The beautiful game turned decidedly ugly in a match which will be remembered as the Battle of Bramall Lane.

Three players were sent off and South Yorkshire Police had their work cut out dealing with crowd disturbances, a massed brawl on the field, aggravation in the dug-out and an incident in the tunnel.

The Football League will meet on Thursday to decide whether West Brom, far and away the victors in football terms, should be awarded the points and the healthy boost to their goals total.

Albion boss Gary Megson insists his side will not take part in any replay and his United counterpart Neil Warnock has admitted the points should go to the Midlands side.

The Football Association must mete out whatever punishment it sees fit on those who referee Eddie Wolstenholme caught stepping out of line, and the video panel will surely be brought together to identify other trouble-makers he may have missed.

Wolstenholme had to apply the letter of the law in sending off United goalkeeper Simon Tracey in the seventh minute as he handled the ball outside his area to prevent Scott Dobie from scoring.

The finest moment of the match came in the 62nd minute, Derek McInnes receiving a short corner from Igor Balis before unleashing a wonderful right-foot shot to make it 2-0.

Three minutes later, however, came the main talking point and a skirmish which left McInnes requiring stitches in a head wound.

Georges Santos and Patrick Suffo came on following that goal, and there can surely never have been a more brief or destructive appearance by two substitutes in the game's history.

Santos lunged in two-footed on Andy Johnson, taking the chance of retribution on the man who had done lasting damage to his face by swinging an elbow while playing for Nottingham Forest last season.

Santos was sent off, and Johnson, keen to retaliate before the Frenchman was escorted from the field, had to be restrained by his own physio.

At this point Suffo waded in, appearing to butt McInnes, and the Cameroon international was sent packing.

The match degenerated into a dangerous farce as United seemed to follow the shameful example of their captain Keith Curle in adopting rough-house tactics.

On any normal day Curle would have been dismissed for raining a series of punches and kicks upon McInnes, already replete with bloodied head bandages, as the pair challenged for the ball.

Mr Wolstenholme gave him a yellow card instead, all he could do to prevent the game being abandoned.

Michael Brown was also booked, and the bad blood spilled over to the bench, with the overworked Wolstenholme intervening to prevent substitutes and coaching staff on both sides from re-enacting the earlier mayhem.

A third goal was scored in the 77th minute as Dobie tapped in and two minutes later Brown, suffering with a groin injury, walked off the pitch.

When Rob Ullathorne pulled up with a muscle spasm in the 82nd minute, the game had to be abandoned.

The police intervened in a tunnel bust-up at the end.