Soccer own goal

The house-breaking at former Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers’ Bearsden home has left a very sour taste in the mouth for reasons even more complex than his former colleague Steven Gerrard outlined (“Gerrard urges longer prison terms to deter burglars after break-in”, The Scotsman, 8 March).

High-profile football coaches and players are vulnerable to the sort of ugly attacks depicted in the last week, but so, too, are many low-profile pensioners and others who, for whatever reason, are singled out for theft and thuggery.

Longer sentences for this sort of intimidation and vengeance may have a role to play, but so too does a more preventative approach – the sort of thing we have all been reading about recently to help tackle knife crime.

The police investigation into the awful event at Mr Rodgers’ home must be allowed to run its course. But it needs to be seen, too, in the context of recent events related to sectarianism and violence in Scottish football and to the controversy over the manager’s sudden departure for the English Premier League.

Was the attack an inexcusable act of revenge for what some see as his disloyalty? Could this affair deter other talented coaches from taking up a position in the Scottish game? Did Kilmarnock manager Stevie Clarke have a point recently when he described some fans as “living in the dark ages”?

The new Leicester City manager has been quick to stress that he had an amazing time during his career at Celtic despite his wife and stepdaughter’s horrendous experience. But it must be stressed, too, that this and other events have damaged the image not just of football but of society north of the Border generally.

Those who like to highlight the warmth of Scottish hospitality have cause to stop and think about what Mr Rodgers and his family have been through in the past days.

BOB TAYLOR

Shiel Court, Glenrothes