K.O time TBC by the looks of things!
Merseyside police are to mount a legal challenge tomorrow to change the kick-off time for the Merseyside derby, just five days before the game.
The hotly anticipated Premier League clash between Everton and Liverpool on Saturday is due to start at 5.30pm so it can be broadcast live on Sky Sports.
But police have raised concerns that the timing would increase the risk of alcohol-fuelled disorder both before, during, and after the game.
The match at Goodison Park has been raised to a “Category C” fixture with a high risk of disorder.
Liverpool council’s licensing committee last week turned down a police request to amend the terms of the ground safety certificate to bring forward the kick-off time to lunchtime.
Now police are to take their case to a magistrates hearing on Tuesday, warning of how their resources could be stretched.
Any decision to change the kick-off time at this late stage would have big implications for televised games.
The Merseyside derby is the second of two Premier League derbies to be broadcast live on Saturday, after the North London derby between Tottenham and Arsenal which kicks off at 12.45pm.
Superintendent Chris Markey of Merseyside police told the licensing committee a lunchtime kick-off would be a safer option, adding that the police did not make the request lightly.
But members chose to leave the start time as it was, and said Everton FC had ”taken sufficient mitigation to ensure reasonable safety at the ground."
The Premier League clash had originally been scheduled for a 3pm kick-off, but this cannot be shown live on television.
This was changed to 5.30pm after consultations between the Premier League and Sky Sports, making it the latest time the Merseyside derby has been played on a Saturday.
Police said this increased the risk of alcohol-fuelled disorder because of the “excessive time” allowed for alcohol consumption by fans attending the fixture and by those seeking to view it on TV either locally to the ground or in the city centre.
They also said it would be easier for those wishing to engage in criminal activity because they would have the “protection of darkness.”
The Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson, wrote to the Premier League asking it to review the time of the match and that it be moved forward to earlier in the day as requested by police, but the request was rejected.
The hotly anticipated Premier League clash between Everton and Liverpool on Saturday is due to start at 5.30pm so it can be broadcast live on Sky Sports.
But police have raised concerns that the timing would increase the risk of alcohol-fuelled disorder both before, during, and after the game.
The match at Goodison Park has been raised to a “Category C” fixture with a high risk of disorder.
Liverpool council’s licensing committee last week turned down a police request to amend the terms of the ground safety certificate to bring forward the kick-off time to lunchtime.
Now police are to take their case to a magistrates hearing on Tuesday, warning of how their resources could be stretched.
Any decision to change the kick-off time at this late stage would have big implications for televised games.
The Merseyside derby is the second of two Premier League derbies to be broadcast live on Saturday, after the North London derby between Tottenham and Arsenal which kicks off at 12.45pm.
Superintendent Chris Markey of Merseyside police told the licensing committee a lunchtime kick-off would be a safer option, adding that the police did not make the request lightly.
But members chose to leave the start time as it was, and said Everton FC had ”taken sufficient mitigation to ensure reasonable safety at the ground."
The Premier League clash had originally been scheduled for a 3pm kick-off, but this cannot be shown live on television.
This was changed to 5.30pm after consultations between the Premier League and Sky Sports, making it the latest time the Merseyside derby has been played on a Saturday.
Police said this increased the risk of alcohol-fuelled disorder because of the “excessive time” allowed for alcohol consumption by fans attending the fixture and by those seeking to view it on TV either locally to the ground or in the city centre.
They also said it would be easier for those wishing to engage in criminal activity because they would have the “protection of darkness.”
The Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson, wrote to the Premier League asking it to review the time of the match and that it be moved forward to earlier in the day as requested by police, but the request was rejected.
good point. Expect to see loads of people arrested for being drunk and disorderly.....without actually being disorderly!!!
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