AN INQUIRY has been launched by Blackburn Rovers after a rival team's tactics were taken from a changing room and sold.

Birmingham City manager Steve Bruce was furious after the sheets of paper were snatched from Ewood Park and appeared on internet auction site eBay.

The items, which showed coaches' instructions to players about where they should stand at free kicks and corners, were sold for £400 last night.

The eBay web page also showed a picture of a man in the changing room, apparently after the game, to prove the authenticity of the lot.

But eBay refused to drop the lot, even after Birmingham City complained.

Police said that a man who collects football memorabilia had been in the changing room after the match had finished.

But they decided no offence had been committed, ruling out trespass because Rovers staff seemingly knew he was there and theft because the game had finished and the tactics had been discarded.

Details of the incident emerged as it was revealed a national newspaper was offered details of bugged conversations in the Manchester United dressing room before, during and after the recent 1-0 victory over Chelsea.

Today, Rovers Chairman John Williams said an internal investigation was underway into the incident.

He added: "We will talk to our security people and see if they can throw any light on it. It would appear someone has taken a chance, thinking they can make some money out of it."

Birmingham lost the October 22 game 2-0 , through goals from Paul Dickov and Craig Bellamy.

The auction had been advertised by the seller as "a fascinating insight into the team tactics employed by Birmingham in the Premier League."

Chief Supt David Mallaby, the match commander at Ewood Park, said a complaint had not been made to the police about the theft.

But he added that there had been no reports of a security breach in the tunnel.

He said: "Security on a match day is a joint responsibility between the club and the police.

"There is always a police officer on duty in the tunnel during a match but at the moment it would seem unclear if any security was breached.

"If the club staff are concerned about security we can advise them on that."

A spokesman for Birmingham City said the club asked for the item to be removed from eBay in case others were encouraged to steal in a bid for big profits.

He added: "The club does not feel it is right that people are profiting from the team's discarded items.

"We didn't want to set a precedent of people stealing stuff from our dressing rooms.

"It says they are Steve Bruce's tactics but they were nothing to do with him. They were the coaches' tactics, so anyone who buys it won't get what is advertised."

A spokesman for eBay said bosses had decided not to remove the lot because the sale was "not illegal."

When contacted by the Evening Telegraph, the man behind the sale declined to comment.