The time has come for Football Federation Australia to can the rhetoric and start to dock the Western Sydney Wanderers points for the behaviour of some of their supporters.
I feel sorry for the Wanderers and the overwhelming majority of their fans, but I just can’t see any other way for the gravity of the situation to be rammed home to the idiots who use the A-League as a vehicle to play out their wannabe Ultras fantasies.
I’m not alone in thinking as much, with FFA issuing the Wanderers a show cause notice as to why they shouldn’t be sanctioned for the scenes on Saturday that saw a section of fans rip flares and let off detonators at Etihad Stadium.
“FFA has received detailed reports from all stakeholders and has asked the Western Sydney Wanderers to show cause why they should not face sanctions for the behaviour of a group of fans on Saturday night,” FFA chief executive David Gallop said in a media release yesterday.
“This behaviour has clearly alarmed many people inside and outside the game. It simply cannot be tolerated.”
More football:
» FFA talking tough could be rough for Wanderers
» Fan issues escalate: FFA charge Wanderers with bringing game into disrepute
» It’s time for A-League supporters to unite against flares
» A-League fans have shot themselves in the foot
Gallop is right – this behaviour cannot be tolerated – and in an ideal world, every offender who ripped flares and engaged in anti-social behaviour would be identified by video and photos from the ground, banned from the A-League and questioned about their misguided notions of masculinity for good measure.
But in the absence of over-arching evidence, the threat of being docked competition points – whether through a suspended sentence or not – must hang over a small contingent of fans who remain hell-bent on damaging the A-League for their own anti-social means.
It’s a shame such action would punish not only players and staff, but also the overwhelming majority of law-abiding Wanderers fans – including those in the Red and Black Bloc who support the club without resorting to the use of pyrotechnics.
But unless the Wanderers supporter base can improve their self-policing, docking the club points might be the only way FFA can get through to the imbeciles who ruin the game for the rest of us.
I’ve said it before, but the Wanderers hierarchy should also get on the phone to the Canterbury Bulldogs and ask how the Belmore-based NRL club managed to curb their persistent hooligan problem.
The Bulldogs were rocked by a spate of hooligan incidents in the early 2000s, including several brawls and an incident which saw a “large firework” detonated at Homebush against the Brisbane Broncos.
Sound familiar? It lends credence to the theory that those who bring pyrotechnics into A-League grounds have no interest in sport whatsoever.
The NRL ultimately placed the Bulldogs on a good behaviour bond, a measure which former NRL supremo Gallop must surely be considering for the Wanderers.
The irony is that in ripping flares at Etihad Stadium, Wanderers fans seemed to hinder their team rather than help them, with Besart Berisha nodding home amidst the haze in an absorbing 1-1 draw.
It’s not the first time flares have appeared to cost the Wanderers, with Kim Shin-wook side-footing home for Ulsan Hyundai as flares were lobbed on to the pitch in Western Sydney’s first ever AFC Champions League game.
Adelaide United will be looking to emulate Western Sydney’s heroic continental feats of two years ago when they face Shandong Luneng in a monumental AFC Champions League play-off at Coopers Stadium tonight.
Not only will the Reds face a team that finished third in a highly competitive Chinese Super League last season, but thousands of fans have reportedly travelled from Shandong as well. It should also be a reminder of what a wonderful spectacle the world game can truly be.
Sadly, though, we’re once again talking about the behaviour of a small group of Wanderers fans.
And after so much work was done to forge a closer relationship with active supporters, it’s time for FFA to put away the carrot and start brandishing the stick.
britesparke
Roar Rookie
The ffa rules state that anyone in the home stadium/away section are considered a supporter and the relevant club is responsible unless it can be proven they are not a supporter of that club. Herein lies the problem. More of these "convenient" idiotic FFA rules. A non member can buy tickets in the supporter's bay at an away venue and these individuals can be anyone from ISIS , Al Queada or another code seeking to disrupt a game and....presto.....they automatically qualify as a supporter and the club is held responsible!!!!! Absolutely brilliant!
Gareth
Guest
Good point Post Hoc, that would definitely introduce problems at away games that you wouldn't get at home. Marron and Horto, I'm not talking about citizens arrest, I'm talking about a culture change. There is still a portion of the RBB that celebrates when a flair is ripped, and a large number of people who sport the #NoPyroNoParty attitude. The tolerance towards this attitude is, I believe, what allows the issue of the active support and flares to continue. If active support areas knew that lighting flares directly harmed their club, tolerance towards flares (by the few who still support them) would quickly subside. Just my opinion. For the record, I don't think docking of points in this instance is fair, but if it continues to be a problem, for any club, then docking of points might be the most effective thing to do.
RbbAnonymous
Guest
No they shouldnt dock points Just catch the 20-30 troublemakers who have a penchant for lighting flares.
