Season 01/02 - January

Coventry: Hooligans Sentenced - 09/01/2002

Source : CCFC news

Twelve Coventry City fans were sentenced yesterday after pleading guilty to causing disorder at City games.
The twelve men, described as the 'hard core' of a group known locally as The Legion, had pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to committing affray or public order offences before or after various Coventry City games during the last three months of 2000.

At Coventry Crown Court yesterday nine of the men received jail sentences, the longest being for 12 months. The three others were given 200 hours of community punishment. One of the jail sentences was suspended for a year.

Eleven of the men were were banned from all football games in Britain and abroad for up to six years.

The incidents took place before and after Coventry's home matches against Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City in 2000.

All the men are from Coventry and Rugby.

West Midlands Police, as part of their Operation Freetime, studied over 150 hours of video footage to pinpoint the troublemakers.

Judge Patrick Eccles presiding in the case was shown footage taken by the police after the game against Manchester United on 4 November 2000. An incident flared up outside the Beer Engine pub in Far Gosford Street as Manchester United fans were being escorted back to the railway station by police.

In a separate development West Midlands Police, working in conjunction with Hampshire Police, have launched a poster campaign to help them catch 35 suspected football hooligans.

This relates to a violent confrontation at a match between Coventry City and Portsmouth on 22 September 2001.

A number of people were arrested and charged with violent disorder at the time, but many others were not caught.

Police have therefore launched Operation Rama in a bid to track down the suspected trouble makers. Posters will be appearing around Coventry and Portsmouth showing photos of the men the police would like to question.

The 35 men police are looking for are believed to come from Southampton, the Isle of Wight and Portsmouth as well as from the West Midlands.

Stoke City - Everton FC - 05/01/2002

Source: BBC

Some 500 Stoke supporters and 100 Everton fans intent on disorder attended this match. But whilst there was trouble at the train station after the game, the heavy police presence prevented any escalation. One Everton fan spent four days in hospital after being bitten by a police dog. He was later charged with a public order offence.

Liverpool FC - Birmingham City - 05/01/2002

Source: BBC

An organised fight between rival hooligans took place at the Lord Warden Pub in Liverpool Town Centre. Bottles, ashtrays, bar stools and pool balls were used as weapons as the terrified bar staff and customers dived for cover.

Aston Villa - Manchester United - 06/01/2002

Source: BBC

Police made 30 arrests at a game which saw a number of Manchester fans invade the pitch. After the match hooligans reportedly fought pitched battles in the streets outside the ground.

Cardiff City - Leeds United - Cup - 06/01/2002

Source: BBC

Around 200 Leeds hooligans travelled by coach to Hereford, where they boarded a train to Cardiff. They were escorted to the ground. A small group of Cardiff attempted to ambush them on Sloper Road, but were easily pushed back by the police. Leeds hooligans racially abused Asian families on the way to the ground. Outside the ground the Leeds escort was pelted with missiles. During the match missiles were thrown at Leeds fans, who returned many of them. At full time Cardiff fans invaded the pitch and were prevented from attacking the Leeds supporters by riot police and dogs.

Chelsea FC - Tottenham Hotspurs - 09/01/2002

Source: BBC

One man was stabbed in a fight between rival hooligans outside West Kensington tube station. A small group of Tottenham also attacked Chelsea fans at Victoria Station. Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink was hit by a coin in the ground. A bottle was also thrown at Les Ferdinand.

Millwall FC - Birmingham City - 10/01/2002

Source: BBC

A half eaten pie was thrown at a linesman by Millwall fan.

Sheffield Wednesday - Crewe Alexandra - 15/01/2002

Source: BBC

A football steward was kicked unconscious outside the stadium as he returned to his car.

Fulham - Wycombe Wanderers - 15/01/2002

Source: BBC

Fulham forward Louis Saha was pelted with coins by Wycombe fans as he walked from the pitch.

