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One of the players caught up in the middle of Saturday's racial abuse when Dover visited Hartlepool has spoken out.
Dover players were subjected to racial abuse throughout the 90 minutes at Victoria Park – to the extent that Dover boss Andy Hessenthaler offered to take them off the field.
Hartlepool midfielder Gus Mafuta was clearly affected by what he saw and heard from a section of the home crowd.
He told Hartlepool’s website: “I don’t think there are any words, to be honest.
“It’s the worst I have seen and the worst game of football I have experienced since I started playing the game. Everything about the whole day was wrong, I think.
“The result didn’t matter to me after what had happened in the first half. Even if we had gone on to win the game, I would still say that the result was secondary to what happened on Saturday and there’s just no place for it.
“If affected me deeply and for the rest of the day and rest of my weekend.
“Obviously, after the game I spoke to my mam and dad, and I spoke to my girlfriend and sort of had to explain to them what had happened in full detail.
“It was one of those moments where I couldn’t believe the words that I was saying to them in 2019. I have had to explain to my parents that the opposition players were racially abused by a small minority of home fans right in front of my eyes. It was hard to watch and it was hard to take.”
Mafuta dismissed reports that he went into the crowd to single out those behind the abuse, but admitted he made his feelings known to at least one supporter.
“I think there was all sorts of rubbish being spouted in newspapers about me trying to jump over the barriers into the fans, which didn’t happen,” he said.
“Obviously, this incident happened in front of me, I saw it and went over to tell the guy to leave the stadium.
“I don’t know if he was picked up but I am sure the (club) are doing all they can to catch the culprits, because there was more than one.
“I don’t think a lot of people know the full events and there are those making plenty of comments without knowing the full story.
“I know for a fact that it’s unfair to blame the other 3,000-plus fans who were there on the day but you just can’t believe it can happen and I think it’s more a problem with society.
“Football has to try and sort it out but the punishments that are dished out are not good enough, if I am being totally honest.”
Asked how that kind of abuse makes black people feel, Mafuta responded: “It’s wrong. I think you can tell from my reaction.
“It wasn’t abuse directed towards me but it kind of was, if you understand what I am saying? I am black, (Dover’s) Inih Effiong is black and he is getting called a black so and so, and having gestures made towards him.
“If you’re attacking him then you’re basically attacking me, and it’s just not right.
“The worst thing to come out of the weekend was a message (my teammate) Peter Kioso got from a guy who told him that he’d taken his six-year-old to the game and he had been asking his dad what happened. How do you explain that to a six-year-old?
“One day I would like to have kids of my own – what if they had been at the game on Saturday?
“What if they had seen me reacting the way I was reacting because they would have wanted to ask questions? What would I say to explain that?
“I just don’t think it’s right. It’s disgusting really and it’s not a nice feeling. It makes you feel small and lots of other things, it’s ignorant and it’s a problem the society has.”
