Lancashire confirm incident was "immediately" investigated following complaints on social media
Tuesday 10 September 2019 07:16, UK
The ECB says it is "disturbed" after a fan reported alleged racist and homophobic abuse at the fourth Ashes Test at Old Trafford.
An England supporter says a group of men were singing a racist song about Barbados-born fast bowler Jofra Archer.
He also said female fans were subjected to sexist chants, adding he had witnessed homophobic abuse aimed at players.
The supporter was attending the game with his family and published his complaints on social media. His version of events was verified in a reply by at least one other fan on social media.
An ECB statement read: "The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is extremely disturbed to hear that a report was made regarding anti-social behaviour from a group of spectators during the fourth Specsavers Ashes Test match at Emirates Old Trafford.
"We are currently working alongside Lancashire to understand the specifics of this case. ECB works closely with all First Class Counties to ensure that clear guidelines are in place at every venue so that watching a cricket match is safe and enjoyable for everyone.
"Venues are responsible for the stewarding operation at matches but we have a number of measures in place to continually improve standards, including contracting the Sports Ground Safety Authority (SGSA) to audit all venues, adopting the ICC's anti-racism and discriminatory behaviour code, and working with Drink Aware to support their alcohol management policy.
"While this is a relatively isolated incident there is absolutely no place for anti-social behaviour within the game and it is vitally important that all spectators feel able to come forward to report anti-social behaviour and feel safe in doing so."
Lancashire have said that the incident was "immediately" investigated following the spectator's complaints on social media, but that "no breaches or offences were observed" after two response teams were sent to the scene.
"The Club was tagged in a tweet regarding an incident with regards to the language being used in the ground on Friday evening," Lancashire said in a statement. "This was immediately reported to the Safety Team here at Emirates Old Trafford.
"Once reported, two response teams were sent to the scene but did not witness any foul or abusive language. On Sunday morning we made contact with the individual and have taken communications with him offline (and not publicly on Twitter).
"We'd like to reiterate that Lancashire Cricket Club has a zero-tolerance policy on anti-social behaviour within Emirates Old Trafford, and that some people have been removed from the stadium over the course of the Test for breaches of Ground Regulations."
