Longford Town manager Stephen Henderson says the relevant bodies need to deal with the alleged racist incident during their game against Kerry FC on Friday night.
His personal statement follows one from the club which claimed they were ‘extremely confident’ the alleged incident "did not occur."
Kingdom manager Billy Dennehy spoke post match of the "unacceptable comment" made to one of his players.
Kerry FC subsequently released a statement in which they outlined how they were aware of "an alleged racial remark directed at one of our players."
The matter was referred to the Gardai.
Full Stephen Henderson statement:
Allow me to start by saying that any form of racial discrimination and abuse is absolutely abhorrent in any social-or sporting environment. As such, any accusation of this alleged behaviour needs to be factually investigated by the relevant bodies-with full access to the details and witnesses of the Alleged offence. Only then in my opinion should detailed comments be made. Unfortunately this has not been the case in relation to my club and my player whom I have the utmost respect for as a person.
Trial by social media without facts is a horrendous ordeal for any individual and their families to go through. It can have a devastating toll on the physical and mental health of both the accuser and the accused
There are two stories here involving two families. Both are hurting immensely at the moment and both deserve the full backing of their clubs. All I would ask for is that people try to refrain from making assumptions until the full facts of the allegations have been substantiated by the relevant bodies on what is a hugely sensitive situation.
As previously stated, there are two parties involved and I hope both will come through this ok but at this moment I know that my player and his family are absolutely devastated with what he has been accused of.
