Birmingham chairman David Gold has admitted his disappointment after his club were charged yesterday by the Football Association for the behaviour of their fans during the 3-0 win over Aston Villa at St Andrews. Supporters charged onto the pitch after each of the three goals, and one even taunted the Villa goalkeeper after his error led to one of the goals, prompting the FA to bring charges of two counts of failing to control their fans.
"I'm disappointed. I imagine we'll be fined," said Gold. "I genuinely hoped the FA would make an allowance for such a special occasion. I abhor seeing fans running on to the pitch anywhere, and as a rule ours are well behaved. But there were only a handful involved and it was over and done with in a matter of seconds. I guess they are concerned about the incident involving the Villa keeper. But I suppose the FA have to be seen to take some action otherwise it might send out the message that it's okay to run on to the pitch."
"We have tried to take every measure possible to stop incidents like this and have banned for life from St Andrews anyone involved in these invasions. The same will apply to any future offenders," he added.
Birmingham have 14 days to respond to the charges.
Meanwhile, Birmingham defender Olivier Tebily has targeted the midlands derby clash with West Brom at The Hawthorns on October 19 for his comeback. The Ivory Coast international started the first three Barclaycard Premiership games of the campaign, but he picked up a hamstring injury during the 1-1 draw with Everton at the end of August and has been sidelined ever since.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
