Smoke bombs flares etc.

[Longfordian]

I went to try get them back at half time and it didn't seem like we were getting them back.

I'll try get them at the weekend.

Yeah the stewards would have held on to them until after the game anyway, just in case! But with things that they confiscate they usually give them back after the game as far as I know.

[NeverFeltBetter]

http://www.dundalkfc.com/pyros-message-supporters/

Dundalk fined again, flares have cost them four grand this season alone. Are people setting off flares unaware of the financial cost or does it simply not matter in their thinking?

[Mr A]

Not sure those people think full stop.

[White Horse]

http://www.dundalkfc.com/pyros-message-supporters/

Dundalk fined again, flares have cost them four grand this season alone. Are people setting off flares unaware of the financial cost or does it simply not matter in their thinking?

One individual set off a flare during the game in Turners Cross. The number of flares has reduced to a trickle in the last few months and now only happends in some away games. Stewards/Guards now need to eject those who still set them off. In that way the club can ban those individuals so that this is stopped once and for all.

[brendy_éire]

One individual set off a flare during the game in Turners Cross.....Stewards/Guards now need to eject those who still set them off.

Anyone point this person out to the stewards? Name and shame them to the club too. It helps to be proactive on this issue.

[White Horse]

Anyone point this person out to the stewards? Name and shame them to the club too. It helps to be proactive on this issue.

Steward was standing less than six feet away looking at him. They are quite easy to spot, they are holding a big glowing flare.

In Inchicore, I've seen a steward walking up with a bucket of sand to the fan with the flare and asking him to put it out.

[Nesta99]

The self proclaimed best supporters group in the country the SSA have on one hand brought some great atmosphere to games in Oriel and other grounds but need to shame those who persist with pyro s*ite. Is Maxi involved with the SSA? If he is then he should have a word with the culprits after his own previous pyro threats.

[colonelwest]

The self proclaimed best supporters group in the country the SSA have on one hand brought some great atmosphere to games in Oriel and other grounds but need to shame those who persist with pyro s*ite. Is Maxi involved with the SSA? If he is then he should have a word with the culprits after his own previous pyro threats.


If you read the other statement that was put out on the fifth then you can draw your own conclusions!

http://www.dundalkfc.com/dundalk-fc-fans-pyros/


Dundalk FC Fans Against Pyros

By Dundalk FC (http://www.dundalkfc.com/author/admin/)
• August 5, 2014

Dundalk FC (http://www.dundalkfc.com/author/admin/)


Print (http://www.dundalkfc.com/dundalk-fc-fans-pyros/#)

Dundalk Football Club would like to reiterate our stance against all pyros.
We are aware with key games approaching that some supporters may be tempted to smuggle pyros into matches. We would like to remind everybody that these items can cause serious injury and are banned at all matches home and away. They are also against the law.
All Dundalk supporters deserve to support their team in safety and without fear of suffering horrendous burns.
We have had a prominent anti-pyro campaign all season. As a result of this a number of Dundalk supporters have contacted the club expressing their concerns after flares were distributed among fans travelling to Cork.
This is an issue we addressed before and we need to bring it up again. There are a small number of individuals who are attempting to influence other, mainly younger, fans. These individuals are grown men who are giving younger supporters and children flares to bring into games. These pathetic actions will lead to a young fan either causing serious injury to themselves or others.
We have also been made aware of one such individual who has been spreading lies to other fans that one of the club owners and/or board members have said that the use of pyros is acceptable and that the club will cover the cost of any fines. These statements, repeated on social networking sites, are completely false. We are receiving legal advice on this issue.
The club is investigating the incidents regarding flares on Friday and working with the Gardai on an ongoing basis. We would like to thank the vast majority of supporters who have supported our anti-pyro campaign.

[NeverFeltBetter]

We have also been made aware of one such individual who has been spreading lies to other fans that one of the club owners and/or board members have said that the use of pyros is acceptable and that the club will cover the cost of any fines.

