West Brom fan suspended after Sunderland match for ‘hateful and disgusting’ post

West Bromwich Albion are assisting police after a so-called supporter posted abusive content online about a six-year-old boy who lost his life to cancer.

Bradley Lowery was an inspirational young Sunderland fan who passed away following a battle with Stage 4 High-Risk Neuroblastoma.

The youngster's determination against the rare form of childhood cancer captured the heart of the nation, however, Bradley sadly lost his fight against the rare form of childhood cancer at only six years old in 2017.

Now, Albion has revealed that they have identified and suspended the account of a supporter after he was found to have made hateful social media posts referencing the late six-year-old.

On their website, West Bromwich Albion said: "Albion has identified and suspended the account of a supporter pending further legal inquiries and reserves the right to issue an indefinite club ban. The club are appalled by the disgusting post and offer their sincere apologies to Sunderland AFC and the Lowery family."

The banned supporter was found to have made the comments in the wake of the club's defeat at the Stadium of Light on Saturday. The statement comes after a similar incident that took place earlier this year which saw a Sheffield Wednesday fan mock Sunderland fans with a picture of Bradley during a match at Hillsborough Stadium in September.

A judge at Dale Houghton, 32, of Rotherham, was spared immediate jail by a judge who called his action "utterly appalling" and "disgraceful". Houghton, from Rotherham, admitted a public order offence at a previous hearing, he was given a 12-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, and was ordered to do 200 hours of unpaid work by District Judge Marcus Waite.