldado scoring the second goal.
Removed: A steward keeps the smoke bomb off the pitch at Villa Park after the incident during the match

TalkSport presenter Ian Abrahams said on Twitter: ‘Smoke bombs and flares may be banned but idiots are still getting them into grounds, so stewards are not doing their job.’

Policing Minister Damian Green warned football fans in August that those who were smuggling flares into matches were putting other supporters’ lives at risk.

In May, a 15-year-old boy suffered lung damage from a smoke bomb thrown during Villa’s 2-2 draw at Wigan Athletic, while two women aged 22 and 24 also required medical attention.

Three months earlier a 14-year-old boy was killed by a flare thrown by fans during a South American Libertadores Cup match between San Jose and Corinthians in Orouro, Bolivia.

Read more: Daily Mail