I'm trying to imagine the kind of person who would read such a claim on a "social networking site" and seriously believe the Dundalk owners are happy to shell out 4 grand for some flares.

[Sean South]

I get called a wind up merchant here at times and in fairness I am…

But clubs need to accept that pyro is part of the fan scene here now and it won’t go away even if it was a criminal offence lads will still take the risk. It’s not only seen by lads who use it as way to get the place “going” or to inspire your team,it’s now a form of one upmanship. People here looking for other fans to complain or point out lads will only get you so far but it won’t stop it. It can’t be stopped. When club officials accept it was part of the game, only then will they put real pressure on the authorities to stop fines. Yes I know it can’t be going off in every part of the ground but a balance needs to be found. If you accept the so called positives of the ultras movement then you must accept the rest. You can’t have your cake and eat it. Any way I know must here won’t agree with that…

[Sean South]

Also I should say those who are prepared to use it should accept all the consequences of their actions. Unfortunately this doesn't happen either. Basically a middle ground needs to be found, and not standing on the pitch with a hundred fire men around you and more sand then the Sahara like Galway did a few years ago

[Charlie Darwin]

Rovers Ultras pay the cost of the flare fines but I don't know about other clubs. I accept they're dangerous - and a little girl was badly hurt in Tallaght a few years back when some idiot threw his flare into the stand - but they are great for atmosphere if used by people who have an ounce of cop on.

Are we sure Dundalk's 4k in fines is all for flares?

[Macy]

If you accept the so called positives of the ultras movement then you must accept the rest. You can’t have your cake and eat it. Any way I know must here won’t agree with that…
The FAI, League and Clubs are happy to use photo's and videos of flares and smoke bombs for adverts and promotions. There should be a way around it. When the likes of the SEI have done it in the past in cooperation with the club, is that enough for the league is a fine still due?

[Ezeikial]

. When club officials accept it was part of the game, only then will they put real pressure on the authorities to stop fines.


Your post is so far removed from reality it does not even qualify as a decent wind-up.

[DannyInvincible]

Rovers Ultras pay the cost of the flare fines but I don't know about other clubs.

I think that's a fair approach. I think they contribute greatly to atmosphere, but if someone/a group wants to use them, they should accept full responsibility for their actions.


a little girl was badly hurt in Tallaght a few years back when some idiot threw his flare into the stand

Was there legal action taken or anything? Who'd be liable for the injuries sustained? The idiot, Rovers and/or the League? I'm not sure on the law relating to their use specifically, but is it potential liability for injury that motivates the League to oppose their use so strongly? Of course, the use of pyrotechnics isn't legal in Ireland, which is, no doubt, another significant motivation. If they're simply being used on one's property, I assume the proprietor can be held liable. What about the League though?

[Mr A]

Back in the day I'd have been involved in getting flares to games, although once there was the prospect of fines for the club we knocked it on the head.

I don't think they add that much though. To me atmosphere is mostly generated by noise- chanting and singing is the core of it. Some of the other stuff strikes me as gimmicky one-upmanship that frankly comes off as a bit childish.

And if you're costing your club serious fines you deserve whatever you get. People have to work very hard to bring money in to clubs, to waste it for your own vanity is just pathetic.

[bennocelt]

No problem with flares etc, big here on the continent. Just the usual Irish attitude of doing what your told and treating people like children

[adamd164]

But clubs need to accept that pyro is part of the fan scene here now and it won’t go away even if it was a criminal offence lads will still take the risk. It’s not only seen by lads who use it as way to get the place “going” or to inspire your team,it’s now a form of one upmanship. People here looking for other fans to complain or point out lads will only get you so far but it won’t stop it. It can’t be stopped. When club officials accept it was part of the game, only then will they put real pressure on the authorities to stop fines. Yes I know it can’t be going off in every part of the ground but a balance needs to be found. If you accept the so called positives of the ultras movement then you must accept the rest.
Flares were more common at league matches 10-15 years ago than they are now. It's got nothing to do with the ultras movement.

