The crowd disturbances that have so often marred the superclásico encounters between Argentinian heavyweights River Plate and Boca Juniors came to the fore again on Sunday as the derby between the Buenos Aires rivals had to be halted in the second half while riot police intervened to stop violence in the stands at Boca's La Bombonera stadium.
The game, which ended 1-1, was stopped for 15 minutes in the second half when fans set off fireworks, tossed flares at players on the field, and climbed a steel fence separating the stands from the pitch.
Security forces responded, pounding fans with water cannons in another example of the relentless violence that threatens so many matches in Argentina. No injuries were immediately reported.
The result ultimately helped neither club and extended Boca's record winless run to 11 league matches.
River Plate's Manuel Lanzini scored with a header after only 45 seconds and Santiago Silva equalised in the 39th minute before a sellout crowd at La Bombonera.
The point saw River Plate move to within four points of early-season leaders Lanus, but Boca have only 10 points, leaving them near the bottom of the table and increasing the pressure on their coach, Carlos Bianchi.
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