Young and loud... but don’t unfairly target these young Accies fans

Nov 13 2008 by Margaret Shaw, Hamilton Advertiser

I WRITE as the concerned parent of one of Accies’ young season ticket-holders.

Over the past four weeks my son and his friends have been targeted by stewards and the police for their over-exuberance during matches - behaviour which has been acceptable up till now.

Yes, they are verbal in the extreme. Yes, they hardly ever sit down, but this has never been an issue in the past and has always been tolerated.

I realise being in the Premier League does make a difference to the way everyone is treated, but this appears to be extreme treatment which I would like to bring to the attention of the club.

If this behaviour is becoming a problem, I would agree with the club if they decided it had to be addressed. I would like to think there is a better way of handling this, as they know who the boys are.

What is happening is ultra heavy-handed and these young men and boys are being treated unfairly. The word ‘criminalised’ seems very appropriate.

No consideration has been given to these young people regarding their being provoked by sectarian behaviour from other teams’ supporters. The police bypass these bigoted supporters, to take what appears to be the easy option. This treatment has been witnessed by older season ticket-holders who have expressed their concerns to the boys’ parents, myself included.

Only recently on television a female politician stated during a programme about police targets that, due to these targets, they are criminalising a generation because they are an easy target and it looks good on police monthly statistics. This is happening at Accies and needs to be addressed.

Due to this unfair treatment, my son in particular will probably not renew his season ticket if the team continues in the Scottish Premier League.

These young, energetic people are Accies’ future as the team’s sojourn in the SPL may prove to be short-lived. It is their duty to ensure their diehard supporters are treated fairly and considerately. They will need them, as they are the future.

Concerned parent.