A tremendous Cork City victory over reigning Premier Division Champions Shamrock Rovers has been marred by shameful chants directed at Rovers boss Stephen Bradley.
Following the weekend's events, City owner Dermot Usher has labelled the chanting "disgusting" and stated that they "crossed the line".
1/2 Shamrock Rovers F.C. condemns the actions of a number of individuals after last night's game in Cork where some particularly hurtful verbal abuse was directed toward our head coach Stephen Bradley and his family. pic.twitter.com/PWYD4sW0GX
— Shamrock Rovers FC (@ShamrockRovers) May 27, 2023
Several fans were captured singing chants about Bradley's son, who is undergoing treatment for leukaemia. While the individuals involved were not at the ground, they were subsequently captured on CCTV in the garden of an adjacent pub and also recorded on the club GoPro.
Speaking with Claire Byrne on Newstalk Breakfast and RTÉ radio’s Today, Mr Usher was flabbergasted that anybody would decide to say such horrendous things.
As reported by breakingnews.ie, he said: "I just can't believe that people think it's okay to actually chant the things that these guys said. For us as a club, we're a family club, we're trying to attract new fans to come and support the team."
He went on to reiterate his apologies to Rovers while confirming that any person involved will be banned for life from the club grounds.
"Two people have been identified, two people have admitted to their wrongs," he continued.
"These two guys are going to get lifetime bans. Security teams at the club would know in the future who to look out for on match nights.
"All I can do is ban them from Turner’s Cross. I’m not sure what I’m allowed to do beyond that. I hope all clubs will support me."
The Munster Outfits owner advised that he has spoken with Bradley about the incident and understands how any parent would have been upset by the abuse.
Sentencing date revealed for Waterford FC owner
In an unrelated incident, Waterford FC owner Andy Pilley is to be sentenced on July 3 for the fraud charges that he was found guilty of by an English Court.
The Blues chairman appeared for a pre-sentence hearing at Preston Crown Court last week about allegations of misselling energy supplies.
A date has been officially set for Andy Pilley's sentencing. ?https://t.co/OHMD6fMsNi@WaterfordFCie
— Beat 102 103 (@beat102103) May 24, 2023
He was found guilty of two counts of running his energy business with the intention of defrauding creditors, one count of being concerned with the retention of criminal property and another of false representations.
The 52-year-old's defence revealed that he wishes to be sentenced as quickly as possible, as his situation was "far from ideal".
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