Leeds United Football Club accused in Afghanistan tribute row

7:30am Monday 23rd November 2009

By Will Kilner

Update: Following publication of this article, Leeds United stated that it will be supplying 30 tickets to the Yorkshire Regiment for use among the families of the 12 servicemen, both Leeds United fans and Huddersfield Town fans, who will be honoured during the half-time interval of the game.

The parents of a soldier have had to fork out £60 for tickets to see him presented with a medal for serving in Afghanistan, after they say they were told there were no complimentary places for family.

A dozen soldiers will be presented with medals at a football match at Leeds United’s Elland Road ground – but their families have not been issued with tickets to watch the ceremony.

Now the parents of Private Christopher Jackson, who recently returned to his Cleckheaton home from Afghanistan, have hit out at Leeds United after they had to pay £60 to buy tickets for the game to see their son honoured.

The presentation ceremony, involving 12 members of the Yorkshire Regiment, is due to take place at half-time in the local derby against Huddersfield Town at Elland Road on December 5.

Ian Jackson, father of Private Jackson, said the actions of Leeds United were “below the belt” at a time when other clubs were providing the Army with up to 100 complimentary tickets to allow family members to watch such ceremonies.

A spokesman for Leeds United confirmed no complimentary tickets had yet been issued to relatives of the soldiers, but said no final decision had been made about the number of free tickets.

With the match fast approaching and fearing a sell-out crowd, Mr Jackson said he called the club to see if complimentary tickets would be issued to families and, when he was told they would not, decided to buy a pair. But he said he feared some families would be too late to get tickets for a game likely to attract a large crowd.

Mr Jackson said: “These medal presentations have been done before at Barnsley and both Sheffield clubs. Some clubs have given the Army as many as 100 free tickets for relatives.

“But the Army rang me to say Leeds have said that only 12 tickets will be issued and they are for the soldiers that are going to get the medals. Any relatives that want to go will have to buy tickets. So I rang Leeds United and spoke to a girl and she said ‘we are just supplying tickets for the soldiers’ so I bought two. I’m not particularly bothered about having to pay for a ticket. It’s just the principle. We thought it was a bit below the belt.”

Private Jackson, who supports Huddersfield Town, returned from a three and a half month tour of Afghanistan on November 6 after being sent to the war-torn region as a battlefield casualty replacement in Operation Panther’s Claw.

Mr Jackson said: “My son was in all the hotspots. He had quite a rough time and was on the front line with the Welsh Guards and then The Light Dragoons.”

A Leeds United spokesman said: “At this stage, we have not decided what we are doing with tickets. There has been no message conveyed to the Yorkshire Regiment about how many tickets will be available. Arrangements are ongoing.”

Asked about Mr Jackson’s claim that someone at the club told him complimentary tickets would not be available, the spokesman said: “We don’t know who he’s spoken to. He could have been given second-hand information.”