A father has issued a plea and police are investigating after a heavy cup filled with coins was thrown by Liverpool fans from the stands at the Etihad Stadium on 22 December.
The ‘horrible’ incident saw the vessel launched from the section of the stands housing the Liverpool FC fans and was thrown down into the assembled Manchester City supporters.
The ‘weighted pint pot’ hit a 15-year-old girl who was watching the Carabao Cup match on 22 December, leaving her ‘scarred for life’.
The young City fan had to receive first aid inside the ground for a head injury, which ended up needing to be glued during treatment.
Her dad is now desperate for anyone with information to come forward to the police so they can press charges against the person(s) who injured his daughter.
ADVERTISEMENT
He praised the kindness of many Liverpool fans who have reached out after his posts on social media, and added that he’s been contacted directly by Liverpool FC CEO, Billy Hogan, who “apologised unreservedly on behalf of the club”.
Liverpool fans: Everyone hates us for no reason Also Liverpool fans: Throwing fans into a family section pic.twitter.com/osqJYwPVZu
The local father first went public in response to the following tweet: “Disgusting behaviour from some Liverpool fans tonight at the Etihad.
ADVERTISEMENT
“A full plastic pint pot with extra coin ballast thrown with full force from the top tier – hit a 15-year-old child who now needs her head glued. Liverpool fans simply confirming their appalling reputation.”
He responded to it with: “The 15-year-old was my daughter. 500+ football matches in 100+ stadia and I’ve never experienced anything like I did tonight. Horrible. Thanks to the paramedics, police and stewards that helped after the event.”
His longer statement said: “My 15-year-old daughter was hit by a weighted pint pot thrown from the ‘LFC section’ of fans at The Etihad during Manchester City vs Liverpool last Thursday.
ADVERTISEMENT
The pot ‘smashed’ on impact, she suffered a head injury and was ‘glued’ at the ground before being released later that evening. The incident occurred about 20 mins in, just after Liverpool’s first equaliser. We think it was probably thrown from block 318 as we were directly below this block.
“We are meeting officials at Manchester City Football Club this week and are asking for any information that could help us identify the thrower. [Greater Manchester Police] took statements, are keen to pursue and will press charges if we can identify the culprit.
“…I am hoping if it’s spread far and wide a memory may be jogged somewhere. There were in excess of 50,000 people present.
The thrown object and the aftermath. (Credit: Twitter)
“If you were at the match…or know someone who was. Was it near you? – Where were they located? – Do you know who it is? – Have you seen any clips on social?
“We have had a call from LFC directly (Billy Hogan) who apologised unreservedly on behalf of the club and I would like to stress they are as committed as we are to rooting this individual out of football and for them to face the consequences of their actions.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Please don’t come at me with whataboutery. I completely condemn any incidents of violence from any football fans and any offensive chanting by fans of either side. She is a 15-year-old who was enjoying watching her team with the rest of her family and she is now scarred for life.
“I would like to thank the dozens of Liverpool Football Club fans who have contacted us so far with kind messages of support in finding the perpetrator and also all friends and contacts who have been in touch.
“I am a Dad seeking justice for his injured daughter, that is all. All information gratefully received.”
In a joint statement from Liverpool and City, the clubs said: “Liverpool FC, Manchester City FC and the chairs from our supporter groups have worked together in recent weeks to remind fans of our expectations and both clubs would like to thank the vast majority of fans for their behaviour at last night’s Carabao Cup match at the Etihad Stadium.
“It is however hugely disappointing that there were a number of incidents during last night’s match that are wholly unacceptable. These incidents will be fully investigated, reported to police and the individuals who are found to be responsible will be subject to the sanction process of their respective clubs.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Liverpool FC and Manchester City FC are fully committed to working together to eradicate these issues from our fixtures. They have no place in football.”
Greater Manchester Police is investigating a ‘number of incidents’ that occurred during and after the match on 22 December.
🚨| Liverpool and Manchester City have released a joint statement regarding fan behaviour in the Carabao Cup game last night.
Once incident involved an object being thrown from a height and hitting a teenage girl in the home section, causing a cut and requiring treatment. pic.twitter.com/BdNFojULdc
GMP’s match commander, Superintendent Gareth Parkin, said: “We are aware of a number of objects, including coins and a smoke bomb, that were thrown during the match. We will be investigating the incidents and reviewing CCTV from the night.
“Clearly throwing objects in a confined area can be dangerous, and have serious and sometimes devastating consequences – GMP sends it’s thoughts and wishes to the girl who was injured and wish her a speedy recovery.”
GMP outlined the other incidents, which included two men being arrested on suspicion of trying to take a pyrotechnic into the ground and a male arrested for a racially aggravated public order offence. All three will be interviewed at a later date.
ADVERTISEMENT
A 53-year-old man was also assaulted after the game at the junction of Ashton New Road and Alan Turing Way. He was treated at the scene and required hospital treatment.
Anyone with information about any of the incidents should contact the police.
Two Trafford towns are set to see dozens of new EV charging points installed imminently
Danny Jones
Two big towns on the border of Greater Manchester and Cheshire are set to see a fresh batch of electric vehicle (EV) charging points installed throughout their streets by Trafford Council very soon.
