Bristol Rovers has issued a statement after racist abuse was directed at a player online after the match with Reading FC yesterday (Saturday, October 26). An account on Instagram sent a message to forward Shaq Forde which included abusive and racist language.
The player screenshotted the message and posted it on his Instagram story. He tagged the official Bristol Rovers page and wrote: “Great ‘fans’ we have don’t we.”
The message was reported to the club who they are “sick and tired” of players being targeted with racial abuse. Rovers added that a separate incident was reported to the them last week.
The statement said that people who discriminate players are not Bristol Rovers fans and are not welcome at The Memorial Stadium. Meanwhile, Reading FC also issued a statement condemning the abuse and said they will work with Rovers to identify the offender.
Bristol Rovers full statement
Bristol Rovers said in a statement: “Bristol Rovers is infuriated by racist abuse directed at Shaq Forde in the aftermath of Saturday’s Sky Bet League One match at Reading. Shortly after the match an account on Instagram messaged Shaq, the contents of which contained abusive and racist language.
“Shaq and several other Bristol Rovers players reported the abuse to us and we, in turn, will assist the Police and Meta in their respective investigations. We will always, unequivocally, stand side-by-side with any victim of discriminatory abuse. The Club is committed to educating on the damage that any form of abuse has.
“Shaq is not the only Bristol Rovers player to receive racial abuse, with an incident under investigation only last week. Even more sickening is that some of these messages come from individuals claiming to be Bristol Rovers supporters. Each time, the Club has sought to act in the appropriate manner. As we made clear only a few short weeks ago, We will continue to do so.
“But what is becoming increasingly clear is the same old methods of ‘combating’ racism – the carefully-crafted press releases and saturated social media posts – simply are not working. Enough Is Enough.
“We are sick and tired of racist behaviour blighting sport. Our players are sick and tired of vile racist abuse that is thoughtlessly shared in response to performances in their job. Our supporters – our real supporters – are sick and tired of being in any way associated with those ‘fans’ who comfortably send such abhorrent messages. We will not tolerate it.
“To the person who sent Shaq this racist message, and to any person who claims to be a Gashead and engages in similarly deplorable behaviour, we simply say this: You are not a Bristol Rovers fan. You are not welcome at The Memorial Stadium. We do not want your support.
“Discrimination in any form will not be accepted at Bristol Rovers and we urge all supporters to join us in unison with this message. Enough is Enough.”
Reading full statement
Reading said in a statement: “Reading Football Club strongly condemns the racist abuse sent to Bristol Rovers player Shaq Forde in the aftermath of Saturday’s Sky Bet League One match between the two clubs.
“The club has a zero tolerance policy towards all forms of discrimination, and we will work alongside Saturday’s visitors to ensure the perpetrator is identified and evidence is provided to the relevant authorities.
“Finally, Reading Football Club would like to pass our support onto Shaq. No individual, whether on or off the pitch, should be subjected to such abuse. We stand by you Shaq.”