PLAYERS QUIT IN HOLLAND RACISM ROW

A COACH who once worked as Ruud Gullit’s assistant has sparked a racism row that has rocked Dutch football.

Ron van Niekerk, 62-year-old boss of lower league Argon, has been accused by his players of aiming a torrent of bigoted abuse at black members of his squad.

Van Niekerk is alleged to have told one shocked player to wash himself, while others have been instructed to clean changing rooms after training.

It has prompted seven players to refuse to play for the club until he is sacked.

But the Argon board have declared their support for the manager after recently giving him a new contract.

Van Niekerk was Ruud Gullit’s assistant when the Dutch star managed Terek Grozny in 2011.

Joceline de Sa, one of the players who quit, said that Van Niekerk (left) abused one of his team-mates during a game in Amsterdam. De Sa said: “His words were, ‘Go and have a wash, you black **** ’.”

De Sa also said his boss told the same player: “I ******* your mother for 10 euros.”

Two white players have quit the club in protest. One of them, Dylan Bergkamp, said: “If everyone supports us and refuses to play, the club will have to sack the manager.”

But while Argon gave Van Niekerk a verbal warning, they opted to retain him as boss.

President Ton Goedemoed said: “I was behind the dugout and it was quite shocking what was going on. But I could not hear exactly what was said. When I asked the manager later, he said he could not remember.”