Oxford United - Swindon Town - 19/01/2002

Source: BBC

Oxford United supporters clashed with a group from Swindon on Saturday evening at Banbury Railway Station. About 20 Oxford, returning from the club’s away match at Rochdale, stopped off at the station. Minutes later there was a confrontation at Bridge Street with a group of Swindon supporters on their way back from a fixture in Peterborough. Local youths also joined in. There were no arrests.

Trabzonspor - Besiktas Istanbul - 20/01/2002

Source: Reuters

Rioting supporters forced the referee to abandon Sunday's Turkish super league match between Trabzonspor and Besiktas in the 85th minute as an angry crowd in the Black Sea town of Trabzon threw debris onto the pitch. Istanbul side Besiktas led 5-0 when Trabzonspor fans lit small fires in the stands and called for the club's management to resign. The referee called off the match 20 minutes later after police in riot gear were unable to subdue the crowd. Turkey's soccer federation will decide the game's outcome at a meeting next week, the state-run Anatolian news agency said. Earlier, police seized stones, sticks, knives and swords from Besiktas supporters travelling on buses outside Trabzon, Anatolian said. Violence has broken out in the past at Turkish soccer matches, and police have confiscated knives outside stadia. Two Leeds United fans were stabbed to death ahead of a UEFA Cup match against Galatasaray in Istanbul in April 2000.

Trabzonspor face sanctions over riot - 21/01/2002

Source: Reuters

Trabzonspor are likely to face sanctions after a Turkish super league match was abandoned when rioting fans tore up and burned seating, officials said on Monday.
The referee called off Sunday night's game as shards of plastic seating rained onto the pitch and small fires were lit in the tribunes by fans calling for the management to resign. Four people, one of them a policeman, were injured in the violence which broke out after visiting Besiktas scored their fifth goal in the 83rd minute. 'Around 6,000 chairs in the stands were broken...Based on the price per seat that means around 60 billion lira (some $45,100) in damage,' Yusuf Yayli, manager of Trabzon's Avni Aker stadium, told the Anatolian news agency. Football federation officials said they would discuss possible sanctions for the club when the board meets this week to adjudicate on the official result of the league game. 'The Trabzon spectators couldn't stomach a fifth goal. After that their patience snapped,' Trabzon official Sinan Engin said after the game. Trabzonspor, traditionally a power in Turkey, are ninth in the 18-team league and 17 points behind leaders Galatasaray. Police kept the Besiktas squad in the stadium for an hour on Sunday night before they allowed them to depart for the journey back to Istanbul, newspapers said. The federation kicked off this season with a nationwide poster campaign warning fans against the hooliganism that has plagued Turkish domestic soccer in recent years. Two Leeds United fans were stabbed to death in Istanbul before a UEFA Cup match in April 2000. Domestic matches are heavily policed and officers confiscate knives and other weapons outside stadia. Turkey have qualified for the World Cup finals in South Korea and Japan this year but an economic crisis may make it difficult for fans to make the journey. Violence is almost always connected with domestic soccer, which commands more fanaticism than the national team. The federation has already punished some clubs this season by forcing them to play behind closed doors if they cannot control fans. Yayli said gate revenue from Sunday's match for Trabzonspor had been around 85 billion lira or some $64,000.

Chelsea FC - West Ham - 26/01/2002

Source: BBC

About 200 West Ham fans drinking in two pubs at Putney Bridge station tried to break away from their police escort and a stand-off ensued. The group was eventually marched to Fulham Broadway tube station where they again tried to break through the police line. After the match the West Ham group tried to confront the Chelsea hooligans on the Kings Road. Graeme Le Saux was hit by a coin in the ground.

Millwall FC - Blackburn Rovers - 26/01/2002

Source: BBC

A car clamper van targeted a line of Millwall supporters cars after being employed by a private local estate. When the fans returned to their vehicles the mood turned ugly and the police were called. The clamper’s own vehicle was overturned and fans’ cars were released without fines being imposed. Police describe the clamper as either the "bravest or most stupid man alive".

