Sport

Referee stops game to call a halt to racism in Spain

Soccer Digest: Referee Alfonso Perez Burrull became the first match official in Spain to halt a game because of racist abuse…

Wed Feb 23 2005 - 00:00

Soccer Digest: Referee Alfonso Perez Burrull became the first match official in Spain to halt a game because of racist abuse when he asked spectators to refrain from monkey chanting at a league match in Malaga.

Perez Burrull told club officials to make an announcement on the public address system asking the home fans to stop their abuse of Espanyol's Cameroon goalkeeper Carlos Kameni.

"The first time the Espanyol goalkeeper intervened you could hear monkey noises coming from behind the goal, so I asked for the game to be stopped to ask the Malaga delegate to make an announcement on the loudspeakers," Burrull said in his report on Sunday's Primera Liga match, which was published yesterday.

"I asked them to repeat the announcement at half-time in order to remind spectators to refrain from racist behaviour."

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Perez Burrull has been one of the most active referees in reporting racist behaviour by fans and noted similar incidents in the Madrid derby between Atletico and Real and the league match between Albacete and Barcelona. The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) usually only takes action when incidents are mentioned in the match report.

Spain's sports minister, Jaime Lissavetzky, met the presidents of the RFEF, the Professional Football League and the Players' Association yesterday to discuss using tougher measures to combat racism at grounds.

WORLD CUP: FIFA have announced that next month's World Cup qualifier between Israel and the Republic of Ireland in Tel Aviv will be refereed by a team of Russian officials, led by Valentin Ivanov, assisted by Tikhon Kalugin and Nikolay Golubev. The fourth official will be Igor Egorov.

The game kicks off at 7.50pm local time, which is 5.50pm Irish time, at Israel's largest sports venue, the 42,000 capacity Ramat-Gan Stadium.

WOMEN'S SOCCER: The Irish senior and under-19 teams are to take on Belgium in a double-header to be played at Turner's Cross, Cork, on Saturday, March 12th.

The under-19s will use their game as preparation for the second phase of their qualifying campaign for the European Championships in which they must take on Spain, Croatia and France in a mini-tournament in Spain in April.

Meanwhile, under-17 manager Marie Price-Bolger has announced her squad for a tournament in Wexford over Easter.

Details of fixtures, dates and venues will be announced over the coming weeks.

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND UNDER-17 SQUAD: M Barrett (Douglas Hall), D Caldwell (Raheny), S Considine (Lifford), J Cooke (Portmarnock), M DeBurca (Salthill Devon), L Dowling (Raheny United), J Downey (Bealnamulla), L Grant (Lifford), S Lynch (Dundalk), C McGilp (Cabinteely), K Mullins (Colemanstown), K Murphy (Braun Carlow), G Murray (Dundalk), L O'Brien (Lifford), A O'Gorman (Stella Maris), L Quinn (Peamount), L Webb (Kiltimagh/Knock), A Thomson (Dunboyne).