England and Ireland fans clashed after this afternoon’s match as a supporter was spotted being dragged by the police through the street.
Footage filmed in Dublin shows officers on horseback patrolling the Irish capital amid clashes between football fans. As England fans chant “Football’s coming home” and large groups of people walk along the street, a supporter could be seen on the ground, surrounded by a number of cops.
At some point, the man was dragged by the police through the street while on his knees as other fans kept walking. It’s not clear if the supporter was an England or Ireland fan.
There was a large Garda presence outside the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, formerly known as Lansdowne Road, on the sunny day. England fans gathered at the Grand Canal Hotel, ten minutes walk from the ground, where the Guinness was soon flowing.
Rowdy Irish fans packed out the nearby Slattery’s pub, singing “Come on You Boys In Green” and a number of chants designed to antagonise Three Lions supporters. A small scuffle broke out shortly after 4pm as fans began to make their way into the stadium, but a Gardai spokesperson said there had been no arrests and no significant reported trouble before the match.
Tensions flared again as Gardai escorted the visiting English fans
from the stadium, half an hour after the final whistle. The route took them between two pubs packed with Irish supporters, who
began heckling and singing Republican songs.
English fans responded with gestures and scuffles broke out before mounted police intervened. At least three men, believed to be Irish supporters, were seen being bundled into a waiting police van by officers from the public order unit of the Garda Siochana. A Garda spokesperson said they did not confirm arrest numbers.
Gavin from Newry, Northern Ireland, brought his two children Sophie, 13, and Thomas, 11 down on the train to the game. He said: “We’re hoping England don’t win by too much. We will be up for it anyway.”
England fan Mark Jacula, visiting from Ontario, Canada, with his family including Audrey, 23, and Ben, 10, said: “This is our first football game.”We have never seen anything like this back home. The atmosphere is amazing, very exciting.” England went on to win the game 2-0.
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Mirror
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