Aberdeen games against the Ibrox clubs are tense affairs at the best of times, and when the fans aren’t kicking off it’s the players.
These fixtures have become so crazy over the years that everyone involved needs to behave with the utmost regard for public order. When there is already disorder in the stands, that becomes all the more important.
If you watched the game the other night you’ll know the first sounds from inside the stadium which greeted you the moment Sky’s coverage came on was the Ibrox support in full sectarian sing-a-thon, up to their knees in fenian blood. That song was once erased from their stands, but not by anything the authorities or media in Scotland did.
For the last couple of years it’s been back with a bang.
Not one media outlet regularly discusses it, but when you hear it in full-throat like it was on Tuesday evening it amazes you that it goes so completely unreported in. It was appalling.
Worse happened during the game.
Andy Walker even took a moment out from finding reasons to lather Ryan Kent in praise – his fixation with Kent is stalkerish; it was starting to give me the creeps – to highlight that there had been serious stuff going on in the stands, with objects being thrown between the supporters. Highly dangerous. Serious bother.
Which of course the SFA is pretending didn’t happen, although they have the power to censure clubs if fans behave like that inside the stadium.
But they also have a responsibility to get a grip on players who overstep the mark, and it is not hard to imagine circumstances where those two late, late goals in “time added on from God knows where” could, on their own, have sparked even more violent scenes even without Connor Goldson making his way over to the Aberdeen Ultras and taunting them.
That could have caused a major, major public order problem and the SFA should no more ignore that than Celtic should be ignoring the ongoing scandal of VAR.
That was an act of appalling irresponsibility in what was already a white hot atmosphere.
It will be just as irresponsible for the SFA to do nothing about it.
What exactly did Goldson do to taunt the fans? Serious question as I didn’t watch the match, and this is the first I’m hearing of it.
Agree Benjamin, what was the “taunt”? It’s all fine and well highlighting these things, however James, please point us to the offence in question, show a video, whatever, just not say somebody was very naughty and leave it at that.
Back in the day someone phoned into the Clyde phone-in to say about the huns-Falkirk game that there were: “Some ugly scenes in the crowd today.”
Moron on the panel (his name escapes me): “was there trouble?!”
Guy on phone: “Naw, the Hun fans are just really ugly!”
I believe I may have nicked that from an NTV, he says, showing his age!
He went up to Aberdeen fans pumping both arms up and down, their fans were also on what looked like the top of a dugout , it a pity they did not wreck it to see what the chicken sfa would have done
Don’t hold your breath waiting for the SFA. It’s going to do what it always does SFA
Sfa would be singing along with them