Rich Pemberton has put the following up:
''Important. Re the ejection last Saturday, a statement from Gwen and Josh, who don't intend to comment further.
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Gwen and Josh Gowers would like to clarify the facts of Josh's ejection from the ground at the Blackburn game, having had an opportunity to review the incident and the CCTV footage with the club.
They are happy to confirm that at no point was Josh grabbed by a steward or forcibly removed from his seat. Gwen would like to clarify that she was neither hit nor punched by a steward but accidentally knocked in the face, and this had been resolved with the steward there and then. She regrets that supporters reacted to her previous comments on social media in the way that they did, and would like to advise that all parties agree the matter is now closed.
The facts of the incident are these:
- Josh was instructed by a steward to remove a banner displayed over the advertising hoarding. Unfortunately Josh reacted by directing verbal abuse towards the steward, for which he subsequently apologised. In response the steward did not grab Josh, but he did place his hand on Josh’s shoulder twice, which Josh did not welcome.
- When Josh subsequently hung the banner over the hoarding once more, a senior steward came down to ask Josh to go with him to discuss the situation with him calmly away from the crowd, which he did peaceably.
- As Josh had failed to comply with the steward’s initial instruction, and because his reaction was deemed by the club to have been aggressive, Josh was ejected from the ground on the instruction of the Safety Officer.
- Gwen was not asked to leave her seat at any time, but accompanied Josh as he was ejected. The police persuaded the stewards to allow her to leave the ground briefly to check Josh was ok and then return to her seat.
Gwen and Josh have asked the club to make their policy regarding banners more clear, perhaps by publishing something on the official website. She felt that had they understood why the steward was instructing them to remove it the incident might have been avoided. They do accept, however, that this was not a reason for Josh to ignore the instructions he received.''
Not sure about the rest of you - but I feel very disappointed by the individuals involved in the incident. I wasn't at the game, so didn't feel fair to comment on the situation, however, I interacted with Gwen on Facebook afterwards to send my support. The picture painted was a wholesale difference to whats being reported now - and feel the rest of the fans were used to garner support for their wrongdoing (not so much Gwen to be fair).