“‘Well Fans, Not Criminals”

Background

I’ve been going to football matches regularly since February 1991. In that time, I’d like to think I’ve built up a reasonable amount of experience when it comes to being a football supporter, travelling the length and breadth of Scotland following Motherwell (with the odd trip abroad for a European tie), and travelling the length and breadth of Europe following Scotland (with the odd win). I’ve seen over-zealous policing and power-hungry stewarding, and I’ve been in football grounds where the complete lack of security personnel has been disturbingly evident. However, the events of Saturday 14^th September 2013 within St. Mirren Park in Paisley highlighted that there are still going to be times in my football supporting life that I look around in complete disbelief at what is unfolding around me.

Before I get into the specific events, it’s worth putting things in perspective:

Firstly, the stadium. I have been an away supporter at St. Mirren Park many times, and was a visitor to Love Street many times before that, and never came close to experiencing or witnessing anything that can really be described as serious victimisation of football fans. Of course, there may have been the odd steward or match commander who had his own muscles to flex, annoying a few football fans in the process, but it was not a stadium that boasted a reputation for being a scene of police harassment.

So what about who we’re talking about? The Motherwell support itself, unlike St. Mirren Park, has forged a reputation for itself – or at least a particular section has: the ‘Bois’ have developed a reputation for bringing noise, colour and energy back into lifeless football stadiums and spending ninety minutes backing the claret and amber side. Of course, let’s not pretend like we’re discussing a group of perfect angels here – not only do I sit in the same section as them at home games but I also know many of them personally and it should be no surprise that, just like in any group of individuals, there are a small percentage perhaps more inclined to answer back when challenged, get up to mischief, or refuse to respect authority. However, I also know for a fact that the main priority, far and above any other, is to simply support Motherwell for the entire match, causing no threat to anyone else. The level of self-policing within the group also has to be acknowledged and appreciated.

Lastly, it must be recognised that, occasionally, one or two individuals who attach themselves to this group have set off smoke bombs – a clear disregard of stadium rules. Putting personal opinions on these items aside, if we accept that setting off a smoke bomb is illegal then we surely must also accept that the authorities then have the right to either eject or arrest the culprit.

The Match

And so, on Saturday afternoon, myself and a few friends entered St. Mirren Park and, after being talked to like children by a steward for having the cheek to spend longer than 20 seconds looking for spare seats in the same section as the ‘Bois’, we took up our position in that section, about four rows from the back – a perfect vantage point for surveying what was to unfold.

Early on, we noticed the high number of stewards sent in to watch over our section – but this was nothing new. A group of energetic fans enjoying themselves at the football always seems to make those responsible for security at matches rather nervous. And then, it happened – someone let off a smoke bomb. This occurred not far from our position – not only was it perfectly clear to all the stewards, watching the Motherwell support, exactly where the incident had occurred but the smoke bomb itself was dealt with quickly and efficiently, with everyone simply going back to enjoying the game.

At this point, however, we witnessed the first surprise. Three undercover police officers, in rather poor disguises of t-shirts worn over full stab-proof, police-issue body armour, were suddenly evident amongst the stewards watching the Motherwell fans, almost certainly moving from their original positions within the away support. This was followed by a steady stream of police filtering into the ground, very quickly resulting in police numbers that had to be seen to be believed.

And then it happened again. A second smoke bomb. From exactly the same place as the first. Once again, this was dealt with quickly and efficiently. But this second incident remains important. When it is considered that modern football stadiums have CCTV cameras pointed at the crowd, allied to the fact that, by this point, dozens of police officers and stewards were standing staring straight up at where the incident occurred, it can be safely assumed that the individual(s) responsible for the smoke bombs could be dealt with almost immediately. An illegal offence had been committed and, had the police response been a sensible and acceptable one, no one could have argued. This did not occur.

What did occur was shameful. As police numbers continued to grow – presumably leaving the entire town of Paisley as a free-for-all for real criminals – it soon became evident that things were taking a turn for the worse – and not because of football supporters. Suddenly, the fans who were responsible for nothing more than spending most of the game singing Motherwell songs, were being bullied and intimidated. As things escalated, suddenly it was the younger supporters who were targeted for man-handling and body-searches, with any supporter of an adult age threatened with arrest should they speak out (with some being issued with on-the-spot fines for having the audacity not to suffer in silence). While supporters filmed events, argued their case, or stared in disbelief, disorder was being created by the very people employed to prevent it – with the main victims being those of a young age. Supporters were grabbed, pulled and pushed, hassled and intimidated in scenes more akin to news reports of riots. If this wasn’t disgraceful enough, as the full-time whistle neared, the police moved into position – surrounding the entire end section in a threatening stance, presumably to pin every supporter in. When it became evident that the alarmingly large numbers of officers were still not enough to successfully surround the entire area, it was the section with the lowest average age that was ‘kettled’ (which did not include the area where the smoke bombs had been set off).

