Police warn ticketless fans not to travel to Luton-Millwall match

Sides meet in the FA Cup this weekend

The officer in charge of policing this weekend's Luton-Millwall FA Cup tie has warned ticketless fans not to travel to the match.

Bedfordshire Police are preparing a "large and very visible" operation to ensure the smooth running of Saturday's fifth-round fixture, a re-run of an FA Cup clash which was marred by rioting in 1985.

The infamous riots during and after the quarter-final tie in March 1985 led to a four-year ban on away fans at Luton's Kenilworth Road ground.

Fans travelling to and from Saturday's sell-out tie will be policed by officers from Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Thames Valley and Cambridgeshire constabularies, supported by colleagues from British Transport Police.

Chief Supt Mike Colbourne, who is overseeing the policing plan, said: "Obviously there is a huge amount of interest in the game for current and historical reasons.

"It's a fantastic achievement, for Luton in particular, to get this far in the cup and we don't want that to be overshadowed by events."

Mr Colbourne, who urged fans to arrive early for the 12.45pm kick-off, added: "Please don't travel to Luton if you haven't been lucky enough to get a ticket for the game as you will be unable to get into the ground."

PA