A FORMER football star was last night at the centre of a fresh racism row after telling a charity function of his backing for shamed TV pundit Ron Atkinson.

Ex-Liverpool and Chelsea striker David Speedie also stunned sections of the audience at a Darlington Supporters' Trust sportsman's dinner with jokes about "niggers and blackies".

The former Scotland international, who also played for the Quakers, was condemned by some guests for his remarks.

They said Speedie told of his agreement with the comments of Atkinson, who resigned as an ITV commentator earlier this year after branding former Chelsea star Marcel Desailly "a f****** lazy nigger".

Speedie also asked if there were any "blackies" in the room at Friday night's event at Blackwell Grange Hotel, in aid of the Percy Hedley Foundation charity for disabled children and adults.

The controversy comes when the issue of racism in football is attracting worldwide attention, after the barracking of England players in Madrid on Wednesday.

The game's governing bodies are being urged to take the strongest possible action against Spain after thousands of fans made monkey chants at black English stars.

Steve Rose, chief executive of Darlington Partnership, who was at the dinner, said he would be writing to the trust to tell of his shock at Speedie's comments.

"Early on in his speech, Speedie condoned everything that Ron Atkinson had said and used the word 'nigger' a lot," he said.

"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 thank them for the evening, but to express my disappointment at the racism that was being peddled."

Fellow guest Kate Culverhouse, executive director of the Groundwork West Durham Trust, said: "It was a disgraceful series of jokes and attacks on what he termed 'niggers' and 'blackies'. The people at our table were completely taken aback."

Last night Quakers' hero 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."

Tony Taylor, chairman of the supporters' trust, said: "There were a few unfortunate, off-the-cuff comments made that we would certainly not wish to endorse or condone. It was a little uncomfortable for us as a trust, and for the audience, and was not we had expected.

"We had no complaints on the evening itself, and both David Speedie and Kevan Smith, through their active participation in an auction, did help to raise significant money for the Percy Hedley Foundation, which helps children in the region."

The row erupted a day after Trevor Phillips, chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality, was in Darlington to speak at the first of MP Alan Milburn's annual lectures.

Speedie could not be contacted for comment last night.

l Dwight Yorke last night said he was the subject of monkey taunts during Birmingham's 3-3 Barclays Premiership draw with former club Blackburn