[Acer]

4K is a lot of money to waste even for the big spenders. The powers that be in Dundalk are probably doing all they can to stop idiots from burning the club's money. Our own past experiences have shown that it generally comes down to others on the terrace putting their foot down and stamping out this behaviour. On the other hand, if a whole group of supporters want to let off flares, they should at least pay the fine themselves.

In slightly related news, a group of Dundalk fans broke into United Park last night and graffitied the place. With increased crowds come increased idiots.

[White Horse]

In slightly related news, a group of Dundalk fans broke into United Park last night and graffitied the place. With increased crowds come increased idiots.

Whoever graffitied United Park should be ashamed of themselves. I also have to say that whoever decided to paint Drogheda murals in the away shed was being a little foolish. Some idiot(s) was always going to respond.

Hopefully, the vandalism can be fixed easily and quickly.

[Kiki Balboa]

Does anybody know how much the fines are for crowd behavior compared to other countries? Flares are a lot more common on the continent, along with a much better organised ultra groups.

There seems to be a lot of hostility towards the whole flares here, with most of it due to the fines occurred (with safety just an excuse for the real reason imho). Its funny, club fans often pride themselves on having the most intimidating atmospheres, including them in highlights reels (MNS season closer an example, plus the gaa ads on rte include a green smoke bomb somewhere) but distance themselves once anything bad comes around.

If you want better match day atmospheres , if you have to accept all the negatives that come with it.

[Macy]

Back in the day I'd have been involved in getting flares to games, although once there was the prospect of fines for the club we knocked it on the head.
Standard of flare isn't as good either - none of the pretending to have a boat in marine supply stores for the youth of today, with their cheap and nasty internet imports!

[Acer]

Whoever graffitied United Park should be ashamed of themselves. I also have to say that whoever decided to paint Drogheda murals in the away shed was being a little foolish. Some idiot(s) was always going to respond.

Hopefully, the vandalism can be fixed easily and quickly.

Agreed, it was foolish to go to the bother of painting it before the Dundalk game. Unfortunately the idiots destroyed the home terrace too though so what can you do. It's just not good to see and it has added some real nastiness to the atmosphere ahead of the game.

Hopefully everything goes off smoothly though.

[White Horse]

...it has added some real nastiness to the atmosphere ahead of the game.

That is the worry and probably what these idiots are hoping for. Every Dundalk fan I've spoken to is embarrassed by the stupidity of the vandalism.

Hopefully, all will go well tonight and the game will be a good advert for LOI football in Louth.

[citybone]

Standard of flare isn't as good either - none of the pretending to have a boat in marine supply stores for the youth of today, with their cheap and nasty internet imports!

back my my day, we sometimes used boat flares but tifo flares can come in green colour so both are good. But there is no law in Oregon or Washington against Pyro (at least not yet) MLS doesn't allow flares but smoke is plentiful and flares and smoke bombs are common in the lower leagues which not many care about.

[bennocelt]

Pretty cool if you ask me

http://youtu.be/4DIp1fWhbSo?list=UUBCe_eoc8KeTatapQuYGqBA

[Nesta99]

Wouldnt the FAI just love that - all that cash rolling in in fines! Where do they put the respirators?

[Sean South]

Flares were more common at league matches 10-15 years ago than they are now. It's got nothing to do with the ultras movement.

Well the ultras movement started here 10-15 years ago. It was more common in the early 00's as there was no fines. Now most groups seem to opt for a handful of large scale shows every year instead of random small scale stuff like what Dundalk seem to do. It's been used here since at least the 1980s just not as big of shows as we see now.

[dundalkfc10]

Agreed, it was foolish to go to the bother of painting it before the Dundalk game. Unfortunately the idiots destroyed the home terrace too though so what can you do. It's just not good to see and it has added some real nastiness to the atmosphere ahead of the game.

Hopefully everything goes off smoothly though.

