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Wales Online
Wales Online
Sport
Katie Sands

Preston North End star hit with four-game ban after Swansea City brawl

Preston North End defender Bambo Diaby will miss his club's next four matches following a retrospective ban from the FA.

Players and coaches from both sides became embroiled in a fracas on the touchline late on in the match between the sides at the Swansea.com Stadium. Referee Oliver Langford dismissed both Joe Allen and PNE manager Lowe in the 90th minute before the hosts ran out 4-2 winners.

Now, Diaby has also been charged with violent conduct for the incident during the Swans clash and as a result will be unavailable for Saturday’s derby against Blackburn Rovers, as well as the following three matches.

The FA said his actions were not seen by match officials at the time but were caught on camera.

An FA statement said: "Preston North End’s Bambo Diaby has been suspended for four matches following an incident in the 89th minute of their EFL Championship game against Swansea City on Wednesday 19 April. The defender’s behaviour was not seen by the match officials at the time, but it was caught on camera, and he subsequently admitted that it constitutes violent conduct. Bambo Diaby contested that the standard sanction was excessive but this was dismissed by an independent regulatory commission."

As a result of Joe Allen's red card against Preston, the midfielder will miss Swansea's final three matches of the season against Norwich City, Hull City and West Brom.

Preston boss Lowe failed to speak to the media in the aftermath of the fixture in south Wales, but addressing journalists ahead of his side’s clash with local rivals Blackburn Rovers this weekend, Lowe admitted the situation should have been dealt with better.

"I've spoken to Russell Martin and I've spoken to Joe Allen," he said. "We've all had the same thoughts. Could it have been avoided? Yes. Did it get avoided? No. Did it happen? Yeah. It shows a bit of passion between both clubs - players and staff. It is what it is. It's gone now and there will be an investigation into it.

"Could we have done without it? Yeah, of course - both teams. I was quite calm with it all to be honest, but again, it is passion and it happens, with the emotion of games. You will have seen more than I've seen, I think, because it will have all been out there. I don't want to comment on it too much; I think I have said enough.

"Is it nice? No, it's not. It could've been dealt with. The lads showed true passion and determination, of course. Maybe you should show it in different ways, but it is what it is. We have to move on quickly."

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