Arsenal FC - Liverpool FC - 27/01/2002

Source: BBC

An Arsenal fan threw a coin at Jamie Carragher, who promptly threw it back into the crowd, hitting a woman supporter.

Bolton Wanderers - Manchester United - 29/01/2002

Source: BBC + Press

A tense stand-off developed in Bolton town centre before the match. More than 40 Manchester United fans gathered in Corks Pub while Bolton supporters packed into Yates Wine Lodge across the road. 60 police officers in riot gear blocked off the road and used eight police vans to form a cordon down the middle of the road. Two of Corks’ windows were smashed and bottles and glasses were thrown as the hooligan groups tried to get at each other. There were 20 arrests and 20 more fans were ejected from the Reebok stadium during the game.

Turkey's Trabzonspor punished for rioting fans - 29/01/2002

Source: Reuters

Trabzonspor must pay a fine and play their next two home games at a neutral venue as punishment for rioting fans, Turkey's Football Federation said on Tuesday. The club must pay a 2.5 billion lira (£1,340) fine following riots at a Turkish super league match at home to Besiktas on January 20 which led to injuries to four people and the game being abandoned. When Besiktas scored their fifth goal in the 85th minute of a 5-0 rout at the Black Sea club's ground shards of plastic seating rained onto the pitch and small fires were lit in the stands. Four people were injured and the match officials were led off the pitch under a tunnel of police riot squad shields. Around 6,000 chairs in the stands were broken at a cost of about £31,800, Trabzonspor officials said. The Turkisk federation later awarded Besiktas the 5-0 victory. Turkish soccer matches have been marred by violence in the past and police often confiscate knives and other weapons outside grounds. In April 2000, two Leeds United fans were stabbed to death ahead of a UEFA Cup match against Galatasaray in Istanbul. There have been no convictions for the murders.

NAC Breda - Beerschot - Friendly game - 06/01/2002

Source: Soccer Fans

SOURCE : G. Beerschot

For this game everyone had to travel by bus due to security reasons.
There were 7 busses, carrying about 400 fans, 70-80 lads, 10 Groningers and 4-5 lads from Sint-Truiden.
When we arrived everything seemed quiet until someone attacked a steward and managed to force a gate. The Beerschot mob charged and most locals (who were waiting for us) made a run while some of them took a beating. Some of our lads took some punches/belts too. Because there was still no police present, we charged them again until the middle of the square (outside stand C). A first toe to toe occured where stewards made a useless effort to calm down the situation. The Beerschot mob charged and for the third time they ran. Some Breda/Lokeren hools stood their ground and received a beating. Which can only be respected. The remaining Breda hools who were standing in the back, started to throw iron bars and other stuff.with no result. There was nothing more to do so our mob decided that it was time to go back. By this time (about 15 minutes after the first clash) there were about 10 policemen (without riotgear) who could do nothing else but watch us as we passed them and entered the stade.
The game itself was nothing special, a lot of chanting and some provocations from both sides buth nothing serious.
Outside the stade after the game, all exits were closed.
One gate was closed and had some M.E. (Dutch riotpolice) standing in front of it,
the other exit was blocked by a couple of busses BUT the last exit was an unprotected gate
(leading to the ground outside the G stand). Everyone was still in the mood and started to yell at the NAC'ers.
Breda went through the first gate and approached the second gate which separated them from us. They started to hurl bottles and rocks over the fence. But we forced the gate and made a charge! We chased them back to their ground. But M.E. rushed in, closed the gate and escorted us back to our busses.
One fine day in Breda and no arrests.

Aberdeen - Glasgow Rangers - 19/01/2002

Source: Scotland of Sunday

Riot police at Pittodrie as fans disrupt game

THE Scottish Premier League game between Aberdeen and Rangers had to be abandoned for 20 minutes yesterday after a player was repeatedly struck by coins thrown from the Rangers end.

