Mackems not involved in Toon trouble

Northumbria police have said today that no Sunderland supporters were involved in the violence after the Tyne-Wear derby match on Sunday.

Relatively minor skirmishes erupted when Sunderland supporters left the stadium at the same time as the home fans - a situation possible because human rights laws now mean away supporters cannot be kept in the stadium until home supporters have left - and a bus taking disabled Sunderland supporters was attacked by Newcastle supporters.

Trouble then erupted in the Bigg Market area several hours after the final whistle involving around 300 people, and Northumbria Police say they think it was solely down to Newcastle supporters who had been drinking for several hours after the game.

Assistant Chief Constable Kevin Mathieson said "There were outbreaks of disorder in the evening, many hours after the match had ended. These centred in disturbances in the Bigg Market which led to about 300 people gathering there. This was predominantly fuelled by alcohol and probably as a result of people drinking all day, linked to the timing of the match. These incidents were predominantly drink-related involving a minority of mindless idiots."

ACC Mathieson stated, however, that the involvement of Newcastle-based hooligan groups was also a probable factor, and that CCTV footage gathered from around the city would be used in an effort to identify as many offenders as possible.