In a disheartening incident during Gillingham’s recent tie against Newport County, a Gillingham supporter was arrested and subsequently issued a lifetime ban from Priestfield Stadium for making a racist gesture. The incident occurred during Newport County’s 2-0 League Two victory at Priestfield.
The supporter was pictured imitating a monkey after Newport’s Omar Bogle successfully converted a penalty. Bogle, who celebrated his goal in front of the home side, saw his teammates surround and seemingly chastise the fan who made the racist gesture.
Gillingham’s director of operations, Joe Comper, took to social media to condemn the behaviour, stating, “Disgusting from one individual in the Rainham End. Arrested, and a lifetime ban from Priestfield was issued. I can’t thank the large number of fans from around the stadium who are clearly as enraged as us. We really appreciate your support.”
Referee Tom Reeves was seen discussing the incident with Omar Bogle and his captain Ryan Delaney before approaching managers Keith Millen and Graham Coughlan on the touchline.
This incident follows a previous fine of £12,500 imposed on Gillingham by the Football Association (FA) in September. The FA conducted an investigation into racist and sexist chanting by the club’s supporters, leading to three counts of misconduct charges against Gillingham.
The FA stated, “The racist abuse hurled and chanted during the Colchester match was vile. The sexist abuse levelled at the female physiotherapist during the Sutton match is as bad as the commission has seen, and the chanting that took place at that match was repeated during the Wimbledon match.
In response to the fine, Gillingham released a statement affirming their stance against discriminatory behaviour, saying, “Chanting of this nature is unacceptable. Furthermore, there is no place for any manner of discriminatory, offensive, or abusive behaviour or the language of any kind inside our ground.”
The club is also preparing an action plan to prevent the recurrence of such behaviour during future fixtures.
The incident underscores the ongoing efforts to combat racism and discrimination in football and serves as a reminder of the consequences for those who engage in such behaviour.