The scenes outside the home entrance, as about 7.30 was a disgrace. A group of about 25/30 from Dundalk and Drogheda (lads and girls) went at it on the middle of the road for a good minute, Gardai eventually separated them. Seen them lift 1 Dundalk fan, pulled him out of the row.

Just as the game kicked off, who walks in the away end, the same fan they had lifted during the fight. if the gardai dont care, what are the clubs to do?

[NeverFeltBetter]

Can't clubs refuse admission themselves without resort to the authorities?

[dundalkfc10]

Can't clubs refuse admission themselves without resort to the authorities?

They can, Ive seen Dundalk fans get refused entrance to Tolka and Dalymount before.

The fact is the Gardai caught a lad fighting on the street in a brawl, and let him go without even a warning and into the ground. They could start doing their jobs!

[Charlie Darwin]

Was there legal action taken or anything? Who'd be liable for the injuries sustained? The idiot, Rovers and/or the League? I'm not sure on the law relating to their use specifically, but is it potential liability for injury that motivates the League to oppose their use so strongly? Of course, the use of pyrotechnics isn't legal in Ireland, which is, no doubt, another significant motivation. If they're simply being used on one's property, I assume the proprietor can be held liable. What about the League though?
No idea, to be honest, I never heard any follow-up. Presumably the club and the individual would be responsible - the club would be liable for damages and the individual for criminal and civil charges. Seemingly one of the earlier incidents at Dundalk this year resulting in two people being hit, one requiring hospital treatment. Again, there's no information on what happened after: http://talkofthetown.ie/2014/05/19/dundalk-fc-threaten-lifetime-bans-and-legal-action-for-any-supporters-caught-using-flares-at-games/

[DannyInvincible]

Presumably the club and the individual would be responsible - the club would be liable for damages and the individual for criminal and civil charges.

That's what I was thinking, so if what we assume is correct and the FAI can't or won't be held liable for damages caused by flare use, what motivates them to come down so hard on their use? Do they think their use is bad for public relations maybe? Easy money from fines? Am I correct in thinking smoking cigarettes inside stadiums is illegal in Ireland? Perhaps not - are stadiums deemed to be enclosed workplaces? - but that also has obvious health implications. To the best of my knowledge though, the FAI don't dish out fines when clubs' supporters are caught smoking inside stadiums.

[dundalkfc10]

That's what I was thinking, so if what we assume is correct and the FAI can't or won't be held liable for damages caused by flare use, what motivates them to come down so hard on their use? Do they think their use is bad for public relations maybe? Easy money from fines? Am I correct in thinking smoking cigarettes inside stadiums is illegal in Ireland? Perhaps not - are stadiums deemed to be enclosed workplaces? - but that also has obvious health implications. To the best of my knowledge though, the FAI don't dish out fines when clubs' supporters are caught smoking inside stadiums.

Smoking is not allowed in Covered Areas, I know its enforced in the Stand in Oriel but not the Shed.
They use to announce no smoking throughout the ground in any covered areas, but now they just state no smoking in the Stand.

Tallaght dont let you smoke, Stewards were asking Dundalk fans to put them out at the Setanta Final and the League game a few weeks back

[Charlie Darwin]

Yeah, covered stands count under the smoking legislation. It's ignored in the East Stand in Tallaght, assume the away end is a lot more tightly policed, especially when Dundalk hooligans are in town.

[dundalkfc10]

Yeah, covered stands count under the smoking legislation. It's ignored in the East Stand in Tallaght, assume the away end is a lot more tightly policed, especially when Dundalk hooligans are in town.

True, we are a nasty bunch when we have a few cigarettes smoked

[Dunny]

They can, Ive seen Dundalk fans get refused entrance to Tolka and Dalymount before.

The fact is the Gardai caught a lad fighting on the street in a brawl, and let him go without even a warning and into the ground. They could start doing their jobs!

He probably did get a warning.The Guards likely thought that that was all his actions warranted and the best solution was to get him into the match were he could sober up(or if not drunk then to cop on to himself) & then get his bus home without him being a further drain on resources.