Local authorities have teamed up with engineering and infrastructure company Amey to roll out a series of new EV charging stations across Trafford, starting with Altrincham and Hale.
Dating all the way back to 2020, the collaboration with Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), the brand was tasked with helping improve sustainable travel across the area as the government body’s electric vehicle charging suppliers.
Steady improvements have been made across the 10 boroughs, but this particular update marks one of the biggest network upgrades that the likes of Alty and Hale have seen for some time.
Good news – we are thrilled to announce the installation of our first public EV charge points in collaboration with @TraffordCouncil.
Issuing a statement on Wednesday, 17 September, the firm – which specialises in managing, designing and maintaining complex facilities and transport infrastructure across the country – announced that they will “start the installation of EV charging points in Trafford in the coming weeks.”
It is expected that “up to 100 new public charges” will be integrated throughout the respective town centres and residential streets as the suburbs continues to push towards its sustainability goals.
As per Altrincham Today, Amey account director Anna Gornall said: “We’re excited to launch our first EV charge points in Trafford, working in partnership with Trafford Council (TC) to make electric vehicle charging more accessible to local communities.
“As the UK’s leading provider of energy transition and decarbonisation solutions, we’re well placed to use our existing expertise and resources to support TC in delivering a holistic public EV charging network for local communities.
“We’re helping residents make the switch, so everyone can plug in and power a greener Trafford.”
The country at large has various carbon-free initiatives, including the aspiration of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050; the electoral ward of Trafford itself continues to thrive in this field, having recently won environmental accolades, including 12 ‘Green Flag Awards’ this past July.
🌱 Have your say on the future of Trafford’s allotments
We’re developing a new Allotments Strategy to guide how our 35 sites and 1,500 plots are managed over the next 5 years – and we want your feedback.
Peter Anderson, Managing Director of Transport Infrastructure at Amey, commented: “This is a pivotal moment in Amey’s energy transition strategy. By leveraging our extensive experience in whole lifecycle asset management, strong partnerships, and innovative solutions, we can deliver value for both our clients and members of the public who will use Amey’s electric vehicle charge points.
“Working with Trafford Council, we are making electric vehicle charging more accessible to local communities and helping residents make the switch to EVs.
“Amey is well-positioned to support emerging opportunities within this landscape, and we are delighted to be working with Trafford and other local authorities to provide the public EV infrastructure needed to achieve the government’s transition to net zero.”
As for Trafford Council, Corporate Director of Place, Richard Roe, went on to add: “We are delighted to be working with Amey on this project to bring more and better charging options to the people of Trafford.
“This is an extension to the current EV charging options in the borough and is great news for committed EV owners and those who are thinking about going electric.”
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (via Amey Ltd)
News
Further disruption expected as more bus strikes announced across Greater Manchester
Emily Sergeant
Further disruption is expected as even more bus strikes have been announced across Greater Manchester this autumn.
It comes after the strikes set to place this month from 19 to 22 September were announced a couple of weeks back, and now a second round will take place towards the end of this month and going into early October.
In case this is the first you’re hearing of the upcoming industrial action, 2,000 workers who are employed by Stagecoach, Metroline Manchester, and First Bus Rochdale – all of which are firms among those that make up the bus part of the Bee Network – are due to walk out in a co-ordinated strike amid an ongoing pay dispute.
Unite the Union says all the firms are ‘highly profitable’ and it’s therefore ‘disappointing’ that workers are being denied a fair wage.
More strikes have been announced on the Bee Network this month / Credit: TfGM
At Stagecoach, around 1,000 drivers based across the Oldham, Stockport, and Middleton depots have rejected a pay offer of 3.5%, and 1,000 Metroline Manchester members will also do the same after turning down an ‘unsatisfactory’ below-inflation pay offer.
Workers at both Metroline and Stagecoach believe the offer doesn’t address years of low pay they’ve recieved, especially given the ongoing cost of living crisis.
Then, over at First Bus Rochdale, 110 members have rejected this year’s pay offer of 6%, as they feel this does not go far enough to address the fact they’ve had years of being paid less than their counterparts at other companies, and are still the lowest paid in the region.
Stagecoach, Metroline, and First Bus Rochdale, part of First Group PLC, are all firms which have seen a rise in profits in recent years.
2,000 drivers are set to stage strike action over two different periods / Credit: TfGM
The second round of strikes will now take place from from 30 September to 2 October.
Speaking ahead of both sets of upcoming strikes, Unite General Secretary, Sharon Graham, said: “These companies are very profitable but are putting greed over their hardworking members of staff.
“Further strike action will be extremely disruptive, however this is a dispute entirely of the bus companies’ making and they could solve it easily by coming back with a better deal.
“Our members involved in the dispute have Unite’s complete support.”
Unite Regional Officer, Colin Hayden, added: “The strikes this week as well as the further action we have called will cause travel chaos in Greater Manchester. However, it is entirely the fault of the employers involved, who have failed to address the issue of low pay and reward their staff accordingly.
Daisy Jackson -
28th December 2022 
