Argyle ready to ban fans over ‘appalling’ behaviour Club risks FA charge over homophobic chanting by travelling supporters
PLYMOUTH Argyle is prepared to ban a significant number of supporters should cases of anti-social and discriminatory behaviour continue at games.
Club secretary Zac Newton has appealed to the Green Army to report any offenders so they can be identified and prevent them from further tarnishing the reputation of the club.
Newton admitted that his trips to away games in recent times had been spoilt by the ‘appalling behaviour of a very small, but significant, majority of our supporters’.
The latest example was homophobic chanting at Northampton Town on August 31.
Newton addressed the issue in his column in the matchday programme for the match against Oldham Ath
letic at Home Park on Saturday. He wrote: “I attend (almost) every match each season, partly to fulfil some elements of my role but also as a fan of almost 35 years.
“Unfortunately, my enjoyment of away trips has been spoilt in recent times because of the appalling behaviour of a very small, but significant, minority of our supporters.”
Newton revealed some of the consequences of this would be reduced ticket allocations for away games, increased stewarding and policing, and ‘greater scrutiny by the football authorities’.
He said: “Yet again last Saturday (at Northampton), an element of our following, who seemingly claim to be Argyle fans, brought the club into disrepute through their anti-social behaviour and seemed to think it acceptable to engage in homophobic chanting. It is not.
“Sadly, we are rapidly gaining a reputation in football as a club who has an element of ‘fans’ who seem to think that it is acceptable to behave however they wish to just because they are at a football match. It is not.
“Not surprisingly we have received a number of complaints following Saturday and also about similar incidents at Crewe and Newport County.
“The national media have also been in touch, as have the Football Association, who will almost certainly charge us unless we can demonstrate that we are doing everything possible to ensure that our supporters behave appropriately and do not breach ground regulations or break the law.”
Newton stressed the point that Argyle would not tolerate abuse or discrimination of any kind.
He said: “We are a communitybased club who aims to make attendance at Home Park as welcoming and inclusive as possible for everyone. This extends to the behaviour of our supporters at away matches.
“If that means that we have to ban a significant number of supporters then so be it.
“One of our club values is respect and we will do whatever it takes to ensure that all people are free to attend matches without the fear of intimidation or discrimination from others.
“Of course, we need the help of the vast majority of dedicated and passionate Argyle fans – some of whom will have suffered directly from abuse meted out by these individuals – to identify and report anti-social or discriminatory behaviour.
“The more information that you can provide, the better chance we will have of identifying the offenders and of preventing them from further tarnishing the reputation of our club.”