The incident began when Aberdeen striker Robbie Winters came under fire while trying to take a corner 25 minutes into the game. Moments later, Winters came under attack for a second time and was struck on the back of the head.

A group of around 30 Aberdeen fans then spilled on to the track around the pitch and ran towards the Rangers section. Fighting broke out as police officers battled to prevent the two sets of fans meeting.

The game was stopped by the referee, and police in riot gear were deployed to restore order.

SPL chief executive Roger Mitchell said: "Despite the efforts of police, security staff and club officials, a mindless minority of morons engaged in behaviour which will sicken any true football fan." Future fixtures between the two sides may have to kick-off early to avoid trouble, he said.

Kaiserslautern - FC Basel - 19/01/2002

Source : Joggeli.ch

Sky Blue Hooligans Jailed - 09/01/2002

Source: Coventry Evening Telegraph

A HARD core gang of football hooligans was today behind bars after waging a terrifying campaign of violence in Coventry. Police said it meant the end of organised trouble at Coventry City games and would make it safer for families to enjoy football. The 12 men all pleaded guilty at Coventry Crown Court to offences including affray and public order following ugly scenes in city streets and at Highfield Road at three matches between October and December Nine men were given jail sentences and the other three were given community punishment. All but one of them were banned from all soccer games in the UK and abroad for up to six years. NINE men were today starting jail sentences for hooliganism at Coventry City home games. The men, from Coventry and Rugby, were sentenced to between four and 12 months imprisonment following violence at home matches against Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City in 2000. One sentence was suspended for a year. Another defendant ****** ******, aged 29, of ********* ****, had his four-month prison sentence suspended until Friday after his wife gave birth yesterday. Three other Coventry City fans were given 200 hours community punishment for their parts in the city centre skirmishes. All 12 men pleaded guilty at Coventry Crown Court to either affray or public order offences and 11 of them were banned from attending all football matches in the UK and overseas for up to six years. *********** *******, aged 27, of ******** *****, escaped the ban. Sentencing, Judge Patrick Eccles said: “If groups of you fight or threaten to fight the away supporters to the extent that people are put in fear, you must expect the prison gates to close behind you.” The men taunted, jeered and provoked fans from opposing teams into violence. The court heard that on October 14, 2000, a group of Tottenham Hotspur fans were making their way along Sky Blue Way following a match at Highfield Road when a confrontation erupted.Judge Patrick Eccles said: “I am satisfied that there was a mutual intention to provoke a confrontation which, if not stopped by the police, would have led to fighting. “Two men had bottles which I believe had no use except to be used as missiles. Only the intervention of the police prevented more violence occurring.”

