Cockermouth fury after pitch invasion sparks mass brawl
Last updated 18:09, Wednesday, 03 December 2008
COLIN Armstrong says Cockermouth should be awarded their National Cup tie against rivals Middleton after Saturday’s clash was abandoned following a mass on-pitch fracas involving players and fans.
Barla’s disciplinary committee is probing the incident, which the Cockermouth boss alleges was prompted by a pitch invasion of around 30 fans of the Leeds outfit, following a fight between two opposing players in the first-half.
The ex-Workington Town and Whitehaven prop claimed one of his players had been gouged and another kicked between the legs in an ill-tempered start to the match.
“There were a couple of other niggles, and Gareth Skillen then passed the ball and was elbowed about five seconds later,” Armstrong said.
“There was a fight and the next thing, their supporters ran on to the pitch. They were fighting with our players.
“The referee came to me and said he had to abandon it. Once supporters get involved, that’s it. We’d only been playing for about 20 minutes.
“We were playing on the local rugby union pitch as ours was a bit hard, and supporters were jumping the barrier to get on.”
Armstrong, who took the Cockermouth job a week before the start of the season, is not concerned about a cup run, preferring to focus on retaining the promoted club’s Cumberland League Division One status.
But he believes his team should still be awarded the tie on principle. The winners host Thatto Heath in round two on Saturday week.
Meanwhile, Seaton have scotched reports that they were unable to raise a team for their National Cup tie at Elland at the weekend.
“We had some players unavailable but were still willing to travel with a young side,” a club spokesman said. “The problem was that we couldn’t find transport.
“Our secretary tried every local bus company but none was available. We field two teams and haven’t missed a fixture all year.”
