- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Despite being the most advanced species on our planet, humans are a simple bunch. Fire excites, burning wood is captivating, and once a year almost every one of us heads to watch a bunch of things explode in the sky to celebrate surviving another 12 months.
So it only seems logical that a number of sports fans are drawn to the bright lights of flares.
Yet to the Australian police and mainstream media, the devices are akin to what the boats are, or were, to Tony Abbott.
They are to be feared, an alien force from another culture (South America is apparently to blame) that threatens to bring down Australian values. The prevalence of flares is an epidemic, they must be eradicated.
Stop the flares, the detractors scream, in multiple blazing headlines and through sensational media releases. Clearly one of the evils of society, flares pose a serious threat to our very existence – the silent killer hiding beneath a blanket of smoke.
Enough of the hyperbole, however.
It is a shame that this topic appears to be the overriding theme for discussion, again. There are many more worthy stories – the 40,000-plus crowd that turned up to Allianz Stadium, the Newcastle Jets’ fantastic victory over Melbourne Victory, or Perth Glory’s foreign imports finally imitating professional footballers.
Yet the consistent portrayal of the football world as neanderthal and problematic in the Australian media is getting tiresome.
John Duerden summed it best last week on The Roar when exploring the fear of flares and the existing disdain for football from some Australians.
“[There were] people who did not just not like football but seemed to like not liking football.”
This can be extended to sections of mainstream media and police.
I thought we had passed this stage, in recent years media coverage on football has definitely improved. Yet we are seeing a return to garbage journalism. The fear of football, not necessarily flares, has returned.
Play this report from Channel Seven on mute and it just looks like a good time, a passionate build-up to a Sydney derby. The voiceover suggests otherwise.
Sydney Derby: Flares, smoke bombs, missiles and damaged seating. @turnerscope #SydneyDerby @ALeague #7News https://t.co/lMAeQIXHIZ
— 7 News Sydney (@7NewsSydney) October 25, 2015
The Sydney Morning Herald‘s Tom Decent said the “overall behaviour of the crowd was unusually rowdy and violent”, though from most sources it was a cracking atmosphere with minor incident.
The reports stem from a NSW Police media release condemning the “anti-social behaviour” at the Sydney derby and announcing there had been 18 ejections from the stadium.
The trouble started, according to police, when about 50 Western Sydney fans rushed towards Sydney FC fans to start a “physical altercation” prior to kick-off. After the fracas was broken apart police “located a number of large bolts that are suspected to have been or were intended to be used as missiles, as well as a hammer, and a flare”.
That sounds intense, and is a concern, but a total of zero arrests were made. Why? It should be a reporter’s job to at least ask the question. Those looking to start fights before the game are the ones that should be prevented from entering the stadium.
Two men were arrested and charged, one for for possessing a flare, one for allegedly throwing a bottle at Sydney FC supporters. Another two were ejected for inciting violence.
A female supporter was ejected for invading the pitch, another two for offensive behaviour (that could be as little as swearing) and another eight for intoxication.
That does not sound like anything different from any other major sporting match, bar the flares. Only three of the 18 ejections could be defined as ‘crowd violence’.
The headline grabber, though, is the use of flares, which are illegal outside maritime use in Australia. The argument from most detractors is that it is illegal, and fair call.
But Australians love a bit of pyro. Suncorp Stadium sends up bursts of fire for the Brisbane Roar, the NRL grand final features fireworks, heck, rugby league goes all out for State of Origin.
The difference is that they are carried out in a safe environment, so perhaps flares can work under a controlled environment.
What if the A-League introduced pyro-friendly zones for the big games? Fenced off, so those who love inhaling a little smoke and staring into bright lights can have their fun.
The biggest danger that comes from using flares is when they are thrown, that’s when injuries become likely. Why are they thrown? Because users are threatened with lengthy bans, they are not going to hold onto that flare for long enough to get identified.
If a flare is held by one person, in a designated area, it could work. Couldn’t it?
There does not seem to be another immediate answer. The more police condemn the actions in their current manner, the less likely they are going to convince pyro-loving fans to change their ways.
Regardless of your stance on flares, the reaction has been overblown. Flares do not represent hooliganism, and they are not an example of crowd violence.
Are you the ultimate team manager? Pick your own superstar team and go head to head with other football fans for glory and cash prizes on Draftstars. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.