A SENIOR police officer has been drafted in to review a decision by West Yorkshire Police to impose travel restrictions on Hull City fans.
West Yorkshire police and crime commissioner Mark Burns-Williamson said internal emails from the force cast doubt over the travelling restrictions imposed on the Huddersfield fixture in March.
Tigers fans were ordered by the police to catch an official coach from Hull or rendezvous at an M62 service station so they could travel to the stadium by coach.
Police also restricted the number of tickets for City fans to 1,700 – despite a capacity for away supporters of 4,000 – after the kick-off time was changed from 12.30pm to 5.20pm so the game could be televised on Sky Sports.
Now, West Yorkshire Police have told the Mail that Deputy Chief Constable Steve Ashman, of Northumbria Police, is to review the decisions.
A spokesman from the force said: "He is an experienced and well-respected gold commander for the policing arrangements around football fixtures."
Mr Burns-Williamson asked for a rigorous review of the policing arrangements put in place for the Championship fixture.
West Yorkshire Police's Chief Constable Mark Gilmore, who was not in the post at the time of the football match, said: "I share the concerns raised by the police and crime commissioner and, as a result, I have asked for an operational peer review of the planning, decision making and public safety arrangements for the game, in order to identify the learning necessary to ensure public safety is maintained with no disproportionate or unnecessary inconvenience to the public."
Last month, the Mail saw internal West Yorkshire Police emails, which showed the force's own legal team voiced concern over the travel restrictions.
In an email sent to Craig Guildford, the force's assistant chief constable, on February 28, a member of the force's legal services team wrote: "There is a risk that a court would find that we have acted irrationally in agreeing to the Leeds vs Derby game with no restrictions (when Leeds have a far worse record for disorder than Huddersfield or Hull and when there is evidence of recent disorder between Leeds and Derby fans).
"Hull fans have not had any travel restrictions imposed on them for any other away game this season."
On February 11, Superintendent Ged McManus wrote to a member of Kirklees Operations Planning department: "I know this is short notice, but can we have a report ... in relation to the behaviour of Hull fans this season?"
The next day, Supt McManus received a reply, stating: "There were no reported issues. I have trawled through the reports for all the Hull away fixtures."
The restrictions and the later revelation about the emails left fans of both Hull City and Huddersfield furious.
Louis Cooper, 15, who launched a legal challenge over travel restrictions for the match, said: "I am just an ordinary football fan but I have seen that some police forces treat you with prejudice as a football fan, some even for just the clothes or colours you wear.
"I want an apology from West Yorkshire Police, in person on the pitch at the KC Stadium but I don't expect them to come."
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