“Football is the most inclusive sport. It is for families and for law-abiding citizens who want to passionately support their team.

“The events that unfolded at the Melbourne Derby last night, demonstrated that a small minority of people with criminal intent hide within our game. 

“They neither understand nor love our game.  What they do understand is how to use our game as a platform for their anti-social and illegal objectives. 

“This is a watershed moment for our game that demands a zero tolerance for the incidents that we witnessed last night and the kind of people that perpetrated them.

“Our Clubs will work deliberately and exhaustively, hand-in hand with law enforcement agencies, and with Football Australia – as the game’s regulator – to ensure that our game can never again be used as camouflage for criminals.”