Leeds United: West Yorkshire Police to have hands full with Elland Road plan v Hull City
West Yorkshire Police could have their hands full as Hull City visit Leeds United on 1 April, with the late kick-off allowing fans to drink all day beforehand, according to the Daily Mail.
The newspaper reported in its print edition [25 March, page 67] that, with the game to take place at 8pm on bank holiday Monday, crowd trouble seems highly likely.
It has also been suggested that, given this is the first meeting at Elland Road since Turkish owners took over at Hull, there are likely to be Turkish flags in the away end which, given Leeds’ history, will not be taken lightly.
Crowd trouble likely as Hull City travel to Leeds United
Police would always highlight a Yorkshire derby as a potential risk fixture, but with the added escalation of being on the bank holiday, as well as the possibility of inciting incidents in the away end, there could be more trouble than usual.
It is said that both of these possibilities will be a part of the police’s planning ahead of the fixture, but given the manner in which police can tend to deal with football fans, whether that is a positive or not will remain up for debate.
On the footballing side of things, this clash will also be a huge one for both clubs. Leeds remain at the top of the Championship albeit with more games played than Leicester, while Hull are looking to mount a late push for the playoffs.
A loss for either side could be detrimental to their late-season pushes, but given Leeds’ unbeaten record at Elland Road this season, the pressure will be on the visitors whose form has stumbled and are without a win in four games.
In other Leeds United news, a Crysencio Summerville injury update has emerged.
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