Police issue encouraging update after new arrangements are put in place for supporters leaving Bloomfield Road

Visiting West Brom fans, who were housed in the East Stand, left the stadium via the North East gate following the 0-0 draw.

This differed to previous arrangements, where away supporters would exit the ground via the South Stand.

“Post-match seemed to go okay last night,” Seasiders Police wrote on Twitter.

“The only issue, which is a recurring theme, was a group of youths who were intent on causing problems near the away coaches.

“There was one arrest and a 17-year-old had his details and season card taken from him, which will be passed to the club for further action.”

It comes after a recent meeting between the club, fan representatives and Lancashire Police following a number of complaints.The Gazette recently revealed the policing of Blackpool’s home matches was being reviewed as a “matter of urgency”.Concerns have been raised by supporters throughout the season regarding how they have been treated as they have left Bloomfield Road.

The problem reared its head again during Blackpool’s recent game against QPR, with reports of overcrowding after the full-time whistle.

Groups of fans, which included families and young children, also reported being ‘kettled’ while being barked at by police dogs situated in the back of cars.

It comes after the policing of the recent derby match between Blackpool and Preston North End was branded as “shambolic”.

Lancashire Police, in a statement issued to The Gazette, admitted the policing of Blackpool games this season has been challenging.

But the arrangements for Tuesday night’s game seemed to work well, with no major flashpoints reported.

Seasiders Police added: “Having held a meeting with key stakeholders last week we’re determined to return to the days where all fans can move around the stadium without restriction or confrontation.

“The atmosphere in the ground is great, the feelgood factor is back, we won’t let a few kids spoil it for the majority.

“We’d rather dedicate more resources to our daily business than football matches, so if we all work together we can get back to some sort of normality.”

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