[DannyInvincible]

True, we are a nasty bunch when we have a few cigarettes smoked

Haha, the question remains though, why the FAI concern themselves so specifically with flares (they're given explicit mention in the participation agreement) but not, say, supporters illegally smoking or drinking within grounds... They leave dealing with the latter matters to the clubs concerned.

[NeverFeltBetter]

Maybe because flares have a higher risk of causing an injury directly? That is to say, a can of beer or a cigarette don't have the same instant ability to hurt someone like a lit flare does. Of course, we all know that beer and fags have dangers attached to them in that kind of situation - alcohol especially with the effect it can have on a person - but I understand why the FAI might consider flares a higher priority.

There might also just be a feeling that flares are something the FAI can do a bit about. You can smoke and drink and have a good chance of getting away with it at matches because it might be hard to spot. You can't avoid the possible repercussions of lighting a flare though, the act itself is designed to draw attention.

[Macy]

And yet the background to the official league site is a smoke bomb crowd/ floodlight shot...

[Neish]

Flairs etc to add to atmosphere at game but I agree with Mr A in previous page flairs etc on their own or in a small crowd do very little its fans chants and songs that create the atmosphere at games.

Re the incidents at Drogs vs Dundalk, it was childish of people to break in a graffiti United Park, no decent fan would do this to any club regardless of rivalries.

Its no where near as bad in Ireland as in other countries, but the Gardai have to step up. From what I've seen they seem more interetsted in getting a few whack at some one with the truncheon than arresting and if they are arrested they are out in a few hours. Name taken and one warning given then if they do it again they get a season ban for attending any FAI/LOI games. Bans increased if they continue. Until such measure are in place it will continue.

Watching a program there a few night ago on BBC3 about English hooligans, one of them a Man City fan came over for the Bohs Vs Shams derby with some of the Shams boys he knows and said despite he got a bit of a beating from the Gardai it was one of his best away trips as no arrest

[dundalkfc10]

Flairs etc to add to atmosphere at game but I agree with Mr A in previous page flairs etc on their own or in a small crowd do very little its fans chants and songs that create the atmosphere at games.

Re the incidents at Drogs vs Dundalk, it was childish of people to break in a graffiti United Park, no decent fan would do this to any club regardless of rivalries.

Its no where near as bad in Ireland as in other countries, but the Gardai have to step up. From what I've seen they seem more interetsted in getting a few whack at some one with the truncheon than arresting and if they are arrested they are out in a few hours. Name taken and one warning given then if they do it again they get a season ban for attending any FAI/LOI games. Bans increased if they continue. Until such measure are in place it will continue.

Watching a program there a few night ago on BBC3 about English hooligans, one of them a Man City fan came over for the Bohs Vs Shams derby with some of the Shams boys he knows and said despite he got a bit of a beating from the Gardai it was one of his best away trips as no arrest

Seen that programme myself. What sad sad little *******s the Rovers lads were

[GCdfc]

[/B]Seen that programme myself. What sad sad little *******s the Rovers lads were

Did it show their faces?

[bennocelt]

Apparently he is big into the BNP/EDL which is a bit strange him having the craic with shamrock rovers fans in Ireland......

[DannyInvincible]

Watching a program there a few night ago on BBC3 about English hooligans, one of them a Man City fan came over for the Bohs Vs Shams derby with some of the Shams boys he knows and said despite he got a bit of a beating from the Gardai it was one of his best away trips as no arrest

Aye, it's always a bonus when you don't get arrested...

Is it on iPlayer, do you know?

[bennocelt]

Aye, it's always a bonus when you don't get arrested...

Is it on iPlayer, do you know?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wav_Bfhb5Tw

[dundalkfc10]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wav_Bfhb5Tw

In Ireland at around 39m mins, cause im sure you dont want to sit through it all. its a load of ****e the whole thing

Shows faces of a few of them yeh

[Charlie Darwin]

Watching a program there a few night ago on BBC3 about English hooligans, one of them a Man City fan came over for the Bohs Vs Shams derby with some of the Shams boys he knows and said despite he got a bit of a beating from the Gardai it was one of his best away trips as no arrest
Never seen any of those bellends at Rovers matches so can only assume they're day trippers who only show up for Bohs away. I do remember the lad in the blue jacket with the hole in his head stumbling in halfway through the match alright, he thought he was mad. Haven't seen him since, unsurprisingly.

