Dundee footballer Leigh Griffiths apologises for booting a smoke bomb 20 metres into a crowd of St Johnstone fans and trying to claim he was just ‘trying to remove it from the pitch’ – even though it was only inches from the touchline!
- Dundee’s Leigh Griffiths kicked a smoke bomb into the crowd on Wednesday
- The Celtic loanee was filmed kicking the flare into the away section of fans
- Griffiths, who is on loan from Celtic, has apologised for the ‘regrettable’ incident
- The 31-year-old claims his intention was ‘to just remove it from the pitch’
Dundee striker Leigh Griffiths has apologised for kicking a smoke bomb 20 metres into a crowd of St Johnstone fans during a Scottish League Cup clash on Wednesday.
The 31-year-old is facing a probe from Police Scotland over the incident, which the striker has labelled as ‘regrettable’.
The incident occured when the visiting St Johnstone supporters threw a smoke bomb on to the pitch during the second half at Dens Park.
Griffiths, on the receiving end of abuse throughout the match, reacted by booting it high into the Bob Shankly stand that housed the Saints support, claiming he was ‘just trying to remove it from the pitch’ – even though the touchline was just a few inches away.
The incident was captured on social media footage and will likely see Griffiths face a SFA disciplinary investigation.
Dundee striker Leigh Griffiths kicks a smoke bomb into the crowd of St Johnstone fans
The incident was caught on camera during the second half of a Scottish League Cup match
Griffiths apologised for his actions on Thursday, saying: ‘It was regrettable that the pyrotechnic ended up back in the stand as my intention was just to remove it from the pitch.
‘Having just lost a goal I was eager to get the match restarted as quickly as possible and I would like to apologise for any distress caused by this action.’
A statement from Dundee read: ‘Dundee Football Club and Leigh Griffiths would like to address a regrettable incident which occurred during last night’s Premier Sports Cup tie with St. Johnstone at the Kilmac Stadium.
‘Following the opening goal a smoke generator, amongst other items, was thrown onto the park by the visiting supporters. This pyrotechnic ended up back in the stand as Leigh kicked it to remove it from the field of play.’
Incensed St Johnstone fans hurl abuse at Griffiths after he kicked the flare into the crowd
Griffiths, who is on loan from Celtic, apologised for the ‘regrettable’ incident on Thursday
Police Scotland confirmed they are looking into the incident and confirmed there were no injuries reported.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: ‘We are aware of an incident involving a small number of smoke devices at Dens Park, during the match between Dundee and St Johnstone Football Clubs on Wednesday, 22 September.
‘There were no injuries and no complaints have been made to police at this stage. Enquiries into the matter are ongoing.’
Griffiths joined Dundee on loan from Celtic last month and has yet to score since his return to Dens Park.