Sport

Police on alert for Leeds clash

Ben Hunt
8 May 2009

Four hundred police officers will be on duty tomorrow to make sure Millwall's play-off match with Leeds is not wrecked by violence.

The Met has been collaborating with the club, British Transport Police and West Yorkshire Police to ensure they have a ring of steel around The Den.

Officers are determined not to have a repeat of the riot in 2002 after Millwall's Division One play-off defeat by Birmingham. Back then, around 1,500 fans are thought to have clashed outside the ground and 47 officers were injured.

For tomorrow's play-off clash, the club have limited Leeds to just 1,000 tickets, while the home supporters have been allocated 13,000 seats.

Superintendent Peter Vincent of the Metropolitan Police said: "Our message to fans is simple; if you're coming to enjoy the game safely and legally, we will endeavour to help you do that. If you intend to cause trouble, your efforts will be thwarted."

Millwall's safety officer Ken Chapman added: "We have worked very hard with the police and local community to ensure it's a trouble-free day.

"We know there are people out there who want to cause problems but we have a duty to try to stop them. Things have progressed since we last played in the play-offs."

Reader views (3)

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Did you see the MacIntyre report a few months ago on TV about last season Leeds home match against Millwall.
The Leeds supporters were hell bent on trouble and destruction before and after the game.
West Yorshire Police were superb in controlling the vast majority trouble making Leeds fans that tried to attack the small travelling Millwall fans.
The Leeds fans have a very poor record in behaviour from their European games,Premiership,Championship and now League one. FACT.

- Joe, Swanley Kent, 08/05/2009 23:08
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The 'ridiculous procedure' you refer to is to ensure there is no repeat of the last few meetings between the clubs at Elland Road, when the delightful Millwall supporters decided to smash the windows of the bus allocated to take them from the city centre to the ground and leer and taunt provactively at Leeds fans, straining the ugly facial muscles atop their fat necks and beer guts into expressions of snarling intolerant hatred. The action taken by the Met is sensible given the circumstances and makes a refreshing change from their usual policies of murdering innocent civilians with excessive force and waving ten and twenty pound notes in the faces of striking miners.

- John Hunter, Sheffield, Yorkshire, 08/05/2009 14:52
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Please note that the reason why only 1,000 will be present is a result of the action of the West Yorkshire Police. They have insisted that Leeds only allow Millwall 1,000 tickets for the Elland Road game and MFC, who were prepared to give them a larger allocation, thought it only fair to limit the Leeds fans to a similar number.

What's is more the WYP are insisting that Millwall supporters who travel to Leeds, again pick up their tickets at a Service Station some way from the ground, whereas the Met. have imposed no similar ridiculous procedure on the Leeds supporters.

On Sky today there were Leeds supporters blaming Millwall for the small ticket allocation and I would suggest that before bemoaning their lot, they look a lot closer to home for the reason!

- Mark, South-East London, 08/05/2009 12:32
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