Black and Asian footballers have joined forces in an unprecedented move to stamp out racism.

They have formed a new group aimed at ending what they claim are high levels of discrimination and racial abuse in local leagues in and around Bradford.

The move was sparked by a recent court case in which a judge cited racial abuse as one of the factors which led to a black player kicking an opponent in a match in Bradford and being subsequently jailed for assault.

Karl Oxford, of the African Caribbean Economic Establishment, based in Peckover Street, Little Germany, Bradford, who set up the group's inaugural meeting, said black and Asian footballers were suffering racist taunts from both opposition players and supporters.

"There are people's lives and careers being affected here," said Mr Oxford, who has himself been involved in football in local leagues for several years.

"There are going to be more and more teams emerging from the Asian community in particular and unless this situation gets sorted out we are going to get a lot more problems.''

The group hopes to arrange meetings with referees' and FA representatives and is writing to Sports Minister Tony Banks to ask for his support.

Black and Asian players say the much-publicised Show Racism The Red Card campaign, which was launched at Bradford City recently, is geared only to professional football and that racist abuse is still prevalent at lower levels.

Shamsuddin Ahmed, of the Bradford Racial Equality Council, said victims of racial abuse should start using laws aimed at race hatred.

"We have to start prosecuting these guys. That's the only way changes will happen," he said.

"Real equality in football is only demonstrated in the treatment of players at this level."

Delroy Dacres, of Bradford-based team Campion, said: "We don't have so many problems when we play in our own area because we are a multi-racial community but when we go further afield to places which are mainly white, that's when you get a lot of racist comments from other players and spectators."

And Howard Gordon, who plays for Bradford Moor, added that most referees failed to take any action over racist taunts during games.

Roy Carter, secretary of the West Riding County FA, said: "We would welcome the chance to have a dialogue with these players.

"I can understand that they may well be feeling that there is a problem and I can assure them that we are not sitting here in what they might think is our ivory tower and thinking everything in the garden is rosy."

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.