Rival clubs unite against hooliganism before derby

The Saints Foundation and Pompey in the community have worked together

Two charities which represent rival football teams have been educating young fans on hooligan culture ahead of a highly anticipated derby game.

Despite the on-pitch rivalry, Southampton Football Club's Saints Foundation and Portsmouth Football Club's Pompey in the Community have been running joint workshops on anti-social behaviour.

Head of community development at Pompey in the community, Taylor Monk, said they wanted young fans to "embrace" the rivalry but do it "respectfully".

He was speaking at a Premier League Kicks session at the Oasis Academy Mayfield, in Southampton on Friday.

The sessions are run for 8 -18-year-olds offering young people positive ways to spend their free time.

Sunday sees the first south coast derby to be played in the league in13 years and ahead of that match the club's two community charities came together to speak to young fans.

The charities showed fans images of situations that could arise on match days

Jed Haney, Saints Foundation's pathways project manager, said the charities already shared a lot of data and called the collaboration "really important".

"We know that the young people we work with do face the same challenges and being in the Hampshire area as well there's a lot of things that we can share, there's a lot of workshops that we can run together," he said.

Pompey in the community's Taylor Monk said the rivalry was "historic" and "cultural" and they shared their experiences and knowledge of what that rivalry looked like with the fans.

He added that they wanted to help the young people to understand the repercussions if they "crossed the line" and engaged in anti-social behaviour.

The charities showed fans images of situations that could arise on match days and then reinforced messages about the potential punishments for those involved.

In the UK, the primary punishment for football hooliganism is a Football Banning Order (FBO), which can be for 3 to 10 years and prohibits attendance at regulated matches. Sometimes it includes surrendering a passport to prevent travel to international matches.

Former Southampton striker James Beattie was there for the session

Former Southampton striker James Beattie was at the session. He said: "It's probably the next generation up that we need to calm down a little bit.

"There's families there and children and it should be an environment where everybody enjoys it."

He described the trouble people get into as pointless and said "People will regret it pretty much as soon as they've done it"

Police and Crime Commissioner, Donna Jones, said she had been funding projects for both Saints Foundation and Pompey in the Community.

She said: "They both do great work engaging young people with activities to engage vulnerable young people with positive learning and sporting activities, as well as helping them build a more positive future and avoid youth offending.

"Despite the on-pitch rivalry between the two teams, seeing these two organisations come together for a workshop... shows how they can unify towards positive change."