Soccer

Derry City accepts disciplinary ruling over Brandywell trouble

Trouble marred clash with Shamrock Rovers and saw police called to stadium

NO-BY-LINE / NO-BY-LINE / Scene on the road outside the Brandywell late on Friday night after trouble started inside the venue when a lit flare and other items were thrown at Shamrock Rovers supporters. Derry City played Shamrock Rovers in the League of Ireland clash with the match shown live on RTE. It was stopped for a time due to trouble where missiles were thrown over the wall of the Brandywell from the road outside, into a section where Shamrock Rovers were watching the match. A section of the pitch was also damaged by a flare. Hundreds of youths and small children then gathered outside the grounds where the PSNI vehicles were attacked as stewards inside the Brandywell complex attempted to get Shamrock Rovers players and supporters safely out the the venue. The PSNI do not go inside the ground during Derry City match days. NO BYLINE / NO BY-LINE 19-4-2024
A young child runs past Derry City manager Ruaidhri Higgins (centre) with a flare that had been thrown on the pitch during the match against Shamrock Rovers at the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium

Derry City have accepted the ruling of the Independent Disciplinary Committee in relation to scenes which marred their recent game against Shamrock Rovers at the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium.

The League of Ireland’s committee has suspended a partial stadium closure and the Candy Stripes have again been fined for the disturbances.

During the Foylesiders’ recent 3-1 loss to the champions, a flare and other missiles were thrown over the wall from Lone Moor Road into the area of the ground holding the visiting fans.

After the game, and to ensure the safety of the Tallaght men’s fans, City stewards had to take the unusual step of moving supporters onto the centre circle of the pitch. As well as the threatened ban, the club have also been hit with yet another fine relating to the use of a pyrotechnic on the field of play.

The flare, which was originally thrown into the section Rovers fans were standing, ended up on the pitch, where an unsupervised child picked it up and ran unchallenged before discarding it on the playing surface, where it caused a small fire.

Following the game the disturbances continued and the PSNI had to attend to diffuse the trouble.

A Derry City spokesperson said in a statement that the club “accepts the ruling of the Independent Disciplinary Committee in relation to the events during and after the Shamrock Rovers game on 19th April 2024″.

“The club condemns the scenes in and around the ground on Friday night and has cooperated fully with the Independent Committee,” the statement continued.

“Since the events of last Friday, representatives of the club have met with several statutory agencies to discuss enhanced crowd control measures.

“In addition to the partial suspended stadium ban, the club has also been fined for the use of pyrotechnics in the ground. The club has made repeated requests in the past for supporters to cease the use of pyrotechnics. This behaviour continues to have a direct financial impact to the club as well as possibly a major health and safety risk to all spectators.

“Additional controls were in place for the game against St Pats and further measures are to be introduced prior to the next home game.

“As a result of continued anti-social behaviour, the club need to take additional measures to ensure that all supporters attending games in the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium can enjoy a safe and enjoyable match night experience.

“This is highly unfortunate and not a move the club takes lightly. The club is reviewing photographic and video evidence to seek to identify any supporters involved in this behaviour.

“The club is exploring all alternatives, but it is likely that a number of season ticket holders in Block K and L will need to be relocated to alternative locations to facilitate this.

“It has however been forced on the club due to those recent events. When final decisions have been made, the club will be in contact with impacted season ticket holders.”

The League of Ireland’s statement said it has “imposed a suspended partial stadium closure” at the Brandywell.

“The Independent Disciplinary Committee determined that if the same or similar offence occurs at the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium in the course of the next home SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division fixture, the sanction will become effective,” a spokesperson said.

“The Independent Disciplinary Committee has also issued two fines relating to the above-mentioned incident and the incident involving a pyrotechnic on the field of play. The League of Ireland and FAI are committed to providing a safe environment for players, officials, staff and spectators at all our fixtures.”