Horto Magiko
Roar Rookie
Great post marron. The term"Self-policing" is thrown about like people know wtf they're actually talking about., they're effectively asking for vigilante justice.,, let me guess, they will say "no just point them out to security"... Ok but the spotters already do that. The 50 thousand cops and security guards and HD cameras there are more than capable of dealing with a flare.
rl
Guest
you're right, I need to lighten up. Lets get all the fun stuff back in again, like coin throwing. And knives, they're always good for a lark.
FIUL
Guest
I reported someone for wearing a baseball cap backwards & jeans half-way down his backside. Need to bring back National Service... that'll stop the flares.
josh
Guest
Brisbane has the RCC Ian.
rl
Guest
I actually reported someone last week for hooning in our street. There's young kids around and the police can't be everywhere, so I felt it was my responsibility to do something about it. I that makes me a nark, I'll wear the tag with pride. The easy option is to ignore it or assume its someone else's responsibility.
Ian
Guest
josh supports WSW. if by crap you mean not bringing football into disrepute with wannabe ultras, then, yes, crap.
Qantas & SBS support Australian Football
Guest
"This is not to suggest that it isn’t a problem or that efforts shouldn’t be made to stamp it out." Agreed. @Marron, I'm a SBS2 viewer and this is the only live football I see, plus Sunday afternoon SBS TWG. I'm an expat old Sydney boy based on the Gold Coast... Unfortunately for you football affiliates you are the leading news item on this issue. It doesn't matter if it is WSW or SFC or who ever, the practice has to stop for the good and growth of the game for a plethora of good reasons why. At the end of the day, I would hope all of the Football Community would agree on this point.
marron
Guest
Grub 1# : Constable, constable, Grub #2 let off a flare! Constable: Is that true? Grub #2: no. ....... Or perhaps Grubs no 1 and 3-10 apprehend Grub #2, pull the guy kicking and punching out of the bay... maybe his mates kicking up a stink as well, once again, no evidence this guy has done anything other than a he said she said..... yeah, another great look for the a-league. That's not even mentioning how impossible it is to spot people anyway. Oh wait. There's a stack of cameras, security and police who can do it already, and do do it, succesfully, with the result that at parra there are next to no flares. After sorting it out with the RBB. There are a lot of concerned people out there - maybe some of them could volunteer to do this policing. THey couldn't do worse than Vicpol/Etihad security who did a bang up job of not searching anyone or checking ID it would appear. They also stood around doing nothing when the flares went off (at parra, on the rare occasion - maybe once a season over the last 3 years - they are straight in to remove and extinguish, and they come for the culprits later).
marron
Guest
Half of the teams in the league have groups who have let off flares this season. Where were your comments when your own club supporters ripped them at the derby. Where were your comments when both melbourne teams ripped them at their derby. Where were your comments when Adelaide ripped them at their game. The only reason we are talking about this particular incident is because it affected the FOX coverage. If the away bays were located elsewhere, and the flares had been ripped, I guarantee this furore would not have happened. And I can be confident in saying this because flares have been ripped across the season without this reaction. It is the difference. This is not to suggest that it isn't a problem or that efforts shouldn't be made to stamp it out.
Qantas & SBS support Australian Football
Guest
Precisely Dean.
Qantas & SBS support Australian Football
Guest
My God, a pandemic!
Post hoc
Guest
Man City do it as well and you argued they don't have Flares. :) Post hoc ergo propter hoc:)
Post hoc
Guest
Gareth, the issue is not really a home game issue, it appears the home end is under control. Now, this is obviously a cooperation between the club, the stadium, police/security and the RBB. Alot of what i am reading on social media is accusing the RBB of not doing anything. I suspect they are, for the changes to have occurred at home they must have. The RBB wont say they are self policing because I am presuming here it goes against their ethos, their moral code. I suspect they are doing all they can but not saying so to 'protect' their image right or wrong as it might be. But I would rather a group does things and not claim credit rather than one that talks about doing things and does nothing. The issue on the weekend is a traveling contingent John Tsatsimas has come out and said they are not members of the Wanderers, now this could be spin or it could actually be something that he has evidence on, that these guys have been kicked out of the club, so can't come to home games, but managed to go to away games. Time will tell
Qantas & SBS support Australian Football
Guest
19 toxic flares were set off in that match, none of whom could escape breathing in the toxic fumes, in a crowded arena. What do you mean "its only important if people see it on TV" ? Tell that to the Cancer Council.
Post hoc
Guest
You are right, GA, less tolerant of standing up, don't have flags obscuring view, more likely to stand out
AVictory
Guest
So if a Holden Commodore over takes you at 125 km/h in a 110km/h zone, you have a civic duty to report them? C'mon mate. As if you have ever reported someone for speeding, you encounter speeding drivers on a daily basis and you have never reported any of them.
Post hoc
Guest
Only if you were going into a Phoenix game :)