Pitch invaders confront Burnley players after bitter derby boils over
Sean Dyche admitted he feared for his Burnley players’ safety here last night when two Blackburn supporters confronted them as they celebrated the opening goal of their Carabao Cup tie.
The visiting manager was about to run onto the field himself to offer protection after stewards failed to stop the pair during this clash of two of the game’s most bitter rivals.
One supporter pushed Burnley captain James Tarkowski in the chest and then appeared to grab Ashley Westwood by the throat before the melee broke up and both fans attempted to leave the field.
“There used to be a time, when I was playing, that if people got onto a football pitch, it was a bit of a joke, a little bit silly,” said Dyche. “But there are now different things going on in the world, when people get onto a football pitch they need to be stopped.
“The challenge is for the stewards – who do a terrific job all over the country – to deal with it quickly. It got to the point where we were going to go onto the pitch – not to do anything ridiculous but to say, we can’t have that.
“When someone saunters on that slowly, it has to be dealt with because you just never know. The safety of players is paramount because times have changed. Everyone’s lives are changing and there seems to be more anger, more animosity about these games and it has to be controlled.”
As the two supporters tried to leave the field, they were finally apprehended by stewards – and later arrested – and the FA will study referee Simon Hooper’s report today before deciding whether to take action against the League One club.
East Lancashire neighbours Burnley may also feature in that report, with supporters letting off flares in their end of the ground. One fan, who was among five arrests, struck a nine-year-old Burnley fan with a flare, causing “minor burns”, according to Lancashire Police.
As well as the two pitch invaders, a third Blackburn fan was arrested for throwing a shoe onto the field, and a Burnley follower for possessing a flare.
Tony Mowbray, the Blackburn manager, claimed not to have seen the incident involving his club’s supporters. “You’re asking the wrong person,” he said. “Go and ask the security people at the club. I manage the team on the grass.
“They had just scored and he [Dyche] was probably still stood their rubbing his hands and celebrating and saw it all happen. I had turned around and gone to sit on the bench. I didn’t even know it happened.
“I didn’t see a fan running on the pitch. I didn’t know what he did. That’s not an ‘Arsene Wenger’ comment. I just didn’t see it. Of course it’s wrong. I’m sure the authorities will deal with them as severely as they need to.”
The second goal that prompted the fan to throw a shoe onto the pitch was scored by Robbie Brady on the stroke of half-time, a superb finish from a tight angle after he had brushed aside two defenders, and effectively wrapped up the tie.
The opening goal, which had sparked the flashpoint, involved Brady, whose excellent right-wing cross was met by Jack Cork for an unstoppable near-post header.
Chris Wood, the New Zealand striker who joined Burnley for a club-record £16million on Monday, came on for the injured Jonathan Walters in the first half and the impressive home keeper, David Raya, denied him with two fine stops. Blackburn (4-3-3)