Three fan arrests take the gloss off giant-killing act
Three fans were arrested following the pitch invasion that marred Millwall’s shock victory over Leicester City in the FA Cup fifth round, police have said.
Shaun Cummings’s late winner for the League One side prompted hundreds of fans to stream on to the pitch in celebration at the final whistle before a group of home supporters made their way towards the Leicester fans in the away end of the Den.
That forced rows of police, some on horseback, to form a barricade between the two sets of spectators, although their presence did not stop objects being thrown. A Scotland Yard spokesman told
that three men remained in custody yesterday afternoon after being arrested on suspicion of affray.
After the game, Millwall manager Neil Harris said he had not seen the worst of the pitch invasion, adding: “My fans were excellent today. The noise level was outrageous. It typified what the FA Cup was all about.
“We could have sold the stadium out twice and the fans enjoyed the occasion. It’s a big moment for us to beat the Premier League champions so I would expect to see fans on the pitch.
“I was not out there at the time, I’d gone in [to the dressing room] so on anything else I can’t comment.”
The Leicester manager, Claudio Ranieri, said: “I don’t like it when these things happen. Sport is sport.”
Millwall’s win was their third over Premier League opposition in this season’s FA Cup, after victories over Watford and Bournemouth, and it came despite Harris’s side playing most of the second half with 10 men after the dismissal of defender Jake Cooper.
Then Cummings raced on to Lee Gregory’s pass before cutting inside the box and tucking the ball past Leicester goalkeeper Ron-Robert Zieler in the game’s final minute.