Motherwell fan banned after launching object at ex-Wigan Athletic defender James Tavernier

Play was temporarily halted by referee Nick Walsh after the Rangers captain had a cigarette lighter and pie hurled at him by two individuals during his side’s 3-0 victory at Fir Park.

Motherwell took just two days to find and punish one of the guilty offenders after they announced the indefinite ban on Tuesday.

The Scottish club are continuing their investigation to find the second individual who threw an object at the ex-Latics defender.

Commenting on the incident, Motherwell chairman Jim McMahon said: “We condemn the irresponsible actions of two of our fans, whose moment of recklessness has cast an unfortunate shadow over our whole support.

“It gives us absolutely no pleasure or satisfaction to ban anyone from Fir Park.

“As a fan-owned and fan-run club, we have tried to campaign for the rights of supporters. We have been vocal in our opposition to any suggestion or notion of strict liability.

“However, with that comes a responsibility to act if any of our own step out of line, particularly if we have such clear and obvious evidence.

“I am sure our supporters understand that we are left with no other option but to take a hard line approach with not only these two individuals, but anyone else who steps out of line.”

Tavernier played 11 times for Latics between 2014 and 2015 after joining from Newcastle United.