There were some nob-heads among the Gills contingent. I was reliably informed that one of the young men ejected was earlier "giving it large" at the railway station. True to say that a good number of the stewards were big, burly types and didn`t back-off from addressing behaviour issues - but i`m not going to excuse a nob-head (GFC or otherwise) and it makes a change to see stewards actually doing something rather than just standing off all the time. It`s also true that Morecambe had a lot of crowd trouble at their last home game.
Sadly, and jogills mentioned this a little while back, there is more and more unsavoury behaviour creeping back into football crowds. It`s a worrying escalation. I often think that some players don`t help matters when they deliberately overtly taunt opposition supporters after scoring - they should rein it in too.
Normally Lancs, and you know what I’ve been like on here recently, I’ve been scathing of our idiots. With Scally temporarily banning fans after Sunderland for either being idiots to other fans in Block 1 (rightly banned) or for singing Scally Out in the Factory at half time (wrongly banned if so IMO) the first attractive away games after were toxic. I remember Sheff Weds away hearing and seeing our lot fighting while walking from the station to Spoons at barely 11am.
That said, I was in the second from the back row in the block next to where it all kicked off yesterday. There were the odd idiot in that bit but there were also your Jim Case and others. I heard no ugly chanting and saw no ugly behaviour.
A steward came up to tell fans to sit down which I personally disagree with if it’s just the back 2-3 rows of the boisterous block standing. If an idiot is standing on his own at the front of the stand and is blocking the views of those who have people sitting behind them then I agree, make them sit. The fans ignored the steward and started sing “Stand up…” etc.
Then the steward came back with a mob of security agency staff but were provoking and in-your-face in their style of customer service. I’d say it was 80-20 the fault of these staff which unnecessarily led to the scuffle, though I agree no punches should’ve been thrown by Gills fans and they will probably be dealt with accordingly. But those individuals were exactly that, an individual or two amongst rows of otherwise normal fans.
From then on chucking out angered respectable fans for saying “I’ve got your actions on video, you’ll be on YouTube” smacks of petulance. Particularly if those fans had spent hours on delayed trains and £120-odd for taxis from Warrington. And that’s actually the experience of someone I spoke to afterwards.
It’s probably no coincidence that the over-reaction was following criticism after a previous home game with thousands of fans who posed more of a threat than 270 loyal Gills fans. Eddie Allcorn’s review of the awayday will make for interesting reading in the Plymouth programme.
There’s a reason why stewards and police don’t force the 10 or so away fans who stand in the back rows at Gills each game. Why risk causing a scene for something so needless? A lone train conductor will know how and when to act according to any possible offence and the chance and level of hassle/danger as a result of initiating with them over it.
