Two arrests made over alleged racist behaviour at Peterborough v Doncaster
Peterborough have confirmed two arrests were made for alleged racist behaviour in the away end during the match against Doncaster at the Weston Homes Stadium.
Both clubs issued statements on Thursday evening, saying they would work together in support of Cambridgeshire Police. Doncaster said the club “abhor racism in any form”.
Doncaster’s statement read: “We take a zero-tolerance approach to such issues and would expect to issue a substantial club ban to anyone proven to have acted in such a manner, as well as require them to complete some educational actions before attending any [future] Rovers games.”
Peterborough said in their statement: “The football club can confirm that there were two arrests made in the away section of the Weston Homes Stadium for alleged racist behaviour. The club and Doncaster Rovers are working together with the police on this matter.”
The FA has been contacted for comment.
Darren Moore’s visiting Doncaster side won the League One contest 3-0, with Kieran Sadlier scoring twice and Ben Whiteman adding the third.
The developments on Boxing Day follow on from Tottenham’s investigation into the racial abuse of Chelsea defender Antonio Rüdiger during the Premier League match on Sunday.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that a Chelsea fan was ejected from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and arrested after committing a racially aggravated public order offence against Spurs forward Son Heung-min.This season has seen a series of incidents at all levels of the game, with the PFA calling for a government-led inquiry. Writing in the Guardian, Sanjay Bhandari, the chairman of Kick It Out, called for “teamwork as we fight racism and discrimination together.”
West Ham forward Michail Antonio has called on football’s governing bodies to enforce points deductions over racist incidents. “Punishing the person themselves is never going to deal with things,” Antonio said. “The only way for this to stop is for the team to be punished.”
Downing Street said on Monday there remains work to be done by the football authorities to stamp out racism, but did not rule out “taking further steps if required”.