Chelsea have banned three of their fans after they were
caught throwing celery during the team's FA Cup win at Tottenham
Hotspur, the Premier League champions said on Tuesday. Two of them
were arrested for throwing celery during the quarter-final replay
on March 19, while a third was spotted throwing the vegetable and
later identified to the club. A fourth supporter was banned for a
pitch incursion. "All four people have been banned by the club and
three will face court bans depending on the outcome of any criminal
proceedings," the club said on its Web site.
Chelsea had warned their fans three days before the replay against
throwing celery during matches, saying it was a criminal offence
and that anyone caught could be banned. The unlikely warning had
followed referee reports which mentioned celery-throwing at two
previous Chelsea matches and which were being investigated by the
Football Association.
Though celery has recently been landing on the pitch, Chelsea fans
have been throwing it among themselves, and singing an unprintable
song about the vegetable, for more than two decades.