What is wrong with football 'fans'?

[Randomchat]

Invading the pitch after yesterday's game? First full allocations away fans in ages and that's how they behave? What is wrong with these people? Fans of both sides involved.
I just don't understand them.

One of my work colleagues is a Celtic ultra/ member of the Green Brigade/ football hooligan. He'll come into work today all full of himself and we'll all have to listen. I saw him on the tv footage with his hood up, all threatening looking.
He's usually a fairly normal, respectable type but when there's a football match, especially an Old Firm game, it's like a total personality transplant.

They're an absolute disgrace to football and to Scotland. I wonder if the police will ask for names of anyone on the pitch. I honestly might give them his name.

Rant over. Sorry. I just hate this behaviour around football so much.

Celtic fans went on the pitch first and will probably not be allowed back to Ibrox any time soon
Mos Of the Rangers fans will be glad of that

Absolutely! I am very upset about letting pubs stay open late.

We live in a quiet area, usually very nice and far away from any football grounds. On the night of the qualifying match there was a lot of noise and a man got seriously injured at our local pub (it’s really not typical!) I do not want that pub open at 2am!

Because it’s only football fans who have been told that this is the culture, that they are allowed to change into bovine headed knuckle draggers because it’s traditional to do so. Rugby was always a sport for the the middle classes. Far too intelligent to stoop to such base nonsense.

Which is why it will continue. It’s like violence in schools, and shoplifting etc. until the consequences are meaningful nothing changes.

Religious hatred,drunkenness and coke
What could possibly go wrong.
Not Scotlands shame
A West coast problem and has been for decades

The low key Scotland football matches aren’t really attended by the bovine headed knuckle draggers. They prefer the club games where they feel safe in their tribes.

When it comes to the World Cup it comes at a time when club matches aren’t on so the danger is many of the idiots will use the matches as an excuse to drink too much and beat up their wife and kids. At least they won’t get beyond the group stages.

The old firm fans don't do Scotland games
England for one lot
ROI for the other lot.

Agree with other posters, there are not enough consequences and perpetrators should be identified and banned for life from ever attending a football match at any level, anywhere.

I agree and suggested this to DH (a football supporter, but neither of the Old Firm teams).

He said docking points from the club for violent conduct and having to hold matches behind closed doors would be taken more seriously by both teams and fans.

Regarding the team-related graffiti and violence out of the pitch I 100% think heavy and increasing fines should be levied against the individuals involved and if they aren't found then the clubs they represent.

There will always be isolated incidents (even in ‘nice quiet areas’ ) I don’t they should stop the vast majority of normal people celebrating Scotland being in the WC for first time 🕰️ n a generation

This is simply not true

I think you'll find a lot of RFC fans identify more with the Rule Brittania ,No surrender crap same as their English counterparts.

Sorry, but… Celtic fans went on the the pitch to celebrate (which they shouldn’t have done, but it’s what all fans do in a “we’re going to Hampden/Wembley” situation) and the home fans ran at them and started chucking flares at them!!!

(I’m not a fan of either team btw, but if you actually watch it back… it was pretty one sided!)

Agree with this. Celtic were celebrating, they shouldn’t have been on the pitch but harmless. Rangers “fans” on the pitch were thugs looking for violence. The real fans must be so ashamed of them.

I thank my lucky stars ds, who goes to many away games, chose not to suppot either of the old firm but picked a local team instead,

The only time his friends have have had any trouble after matches is when away at ibrox, both times his team lost and the incidents were unprovoked, and as he gets older (22 now), he feels less comfortable going so stays away.

What football fans don't understand is sane people don't care 'who started it' - you all sound about 5. The behaviour is unacceptable and blaming the the other sides fans further illustrates the lack of accountability on both sides for the thuggery constantly associated with our 'national game'.

Interesting observations but not quite accurate. Just for clarification: Celtic fans were kettled before the game as they were trying to gain access to the ground. Rangers fans jumped the barriers when their team scored but goal was disallowed for handball. Celtic fans did similar when they won on penalties. It was clear on television that most Celtic fans were getting selfies with players when fans from the Rangers end came running down the pitch, most with blue balaclavas and knocking over anyone who got in their way. Some then assaulted a member of the Celtic backroom team. Video evidence exists. Live on TV we saw the attempts by those with balaclavas try to attack those in the Broomlawn end including the launching of flares into the crowd.
Hardly innocent behaviour.
Something that has received very little coverage is the attack on a Celtic fan who was beaten unconscious as he tried to get to his supporters bus, legitimately parked on Helen St. While lying unconscious on the ground he was repeatedly kicked in the head by Rangers fans. Only rapid intervention from others saved his life. He has regained consciousness and is in hospital.

BTW one of the main leaders of the union bears (those with the balaclavas) has been Ross McGill. He has an interesting criminal history involving gangland wars, drugs etc. All documented.

Taking a balaclava indicates they were planning trouble

Good - he was probably drunk or high

Be interesting to see his punishment if found guilty

Spot on. I’m in no way saying Celtic fans were blameless but the false equivalence between barging in without tickets and causing damage to seats/with graffiti and throwing flares/kicking a guy half to death…

(Re McGills, I was at the other cup game that night and the announcement that “Glasgow Central is closed but your tickets will be accepted on McGills buses didn’t get the rapturous applause they might have expected. On a positive note, there were a lot of fans struggling to get back to Glasgow and the home support at St. Mirren were amazing at helping out Thistle fans. In contrast to the derby, we can call each other anything during the game, but outside the stadium can behave like normal humans and help each other out!)

(Sorry I know Ross McGill isn’t anything to do with the buses it just sparked a different controversy in my brain!)

Though…my dh and ds13 were leaving and heard ‘yeah fuck off you English CUNTS’ and felt quite intimidated so, though much much less, still not completely warm and snuggly!

I was disgusted to hear about the supporter being attacked by a group and being kicked repeatedly in the head. Also about the steward being punched to the ground, and chairs being thrown at people in a pub. There’s always been hooliganism associated with football - I witnessed an attack with chains in Edinburgh before a match as a student 30 years ago - but enough is enough.

And this is appalling too. No physical violence but stating that is awful. My DH is English and was at Murray field on Saturday, he was pleased for Scotland, but was fed up of people booing England when their match was on in the pub, and folk cheering when Italy scored. It’s not banter for English people in Scotland, it’s not funny.

❤️my dh is English and my son was ‘luckily’ wearing a Scotland jacket. But yes, shit too but not in the same league as Old Firm crap.

Football attracts my many more fan than any other sport. No other support could attract anything close to those numbers for a one off competition, let alone week in week out.

Some of those people are idiots, and there's alcohol. In the same way (on a much smaller scale) there will be "trouble" in town centre pubs at the weekend.

If your colleague is recognisable on TV footage, report him and he'll be banned. The law is much harder on football thugs than it is on other violent criminals.