Cocaine craze

Police blame drug for rise in disorder in England following revelations about SPFL fans

AN alarming rise in cocaine use at football stadiums is fuelling growing levels of disorder at English matches, senior police officers have told Sportsmail.

In another weekend of violence, a steward’s nose was broken during one of three pitch invasions. Police figures reveal a ten-per-cent increase in drugrelated arrests at grounds in the past year, including a doubling of arrests for cocaine possession — from 32 to 68. But police believe these figures grossly understate the true picture.

Swabs taken by police in club toilets reveal increased evidence of cocaine-taking. One force made 15 arrests for possession of the drug at a recent English Championship game.

Here in Scotland, a newspaper investigation into the problem saw toilet cubicles at Premiership games involving Celtic, Rangers, Hearts, Hibernian, Aberdeen and Hamilton Academical all swabbed. Traces of the Class A drug were found in all six. There was even evidence of cocaine being used in the family section toilets at the lower area of Celtic’s Lisbon Lions Stand.

Senior police officers say the cocaine scourge — which reflects rising use of the drug in society — is virtually impossible to deal with due to clubs’ determination to replace police with stewards and security firms in a cost-cutting move. Many stewards do not even have powers to search fans who are a threat to public order.

Deputy Chief Constable Mark Roberts, the National Police Chiefs’ Council football policing lead, told Sportsmail last night that cocaine was a major concern. He said: ‘We believe it is linked to a rise in disorder at grounds. It is a significant factor.’

Roberts (pictured), who recently delivered a report into policing at football for Police Scotland, disclosed that a study of the 43 British police forces has revealed the total cost of policing football last year was £48.5m. Yet the total amount of that cost recovered by forces was £5.5m.

Police want clubs to examine contributing to costs of policing beyond the precincts of grounds and possibly commit to some form of direct funding for police.

The Association of Police and Crime Commissioners last night called for a change in the law to allow forces to recover more costs for policing games.

Roberts said: ‘Football can’t pick and choose the bits that look sweet for it. It wants its stadiums to be shiny and pristine, but, on the outside, police have to pick up the pieces. The cocaine problem is very much a part of that. Policing it and deterring it requires professional expertise.’

His comments followed another dire weekend for the game’s reputation. A week after Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish was attacked by a fan, there were three more pitch invasions, one of which left a female steward with a suspected broken nose.

The steward received treatment from paramedics at the Vitality Stadium in Bournemouth after being injured when a group of Newcastle fans entered the playing area to celebrate Matt Ritchie’s late equaliser.

Dorset Police have arrested seven fans, including a 14-yearold boy. Newcastle said yesterday they were working with police and fans and would ‘review... individual cases before deciding if any further club-related punishment is appropriate’.

The FA will write to both clubs to seek their observations on the incident, having studied referee Mike Dean’s report. They will also write to West Ham and Swansea City after fans entered playing areas at the London Stadium and the Liberty Stadium.

The Scottish game has also suffered, with sectarian singing, coin-throwing and pitch invasions all having blighted its reputation. The SFA and the SPFL will now seek further talks with the Scottish Government and police in a bid to combat the trouble.

In England, the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners’ football policing lead, Tim Passmore, called for a change in the law to allow forces to recover the full costs of policing football matches.

He said: ‘It doesn’t seem reasonable to me that the public should effectively be paying for additional policing to support a commercial enterprise.

‘This applies to the extra costs incurred for policing around stadia and in public spaces near them. Without a change in the law, these costs cannot be recovered unless there is a local, voluntary agreement. Police and Crime Commissioners are working as an association with the Home Office to come up with a satisfactory solution.’