Police confirm report of potential 'arranged fight' at Ebrington Square in Derry

Police attended the scene after reports that an incident arose whereby youths from the cityside and Waterside had arranged to fight each other in the public square and sectarian slogans were shouted.

Foyle DUP MLA Gary Middleton said that thankfully the situation did not escalate into violence with a security and police presence in the area acting as a deterrent.

A PSNI spokesperson said: “Police responded to two reports made from around 7.30pm on 30th December 2024 in relation to a large gathering of young people in the Waterside, in the area of Ebrington Square.

"In one of the calls, it was reported these youths were chasing each other. In the second call it was reported it may have been related to an arranged fight.

“Police responded, but when officers arrived in the area the youths had dispersed.”

Inspector Spence said: "We are engaging with local representatives to gain an understanding of the situation and establish what exactly occurred.

“In the meantime, our neighbourhood team will continue to engage with local people, focusing our patrols where they are needed and taking positive action where we can and we encourage the community to continue to report crimes or incidents that impact on their quality of life on 101, or 999 in an emergency.”

Mr. Middleton told the Journal he had spoken with police the day after the incident on New Year’s Eve and that there appeared to have been “some sort of organised gathering of young people from both sides of the river”.

Mr Middleton said he had spoken to security, and it appears there were two groups at the scene antagonising each other and that sectarian slogans were shouted.

Mr Middleton said it could have escalated but for the presence of the security personnel and police and thankfully there was no physical violence on this occasion.

"This usually doesn’t happen in winter. We are sometimes dealing with these problems in the summer-time and at times it has even escalated into violence but that thankfully was not the case here.

"We would be urging young people not to get involved in this type of activity,” he added.

Inspector Spence meanwhile added: “Anyone who engages in anti-social behaviour needs to consider the consequences of their actions and of the dangers of getting involved in this type of behaviour. Ultimately, they could end up with a criminal record which may impact their future employment and travel prospects.

“Anyone with information in relation to these reports is asked to call us on 101, quoting reference 1457 of 30/12/24."