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Trust Condemn Board Actions |
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The Board of Swansea City Supporters Trust wish to swiftly and publicly condemn the needless use of heavy handed force displayed by police officers drafted in to support Bury FC club stewards at Saturday’s League Two promotion decider. It would appear that yet again, in a game involving Swansea City and promotion, police officers brought in to ensure public order have played a part in creating a troublesome situation where none was evident. At Rotherham in May 2001, police action, on a day when attending Swans fans were merely ecstatic at the club’s success, was, in the eyes of most people “less than helpful” and was ultimately to play a tragic part in a day when Swans supporter Terry Cole lost his life. Thankfully, police action at Bury did not have such tragic consequences but it did nevertheless highlight the scant regard that some police officers have for football fans attending matches. In a game where Swansea City FC was supported by 5000 fans, there was clearly a need for adequate supervision and stewarding. In the main, Swans fans appear to have been more than happy with the Bury stewards the only criticism being that there were insufficient numbers in relation to such a large away contingent. We do not condone the instances when Swans fans ran onto the pitch resulting in a delay of the game. This should not be excused and exuberance is not a justifiable reason although again, most fans believe that this problem could have been prevented by a greater level of stewarding. With promotion sealed, it was inevitable that Swans fans would wish to celebrate in front of the main stand and the subsequent ‘pitch invasion’ was good natured, vocal and well behaved. This atmosphere of joy continued when the players joined the celebrations in the stand. The catalyst for the ensuing events seems (to most observers) to have been down to a combination of heavy handed stewarding (as a few players moved closer to the fans) and the quite obvious frustration exhibited by watching police officers who, having been left almost ‘redundant’ on the day due to fans’ good behaviour, appear to have wanted (to quote one fan) ‘… a piece of the action’. The ensuing debacle where Swans keeper Willy Gueret was arrested immediately created tension amongst a crowd where no tension had been evident and events that followed, as fans made their way from the ground, can only serve as proof of the disdain which some elements of the police force hold for football fans. Several Trust Board members not only witnessed the events as they developed in front of the main stand but were also innocently caught up in the aftermath of events outside the ground, where police officers in riot gear are said to have used batons and shields to violent effect in an attempt to disperse an already dispersing Swansea contingent of fans. This action appears to have disregarded the presence of children amongst the fans and we have received several reports indicating that children were injured by police action. We are aware that complaints were made to senior officers at the time and in one telling response, a Trust Board member was told by one such officer that the officers involved were not from the local force, but from a tactical unit at Bolton and that, “…….they caused more trouble than they were worth…” As far as we are aware photographic evidence of the events can be made available and we believe that video footage taken by a fan can also be produced if required. We sincerely hope that this is made available. This was to be a day of celebration for the large, well behaved contingent of Swans fans but it was subsequently marred by the crass actions of the police and some officials. There will no doubt be an attempt to shift the emphasis from police action towards ‘unruly’ Swansea fans and in doing so, we believe that once again Swansea fans will be unfairly labelled and seen as the instigators of trouble. This should not be allowed to happen and the Trust as the representative organisation for Swans supporters is concerned that such wanton police action as was evidenced at Bury on Saturday may go unchecked by the police authority concerned and thus serve to provide a distorted view of events whilst exonerating the police and blaming the fans. The Board therefore calls upon the police at Bury to publicly explain the justification behind actions taken by the officers concerned and asks that they also confirm that they will be dealing publicly with any complaints made by fans injured or assaulted through police action. In doing so, the police may also wish to comment on why there was a need to arrest Swans keeper Willy Gueret during the celebrations…… only to release him “without charge” a few hours later. To most observers this, coupled with an apparent desire on the part of the police to ‘be part of the action’, was the catalyst for what subsequently happened. The actions of the ‘tactical unit’ concerned did nothing for the reputation of the police and appears to be yet another reason for concern on the part of the ordinary football fan regarding the role of the police at football matches. The Board of Swansea City Supporters Trust May 9th 2005
Images courtesy of Getty Images, Athena Picture Agency and Swansea City Football Club.
 
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