IT ALL KICKS OFF

No more than 24 hours after football showed its dark side with violent scenes at
the Carling Cup game between Millwall and Liverpool, the ugly face of the game was on show again here.

There were 11 arrests inside the stadium for offences such as possession of
offensive weapons, drugs and violent disorder, though a Metropolitan Police
spokesperson tried to downplay the atmosphere by saying: "The majority of fans behaved and it was reasonably peaceful."

The distasteful minority of about 200 thugs who sought to return football to its
bad old days, however, scarred the aftermath of this match. A West Ham fan had to be carried out of the stadium on a stretcher, after a crush of his fellow
supporters attempting to scuffle with their Chelsea counterparts left him requiring treatment for what appeared to be neck injuries.

Clashes with police erupted after the final whistle as West Ham fans in the
Matthew Harding Stand sought retribution for missiles directed at them by
Chelsea supporters in the East Stand.

Those who threw the objects may have done so in a warped defence of the
Chelsea striker Mateja Kezman, whose head was opened up by what appeared
to be a bottle as his team-mate Frank Lampard, so despised by the fans of the
club he left for £11m three years ago, prepared to take a penalty in front of them.

"We think there was something thrown from the crowd," said Chelsea's assistant manager Steve Clark.

Chelsea won the match 1-0 as Mateja Kezman scored his first competitive goal
for the club.