Opinion: fighting Port Vale fans should be banned for life

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Columnist Malcolm Hirst says*there are simply no excuses for the fans hell-bent on violence at the Grimsby Town match… Malcolm Hirst writes… Following Port Vale has been a rollercoaster ride for the last few years. Little did I think that I could go from the heights of the Fans’ Forum on Thursday evening to the […]

 

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[SuperValiant1876]

That's it, trim the fan base a bit more. A year or 2 would be enough for most of those involved. Have you ever been in a fight when you were younger? Do you think a life punishment would be a fair for mistakes made under the influence of beer and testosterone?

[Mario]

That's it, trim the fan base a bit more. A year or 2 would be enough for most of those involved. Have you ever been in a fight when you were younger? Do you think a life punishment would be a fair for mistakes made under the influence of beer and testosterone?

 

Defending the indefensible

[Hagrid]

That's it, trim the fan base a bit more. A year or 2 would be enough for most of those involved. Have you ever been in a fight when you were younger? Do you think a life punishment would be a fair for mistakes made under the influence of beer and testosterone?

 

I've been drunk, been to many away games, and never been in a fight. Never even crossed my mind at the football.

 

Maybe I'm soft. Maybe I'm just not stupid enough to realise that at football games is completely moronic.

[smithie]

A life ban? Is this bloke serious?

 

We don't ban people who fight in pubs from ever going in one again.

 

We don't ban people from driving for life on account of doing something stupid once or twice.

 

We don't ban shoplifters from all shops for ever.

 

I particularly like his assertion that saturday's miscreants are "not football fans".

 

They may not fit his narrow definition of one, but I'd say travelling all that way and paying to get in is a fan without a doubt.

[SuperValiant1876]

Defending the indefensible

 

 

Not at all if you could read? I said ban them but a year or 2 not for life and for the reasons Smithie has said above me.

[SuperValiant1876]

I've been drunk, been to many away games, and never been in a fight. Never even crossed my mind at the football.

 

Maybe I'm soft. Maybe I'm just not stupid enough to realise that at football games is completely moronic.

 

Maybe stupid enough not to read that the point I was arguing against was not the ban but the length of it.

[Mario]

Maybe stupid enough not to read that the point I was arguing against was not the ban but the length of it.

 

The clubs reputation is at all time low,Smurthwaite has dragged us into the gutter and a very small number have dragged us further down.

 

The club needs building up and this kind of behaviour does us no favours this went on in the 70's and 80's its not clever and its not to be admired.

 

A life ban and a big fine would be a start to stop these knuckle draggers.

 

Your habit of being rude to posters does you no favours, I can read and I am sure Hagrid is not stupid....Time to grow up fella.

[SuperValiant1876]

The clubs reputation is at all time low,Smurthwaite has dragged us into the gutter and a very small number have dragged us further down.

 

The club needs building up and this kind of behaviour does us no favours this went on in the 70's and 80's its not clever and its not to be admired.

 

A life ban and a big fine would be a start to stop these knuckle draggers.

 

Your habit of being rude to posters does you no favours, I can read and I am sure Hagrid is not stupid....Time to grow up fella.

 

So now you agree I wasn't defending the indefensible?

 

Hagrids post seems to take a swipe at me in the same manner Mario.

 

I am only rude to the posters who confront me at games or are rude to me on here, you should be able to take what you give out (not you, that's a rule that everyone should live by)

[robf]

That's it, trim the fan base a bit more.

 

Don't you think that getting rid of the idiot fringes would actually boost the fanbase?

 

We may just be able to attract a few more... kids, the elderly, the infirm, decent normal human beings who want to watch football in safety - the very ones all being put off from following Port Vale (look at the declining attendances) by that lovely section of the fanbase.

 

We may also be able to attract some non-fan things that those lovely people don't help to attract... sponsors, a good reputation, good publicity, pride in our club and so on.

 

But then again we may lose some things too... the income of a few dozen season tickets, FA fines, potential points deductions, encouraging the idiots from other clubs to try and "take on" Vale fans etc...

 

If I had a choice I know what I would choose.

[SuperValiant1876]

Don't you think that getting rid of the idiot fringes would actually boost the fanbase?

 

We may just be able to attract a few more... kids, the elderly, the infirm, decent normal human beings who want to watch football in safety - the very ones all being put off from following Port Vale (look at the declining attendances) by that lovely section of the fanbase.

 

We may also be able to attract some non-fan things that those lovely people don't help to attract... sponsors, a good reputation, good publicity, pride in our club and so on.

 

But then again we may lose some things too... the income of a few dozen season tickets, FA fines, potential points deductions, encouraging the idiots from other clubs to try and "take on" Vale fans etc...

 

If I had a choice I know what I would choose.

 

I completely agree that they shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the football for a few years but completely disagree that it should be a life ban. You don't even get life for murder in this country. A few years banned from the football may calm some of these idiots down a bit but a life ban will see them back in disguise with no remorse and nothing to lose. People should be punished but should also be given the chance to change and come back a better fan with perhaps kids in tow etc. A life ban is ridiculous, that is my point.

 

You can't seriously believe that the dwindling fan base is down to violent fans or Millwall would have no one in the stands, neither would Stoke until recently. We had about 13000? against Burton the other year, plenty of kids and elderly in and I went to a lot of away games that season and saw plenty of trouble! There are a number of reasons for our dwindling fan base but football violence is well down the pecking order of reasons, premier league football down the road being no1 in my eyes.

[mr.hobblesworth]

The main reason my wife won't come to games with me or allow me to take our young son to matches is because of the pondlife she witnessed 'supporting' our club at Bury a few years back.

 

I take my elderly mother to matches sometimes but have to pick and choose because of the thick meatheads that cause trouble at certain games.

[PV1973]

I have no problem with them handing out lifetime bans, I dont care if people think it’s disproportionate. Why anyone would sympathise with the potential ban being handed out to fans fighting in a ground is beyond me. I don’t want to be around people like that. I don’t want my kids or mrs to feel threatened at games either.

 

No one should go to any event with the potential for that kind of thing breaking out. Plus you would hope that length of deterrent would make the idiots think twice as well.

 

I’m also pretty sure that some of the lads I saw involved on Saturday have just come back from a ban too. If I’m right then it’s clear that the existing bans aren’t enough of a deterrent.

[NLVMalc]

If these people were fans they would put the interests of the club above their own primeval needs. I make around 30 games or so a season and I recognised very few of those going across to cause trouble.

 

I’ve been told that a lot of them get their transport and match ticket paid for, all they need is money to buy beer. Interesting if that is true.

 

We need to grow the fan base and having these kinds of people associated with the club simply won’t help, especially when the football is not particularly good.

 

Let’s hope the FA don’t deduct any points given the fact we are already on a warning.

[Conrad]

If these people were fans they would put the interests of the club above their own primeval needs. I make around 30 games or so a season and I recognised very few of those going across to cause trouble.

 

I’ve been told that a lot of them get their transport and match ticket paid for, all they need is money to buy beer. Interesting if that is true.

 

We need to grow the fan base and having these kinds of people associated with the club simply won’t help, especially when the football is not particularly good.

 

Let’s hope the FA don’t deduct any points given the fact we are already on a warning.

 

Who would be paying for their transport and match ticket? I don’t get that.