Millwall have closed a section of The Den after racism and violence at FA Cup game against Everton, reveals CEO Steve Kavanagh

Millwall have closed a section of The Den after racism and violence at FA Cup game against Everton, reveals CEO Steve Kavanagh
Millwall chief executive Steve Kavanagh has told talkSPORT the club have closed a section of The Den in a bid to rid the club of problematic supporters.The Championship side have also increased the number of stewards and police presence in the ground, following the sorry events which marred their FA Cup win over Everton.The Lions claimed one of their biggest results in recent years with a 3-2 fourth round victory over their Premier League opponents, thanks to Murray Wallaces dramatic injury-time winner.4

Millwall celebrate their stoppage-time winning goal against Everton

But the win was tainted by two incidents involving their fans, which Kavanagh said left the Millwall hierarchy disgusted and very upset.There was a mass brawl away from the stadium before kick-off, during which anEverton fan was slashed across the face with a knife, while a small group of supporters also allegedly directedracially abusive chanting towards the visiting supportersduring the game.The events have been another blot on the clubs dreadful reputation for fan violence, one which goes back decades.4

Millwall and Everton fans clashed outside Surrey Quays station

And Kavanagh has told talkSPORT host Jim White that the club are working hard to rid the club of this image for once and for all starting with closing the section where the racist chanting came from, the East Upper block of The Den.We have got together to put a raft of measures in place to make sure we try to rid this club of any of these tags, and anyone who wants to commit racism or any form of hate – theyre just not welcome at Millwall, said the CEO on Wednesday.We have shut the top section of block 17, 18 and 19, weve put extra stewarding in that area which will stay until the end of the season at least and police spotters will be up there to make sure the area is controlled.We are not being the fun police. “We are making sure people dont go over the line and that its an environment where people can enjoy the game, celebrate football and do it properly.Its important to us to try and rid this image.Myself and my staff, weve all been affected by this. It felt awful and it was a terrible situation.Weve been hurt by it and thats made us extra empowered to go and change whats happening and try and improve this for everyone.We dont want this, were hurt by it and its not what Millwall want as a football club.Jay Burns Facebook4

Jay Burns required stitches on his face after he was slashed during clashes between Everton and Millwall fans

The FA faced calls to throw Millwall out of the cup after the scenes against Everton, but Kavanagh urged people not to tar the club and the majority of their well-behaved fans with the same brush as the yobs who are constantly dragging their name through the mud.Former Millwall striker and boyhood fan Tony Cascarino admitted that the incident made him feel embarrassed for my own club and by the supporters who are proud of their notorious reputation in the wider football world.

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Cascarino also challenged fans to help combat the problem and help their club by reporting any unsavoury incidents they see within the ground.But Kavanagh revealed that is already happening, and is a big reason why the disgraceful chants were not heard for long.We are taking responsibility for our ground, for whats happened and were dealing with that, he added.4

Video footage was posted on social media of a section of Millwall fans chanting: “I would rather be a P*** than a Scouse.”

Myself and a number of the board members also went into the stand in block 18 and spoke to the fans over there and made our feelings clear about what went on, and the fans also made their feelings clear and they were in line with us.They do not want this. They did not like it and they self-policed it to make sure these people were shut down as quickly as they could.I cant ask for any more than that, they did what we wanted. They did that on the day, thats why the chant was so short and thats why we were unaware of it on the day.But since then weve worked tirelessly to make sure we redouble all of the things in place and put other measures in place, such as shutting sections, putting in extra police and stewards and making sure fans can report these incidents. If its reported we can then deal with these individuals and rid them from football.

Listen back to talkSPORT’s exclusive interview with Millwall CEOSteve Kavanagh IN FULL above

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