Another week on and again we are discussing issues that are not football related, we are discussing the negative side of the League of Ireland, when are we going to learn?
I, among others, have been trying to push the positive side of the league through converstations and via this Blog, we have so much to offer as a league and with the news that Ireland and England are on the verge of being awarded the European Championship in 2028, I really feel that we have such an opportunity on our hands to build this league and its facilities, but we need to take action now to tackle the negatives.
On Friday Night in Drogheda, I brought my son to the game, he was excited the whole day to go and watch his club playing, Dundalk FC, he has the jerseys and merchandise, he loves going to the games to cheer on the team, we both do, and I will always encourage him to do so.
Its fair to say that Dundalk didnt really put in the performance we all wanted on Friday night, but the performance wasnt the main talking point at the end of the game , alas, it wasnt even the dodgy penalty decision either, unfortunately it was the crowd trouble and the poor security presence in the ground.
So lets break down what happened on Friday night and what can be done about it?
Flares.
I for one would encourage the fans to get behind the team, I would also be on the fence when it comes to the flare issue, it does add to the athmosphere in the ground but it could be done in a safe area of the ground, its really open to discussion but one thing that annoys me is throwing flares onto the pitch before or during a match, its just fucking stupid! And i would go as far to say the fans who do something so fucking idiotic should be found and fined heavily or even banned from Oriel Park.
I love seeing flares during matches, I wrote a blog post last year about this topic when the previous owners attempted to impose a ban on the Shed Side Army for doing just that, so i wouldnt be in favour of doing a complete ban on flares, but rather a controlled use of them with safety guidelines for their usage.
Crowd Trouble.
When it comes to building an athmosphere at football games its very evident that alcohol plays a big part of that, some fans like meeting for a pint or two before a game, maybe to settle the nerves or to have a sing-song and get into the mood before the game, i have no problem with that, what i do have an issue with is “fans” getting shit-faced or being unable to handle their drink and thinking they can do whatever they want at football games, oh, and going by the all to familar smells from the shed, it isnt just alcohol on the go either.
I dont want to come across as a “kill joy”, rather I want people to enjoy the occasion and to remember that its a family occasion with children present and this is were i come back to Friday Night and bringing my son to the game. After kick-off, I could feel the athmosphere change, it wasnt the normal League of Ireland athmosphere were fans were happy to jeer each other and sing a few songs, it was nastier than that, so much so that I didnt feel comfortable for my son being there.
When the fulltime whistle blew, I decided to take my son over to the security gates to be one of the first people out and get him out of the ground quickly, rather what unfolded was just sensless and idiotic by primarily the Drogheda supporters and dare I say Drogheda Management, let me explain the latter.
As we stood at the security gates I noticed the Drogheda Manager coming over to the dugout and speaking with a Dundalk supporter, he seemed to be jeering the supporter to the point the supporter replied “Are you serious?, my son is standing here, some professional you are!”.
I wasnt standing too fair away at this point, so i said ” This is disgraceful, you are encourging this! its discraceful. You should be ashamed.”
The overall athmosphere at this point was very very poor and bordering on dangerous, so someone opened the security gates and we managed to get out. I for one will not be taking my son back to “Head in the Game” Park, atleast for this season.
We need to do more, given that this game was broadcasted on RTE to the entire country, i fear that this has set the league of ireland’s reputation and image back a number of years!
Why would any neutral watching on Friday night want to bring their families to this?
Anti-Social Behaviour
The reports from Friday Night that Zoe Murphy was verbally abused by, unfortunately, one of our own Dundalk supporters really saddened me, it was disgusting and horrible, any human who can bring themselves to insult another at that level needs a long hard look at themselves, and im sorry but drink isnt an excuse.
I am pleased that a resolution and an apology was offered, at least the person who said these nasty things had the maturity to own up to their wrong doings, and again, drink isnt an excuse.
This kind of anti-social behaviour cannot be tolerated, especially when directed towards a child.
So, What next?
Like i mentioned previously, I am an advocate for promoting the League of Ireland to everyone, to all the neutral’s i meet and to supporters of other sports, I want people to experience the League of Ireland and all it has to offer, but why in gods name would anyone want to experience THAT spectical that unfolded on Friday Night??? It was a low point, one which i have’nt seen for quite sometime, and one i hope i dont ever see again, but what do we do next?
Firstly, a discussion on the use of Flares in our league must be had between the governing bodies and the clubs, it should be seen as a tool for promoting the league but in a controlled environment and only within that, we need guidelines and safety policies in place for the use of them, if we have those structures in place like other european leagues do then we can use them safely.
Secondly, we need rules in place within the league, not in the clubs because they can only do so much, but rules within the league so fans know their place and the boundaries.
Much like in the Premier League, fans know that if they invade the pitch or protest during a game by strapping themselves to a goal post they will be arrested and banned from future games, we need continuity throughout the league and fans need to know that if you step out of line you will be banned.
Thirdly, regarding Anti-social behaviour, we need better security and active garda precense onsite, where if in the case of Zoe Murphy, it could be reported immediately to the security team onsite and that supporter is removed from the ground.
Fourthly, Identification. The problem at the moment is we have no idea who is in the ground at any one time. If you go to any game in the Premier League you must register your details, those details are registered against a seat in the stadium and the security team can pin-point every supporter via CCTV, therefore, in the case of crowd trouble they can indentify every supporter by name.
In the League of Ireland we dont even have photo identification on the season tickets! I propose that we need to bring ticketing online only, away from the clubs, and request that EVERY fan registers with the League of Ireland authority before the start of the season, from this “portal” they can purchase their season ticket, for example,
When you login to this new portal you are requested to register the following:
Name
Address
Phone Number
Age
Club Name
Email Address
Form of Photo ID.
Once these details are registered with the League Authorities you are free to purchase your season ticket or match tickets, imagine if you can purchase individual match tickets for the entire season in advance!.
When all the supporters are registered with the League Authority for free, you can purchase tickets for yourself and multiple people, but each ticket is registered to that person with their photo id printed onto the ticket and recorded on the portal, much like Ticketmaster, but NOT ticketmaster!.
At the ground, the match / season ticket is scanned and the details are registered with the home club in question and the security team onsite, therefore, they know who is in attendance in the ground at all times. Yes, i know we dont have all seater stadiums like the U.K and other larger leagues do, but its a starting point and we have to start somewhere.
Implementing something like this will make people accountable for their actions because they can be identified and by being identified they can be removed and banned if required.
Enough is Enough and we need to start somewhere, before its too late.
End.