Jones pleads for Welsh derby calm

Swansea were thought to be concerned about the cost of policing

Dave Jones has pleaded with Cardiff City and Swansea City fans to "behave themselves" for next month's South Wales Championship derby.

Cardiff were allocated 1,800 tickets to distribute for the 7 November showdown at the Liberty Stadium - ending fears of a ban on away supporters.

"I'm pleased that our fans will get to see the game," said Cardiff boss Jones.

"I just hope there's no trouble as both clubs have worked very, very hard over the years on trying to kerb that."

Crowd trouble marred last season's Welsh derbies - the first clashes between the two arch-rivals for nine years - and Swansea feared they would hit with huge police costs for the first derby of this season.

Police made 27 arrests following trouble after the Carling Cup match between the two sides in Swansea last season while in the league game at Ninian Park, referee Mike Dean suffered a cut to the forehead after a coin was thrown by a home fan.

Media reports suggested Swansea wanted Cardiff fans excluded due to concerns over the estimated £90,000 for policing the Championship fixture.

But Bluebirds chairman Peter Ridsdale gave the idea little credence and insisted: "As far as I'm concerned we expect to take supporters with us."

We've got to stop the hype and start treating it as a normal football match Cardiff City chairman Peter Ridsdale on the South Wales derby

And Jones added: "When our fans weren't allowed to a game at Wolves a few season ago, the game had a dull atmosphere - there was no banter, no cheering, no chanting and no signing between the supporters.

"So I'm pleased our fans will be there. You'll always get one idiot who will make the most news but I hope everybody behaves themselves and we have another good game as we had three good games against Swansea last year."

It is understood that clubs cannot ban away supporters on the basis of police costs, but may make an application to the Football League if there are concerns over safety.

"I've heard rumours [about a ban], but nobody from Swansea has approached me directly," said Ridsdale.

"My view is that football is about two teams and two sets of supporters.

"The minute you start banning away supporters it's the thin edge of the wedge and next you'd be banning the away team from turning up.

"We've got to be able to police football matches in safety.

"The more we suggest that these fixtures are un-policeable... it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy."

"As soon as possible we should get back to treating [the Welsh derby] like a normal league fixture, then it's more likely that the supporters will behave accordingly.

"We've got to stop the hype and start treating it as a normal football match."