Stephen Bradley reacts to ‘sickening' racist abuse of Shamrock Rovers teen
Shamrock Rovers manager Stephen Bradley admits he is struggling to get his head around the fact that someone could shout racist abuse at a 16-year-old player.
Hoops teenager and Ireland underage international Victor Ozhianvuna was named as a substitute for Friday's visit to Waterford.
It is alleged that during the game he was racially abused by at least one spectator - and that led to both Waterford and the FAI issuing statements on Saturday regarding the matter.
Bradley gave his own reaction on Sunday morning, ahead of Monday night's Premier Division clash with St Patrick's Athletic.
He said: 'It was extremely difficult for him (Ozhianvuna). In the dressing room afterwards he was really upset, Victor.
'I still find it amazing that people think it's acceptable to speak like that in this day and age.
'We've had incidents in the past, obviously my own in Cork (when some City fans chanted about Bradley's son, who is undergoing treatment for leukemia), Pico (Roberto Lopes) had a problem not so long ago as well, where is society when people think it's acceptable to speak like that and behave like that and act like that? I can't get my head around it.
'For a 16-year-old to hear that is sickening.
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'Waterford, to be fair to them, were good in how they acted after the game. I know the League was straight onto the guards as well.
'But I think you look at the wider issue as a society, I think we need to be stronger in terms of people around that, that heard him. They need to be the ones to call it out and check it.
'It's sickening that people feel that once they get into a stadium they have a right to speak like that. I can't get my head around it. It needs to be stopped, it needs to be stamped out. And I think all of us have our part to play in that.
'But it's scary that people walk into a stadium and just feel they have the freedom to speak like that.'
Ozhianvuna has been one of the breakthrough stars this season. Despite only turning 16 in January, he has featured off the bench 10 times in the Premier Division, including a debut at the Aviva Stadium against Bohemians.
He also played in extra-time in Rovers' Europa Conference League play-off second-leg against Molde.
Asked if there was more than one perpetrator on Friday, Bradley said: 'I'm not 100 percent sure right now, it's being investigated. But one's enough. Especially a 16-year-old kid.
'He was really, really upset in the dressing room afterwards.'
He added that Rovers would support the youngster, with the help of sports psychologist Mary Larkin.
'We are lucky here that we work with Mary quite regularly, and we can help. But we can't undo what's been said and what he's heard. That's the scary part,' said Bradley.
'But us as a club will do everything possible to try to deal with the emotions he is feeling after hearing that, and give him the tools to try to deal with it himself better, if it ever happens again, please God it doesn't.
'But like I said, it's incredible that someone feels they can speak like that.'
Bradley praised Friday's opponents for their swift actions, saying: 'You can't blame Waterford. Waterford can't control what some person says inside the ground, you can't control that.
'They can act now, which they are, which is great. But I think it's got to go further, I think the guards have to be involved. That's the only way I feel we will really try and make an impact on these people.
'And I know the guards are involved, which is great. But I really feel that we can't just look at it and think, oh well, it's happened at a game or it happened at a stadium, so Waterford will deal with it.
'Waterford, I'm sure, will ban that person, or persons, I'm not sure.
'But the guards, I think, are definitely the way to go. Racially abusing someone is not acceptable. I think the guards need to be involved to help the clubs to be really strong on this.'
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