On November 4, 2000, prior to a match against Manchester United, a group of away supporters entered the Beer Engine pub, in Far Gosford Street, which is commonly frequented by City fans. Judge Eccles told the court: “Unhappily, the presence of the fans inside the Beer Engine was treated as a provocation and a cause for confrontation.“One person was knocked to the ground and a surge of young men knocked over a pool table. “The hostility and aggression would have been enough to frighten any member of the public.” And five weeks later, when Coventry City was playing Leicester, another affray broke out at the entrance of Highfield Road stadium. The police resorted to using batons and shields to prevent the two parties launching at one another. Judge Eccles said: “Missiles were hurled and a hot dog was thrown by one of the Coventry City fans.” He added: “A number of you describe mutual taunting and banter as part of the context of going to a football match. “I disagree. There is a world of difference between the good nature of fans and behaviour which constitutes affray.” And before doling out the sentences to the dozen Sky Blues fans, Judge Eccles said: “None of you engaged directly in fighting. You are mature young men who are conscious of the shame you have brought upon yourselves, your family and the club. “You have a stake in the community and it is difficult to understand how any of you could be involved in football hooliganism.” ******* *******, whose four-month prison sentence was suspended for 12 months because his daughter suffers from diabetes, claimed the law was “a disgrace”. *******, of Willenhall, who pleaded guilty to affray at a match between Leicester City and Sky Blues in December 2000, said: “There was not one punch thrown. A hot dog was chucked after a match.” Trouble flared, with 200 to 300 people fighting a running battle in Jordan Well, in the city centre. “They ran us ragged, to be quite honest; we simply did not have enough officers to try to contain the problem. “When you are talking about 300 of them, even arresting 10 people is going to tie up half of your crew, which could put other officers and the public in danger. “It was then we realised hooliganism was on the up again, and that we needed to do something about it.” After raising the issue with Supt Sheasby, the officers were given approval to launch Operation Freetime on October 14, 2000, when Coventry played Tottenham Hotspur. Their aim was to collate as much video evidence of any trouble before and after home games to pick out the hard-core element of Coventry hooligans, who call themselves “The Legion.” Marked police vans and uniformed officers filmed violence at three matches - the Tottenham game, a Manchester United game on November 4 and a Leicester City match on December 10. It included footage of bottles being hurled as missiles at opposing gangs, ugly scenes of crowds chanting abuse at each other and running battles in city centre streets. One innocent Manchester United fan suffered a serious wound to his leg when he got caught in the path of a flying bottle. The voice of another terrified child screaming ‘Dad!’ can be heard on more footage shot during a brawl outside the Thackhall Street entrance to the club just before the

PC Tony Sewell, who filmed incidents at the Tottenham game with a hand-held camera, admits to fearing for his safety when he was separated from his colleagues in the middle of one pitched battle. “I had to stand pressed against a wall while it went on around me. If I was frightened, the average member of the public being caught up in that would have been terrified.”

The team were left with roughly 150 hours of video evidence.

They used undercover “spotters” to help identify the key offenders.

Coventry: Court's Decision Welcomed - 09/01/2002

Source: Coventry Evening Telegraph

POLICE and officials from Coventry City Football Club yesterday welcomed the sentences passed down on the 12, saying it spells the end of a "hard-core" edge of hooliganism in the city. Supt Mark Sheasby said yesterday's result came after months of police work to try to address rising levels of violence at Coventry City matches. He added: "We are very confident that, for the time being, we have dealt with that problem and since we arrested these men there has been very little in the way of organised football violence in Coventry. "What we hope now is that the message will go out to other people intent on spoiling football for the real supporters - we have the means to gather intelligence and evidence to arrest offenders and take them to court." Bob Rankin, the club's head of security, paid tribute to the work of the police, and said the club had backed the operation "100 per cent". And he said this week letters had been sent to all 12 men informing them they would be banned from Coventry City matches "indefinitely". He said: "We don't want them at Highfield Road - they are not true supporters and just use football as a vehicle for their hooliganism and criminal activities. That tarnishes our image as a club."

Scotland: The curse of the casuals - 28/01/2002

Source: http://thescotsman.scotsman.com


Aberdeen fans storm onto the pitch unchallenged during the Aberdeen vs Rangers game in the Scottish Premier League on Saturday, 19 January 2002. They walked towards a group of Rangers fans who had thrown coins at Aberdeen players. The violence shocked many who believed football thuggery was a thing of the past.



‘Aberdeen are f*** all," snorts Alec as he mops up the spillage from his pint with an already sodden beer mat. "Not even worth talking about on the bus home, it was the media who blew it out of proportion. You should’ve seen it after the game, that’s when it really kicked off, but nobody wrote about that. Just because it’s on TV and in a stadium it makes it a national issue. It’s been happening for years."

We’re sitting in the Nile pub in Glasgow city centre. "This used to be a real Rangers pub," says Alec. "All the players drank here, now it’s all chrome and shopping bags. We just meet here for old times’ sake and because it’s close to the train station and we can ‘meet’ the other fans when they come in."

