Sheffield Wednesday defends stewarding after reports of overcrowding at Newcastle tie
Sheffield Wednesday has said the club met stewarding and ticket sale requirements after reports of overcrowding during an FA Cup tie against Newcastle.
Newcastle fans reported feeling unsafe at the match at Hillsborough Stadium on Saturday 7 January.
People in the away end told ITV News Tyne Tees it was lucky no one got hurt during the FA Cup third round clash.
The FA has asked for information from both clubs.
In a statement released on Wednesday 11 January, Sheffield Wednesday said it would be "inappropriate" to outline the full details, but said two safety requirements concerning tickets sold and stewarding were met or "exceeded".
The statement said: "The club feels it is important to emphasise that the stewarding numbers in place within the visitors’ section of the stadium exceeded the requirements of the Safety Certificate.
"The allocation of tickets issued to Newcastle supporters also complied absolutely with the Safety Certificate."
Credit: Twitter- @JoshGordon8
Sheffield Wednesday also said they gave fans more time than usual to enter the stadium and that the number of those who did so was lower than the number of tickets sold.
"Fewer supporters entered the visitors’ turnstiles when aligned to the number of tickets allocated and sold," the statement continued.
"The turnstiles were opened 30 minutes earlier than a regular match day, two hours before kick-off at 4:00pm, to allow Newcastle supporters to enter the stadium in a timely a manner as possible."
The Sports Grounds Safety Authority have said it is concerned about the reports.
On Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Sports Grounds Safety Authority (SGSA) said: "We are concerned by reports of overcrowding and crushing at the FA Cup tie between Sheffield Wednesday and Newcastle United at Hillsborough Stadium on Saturday evening.
"The SGSA is now working with the club, Sheffield City Council and the Safety Advisory Group to review the event, learn any lessons and ensure a safe environment for football fans."
NUFC fan Cameron Armstrong, from Newcastle, said the conditions were unsafe, especially for children.
Newcastle fan Richard Gallagher-Bond, from Cramlington, said it was "really scary" when a large crowd gathered on the concourse and struggled to pass through narrow doorways.
Footage from the day shows what appears to be a large crowd gathered at the gate for the lower tier behind the goal.
Cameron Armstrong said "someone could easily have been hurt".
Mr Armstrong said: "I’ve been to loads of away games over the years, but this one especially stuck out to me of just how busy and crowded the area was.
"Once we were in the concourse it was just so over crowded, it was so narrow and I think there were four and half thousands fans there, it just felt so many more.
"It was dangerous, there were a lot of kids there, at one point I even saw a couple of the dads putting the kids on their shoulders to protect them and get them out of harm's way.
"Fans were holding other fans back to get them [kids] through and people were shouting 'there’s kids there’s kids', to keep them safe.
"Something could have easily went wrong but luckily it didn’t, but it could have easily went wrong and someone could easily have got hurt."
Ian Byrne, MP for Liverpool, West Derby, and survivor of the Hillsborough disaster in 1989, said his "soul was chilled" seeing images of overcrowding at the match last weekend.
Ian Byrne, MP for Liverpool, West Derby and survivor of the Hillsborough disaster hopes the FA has learnt its lesson.
He said: “You’d never have thought that in 2023 you’d be seeing those images again.
“It really brought back bad memories to be honest.
"It was soul chilling and I'm sure thousands and thousands of people who were at Hillsborough that day in 1989 felt exactly the same."
He hopes this time the FA has learnt its lesson and will listen to fans.
Mr Byrne said: "It looks like luckily no one was injured this time and disaster was averted.
"The FA needs to listen this time, obviously we [Liverpool fans] have had a really bad experience with the FA in 1989, so hopefully they've learnt lessons and can actually listen to the fans and believe the them this time, so we can get to the bottom of it.
"Fans are being blamed again, drunken fans are being blamed.
"Newcastle fans got a taste of what we got in 89, so hopefully this time they’ll be listened to."
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