[Neish]

Never seen any of those bellends at Rovers matches so can only assume they're day trippers who only show up for Bohs away. I do remember the lad in the blue jacket with the hole in his head stumbling in halfway through the match alright, he thought he was mad. Haven't seen him since, unsurprisingly.

There was a bit where that so called man city fan was kinda giving out that most of his crew went to watch the match leaving him with only 4 lads to face the opposition. Also had a bit saying that he recruited young lads form the lower leagues to come fight with them.Just show how much they actually care about the football clubs

[DannyInvincible]

I met a very interesting, obviously-intelligent and well-educated Preston North End-supporting chap at an after-gathering to a night out a few months back; a friend of a friend of a friend. We discussed football, supporter culture, politics and Irish history (he had Irish roots so was plenty knowledgable) amongst other things. He was an avowed and active anti-fascist with communist leanings/Irish republican sympathies and, to my surprise, went on to make an eloquent case for hooliganism. I'm not saying he necessarily convinced me of its merits, but he did try to make a compelling argument - I was certainly engaged - and it was fascinating to hear such a perspective from someone who looked and sounded like the complete anthithesis of what you might expect a northern English hooligan to look and sound like. He gave me his blog's web address where you can have a read of his written defence of hooliganism if interested: http://northernladsclub.wordpress.com/2014/03/16/in-defence-of-hooligansim/


For the vast majority of mainstream British society, the football hooligan represents a bogeyman of sorts. Political figures, newspaper columnists and far-left cultist’s join together to paint the English hooligan as a) violent death-throes of a crushed lumpenproletariat, b) un-cultured smears on our over-intellectualised, safe, passive national pastime and c) fascist-in-waiting members of the petty bourgeoisie. These accusations are merely the scape-goating attempts of an out of touch commentariat. Below is a defence of the humble football hooligan.

To understand the motivation behind hooligan activities you must first be able to understand the real point of going to watch a football match. If your concept of attending a football match is limited to tens of thousands of people passively spectating whilst 22 men kick a spherical ball around with varying degrees of technical ability, then you unfortunately are really missing the point. A football match should “the very last bastion of a once male-dominated culture, where boys can grow up and act like men…scream, shout, abuse, swear, even cry (Dougie Brimson ‘A Geezers Guide to Football’)”. At the apex of this tribal sense of camaraderie is the defining act of hooliganism, i.e two bunches of consenting men meeting for a punch-up (now the consensual side of this is incredibly important. I do not agree with ‘ordinary’ fans being attacked and by and large the serious casuals involved in this culture are aware of the respect and constraints involved when hooliganism is done ‘properly’). There are so many reasons to defend this tribal act.

For a start, the act itself has value, if only as a spontaneous expression of emotion. As much as the Jonathon Wilson led broadsheet mafia would like you to believe otherwise, millions of people do not flock to football matches across the globe to stroke their collective chins and marvel at the deployment of tika-taka, false nines and raumdeuters. Emotion is the greatest defining currency with which football clubs can cash in on to continually seduce supporters back to the stadiums. Remove this and even the dull, pseudo-intellectuals will realise the futility of passively watching 22 overpaid individuals kick a piece of leather around. Without the emotion, football is just that, futile. As a pure expression of this raw, tribal emotion, we should not suppress the right of the football fan to have the occasional scrap. The advent of bland, characterless new Soccerdome stadiums with enforced all seating, over policing and Orwellian levels of CCTV (I visited Ajax’s admittedly impressive 52,000 capacity Amsterdam Arena earlier this week and during to stadium tour, and a visit to the Control Centre revealed camera’s that could zoom in on any seat in the stadium with enough zoom and clarity to read a text off your mobile phone) have numbed football supporters in an attempt to create a docile, robotic, consumer-style football fan. In these situations anything which represents the hedonistic surge of emotion must be celebrated and allowed to continue.

