Source: Daily_Mail
FA probe Birmingham v Aston Villa violence
The FA and police are investigating the violence that overshadowed Birmingham's 2-1 victory over arch rivals Aston Villa on Wednesday night.[LNB] The city of Birmingham was dragged through the mud as Villa and Birmingham fans threw flares at each other and Villa supporters ripped up seats in the Carling Cup tie.[LNB] An FA statement read: 'We wholly condemn the actions of any individuals involved in the scenes of disorder.'[LNB] Flame thrower: a flare is hurled as last night's derby is marred by disturbancesafter the final whistle[LNB]City boss Alex McLeish was quick to condemn the actions of hundreds of home supporters, who invaded the pitch at the end of their quarter-final win. [LNB]On the eve of the 2018 World Cup announcement, McLeish admitted: 'This takes us back to the dark ages. It does not look good when fans run on to the pitch like that and carry on like that. It was horrible. [LNB]'I don't think it will affect the World Cup bid; that's been decided. But I'm disappointed the fans came on. They shouldn't come on at any time and that's the one disappointing aspect of tonight. We don't want to be associated with things like flares being thrown.'[LNB] Both clubs could find themselves inthe dock after the crowd trouble. Around 500 policemen were on duty tostop the supporters clashing in the first night match between the sidesfor eight years. [LNB] On the pitch: hundreds of City fans ran on to the turf at the final whistle to taunt the away supporters [LNB]Theyformed a thin blue line between the two sets of fans, who lit flares.Dozens of seats were ripped up at the visiting end too after NicolaZigic's 84th minute winner. [LNB]Birmingham's acting chairman PeterPannu said: 'We are extremely disappointed with the events that tookplace after the game. I promise there will be an impartialinvestigation by the club as we do not condone the embarrassing actionsof certain individuals.'[LNB]The last time Birmingham City and Aston Villa were allowed to play each other under floodlights was seven years ago.[LNB]Following clashes between supportersduring the 2002-03 season, West Midlands police insisted all futurederbies be played on a Sunday lunchtime. The Carling Cup draw led to that rule being waived for this game.[LNB] Flame thrower: A fan hurls a flare onto the pitch[LNB]West Midlands police have vowed to identify and take action against fans who caused the violent scenes.[LNB]Nearly 500 police were on duty in and around St. Andrew's and so far they have arrested seven supporters. But now they are concentrating on rooting out the troublemakers behind the ugly scenes inside the stadium.[LNB]More than a thousand Blues supporters invaded the pitch after their side's 2-1 win. They confronted the 3,800 Villa fans situated in the Gil Merrick Stand at the other end of the stadium.[LNB]A flare appeared to be thrown into the section housing the Villa supporters although it was then tossed backwards and forwards between the rival factions. Seats were also ripped out and used as missiles along with other objects.[LNB]A Birmingham statement read: 'Birmingham City Football Club is disappointed with scenes at St Andrew's following the Carling Cup tie against Aston Villa. The club does not tolerate the breaking of any stadium rules and will conduct a full investigation in conjunction with the FA and police and take appropriate action. A meeting will be held at St Andrew's on Thursday to investigate the matter further.'[LNB]Villa also pledged full co-operation with the FA and relevant authorities, saying: 'Following the scenes in the aftermath of the Carling Cup quarter-final at St Andrew's, the club will co-operate fully with the FA in its investigation in conjunction with the appropriate authorities.'[LNB][LNB] Police line: Villa supporters tore up seats and hurled them at the home fans [LNB] Supt. Steve Graham told Sky Sports: 'The passion we saw 80-85 minutes was exactly what we are proud of within the English game. It is just a shame it spilled over into the criminal behaviour we saw on the pitch at the end.[LNB]'There have been seven arrests but that was over the course of the whole operation. When the pitch invasion occurred, we were more concerned about asserting some control within thestadium and making sure the crowd dispersed safely and securely.[LNB]'We've started a post match inquiry whereby we will seek to identify people who committed criminal offences.Sadly we've had some experience of this in the past although it is still an unusual event.[LNB]'But we will put steps in place now to identify those offenders, prosecute them and, if they are convicted, they will be banned for along time.[LNB]'I wouldn't say we were expecting trouble but we knew it was a strong possibility. It has happened in the past, we have got intelligence, and that's why we had the level of officers on duty that we did have.'[LNB]One Aston Villa fan told Radio 5Live the pitch invaders had made it most of the way up the ground towhere visiting supporters were sitting before they were turned away bystewards.[LNB] Face off: Birmingham fans confront police on the pitch [LNB]When asked about reports that Aston Villa fans had thrown flares, she said: 'It's just retaliation. If the Blues are going to do it, Aston Villa are going to retaliate. They were disgusting for going on the pitch in the first place.'[LNB]Another Aston Villa fan said holding the match in the evening was 'a recipe for disaster'.[LNB]Theman, who attended the game with his two sons, said: 'There was a lot oftrouble before the game. The problem is everyone gets into the pubs atlunchtime hours before kick-off.'[LNB]He criticised the stewarding during the game, saying: 'Sitting above the Villa fans were Birmingham fans. My11-year-old-son was spat on repeatedly and no action was taken.'[LNB]Adrian Goldberg, presenter of 5 Live Investigates, was at the game. He said there were clashes between fans before kick off.[LNB]'I think there was more significant trouble on the outside of the game. It was worse than anything that happened in the stadium.'[LNB]MrGoldberg said he saw large groups of rival fans being kept separate by lines of police as they walked into St Andrews.[LNB]He said: 'There were probably more riot vans than I have ever seen in my life.'[LNB] Net pains: Broken seats litter the goalmouth after the match at St. Andrew's[LNB] Birmingham derby marred by violence as Blues dump rivals Villa out of Carling Cup Birmingham 2 Villa 1: Towering Zigic is up for the cup, firing hosts into last fourArsenal face Ipswich as West Ham take on Birmingham in Carling Cup semis[LNB] [LNB] Explore more:People: Alex McLeish Places: Birmingham Organisations: Birmingham City Football Club
