Bad Though It IS - We Need This Law - Improve It, Don't Repeal It

I AM not and never have been a fan of the Offensive Behaviour At Football Act (OBFA as it is known). I said when it was introduced, it was bad law, hurriedly introduced and badly drafted.

That said, if the Police were unwilling to act using the already established “catch-all” Breach of the Peace Act, and if the SFA and the SPFL were unwilling to act to clean up the terraces, then bad law is better than no law.

I would never say offensive behaviour at football matches was the sole preserve of the Bigot Brothers and their followers – I have seen fans of many other Scottish clubs, senior and junior, causing offence inside and outside grounds, but, the sad fact is, the Bigot Brothers, having more fans, have lunatic fringes which are often larger than the entire fan base of some other clubs.

To give you an example, about 25-years ago, West Sound reported crowd trouble at a Lugar Boswell Thistle v Dalry match, at Rosebank Park. Hearing of this, while covering a game at Somerset Park the same afternoon, I was a bit taken aback. By my reckoning, if there was a break-in at a Lugar v Dalry match, I would back the players, on the grounds there were more players than spectators, and, in any case, there is no history of discord between the two clubs' fans.

Discussing the case with a couple of Ayr United back-room men, both from Lugar, we were in agreement – without knowing any of the facts: “Peachy was involved”. Peachy being a well-known Lugar loonie, for want of a better description.

Sure enough, later inquiries confirmed, “Peachy” had started the whole shebang. That's one guy, probably 5% of the entire attendance at the game. Imagine the damage 5% of an Old Firm crowd could cause – that's 3000 people, roughly the number allegedly on the pitch at Hampden after the Scottish Cup Final.

So, the capacity for disorder is always there. The football authorities have had many opportunities to set an example, by punishing the followers of the two clubs with the longest history of causing bother – and, in case any Celtic fans take umbrage, I accept, in recent years, the Rangers following has been the worse behaved of the two, but, the Celtic Family has its share of objectionable characters too. Hampden has been loathe to take the two clubs to task.

I have long held, if the “blazers” were to grasp the nettle and dock points, the clubs would HAVE to take action. Wringing their hands and claiming: “There is nothing we can do”, will not wash.

Now, we come to the latest proposals for scrapping the Act. This is being put forward by MSP James Kelly, a Labour member of the Holyrood parliament, who has himself fallen foul of the powers-that-be, having already had one “red card” at least for bad behaviour.

So, he can talk. However, it is fairly common knowledge that Mr Kelly supports the green and white half of the Bigot Brothers, it is also fairly well established that TGFITW simply refuse to accept, they have a lunatic fringe, greater than the ubiquitous “Juan Guy”, who seems to be blamed for every outbreak of bad behaviour inside Celtic Park.

“It's no us, it's them”, is the constant plea from TGFITW. They think such tasteful ditties as “The Famine Song”, “Derry's Walls” and the rest of the Rangers song book should be banned and anyone singing them should fall foul of OBFA, whilst the Celtic Song Book is ok. Less Whitabootery and a bit more whit ur we gonnae dae aboot it, might help.

Instead of trying to scrap OBFA, Mr Kelly and his cohorts should be making honest efforts to redraft it properly.

FORMER footballer Dugald McCarrison hit the headlines this week for the wrong reason – after he pleaded Guilty to a theft charge, in connection with his job as a storeman. It is always sad when someone falls off the straight and narrow, it is a severe blow to him and his family.

The case would surely not have hit the daily papers, but for one thing – McCarrison's short period as a professional footballer, and the fact he played for Celtic. It is an old habit of the Scottish press to use any connection with either half of the Old Firm as a hook to hang a story on. They know, putting: “Former Celtic/Rangers player in.....” on a headline will attract the public to want to read the story.

I have lost count of the number of times I have seen such headlines, only to quickly realise the player being referred to is hardly a household name in his own household. Such headlines are symptomatic of a small, inward looking country. For instance, I recall a former Prime Minister of New Zealand joking: “Had I been an All Black, the headline on my appointment would have been: 'Former All Black becomes PM' rather than what it was”. Scotland and New Zealand – a lot in common.

Any way, I am sorry for Dugald that it has come to this, mind you, he always struck me as having a screw loose. After Tommy Burns paid £100,000 to take him from Celtic Park to Kilmarnock (how times change, that was for a Parkhead fringe player – you could get a first-team regular for that today), Dugald hit a good streak of form, unfortunately towards the end of the season. We Killie fans were looking forward to seeing him carry-on in the same form in the new campaign. Unfortunately, demonstrating his “screw loose” approach to life, Dugald promptly went off for his close season, agreed to play with his mates in the Lesmahagow Gala Day, broke a leg and was never the same again. Ach, the boay's fram the 'Gow, whit dae ye expect?

Still, I hope he can come back from his latest fall off the straight and narrow.

STILL on the subject of Celtic men, allegedly with a screw or two loose – can I just say, I agree with Scott Brown. From what I have seen of the new-look Rangers squad, even with the class of Barton and Kranjcar, they are carrying too-many players who are, in my auld Hun of a faither's words: “Not Rangers class”, to be genuine challengers for the title this season.