Secondly, in the classical liberal tradition, it is well within your rights to do anything which does not infringe upon the rights of others. So long as all the people involved are consensual and aware of the risks of a casual ruck, and no innocents are caught in the crossfire, then who has the right to deem this act barbaric, vicious or otherwise generally unworthy. I am aware people will reel off examples of either innocent bystanders getting caught in the scuffles, and example of hooliganism going too far and leading to serious injuries or death. Of course I do not advocate such happenings, and a return of hooliganism would require what I would like to call controlled hooliganism, where standard supporters are recognised and not affected and there is an honour in terms of fighting with fists, not weapons.

Furthermore, bringing another of my passions into the mix (left-wing politics), hooligan culture can be advocated for its utility in a revolutionary situation. The British left at the moment is a standing joke. Populated almost exclusively by weird, unapproachable academics and socially awkward, self-loathing middle-class kids, the British left lacks the exact class of people that would be useful, and have a genuine stake in a social revolution: the angry youth of the working class. Football firms tend to exclusive draw on these sort of people. Recruiting working class youths on the terraces could give the left a base in working class communities and provide a cadre of (to borrow from the lexicon of Egyptian revolution) shock troops. During the protests that toppled Mubarak, the Ultras of Cairo’s main football club Al Ahly essentially became a security force of the protestors, protecting Tahrir Square and “providing the fuel – the songs and banners, as well as the muscle – that hastened Mubarak’s exit”( http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/comment/articles/2013-09/12/egyptian-revolution-al-ahly-football-fans). It doesn’t require a great leap of imagination to realise that, young, tough men who are organised and used to fighting and moving in a bloc, would be incredibly useful cadres in any hypothetical revolutionary situation.

Another justification if you will, of a little scuffle every now and then, requires an appreciation of standard establishment politicians views on hooligans. David Cameron called an event in Newcastle where 29 people were arrested as deplorable. Frankly, a society that is sensitive to the point of hysteria to a bit of honest violence, yet allows insidious and much more harmful violence in the form of cuts to welfare. Google ATOS…cuts…welfare and you will be swamped with stories of deaths of disabled and/or vulnerable members of society who were cut off from benefits and were unable to survive on the pittance that was left to them. An establishment that issues death sentence to the most vulnerable of society yet gets all self-righteous over a few punches can **** of and stew in its own hypocrisy. To quote the late, great Brian Clough “there are more hooligans in the House of Commons than at a football match”.

And finally, hooliganism can be justified via its ability to (again hypothetically) reverse the increasing trend of higher ticket prices. Unfortunately, football has become much more fashionable. People who have no business anywhere near football stadiums have increasingly flocked to them. Top end politicians fall over themselves to pretend to like football, appearing on Football Focus, etc in an attempt to latch on to its increasing popularity. This is just plain wrong. Tory politicians, as shown by the Thatcher governments persistent campaign against the victims of the Hillsborough disaster, are not the friends of football fans. They are our enemy. A return of a controlled hooliganism should help drive away not only these lecherous vote-seekers, but also assorted ‘trendy’ spectators, the foreign students, the business executive, Roy Keane’s infamous prawn sandwich brigade. The removal of such individuals patronage would then leave gaping seats in top flight stadia. The next natural step would be the lowering of ticket prices, which would then woo back the ordinary football fans, who, quite rightly, are disgusted at paying over the top ticket prices (the most expensive season ticket in the Premier League last season was £1,955, at The Emirates Stadium). So there you go, the humble hooligan as manipulator of market forces.

That is my tribute to the long demonised, eternally unappreciated and sometimes completely forgotten figure of English football. My defence of the football hooligan.

DR

Edit: How did we end up talking about hooliganism on a thread about flares and smokebombs, by the way? The two are not necessary partners! :p