GAME CHANGER
Cops and football chiefs cave in to pressure from fans and politicians and rethink plans to host both League Cup semi-finals at Hampden on same day
FOOTBALL chiefs were last night on the brink of a major U-turn over the Hampden League Cup semi-final fiasco.
It came after worried police urged them to reconsider plans to host the Aberdeen v Rangers and Hearts v Celtic matches at the stadium on the same day.
Fans and SNP sports minister Joe FitzPatrick had already slammed the proposals.
And last night, SPFL chief Neil Doncaster revealed the firm set up by the SFA to run Hampden had now agreed to ditch their right to insist both semi-finals be played there.
He called the move a “game changer”, adding: “Everyone recognises that it would be better if we can hold these matches in separate stadia.
“The fact that we’re now able to explore that option is great news.”
A U-TURN on the Hampden semi-finals fiasco will save fans from “utter chaos”, a leading MSP said last night.
Labour’s James Kelly claimed the plan to hold both Betfred Cup matches at the national stadium was a “shambles”.
And he hailed the decision to rethink the proposals as a victory for fans – and common sense.
The Glasgow MSP said: “Finally, the SPFL have listened to the overwhelming concern with this.
“The initial decisions would have ended in utter chaos.”
Yesterday, police and football chiefs caved in to pressure from fans, politicians and transport chiefs who warned that staging both matches at Hampden on October 28 risked causing travel chaos and public disorder.
Aberdeen and Rangers were due to play at the national stadium at noon, with the Hearts v Celtic match at 7.45pm.
Police urged a rethink over “public safety” concerns and in Holyrood, MSPs said fans were being ignored.
That prompted a statement from SPFL chief Neil Doncaster, saying they would look at playing the two semi-finals at different venues. Doncaster said they had been under a legal obligation to stage both games at the national stadium. But Hampden Park Ltd – the company set up by the SFA to run the stadium – agreed to release them from that contractual obligation, allowing the plan to change.
Doncaster added: “We immediately contacted Police Scotland and informed them of this development and this has enabled us to open talks to explore whether the match could be staged at an alternative venue.”
The new proposal is for Celtic to play Hearts at Murrayfield, in Edinburgh, with Aberdeen taking on Rangers at Hampden. But Celtic last night objected to the plan.
Kelly added: “The police, transport operators and the Scottish Government must now get round the table and sort out this shambles.”
Kelly said fans should be involved in the discussions about changing the fixtures.
The plan to stage the two semis at Hampden was branded “idiotic” by Calum Steele, head of the Scottish Police Federation.
Shortly before the SPFL announcement, Assistant Chief Constable Bernard Higgins called for a rethink.
He said: “Taking into account these public concerns, I have asked the SPFL to look again at the transport plan so we can make a full public safety assessment.”
Sports minister Joe FitzPatrick said of the original plan: “There is anger, particularly among supporters travelling from Aberdeen and Edinburgh.”
The intitial decisions would have resulted in utter chaos JAMES KELLY ON HAMPDEN MATCHES PLAN