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No excuses for Scallies’ scams

From Patrick Barclay, Sunday Telegraph
On the eve of Wednesday night’s European Cup final, one of many interviews with Liverpool supporters shown on Greek television featured a pair of middle-aged drunken nitwits. Asked why they had travelled without tickets, they still surprised me by not giving the stock answer about just wanting to savour the Athens atmosphere on the great occasion.

”We’re going to wait until the game’s about to start,” said one with a grin, ”and then we’re going to storm the stadium.”


My stomach turned, as would that of anyone who experienced (even from a merciful distance) the horrific effects of the crush at Hillsborough 18 years ago. But this turned out to be more than a bad joke. In grotesque retrospect, indeed, it can be seen as a statement of intent.

For the attitude of our over-grown scallies is the real reason why fans, guilty and innocent alike, were hit by policemen last week. It is the reason wives and children were tear-gassed. Uefa’s William Gaillard was right to say so and it is time we stopped blaming law enforcement agencies, ticketing arrangements, organisational failures, stadium layouts and everything else for the fan’s inability to police himself.

For the attitude of our over-grown scallies is the real reason why fans, guilty and innocent alike, were hit by policemen last week.

It is the reason wives and children were tear-gassed. UEFA’s William Gaillard was right to say so and it is time we stopped blaming law enforcement agencies, ticketing arrangements, organisational failures, stadium layouts and everything else for the fan’s inability to police himself.

That the troublemakers last Wednesday were, as usual, a minority (albeit a more sizeable one than is usual) hardly mattered. Four years ago, even more Celtic fans travelled to Seville for the UEFA Cup final and, despite the massive excess of demand over ticket supply, the stadium was not stormed. Nor is this an ethnic argument, for Englishmen police themselves effortlessly at most football matches, not to mention rugby internationals and so on.

It is just that sometimes – and almost always abroad – the impression gets about that a bloke’s having saved up for an important match renders him above not only the law but his more peaceful and/or sober fellow travellers. It is intolerable and I hope Uefa do not think that abhorring it is enough, for they must take their share of secondary responsibility.

Click here to read the rest of Patrick Barclay’s trenchant column.

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