*Football urged to protect players after fan punches Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish*

Football is facing urgent calls to improve player safety after the Aston Villa captain, Jack Grealish, was assaulted on the pitch by a spectator in the latest among a rash of troubling crowd-related incidents in recent weeks.

Grealish was punched from behind by a pitch invader, ostensibly a Birmingham fan, in the ninth minute of the Championship derby at St Andrew’s. The assailant was arrested and Grealish, who was uninjured, gathered himself to score the only goal of the game after half-time. But the matter is not ending end there, with Birmingham’s role in the incident coming under particular scrutiny and concerns growing about a wider trend of violence at matches across the UK.

In a strongly-worded statement, Villa demanded an investigation into the chain of events that put Grealish in harm’s way.

“Aston Villa football club is appalled by the disgraceful attack on Jack Grealish during today’s game,” it read. “A red line has been crossed by this cowardly on-field assault on a player, which is unprecedented in English football. We trust the perpetrator will feel the full force of the law and the authorities investigate the circumstances surrounding today’s deplorable incident.

“Local rivalries are part of the fabric of the game. However, as we are sure our friends at Birmingham City would agree, to have a player’s personal safety placed under such jeopardy is a serious cause for concern for the entire football community.”

On Sunday West Midlands police announced a 27-year-old man had been charged with invading the pitch and assaulting Grealish.

A statement read: “We have this evening charged a man with invading the pitch and assaulting Aston Villa player Jack Grealish during the Second City derby. *[Name redacted]* aged 27, of Rubery, has been remanded in custody to appear before Birmingham magistrates court on Monday.”

Grealish preferred to focus on his match-winning goal and admitted to finding that moment particularly satisfying in light of what had occurred earlier.

“I was just unaware at the time. I was walking into position and then just felt a whack around the side of the face,” he told Sky Sports. “Obviously there’s rivalry in football but I don’t think there’s any place for that really. I just tried to get on with my job. To score the winner was unbelievable.”

A contrite Birmingham statement confirmed that the offender will, as a minimum, be banned from their stadium for life.

“We deplore the behaviour of the individual who committed this act and rest assured he will be banned from St Andrew’s for life,” it said. “The club will also support any further punishment this individual may face in the eyes of the law.”

Birmingham said the incident “has no place in football or society” and confirmed that they will review their stadium’s safety procedures. That may extend to their stewarding after television footage appeared to show a member of their matchday staff attempting to force Grealish back over an advertising hoarding as he celebrated his 67th-minute goal, and subsequently being led away by police officers.

The Football Association will investigate the spectator’s assault on Grealish after receiving the match report from Tim Robinson, the referee. Birmingham can expect to be charged, with a punishment for failing to control their supporters among the options available.

“The club are going to have to take a huge punishment for this to act as a deterrent in the future,” tweeted the former England defender Gary Neville. “A points deduction or empty stadium for 10 games!”

The former Villa player Lee Hendrie added: “There’s got to be a hefty fine, possibly a points deduction.”

Offences of this gravity have little precedent in the English leagues although, in October 2012, the Sheffield Wednesday goalkeeper Chris Kirkland required medical attention after being struck by a pitch invader during a match against Leeds at Hillsborough. Aaron Cawley was sentenced to 16 weeks in jail and given a six-year football banning order, while Leeds banned him from their Elland Road ground for life.

In 2002 *[Name redacted]* a Birmingham fan, ran on to the St Andrew’s pitch and taunted the then Villa goalkeeper, Peter Enckelman, after his error had led to an own goal. *[Name redacted]* was handed a four-month jail sentence and was banned from the ground for life. The authorities are likely to ask exactly how, in view of the fixture’s reputation, a second such encroachment was able to take place.

There is deep concern that, 17 years on, violence among supporters is becoming more prevalent. A statement from the Professional Footballers’ Association called for a full inquiry and voiced unease at the proliferation of recent incidents.

“The PFA is concerned that we’ve seen elements of this type of behaviour coming back into the game, with several high-profile crowd related issues this season,” it said. “We must address issues of violence and racist chanting – this should include continued efforts with regards to education but be underpinned by strong punishments and sanctions.”
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*BBC Sport*
Sunday, 10 March 2019

*Jack Grealish’s 67th-minute winner settled an ugly derby, but Aston Villa’s second victory over Birmingham City this season will be remembered not for the goal but for an attack on the visiting skipper by a spectator from the home section.*

City say they will ban for life the man, who was immediately apprehended following the 10th-minute incident in which he ran on to the pitch at the home Tilton End and punched Grealish from behind.

Although Grealish recovered to score Villa’s winner, the rest of a heated contest was played out under a cloud.

Villa could have won by more if, shortly after their goal, Conor Hourihane had not hit the bar from Grealish’s pass.

But Blues then wasted two glorious late chances when Villa old boy Craig Gardner, on as a substitute, blazed over the bar from close range before bulleting a header just past the post.

As it was, Villa climb above Blues to ninth in the Championship table, back within four points of the play-off places.

Grealish at centre of early action

The incident which sparked the ill feeling in the crowd prior to the attack on Grealish was home midfielder Maikel Kieftenbeld’s late challenge on the Villa captain, in only the fourth minute.

