Players will need to strike before they get struck
IT was a mince pie and thankfully not a bottle of Buckfast which struck my face back in the day.
Clyde against Hamilton at Douglas Park and a shout came from the terracing before the meaty treat was despatched.
Still sore mind you but savoury all the same.
This tale isn’t to diminish the seriousness of recent bottle and cointhrowing incidents that have put player safety at the top of Scottish football’s agenda.
I just wanted to show that the moron fan isn’t a new phenomenon.
PFA Scotland released a statement yesterday which condemned the bottle-throwing aimed at Celtic’s Scott Sinclair and called for the authorities to take appropriate action.
It was right on cue but typically toothless and offered nothing in terms of proactive solutions.
This is a body that can provide options for players as a collective to show some sort of militant reaction to the recent spate of objects being thrown.
But there was nothing and maybe they should canvas their members to suggest some course of industrial action.
It’s time to consider the ultimate stance which would see our footballers down tools and ballot for industrial action. If ever there was a time to move from touchline to the picket line then it’s now.
The option of marching up the tunnel until their safety can be guaranteed is gathering momentum and should now be on the table.
Saturday’s shocker at Easter Road should be the last straw and what a day for it to happen.
Scottish football’s dirty laundry was being aired as FIFA president Gianni Infantino was pressing palms at the Balmoral Stadium on Saturday as Cove beat Nairn County.
As a nation we pick our moments to display society’s underbelly and let’s hope Gianni was ushered on to his flight before the first editions hit the news stands.
If players are to feel safe at their work then withdrawing their labour needs to be a genuine threat if a change to what is now a cultural issue is to be made.
Strict liability isn’t the solution, if it worked then there would be no trouble inside stadiums.
No. What you have to do is appeal to the lowest common denominator and in this case it’s the mindless fan on the Buckie.
Trouble inside our grounds has now reached epidemic
It’s time to consider the ultimate stance that would see players down tools
proportions and it’s all linked to a rise in antisocial behaviour in all facets of Scottish life – online, on the streets and inside our stadiums.
Footballers misbehave, managers rabble rouse and the examples are set for the lunatic fringe to take that as their cue to conduct themselves in an appalling manner.
The players need to carry this fight to the source. All of the PFA Scotland members should show a united front and state their intention of walking off pitches across Scotland if safety is compromised by having to duck out of the way of missiles.
A bit radical? Maybe. Mince pies are one thing but bottles are a lifethreatening issue. OUR TOP WRITERS GIVE THEIR FEARLESS VERDICTS EVERY DAY IN RECORD SPORT