With the match over, this group of supporters – where, again, no smoke bombs had been set off and whose only particular crime had been to support their side and be bullied by police officers – was surrounded, intimidated and kept in the stadium, as the rest of us filtered out of the ground. Given the young age of many of them, it was no surprise parents attempted to seek out their children – only to be threatened with arrest and then removed from the stadium.

Post-Match

Unsurprisingly, the events within the ground became more of a talking point than the match itself, both in conversation and on social media. This resulted in both positive and negative responses from supporters of other football clubs. On the one hand, many fans backed the Motherwell support, denouncing the shocking behaviour of the police. This point of view was welcomed. Given I had witnessed the ridiculous antics of the police, which was the result of very little wrongdoing by those punished, it was the reaction I would hope for.

However, there were those who, perhaps understandably considering the nature of football, took the chance to belittle their rivals. Some looked at the photos of police surrounding the particular section kept back after the game, mistakenly thought it was the entire support, and took the chance to claim that there had been more police than Motherwell supporters. This is, in my opinion, typical football banter. Others, however decided that, since someone had set off a smoke bomb, the police were justified in their response. This is not football banter. This is a dangerous viewpoint. Dangerous because it suggests that the reckless actions of one individual can be used as justification for any subsequent action from the authorities, regardless of how heavy-handed (even if that one individual could be dealt with effectively). If this is to be the case, where should the line be drawn? If the entire Motherwell support had been kept in the stadium post-match, would that be acceptable? If supporters were arrested at random to ‘make a point’, would that be acceptable? What about police brutality? Are the police justified to behave in any way they see fit because someone set off a smoke bomb? If the answer to that question is yes, then that is both a ludicrous and frightening situation we find ourselves in.

The police themselves were next to have their say. On Monday, the Strathclyde Police Facebook page posted the following comment:

St Mirren v Motherwell – Sat 14 September

We’ve received a number of comments on social media regarding policing at the above match.

Chief Superintendent Alan Speirs: “We responded to a report of flares and smoke bombs being let off at St Mirren Park which subsequently resulted in the arrest of two people. A further two arrests were made in respect of disorder within the stadium. The use of both flares and smoke bombs pose a significant risk to spectators and those staff working within the football stadium.

“Police Scotland continues to appeal to all football fans across Scotland not to take smoke bombs or flares into football matches because of the real dangers they pose.

“As always, we are conducting a review of the police deployment in response to those incidents at St Mirren Park, and we’d like to reassure the public that our priority is to keep people safe – which was our main motivation on Saturday.”.

Now, a few points regarding this. Firstly, there were no flares let off at St. Mirren Park. This is a fact – smoke bombs were let off in the exact same place during the match, but there were no flares. It’s also important to recognise that the ‘disorder within the stadium’ was undoubtedly and undeniably a result of the behaviour of the police. Again, this a fact. And then there is both the defensive tone of this post and the very fact that the police felt the need to issue it in the first place – both these elements also tell a story.

Unsurprisingly, there was also a press response to the events. The Scott Burns report in the Express mentioned the smoke bombs and also remarked that Motherwell fans had ‘allegedly, threw coins’. Like the mentions of flares in the police statement, this was also completely incorrect – perhaps highlighting why the word ‘allegedly’ had been inserted. At one point during the game, referee Craig Thomson removed a few small, dark-coloured, cardboard items from the pitch area nearest the ‘Bois’ – the remains of the likes of till rolls and ripped up paper thrown into the air by the Motherwell support at the beginning of the match. These were not thrown at anyone, nor did Thomson feel the need to discuss the items with any police officer present. It’s also worth identifying that in a newspaper article discussing trouble within a football stadium, Burns makes it clear that ‘many in the Well support were unhappy with the heavy-handed stewarding and policing throughout the game’. We’ve all read reports of football fans causing trouble – the press response is always scathing and quick to paint those responsible as animals. The press response to Saturday, however, was clearly far more cautious, careful to stress the idea of heavy-handed antics by those in charge.

So there we have it. The evidence is damning. The subject of smoke bombs being let off has been used, not only by rival fans on social media sites, but by the police themselves to justify their behaviour. And yet, two questions remain unanswered:

1. Given those responsible for the smoke bombs could have been identified and dealt with very quickly and easily, with minimal hassle, why was the actual reaction one of intimidation and victimisation of a number of young football fans?

