County FA supporting official after alleged abuse

The alleged incident happened during Kettering Town's Southern League Premier Division Central fixture with Harborough Town

A county's football association said it was offering its "full support" to an official who was subjected to alleged racial abuse during a non-league match.

Kettering Town's Southern League Premier Division Central home game with Harborough Town at Latimer Park on Monday was stopped for more than 10 minutes in the second half after the alleged incident.

The Northamptonshire FA (NFA) confirmed it was aware one of its registered assistant referees was the target of the alleged abuse.

In a statement, NFA said: "We strongly condemn all forms of discriminatory behaviour in football."

It said that Monday's fixture falls under the jurisdiction of The Football Association's (FA) national discipline team but added it was committed to "fostering a safe, inclusive, and respectful environment for everyone involved in the game".

The FA has been approached for comment.

Northamptonshire Police said the incident had not been reported to officers.

Kettering Town said it could not comment further because of the "ongoing investigation" but added it was "being proactive in seeking statements for the investigation".

In a statement of their own, Harborough Town added that one of its media team was also subjected to alleged racist abuse during the second half of the fixture, which Harborough won 1-0.

The Leicestershire-based club said: "We stand alongside Kettering Town FC in condemning racism and discrimination in all forms, it has no place in society or football."