From the Sidelines: Supporters disappoint

SCENES of unruly behaviour by fans of Orlando Pirates and Black Africa at the Sam Nujoma Stadium last Friday, were a slap in the face of the ones who did not take part in the free-for-all can- and bottle-throwing affair.

It was so sad to see the cans flying above the heads of former football great John Barnes and ex-karate world champion Jeff Thompson. These two sporting greats thought they would be enjoying the hospitality of the Namibian people by making an effort to attend the derby, which was nicely billed and hyped-up by the media.But that was spoiled by some drunken and unruly thugs supporting both teams who have no consideration for the safety of others.These hooligans generally engage in such acts just to vent their frustrations.A derby between these two teams does not mean that fans hold the rights to get violent.The respect for order between the fans of these two teams has been disappointing.I blame the two clubs for allowing their fans to be so unruly because they don’t understand the value of the game and they don’t have the faintest idea on respecting other neutral fans that came to watch the game.Some people, including both Barnes and Thompson, were caught up in the crossfire and that could have led to people being injured.Although cans landed on some people, while some ducked them, it was just not the manner to deal with frustrations if a team is on the losing side.Black Africa and Orlando Pirates both have supporters’ clubs and I should think that having that in place, their fans should know the laws of the game.The clubs should at least educate their supporters to behave in an orderly manner, even if they are about to lose.The years have seen bitter rivalry between the two teams on the pitch, but that should in fact just end there.The Namibian Premier League (NPL) also has a role to play in trying to curb such incidents.The NPL has the power to make it compulsory for each club to have a supporters’ club that will educate its members on the rules of the game.At the moment, there are no more than five teams in the league that have supporters clubs, yet we have 12 teams in the premiership.The NPL should also look at employing more security personnel at important matches, or at least the ones that have the potential to turn into violence.The Humphries Security Guard Division has done a great job for the past 15 years in handling the crowds at stadiums, but more people are needed to carry out these duties.Some of these security guards also lack the training, as some just stood there and watched people having a great time with this can-throwing exercise.Last year, I wrote about the fans who stormed onto the field after the Pirates / African Stars final in the MTC Cup, a situation that was very dangerous.If there are enough security guards, fans can be kept from the field, as players and officials can get injured by being beaten up or stabbed by some of these unruly fans who are always looking for trouble at the stadiums.The point is, football administrators should by all means ensure that matches are crime-free, especially within the stadiums.There is nothing as frustrating for a family going to a football match only to end up ducking cans that are flying past them, or being harassed by pick-pockets at the entrance gates.In marketing the game to the public, the safety for the football lovers should be taken seriously as they are the ones who contribute to the coffers of the particular teams in action.It is also advisable for the NPL to impose fines on any of these teams that engage in such behaviour or even deduct points from them.If such a situation occurs again, then football administrators and clubs are not serious about the safety of the neutral spectator who just came to enjoy the game.These two sporting greats thought they would be enjoying the hospitality of the Namibian people by making an effort to attend the derby, which was nicely billed and hyped-up by the media.But that was spoiled by some drunken and unruly thugs supporting both teams who have no consideration for the safety of others.These hooligans generally engage in such acts just to vent their frustrations.A derby between these two teams does not mean that fans hold the rights to get violent.The respect for order between the fans of these two teams has been disappointing.I blame the two clubs for allowing their fans to be so unruly because they don’t understand the value of the game and they don’t have the faintest idea on respecting other neutral fans that came to watch the game.Some people, including both Barnes and Thompson, were caught up in the crossfire and that could have led to people being injured.Although cans landed on some people, while some ducked them, it was just not the manner to deal with frustrations if a team is on the losing side.Black Africa and Orlando Pirates both have supporters’ clubs and I should think that having that in place, their fans should know the laws of the game.The clubs should at least educate their supporters to behave in an orderly manner, even if they are about to lose.The years have seen bitter rivalry between the two teams on the pitch, but that should in fact just end there.The Namibian Premier League (NPL) also has a role to play in trying to curb such incidents.The NPL has the power to make it compulsory for each club to have a supporters’ club that will educate its members on the rules of the game.At the moment, there are no more than five teams in the league that have supporters clubs, yet we have 12 teams in the premiership.The NPL should also look at employing more security personnel at important matches, or at least the ones that have the potential to turn into violence.The Humphries Security Guard Division has done a great job for the past 15 years in handling the crowds at stadiums, but more people are needed to carry out these duties.Some of these security guards also lack the training, as some just stood there and watched people having a great time with this can-throwing exercise.Last year, I wrote about the fans who stormed onto the field after the Pirates / African Stars final in the MTC Cup, a situation that was very dangerous.If there are enough security guards, fans can be kept from the field, as players and officials can get injured by being beaten up or stabbed by some of these unruly fans who are always looking for trouble at the stadiums.The point is, football administrators should by all means ensure that matches are crime-free, especially within the stadiums.There is nothing as frustrating for a family going to a football match only to end up ducking cans that are flying past them, or being harassed by pick-pockets at the entrance gates.In marketing the game to the public, the safety for the football lovers should be taken seriously as they are the ones who contribute to the coffers of the particular teams in action.It is also advisable for the NPL to impose fines on any of these teams that engage in such behaviour or even deduct points from them.If such a situation occurs again, then football administrators and clubs are not serious about the safety of the neutral spectator who just came to enjoy the game.