Alec is agitated, he’s only speaking to me because we have a vague friend in common and I’m buying the drinks. He’s supposed to be telling me why the media aren’t even scratching the surface of football hooliganism in Scotland, but he’s more worried about the Hibs boys who will shortly arrive in town for the Scottish Cup tie.

Behind me, at the far end of the bar, Alec’s mates are huddled together, perched awkwardly on dinky metal stools, huge hands clutching their expensive mobile phones. Nobody is wearing colours. Strips and scarves have been replaced by over-sized Stone Island jackets, loafers and Armani cords. They are not the clothes of the dispossessed; instead they emanate an understated, smart confidence. But the labels and the look are a uniform of sorts. This is the classic outfit of the football casual and, according to Alec, the hooligan’s reign is far from over.

"Look, you can always find trouble at games, you just need to know where to look for it. Everyone was saying Chelsea had a big crew up for the Aberdeen game, that’s why the trouble started, but we don’t need the English to start a fight in our own back yard. We’re capable of doing that on our own. We do it often enough against Hibs and Hearts. I know a lot of Chelsea boys from my time in London and there were a few at Pittodrie, but not enough to start a riot. We have a good relationship with the Headhunters but they only come up big style for the Celtic games so they can give it ‘No surrender to the IRA’. If you ask me the media were just looking to blame the English - as if Scots aren’t capable of starting a fight."

Alec is by no means a criminal mastermind but like hundreds of other football supporters in Scotland he would fall into the most serious, Category C definition of football offenders on the computerised list compiled by the Football Unit of the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS).

But like most Scottish football hooligans, Alec isn’t even on the police radar. His closest shave with the law came after a Rangers/PSV Eindhoven tie in 1999 when he was locked up for the night and released the next day.

As a Rangers season ticket holder Alec has kicked and spat and slashed for his club all over Europe. Money’s not short and he goes to all the away games in Scotland and on the continent. The only real difference is these days they drive to the away games, the trains are too unreliable, and driving allows them to break a few heads at service stations on the way.

Think of football hooligans and most people picture tattooed English yobs rampaging through bustling squares in Europe sending tables flying and shouting hate-filled slogans. But our beloved Tartan Army is not squeaky clean. We may choose to ignore it, but there has been a fair number of ugly incidents involving Scotland supporters.

In Amsterdam last year, before a Champions League play-off, a Celtic fan was shot after a bar-room brawl that provoked a litany of street violence between rival fans all over the Dutch city.

During Scotland’s Euro 2000 play-off against England more than 200 fans of both nationalities were arrested after running street battles in Glasgow.

The spectre of sectarianism also haunts the game. In 1996 Jason Campbell was sentenced to life for the murder of Mark Scott, 16, a Celtic fan whose throat was slit in a random attack.

Indeed records of bloody and violent rampages involving Celtic and Rangers supporters go back as far as the 1908-09 season, when the Scottish Cup was withheld from both teams after two draws and a riot. It was reported that the pitch at Hampden on April 17, 1909, resembled a miniature battlefield after both sets of supporters invaded it.

In the 1970s and 80s, violence between fans of both teams was even more commonplace and a pitch battle between thousands of fans at the 1980 Scottish Cup Final at Hampden led to a clause in the Criminal Justice Act banning alcohol from grounds.

Over the past five years the decline of football hooliganism in the UK has been the subject of many theories: it was the trauma of the Hillsborough disaster, some say, or the widespread use of ecstasy, or the gentrification of the game. If not that, it’s down to Nick Hornby. The truth is the urge to scrap with another football mob hasn’t been entirely removed from the football fan’s psyche. The police, however, have become better at stopping it.

Since the late 1980s and the advent of all-seater stadia, CCTV cameras and improved crowd control, violence between rival gangs inside football grounds has certainly become unusual. Now, fighting is more likely to break out in train stations, motorway services, pubs and city centres. Every Saturday, up and down the country, the two camps - hooligans and police - are busy planning what has become a cat-and-mouse game. Figures on football hooliganism released last year by the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) actually show a slight increase in football-related violence across Britain and back up the fact that real hardcore hooligans are more likely to cause bother at service stations and railway platforms than stadia. In fact, according to NCIS, almost 85 per cent of all football-related violence took place away from grounds last season.

