Derby Fans Praised By Police

5 March 2012, 05:10 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

Northumbria Police has praised the majority of fans for their behaviour at theTyne-Wear derby - except a number who damaged a Metro train.

A sell-out crowd of supporters attended the match which saw a large police presence both in the city and in and around the ground.

While the majority of fans were in good spirits a number have caused damage to the stadium and a metro train.

So far 18 people have been arrested, two on suspicion of assault, two for breaching banning orders, one for going into the playing area. The other arrests were for alcohol related offences 

The behaviour of passengers on one metro train, put on specially for the game, saw it have a window pushed out, two emergency chords were pulled and the roof damaged. The damage caused a delay on the Metro service for other passengers to the derby on Sunday morning.

Inside the stadium four seats were damaged and toilets defaced.

Northumbria Police Assistant Chief Constable Steve Ashman, said: 

"This type of behaviour will not be tolerated and those responsible should be aware their actions could have serious consequences and potentially affect future ticket allocation.

"Public safety is always our number one priority during any football match and this means any individual or groups causing trouble will be dealt with.

"The crowd was mainly good natured and only interested in the action on the pitch and we'd like to thank them for their behaviour. Those who did cause trouble should be warned we will be carrying out extensive enquiries to identify them.

"The policing operation went well and I would like to commend the actions and professionalism of all the officers and stewards."