A young Fulham fan has died after being stabbed following Fulham’s defeat at Gillingham yesterday afternoon.
Tabloid newspaper reports suggest that a visiting supporter, aged 21, lost his life after a policing blunder allowed Gillingham and Fulham supporters to clash outside the Priestfield Stadium following yesterday’s Second Division fixture, which was both a high-risk fixture and crucial in this season’s promotion race.
Fulham’s chief operating officer Kevin Keegan comforted the fan’s friends and family in the immediate aftermath of the incident and first team manager Ray Wilkins was informed of the supporter’s death following the conclusion of his post-match press conference.
Wilkins said:
“Kevin was very shocked. Kevin stayed behind with the young man’s friends hours after the game. It is a terrible thing to happen at a game of football where everybody should be enjoying the game. The young man was with four or five friends and Kevin and Neil Radford, the club’s chief executive, met with the police.
“I’m deeply saddened. The game pales into insignificance when this sort of thing happens. Everyone is deeply shocked and our sympathies go out to the young man’s family and friends. It doesn’t matter what team he was supporting – a young man has lost his life at a football match and that is terrible. I don’t think it’s a football thing. I think it is a reflection on society.”
