A documentary photographer who was allegedly assaulted by some football fans in Dublin on Saturday has said she is "overwhelmed by the support" she has received after she posted the incident online.
Carly Clarke, who lives in London, posted a video on social media which shows the alleged incident that occurred on Abbey Street in Dublin city centre on Saturday afternoon.
It shows one man among the Schalke supporters reaching out to push her camera out of the way.
The post, which has received nearly seven million views on X, allegedly shows another photographer being knocked over as he tries to intervene.
Ms Clarke said she has had "hundreds and hundreds, even thousands of messages" from Schalke fans who are horrified by their experience.
German club FC Schalke 04 said the club travelled to Dublin to spend a special trip away with their fans for the purposes of a friendly match in the city.
It said around 2,000 Schalke supporters accompanied the team and the S04 delegation.
Disturbing and hard to process - Schalke
In a statement, the club said the photos that have been circulating on social media since yesterday afternoon are "disturbing and hard to process".
"These incidents are completely unjustifiable and have overshadowed the trip.
"We utterly condemn these incidents and, as announced, will rigorously investigate the events and take appropriate action. This review process began yesterday, despite the fact that the information at our disposal is still unclear," the club said.
"FC Schalke 04 wants to express its sympathy for those affected by the incident and wish them a full recovery."
'People kept kicking him' - Clarke
Speaking about the experience to RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Ms Clarke said she and her friend Steve were walking in Dublin city centre when they heard some drumming which sounded "quite jolly" and like a parade so they decided to go and investigate it further.
"A whole bunch of us rushed around the corner to see what was going on," she said.
She decided she wanted to get in the middle of it and take some pictures.
"I got quite close and then realised that this wasn't what I thought it was, when a man grabbed the camera out of my hand and then pushed my friend, Steve, when he tried to help me.
"Steve was then pushed to the ground and people kept kicking him," Ms Clarke said.
"What was so shocking to me is that once he was on the ground, everyone kept kicking him, nobody would let him get up. I kept trying to pull him up off the ground. And I was so shocked by it. I kept thinking - how could you do this to an older man?'
"Three really lovely women, who were filming the event, came over to help Steve," Ms Clarke said.
She added that they were so upset and told them "this wasn't usual for Ireland".
"Steve's head and neck were hurt but he says he's fine and we are talking to the guards about it," she added.
Gardaí said they are carrying out enquiries into an alleged assault at Abbey Street Lower, Dublin 1 on 11 October.
"No formal complaint has been made by any person at the time," a spokesperson added.
