Referee Dean holds on to Monk after being struck by a coin at Ninian Park

Captain Garry Monk says Swansea's players endured items being thrown at them throughout Sunday's 2-2 draw with south Wales rivals Cardiff.

A coin struck referee Mike Dean on the head at Ninian Park, causing a cut, in an incident being investigated by the police and football authorities.

But Monk, who went to Dean's aid, says the atmosphere was not as intimidating as he had expected.

"There was stuff coming on the pitch all the time," said Monk.

"There were cups of what seemed like squash and stuff and you could see coins being thrown on all the time and this and that.

"No-one wants to see anything like that and the ref got hit on the head and for one minute I thought he was going to go down; that's why I grabbed him, to keep him up a little bit.

"Thankfully it wasn't too serious because you don't want to see that no matter what."

Monk added: "I was glad he [Dean] was alright."

Team-mate Alan Tate took heavier flak from Cardiff's supporters than any other Swansea player, but Monk said he and his colleagues handled the situation appropriately.

"I thought the boys dealt with it well," said Monk.

"We were professional and we just got on with our jobs and it wasn't as intimidating as I thought it was going to be so we were quite happy with that.

"We just wanted to win the game. We wanted to send our own fans home with a win."

Police say a 24-year-old man from Pontypridd has been charged in connection with a missile-throwing incident and will appear in court on 20 April.

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