Banned indefinitely – Port Vale issue update on fan who tried to confront referee
Port Vale have issued a statement confirming that the supporter who entered the field of play in an attempt to confront the match referee on Saturday has been banned indefinitely pending a police investigation.
Referee Craig Hicks had enraged the supporters with some of his decisions during the game against Portsmouth but regardless of his actions, there is no reason for anyone to try and confront him in such a way. It would be inexcusable to threaten someone in any other trade with violence just because they were seen to be doing a poor job and the same rules should apply for referees. They should be able to perform their job without fear of violence or intimidation.
A club statement said:
Port Vale Football Club can confirm that the individual who entered the field of play against Portsmouth FC on Saturday 27th January has been banned indefinitely from the club, pending the outcome of the investigation by Staffordshire Police.
The club strongly condemns the actions of the individual and would like to remind supporters that entering the field of play at any point is a criminal offence and will be dealt with, with a zero-tolerance approach.
We will continue to work closely with the EFL, FA and Staffordshire Police throughout the remainder of the investigation.