by Phil Corrigan
philip.corrigan@thesentinel.co.uk

GREATER Manchester Police have again been accused of heavy-handed tactics after arresting a Stoke City fan and forcing his 15-year-old son to travel home on his own.

Andrew Rawlinson and son Daniel were among around 400 Potters supporters confronted by riot police as they tried to go home by train after Saturday’s match at Bolton Wanderers.

The Stoke fans claim they were treated like hooligans by police, despite there being little trouble at the ground, and some were allegedly manhandled by officers as they were herded to Manchester’s Piccadilly Station.

Mr Rawlinson, of Macclesfield Street, Burslem, says he was arrested after reacting angrily when he saw an officer grab hold of his son.

The 45-year-old said: “My son just stepped slightly to the right of the line and this PC grabbed him around his neck. The poor lad hadn’t done a thing.

“I just did what any father would do if they saw someone doing that to their child and shouted at the officer. But I didn’t swear and I did not assault him. Daniel was in tears when I was arrested.”

Mr Rawlinson just had time to pass his train tickets to Daniel before being handcuffed and bundled into a police van.

He was then held at Pendleton police station for four hours before being issued with an £80 fine and released.

Mr Rawlins, who works at Siemens in Congleton, said: “I’m 45 and I’ve
never been arrested before in my life. We’re both season ticket holders and we only missed four matches last year, but we always stay away from trouble.

“They said I’d been arrested for harassment or something, but I think it was the other way around.”

Daniel, who attends Maryhill High School in Kidsgrove, got home safely, but says he had been very worried at the time.

The teenager added: “I was really shocked when I saw my dad get arrested. The police were being heavy-handed with pretty much everyone, but there hadn’t been any trouble at the match at all.”

Andrew and Daniel have now made a formal complaint about their treatment to GMP.

The incident comes less than 12 months after a group of City fans were wrongly prevented from attending their team’s match at Manchester United due to overzealous policing.

GMP eventually apologised for its actions on that day, and meetings have since been held between officers, City officials and supporters to improve relations. But Stoke fans say the police operation following the Bolton match was over the top, and believe they were victimised by the GMP.

Former Royal Marine Dan Swift, aged 32, of Endon Road, Endon, said: “At Bolton they forced about 400 fans into two train carriages and shut all the windows. One dad was trying to get off the train so he could get to his son at the other end, but police arrested him.

“Other people were saying they weren’t getting the train back because their cars were parked outside the station, but they weren’t allowed to get off either. This was just a young family with two little girls, not hooligans.

“I’ve been among Stoke fans who’ve acted like idiots, but there was none of that here. They weren’t thugs or casuals, they were just normal fans.

“I’ve served in Afghanistan and we treated Taliban prisoners better than we were treated by the police.”

Dan, who works for the MoD in Stafford, also said the officers verbally abused fans whenever anyone asked them what was happening.

Gareth Ekin, chairman of Stoke City Fans’ Forum, said he had been “bombarded” with emails from angry fans.

He added: “I am disappointed this has happened and my big concern is that we’re going to Manchester City on Boxing Day.”

"If some fans have had a drink or two I’m not sure how they’ll react to this kind of over-restrictive policing.”

GMP Assistant Chief Constable Ian Hopkins said he had been pleased with the policing operation, which was necessary to ensure the safety of fans as they walked from Victoria station to Piccadilly.

He said: "We acted in the best interests of these fans in order to ensure that they were able to walk in such large numbers through the centre of the city, in a safe but timely manner.

“I am aware of some complaints, and we will look into these fully.
However, we have been in regular dialogue with Stoke City and supporters groups, who understand completely why we took these steps.”