He was booked, just as he had been for his earlier foul on Grealish in Blues’ 4-2 defeat at Villa Park in November.

But it was clearly not received well by the Blues fans, who noisily suggested that Grealish had been over-theatrical in the way he fell to the ground.

And six minutes later, when Grealish was up in support of a Villa charge at the Tilton End, he was attacked from behind by a spectator, who had somehow evaded the line of orange and yellow-jacketed stewards to make his way on to the pitch.

After Grealish had been picked up off the floor and given the go-ahead to continue, the game took a while to reignite.

But both sides had chances before the break.

Home keeper Lee Camp saved with his legs from Anwar El Ghazi before Villa top scorer Tammy Abraham ballooned an effort over at the near post, while claiming he had been hampered.

At the other end, Blues’ top scorer Che Adams saw a shot from 25-yards fly just wide.

Substitutions prove key for Villa

The second half proved just as competitive and as unlikely to yield a winner, until Villa’s double substitution when they introduced Andre Green and John McGinn.

First Green was denied a goal from his initial touch when he got his head to Grealish’s cutback from the byeline, only to be blocked by Wes Harding.

Then Grealish himself took centre stage, latching onto McGinn’s crossfield ball before weaving his way into the box to thread his low shot inside Camp’s left upright.

Grealish was booked for jumping over the barrier into the crowd to celebrate, receiving one of the game’s six cautions from referee Tim Robinson.

Shouts for a penalty were waved away by the referee at the home end when Adams went down, and Gardner should have done better with both his chances.

But Villa had the cutting edge when it mattered most.

Grealish provided ‘only answer’ - post-match reaction

*Aston Villa head coach Dean Smith told BBC Sport:*

“Jack Grealish is a mature lad, and he responded well. There was only one way to answer that and that was to pop up with a winner like he did.

“I’m really proud of the way he handled it. He only came off as he was knackered, cramping up.

“It was a scrappy derby in difficult conditions but we were the better team in the second half and deserved to win.

“A lot has been made of the Birmingham City team spirit, but we showed a lot of spirit ourselves. Conditions were tough but we put in a gritty performance.”
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*BBC Sport*

*Jack Grealish attacked by spectator in Birmingham v Aston Villa game*

*Aston Villa midfielder Jack Grealish was attacked by a spectator who ran on to the pitch in the Championship match at rivals Birmingham City on Sunday.*

The incident happened in the 10th minute when a man entered the pitch from the home section before swinging his arm towards Grealish’s face.

He then blew kisses towards the crowd as he was led away by stewards.

A man, named by police as 27-year-old *[Name redacted]* of Rubery, was arrested and will appear in court on Monday.

He will appear in Birmingham Magistrates’ Court charged with encroachment on to the pitch and assault.

“An attack on a player is completely unacceptable and outrageous,” said the match commander, Superintendent Nick Rowe.

“The vast majority of people were well behaved but unfortunately the occasion has been marred by this.”

Villa captain Grealish sat on the St Andrew’s turf before being helped up by players from both teams and was able to continue.

The visitors went on to win 1-0, Grealish scoring the winner in the 67th minute.

The Football Association said it “strongly condemned the incident”, adding that it would be “working with the police, the relevant authorities and the club to ensure the appropriate action is taken”.

The EFL added: “It’s a situation no player should ever be faced with.

“Those playing in the game must be able to do so safe in the knowledge they will not be subjected to this type of behaviour.

“While this incident falls within the remit of the Football Association, we will work with all the relevant parties to address the issue of player and match officials’ safety on the pitch and ensure the appropriate action is taken.”

Birmingham apologised to Grealish and Villa immediately after the game and added that they would be reviewing their stadium safety procedures.

“We deplore the behaviour of the individual who committed this act and rest assured he will be banned from St Andrew’s for life,” said a Blues statement.

“The club will also support any further punishment this individual may face in the eyes of the law.

“What happened has no place in football or society. Jack is a Birmingham lad and regardless of club allegiance should not have been subjected to this - there are no excuses.”

Aston Villa said they were “appalled by the disgraceful attack” and that a “red line has been crossed by this cowardly on-field assault”.

“Local rivalries are part of the fabric of the game. However, as we are sure our friends at Birmingham City would agree, to have a player’s personal safety placed under such jeopardy is a serious cause for concern for the entire football community,” said a Villa statement.

Police later confirmed that a steward was “spoken to” after television footage appeared to show him pushing Grealish, but no offence had been reported.

The managers of both clubs, Birmingham boss Garry Monk and Villa’s Dean Smith, said such an incident “should never happen on a football pitch”.

“The players’ safety is paramount,” said Smith. “They’re going out on the pitch to entertain 20,000 fans. That’s their job.

“I’m for local rivalry. It’s great, but there has to be a line drawn. It’s disgraceful but we need to educate society a bit.”

Monk, who later called the incident a “disgusting act” in a tweet, said that the man should receive the “ultimate” available punishment.

“But, from my experiences over my year here, I have to say that one idiot does not represent what these fans are about,” he added.

“It shouldn’t tarnish the reputation of the rest of them.”