Sunderland and Swansea City have been fined by the FA after players from both clubs were involved in a confrontation at the Stadium of Light this month. Luke O'Nien's late challenge on Oli Cooper was the flashpoint, with the Sunderland defender shown a straight red card in the 18th minute of a game his side went on to lose 3-1.
But even before referee Keith Stroud could dismiss O'Nien, players from both sides were involved in a melee. Sunderland and Swansea were both charged with failing to ensure their players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion, with the Black Cats accepting the charge while the Swans chose to accept the charge but also asked for a hearing.
The Black Cats were fined £5,000, while an independent commission listened to Swansea's case and ultimately fined them £6,000. O'Nien's red card resulted in a three-game suspension which began on Sunday, ruling him out of the 2-0 win against Middlesbrough at the Stadium of Light.
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He will also miss Saturday's FA Cup fourth round tie at Fulham, and the Championship game at Millwall the following weekend. O'Neil will be available again for Sunderland's home league game against Reading. on Saturday, February 11.
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