Tamworth v Nuneaton Borough Abandoned Game

Wed 22 Feb 2023 - 2:25PM

Tamworth v Nuneaton Borough. Tuesday 21 February 2023

Match Abandonment

Club Statement

A keenly contested football match between two local rivals was being enjoyed by the vast majority of the 2156 crowd inside the Lamb ground on Tuesday evening. The date of this fixture was selected by the Southern League following the original date not being available due to Tamworth’s involvement in the FA Trophy. In line with league rules, this game had to be played within 42 days of the original date. Unfortunately a very small minority of Nuneaton supporters in their segregated area instigated ugly scenes by throwing flares and other objects onto the pitch and into a group of Tamworth supporters when the home side scored their second goal.

The stewarding team, which had been supplemented by an outside company, worked very hard to restore order. At that point the Tamworth supporters were asked to move away from the top end of the ground to create a sterile area from the halfway line and we would like to thank them for their orderly manner and swift evacuation to other parts of the ground..

The Police, who were aware of the fixture, and had earlier escorted some Nuneaton supporters from the town centre to the ground, then attended. With regards to allegations made on social media that batteries were thrown, following a thorough search inside and outside of the ground no evidence of this happening was found. There was substantial damage caused to the toilets in the Nuneaton supporters segregated area and also to the first of two segregation barriers in the away end.

The game was initially suspended and then abandoned by the referee after around 60 mins with Tamworth leading 2 - 0.

Tamworth Football Club totally condemns this behaviour which spoiled a very good evening and should have been a showcase for Non League Football. We are now working with the Police to identify the perpetrators of this behaviour using CCTV, social media and still photographs. The incident is being investigated by the authorities and we will update supporters once we are aware of the outcomes. The club will not be making any further comments at this stage.