A snapped goalpost caused a lengthy delay in Monday night’s A-League game between Central Coast and Perth in Gosford.

The incident occurred in the 10th minute at Gosford’s Central Coast Stadium on Tuesday when Perth centre back Tomislav Mrcela ran into the back of the Mariners net while trying to score, partially bringing down one post.

Officials had to replace the broken goal with a portable one, and did the same with the goal at the other end of the ground to ensure they were identical.

The game was held up for more than half an hour, giving fans on social media plenty of time to express their disbelief at the bizarre events.

Mrcela was unhurt in the incident, but his header that found the net was disallowed for offside. By then Perth were already ahead 1-0 through a third-minute Andy Keogh goal.

They doubled their advantage through Fabio Ferreira shortly after the game restarted, despite claims that the portable goals were encroaching on the field.

Ferreira added a third just before half-time, and Glory eventually ran out 4-1 winners to deepen the Mariners’ misery. Central Coast are bottom of the ladder with just two points from their first 10 games, the worst start to a season in A-League history.

To add to the farcical scenes, the delay caused by the broken goalpost meant the game was still going on when the 9pm New Year’s Eve fireworks were set off in Gosford, giving fans in the stadium an alternative, distracting entertainment option.