Haringey-Yeovil replay passes without incident but Tom Loizou prepared to take players off again
Tuesday 29 October 2019 23:33, UK
Haringey Borough's replayed FA Cup tie with Yeovil passed by without any racist incidents as the London side were beaten 3-0 at Coles Park.
The original match was abandoned after the players walked off the pitch due to alleged racist abuse.
Around 100 Yeovil fans made the trip to Tottenham again on Tuesday night as a boosted attendance of around 1000 continued their support for Haringey.
Although the game passed without incident, Haringey manager Tom Loizou said he is prepared to take his side off the pitch again in future if they are subjected to the "disgusting" abuse they endured in the first fixture 10 days ago.
Loizou believes governing bodies such as UEFA and the FA need to do more to support clubs and players dealing with racism, insisting the original decision to walk off earlier this month should not have been made by him.
He told Sky Sports News: "Most importantly the night went without any incidents. You saw the type of people that come and support Haringey Borough. All credit to the fans tonight. They sung their hearts out. Nothing abusive about it.
"I hope what's happened can be a turning point. Like we keep saying, there is no room for racism and all you need to do is come down to Haringey Borough and watch the way our fans behave themselves. People should take a leaf out of our book.
"I don't want walking off to become a habit. I reacted the way I did because of the moment I was in. I don't know what the answer is. There's got to be one somewhere. It's down to UEFA, FIFA and the police to find those answers. What I did shouldn't have been left to me. Someone else should have made that decision.
"You can't quite understand what racism means until you look into your players' eyes and feel their pain. They were distraught and that's why I took them off. I hope it never happens to anyone again, and especially my players. It was a tough time for me just watching that. It was disgusting behaviour.
"(But) the support has been fantastic. We've got to mention in Parliament as well. It halted Brexit for a few minutes. It was unbelievable. We have genuinely had so much support. I've been stopped on the street with people shaking my hand and giving me cuddles.
"I didn't do it to get the attention, I did it for my players because of the situation we got put in. I think I protected the officials as well because they didn't quite know how to deal with it either. So it was for them as well.
"It's something the FA need to look at. We see it on tele, at major football stadiums, I've seen it quite a few times now at non-league level, and no-one seems to take any notice of us. It just so happens it was in an FA Cup game so I was highlighted. But it is happening all the time.
"I will never go out with the intention of taking my side off. I have to react to the moment. If it affected one player I would take that one player off. It affected the majority, I am afraid I would have to do that again.
"When the missiles came on the pitch, and my goalkeeper was spat at, there should have been someone here to end the game. We could have been kicked out because I led the players off. It's against FA rules. But I think a heavier punishment should have happened to Yeovil. Maybe they should have been kicked out too."
Yeovil will face Hartlepool United in the first round of the FA Cup.
