Ex Chelsea star's 'racist jokes'

A former Chelsea star is at the centre of a fresh racism in football row today after reportedly making jokes about black people at a charity function.

The former Scotland international, 44, who also played for Liverpool and Darlington, was condemned by some guests.

During his speech Speedie backed Ron Atkinson, who resigned as an ITV commentator this year after branding former Chelsea star Marcel Desailly "a f***ing lazy nigger".

Steve Rose, chief executive of Darlington Partnership, who was at Friday night's dinner at the Blackwell Grange Hotel, said: "Speedie condoned everything Atkinson had said and used the word 'nigger' a lot.

"He then went on to ask, 'Are there any blackies in the room?', looked round and said, 'No', ignoring the fact that there were members of staff from the hotel who were black.

"I will be writing to the supporters' trust to express my disappointment at the racism that was being peddled." Speedie's remarks follow scenes in Madrid when England's black players were subjected to monkey chants by a section of the Spanish fans. And yesterday, Birmingham striker Dwight Yorke was targeted by racist elements at Blackburn.

Speedie is set to appear at Coventry City's Christmas ball next month alongside black football legend Cyrille Regis.

Darlington FC's Kevan Smith, a close friend of Speedie, said he would be "absolutely gobsmacked and upset to be called racist". Mr Smith, vice-president of the supporters' trust, said: "David has spent his whole career playing alongside black players, mixing together, sharing rooms. He raises thousands of pounds every year for charities, including those that want to kick racism out of football.

"As a trust, we do not tolerate and do not encourage any kind of racism, full stop." Speedie could not be contacted for comment.