Football
PA Sport 7y

Agreement reached for Leyton Orient fans to attend Blackpool match

Leyton Orient fans will have an allocation of 1,000 tickets for Saturday's League Two clash at Blackpool after an agreement was reached between both clubs and the English Football League.

Ticket sales had been temporarily suspended on Monday following a number of concerns raised by the Seasiders.

Saturday's clash between already-relegated Orient and Colchester was suspended five minutes from time following a pitch invasion and sit-down protest by O's fans against owner Francesco Becchetti.

The protests lasted for more than an hour before the crowd were told the game had been abandoned and the stadium eventually cleared. However, the match was re-started almost two hours after it had been initially suspended and the final minutes were played out in front of empty stands.

Blackpool's Championship match with Huddersfield back in May 2015 was abandoned following a pitch invasion by hundreds of protesting home fans, and there were fears a repeat could be on the cards when the two clubs meet at Bloomfield Road at the weekend.

However, the EFL announced on Tuesday that Orient's allocation for the game had been revised to 1,000 from 1,700, with the remaining tickets only available to 2016-17 season ticket holders or members of the Leyton Orient Fans Trust.

A statement read: "Following extensive discussions and representations made by relevant parties throughout the course of today, an agreement has been reached that delivers on the EFL's objective to ensure both sets of spectators can attend the match live.

"All remaining tickets sold to Leyton Orient supporters between now and Saturday's kickoff will be done so only on the basis that the purchaser is a current 2016-17 season ticket holder or a member of the Leyton Orient Fans Trust (LOFT).

"All tickets sold prior to Monday's suspension of sale remain valid.''

An EFL spokesman added: "We are delighted we have been able to find an amicable solution to this particular issue and would like to place on record our thanks to all those parties who have assisted the EFL in achieving the outcome.''

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