With closed-circuit television cameras and police in most grounds, more organisation now goes into arranging confrontations between rival gangs - over the internet or by mobile phone - and more often than not the hooligans win the game of cat and mouse.

"CCTV is our biggest enemy," claims Alec. "It’s not difficult for the cops to stand up a GBH or affray charge when they have you jumping on someone’s head on camera. You just work around it, you hit them at service station lay-bys, in pubs. No wonder arrests at grounds are down, you’d have to be pissed or stupid to try anything."

NCIS also claims hooligan gangs are more likely to be smaller than those in the 1970s and 1980s but more committed to violence. Bryan Drew, head of specialist intelligence at NCIS, says: "There’s a nasty, ugly and anti-social element in society that clings to football and just won’t give up. Violence is no longer characterised by the mass terrace affrays and running street battles that we saw in the 70s and 80s. But, like other infections, new strains of football hooliganism are developing that are clever, resilient and increasingly resistant."

NCIS claims many hooligans north and south of the Border are also acting as fronts for other types of organised crime, such as credit card fraud and drug dealing.

The close links between Chelsea and Rangers give football casuals a convenient network of contacts and drug dealing between the two is not uncommon. Through Rangers casuals, the Londoners have an enthusiastic market for their cocaine and ecstasy in Scotland.

The real question is, if NCIS are investigating criminal links between the Chelsea Headhunters and Rangers casuals, what is their strategy for curbing violence north of the Border?

The use of new legislation such as football banning orders, preventing known or suspected troublemakers from travelling to grounds, may help the English but few Scots fans have been served with banning orders despite widespread violence at recent Rangers and Celtic games on the continent. The police also claim their job is being made much harder by the varied kick-off times, scheduled to allow matches to be televised. The move towards midweek games has made policing fans problematic. In an effort to combat this problem, representatives of the Association of Chief Police Constables have been holding talks with football officials to get them to make a greater contribution towards policing costs of matches. Under existing rules, clubs only pay for police that are used in and around stadia. However, they are not liable for paying officers patrolling town centres, railway stations or motorway services where most of the trouble now occurs.

Peter Hilton, chief superintendent of the British Transport police, recently said: "Different kick-off times throughout the week have made policing operations more costly and challenging. Football is no longer about 3pm kick-offs on Saturday afternoons. Television is dictating kick-off times and fans are taking days off in the week, having a drink all day and then travelling to matches. Much of the trouble is away from stadia so we need more resources from football, which is making money from television." The Lothian and Borders Police antihooliganism initiative, Operation Turfed Out, recently saw officers tackling drink-related violence outside Tynecastle, Easter Road and Almondvale - as well as cracking down on supporters travelling to matches by train and bus. But ask fans of any of these clubs to tell you if it stopped the violence between the rival fans and they will simply laugh at you.

The trouble at Aberdeen, although relatively small-scale compared to the recent trouble south of the Border, clearly gave the police a fright. According to one Strathclyde Police detective, concerns are high that the casuals are making an unwelcome comeback. He says: "We are detecting more incidents around the grounds and that gives us real concerns for big matches like the Old Firm derbies. I don’t think we can afford to be complacent as history tells us violent incidents between football fans can spill over into real tragedy. With football more of a family game than ever it’s only a matter of time before real innocents get caught up in the trouble."

Sheffield Wednesday - Blackburn Rovers - FA Cup - 22/01/2002

Source : Press

PSV Eindhoven vs Glasgow Rangers: Scum who shamed whole of Scotland - 09/01/2002

Source : http://www.thefreelibrary.com/

SCOTS thugs masquerading as football fans brought shame on their country yesterday when they were sent to a Dutch jail for rioting.

