Scotland v England: Hooligans ‘pre-plan’ trouble
Police guard the entrance of the Central Station after the 1999 match between Scotland and England
Below is a report from various newspapers.
FOOTBALL hooligans have planned trouble in Glasgow on the day of the Scotland v England clash at Celtic Park.
Police Scotland revealed there are a number of “pre-planned” battles for Tuesday’s friendly.
The match is expected to be a 60,000 sell-out, with 5,000 England supporters travelling.
Major steps are being taken to avoid a repeat of the trouble when the teams met in the Euro 2000 play-offs at Hampden in 1999.
A staggering 230 people were arrested as supporters clashed in the stadium and in Glasgow city centre.
Chief superintendent Andy Bates revealed the friendly match on Tuesday has been given the highest possible UEFA security risk rating.
He said: “We’ve intelligence to suggest there will be some pre-planned disorder. It’s been given a risk category of CIR, the highest you can give a game.
“Over the years, England have had problems with their travelling support in particular and that is what we have to be alive to.
“We have to be on top of our game to be sure it doesn’t become a problem.
“We have intelligence that both sides will be involved in this.
“There will be an increase in the numbers of officers deployed to this game. The whole purpose of this is to disrupt any hooligan activity.
“It’s a fair assumption that some England fans will try to get tickets for the Scotland area and our operation will also be focussed on that.
“Scotland has played host to a number of high-profile international events this year and has been praised for the welcome it gives visitors.
“I will not allow our reputation to be marred by a minority who use football as cover to cause disorder.”
Scotland faced England last year at Wembley Stadium with more than 20,000 of the Tartan Army in London.
The match was trouble-free with only one arrest on the day of the game – a Scotland fan dancing naked at Trafalgar Square.
Article Continues BelowHuge security operation to be launched
Tonight’s friendly in Glasgow has been given the highest possible UEFA security risk rating and major steps are being taken to ensure there’s no repeat of the violence when the teams met 15 years ago.
HOOLIGANS are planning a series of violent battles before this week’s Scotland-England clash.
Police Scotland say they have received information that yobs from both sides are intent on organising trouble in the run-up to Tuesday night’s game at Celtic Park.
Chief Superintendent Andy Bates, local policing commander for Glasgow, said the contest has been given the highest possible UEFA security risk rating.
Major steps are being taken to make sure there’s no repeat of the violence when the teams met in the Euro 2000 play-offs at Hampden in 1999.
Officers arrested 230 people 15 years ago after clashes at the stadium and in the city centre.
Security steps being taken over the next 48 hours will include officers from English forces, including the Met, travelling to Glasgow to help identify known English hooligans.
England fans will have to collect their tickets at a special venue in the city centre where troublemakers can be spotted.
All leave will be cancelled for police officers working in Glasgow. And officers will be brought in from other Scots cities including Dundee and Edinburgh to help their Glasgow colleagues.
Mr Bates said more than 5000 England fans had bought tickets for their section at Parkhead, but it was possible some had also paid for seats in home sections with the intention of causing bother.
He added: “We’ve intelligence to suggest there will be some pre-planned disorder. It’s been given a risk category of CIR, the highest you can give a game.
“Over the years, England have had problems with their travelling support in particular and that is what we have to be alive to.
“We have to be on top of our game to be sure it doesn’t become a problem.
“We have intelligence that both sides will be involved in this.
“There will be an increase in the numbers of officers deployed to this game. The whole purpose of this is to disrupt any hooligan activity.
“It’s a fair assumption that some England fans will try to get tickets for the Scotland area and our operation will also be focussed on that.”
230 arrests last time the two teams met in Scotland
Around 2000 England fans are under Football Banning Orders because of hooliganism.
They have all received letters reminding them they are barred from the Scotland game, but it’s feared some may have got hold of tickets.
Mr Bates said: “We’re monitoring the situation through a number of sources. We’re confident we know what is going to happen.
“We will have a spotting operation on the go. It will involve people from the UK Football Policing Unit from down south who will support the operation and identify their own supporters.
“We’re not talking about riots in the city and across the country, but pockets of disorder. It’s our intention to identify the people involved and to destroy any plans they may have.
“There will not be many of my officers wanting to take the day off. This is as big as it gets. This is what we joined for, to be involved in events like this.”
Mr Bates will consider his operation a failure if there are as many arrests as in 1999. He said: “We anticipate arrests, but not as many as in 1999.
“It’s a high-risk game with an increased risk. That’s what you would have with an Old Firm game.
“We will deal with whatever comes in front of us. The operation has been running for a few weeks and it will be ramped up from Sunday onwards.
“If you want to enjoy a game of football, we will let that happen. If there’s intention to cause disorder, we will catch those responsible.
“We’ll be using officers from down south who have been policing England games for many years. They bring a lot of skills and experience with them.
“If we identify these risk groups of supporters, we will be having conversations with them, letting them know we know what they’re up to and will not be letting them out of our sights. We have been successful with this in the past.”