2. Why was the section eventually targeted for man-handling, body-searches and ‘kettling’ one which did not include any smoke bombs being set off?

What next?

So what’s the result of these events? Well, the main result is that there are a lot of angry football supporters, and not just those who support Motherwell. Those who were victimised and harassed by the police are understandably left shocked and outraged, as are those of us who were there to witness the despicable behaviour by those we trust to protect us. There are also many football fans across Scotland and beyond who have been quick to back those penalised and express disgust and dismay at what occurred.

Is this enough though? Those who weren’t there may dismiss it as over-dramatics – but those who were, know that this was simply unacceptable. If we as football fans are prepared to shrug our shoulders and accept that the police can treat our fellow supporters in this way, then we are leaving ourselves collectively vulnerable. Which team’s fans will be next? And who says next time those fans will show as much restraint as the Motherwell supporters did on Saturday? If we justify police harassment, how long is it before a full-scale riot occurs or before someone is seriously injured in a melee ignited by heavy-handed policing?

If other football fans are content to dismiss these events or even use them as ammunition when having a dig at Motherwell supporters, then so be it. But Saturday proved that the police are capable of victimising football fans who have done no wrong to a disturbing level and, therefore, we must assume that it could happen to any of us, following any team, within any stadium.

When those in authority blatantly and deliberately overstep the line of acceptability, they need to be challenged.

If we fail to do so, the line itself moves.

Heavy Hands, Empty Stands.

– Jason Henderson (18/09/13)

UPDATE

Following the events described above, I felt I should make a formal complaint to Police Scotland. I was skeptical regarding what good it would do but at the very least, I couldn’t be accused of writing this article without making attempts to take it further.

After speaking to a Chief Inspector on the telephone, and recalling everything detailed above, I got a genuine sense that this was something he wasn’t happy about and was keen to remedy. I was told that a full investigation was taking place as this was something that a lot of people “clearly weren’t very happy about”. This was welcoming news.

And so this morning, a Police Inspector arrived at my house for a pre-arranged meeting. I was expecting to give a full written statement, sign one or two documents to confirm I was being truthful and that would be that. However, I was pleasantly surprised.

It was actually a very interesting conversation with an inspector who was very open and honest about the situation, and knowledgeable about football itself. I was told that, basically, the police acknowledge a large amount of responsibility for the events at St. Mirren Park, describing the tactics used as “regrettable”, and recognise that, had the issue been dealt with properly early on, none of it would have happened. All officers involved have been spoken to and new guidelines have been issued. There are also no plans to allocate any extra policing to future Motherwell games on account of the events – it was recognised that the ‘Well fans in question are there to create atmosphere and, the few that overstep the mark aside, should not be treated like they’re going to cause trouble. There was also a discussion about the poor standard of stewarding at football games, which was agreed upon on both sides, and it was acknowledged that stewards have a tendency to “light the paper, then stand back”. I made the point that more progressive communication (rather than simply stating orders) between fans, clubs AND the police is essential, rather than the current “us versus them” situation that benefits no-one – a point that was acknowledged.

All this, of course, doesn’t excuse the antics of the police officers involved but, given my main priority in complaining was to make sure it’s acknowledged by the police, I’m still content with the chat.

All in all, it seemed a worthwhile discussion and, from what I was told, lessons have been learnt by the police.

The cynics will suggest it’s just chat, but I’ll reserve judgement until I see how our fans are treated in the future…

– Jason Henderson (03/10/13)

FINAL UPDATE

This week, I received a letter from the police officer who came to discuss my complaint. It was, of course, a letter sent as it no doubt the final bit of paperwork they need to accomplish before closing the complaint file – but it was still of interest, as it confirmed in writing what I had been told during the complaint interview (the word “not” was missed out in the second paragraph accidentally… at least I assume so!)…

Dear Mr Henderson,

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to come out and discuss your complaint in relation to the St Mirren v Motherwell football fixture played at St Mirren Park on Saturday 14th September 2013.

As I explained to you the tactics deployed by the police officers called to the game were regrettable. As a result a review of all police free football games we host in the Division was undertaken. The key lessons learned from this review will ensure that a similar situation does (not) arise in the future.

The Divisional Commander has held meetings with St Mirren and Motherwell Football Clubs and an extensive debrief was carried out with the supervisors on duty that day. Discussion centred on the stewarding and policing of the match and has led to several changes being made in the way we will police forthcoming games.

I trust that my explanation addressed your complaints in relation to the game and reassure you that, should a similar situation arise, it would be dealt with differently.

Should you wish to discuss anything else in relation to the fixture please feel free to contact me.

– Jason Henderson (05/12/2013)