The hooligans - some with links to fascist group Combat 18 - travelled to Holland 12 days ago to use the Rangers v Eindhoven match as an excuse to wreak havoc.

Many of them do not even support Rangers.

Nineteen Scots were seized in a joint-operation between football intelligence officers from Strathclyde Police and the Dutch authorities.

Last night 17 of them were thrown into jail.

The Daily Record can reveal that two of the thugs, James "Fat" McLeod and Warren Bennet were the same scum who masterminded the plan to bring violence to Scotland's World Cup Campaign during France 98.

McLeod, a Hibs fan and BNP member Bennet led a crew of hooligans into four separate pitched battles against 200 Eindhoven fans outside the Philips Stadium after Rangers' 1-0 victory on September 28.

Innocent Rangers and Eindhoven fans were dragged to the ground as the crazed Scots went on the rampage, smashing windows and damaging property.

Yesterday a Dutch court heard how the ringleaders screamed: "We are going to attack. Come on Glasgow, come on Glasgow, come on Glasgow, charge."

Dutch Prosecutor, Charles Wiegant, said: "The Scots are very well known as good supporters who add to the fun of these events and not the violence.

"But sadly these attacks were well-organised and very aggressive.

"Thousands of innocent people were put in fear through their actions and they must be punished accordingly ."

Last night a police insider claimed the thugs sentenced yesterday were not motivated by football rivalry - they were simply united by their sick love of violence.

He said: "The fans arrested in Holland all come from different firms. Looking at the court list there are fans there who support Hibs, Hearts, Falkirk and even Livingston.

"They all travelled to Holland under the Rangers banner with known Rangers fans among them."

The gang are alleged to be part of a splinter hooligan element created to cause chaos at Rangers matches on the Continent.

Yesterday a former National Front member agreed that football had little to do with the violence.

He added: "The top men in the Rangers mob are all fascists, but they are being joined by Hearts and Hibs as well. It is all down to politics now."

The 19 fans before the court yesterday had already been held in custody for 11 days.

Prosecutors told the court that before the game police in Eindhoven had been tipped off by colleagues in Scotland that between 1000 and 2000 Rangers fans were travelling to Holland without tickets for the match.

Accordingly, the Dutch authorities had ordered an increase in police numbers and decided to deploy riot squads in the streets surrounding the Philips Stadium.

The prosecution said the accused formed a line in front of the stadium, challenging PSV supporters to fight with them.

One Scot shouted:"Come on, you know we are here for a fight" before the thugs charged at the home support.

It took a crack group of Dutch riot police to end the fighting, which left several people injured.

A total of 39 Scots fans were arrested for violent and drunken conduct.

Twenty of them were released from custody and allowed to travel home. Two of the 19 held since the match were freed yesterday.

The first accused, John Fraser, 26, from Bathgate, West Lothian, was sent to jail for three weeks for violent behaviour.

David France, 30, from Fauldhouse, West Lothian also got three weeks.

He said: "I'm totally ashamed. I don't know what my wife and children will think. This is a nightmare."

Glaswegian Robert Feron, 24, got four weeks.

McLeod, 28 of Wester Hailes, Edinburgh, was named in court as one of the ringleaders. He was given four weeks for his part in what police described as a near riot.

McLeod was among 58 thugs who travelled to France last year for a battle on the streets of Bordeaux.

After being ambushed by police, a coachload of thugs led by the pair were turned back to the Spanish seaside resort of Salou.

McLeod was recently linked to plans to fight hooligans from Aberdeen, Dundee United and Stoke hours before a Scotland- Norway game in 1997.

Police foiled the plot after a six-month operation involving Scots, French and Spanish forces.

Last night, the Dutch Football Association confirmed they will be seeking orders to ban those sentenced yesterday from their football grounds. The Dutch will attempt to extend the two-year bans to all stadia in Europe.