Football club bans under-16s after spate of disorder

A Scottish football club has banned under-16s from attending matches without a paying adult after a spate of anti-social behaviour.

Forfar Athletic introduced measures to counter disorder after a number of "unacceptable" incidents at its last home game against the Spartans.

The Scottish Supporter's Football Association said although it was "disappointing" to see young fans miss out on football, it was right for the club to take action.

Police Scotland confirmed they were called to a disturbance on 21 March and said they have a zero-tolerance approach to disorder at football matches.

In a statement the club said it had been left with no other option but to introduce new policies for their three remaining home games.

The Scottish League Two said any non-season ticket holders under the age of 16 will only be allowed access to games if accompanied by a paying adult.

Anyone attempting to enter the ground wearing a face covering will be asked to remove it.

If this request is refused, they will not be allowed access to the ground.

A spokesperson for Forfar Athletic wrote on their Facebook page: "The behaviour of these young people is not acceptable.

"Whilst the club have tried to engage and encourage their support, the attendance of police at two recent games has led to these measures having to be taken.

"Forfar Athletic would also like to add that their behaviour within the town itself is absolutely unacceptable.

"We have received numerous emails about disturbances and can only apologise to residents and businesses, however we cannot be held responsible for their actions away from the football ground."

The club said they it had engaged with police and passed on CCTV images.

It continued: "Forfar Athletic wish to encourage younger supporters to attend matches, but only if they are coming to support the team and behave themselves.

"Not all of the younger fans are to blame, but we need to ensure that none of the ones who do misbehave are allowed to continue causing problems for stewards and Police.

"If police decide that they need to attend games, it comes at a cost to the club, and so we need to ensure that their presence is not required.

"We hope that supporters understand the reasoning behind these measures and we thank all of our fans for their support this season."

John MacLean, chief executive of the Scottish Football Supporters Association, said it was disappointing to see any fans being deprived from watching football but he praised Forfar Athletic for taking a stance on "unacceptable" behaviour.

He told BBC Scotland: "It is evident that clubs of all sizes have to address some of the anti-social behaviours that can accompany some of the young fans' enthusiasm.

"Clubs have been put under the spotlight to ensure that they take action otherwise strict liability will continue to be an option that the football authorities will be forced to look at.

"We would encourage positive dialogue between the fans and the club."

MacLean said communication between clubs and fans could be the way forward, after clubs such as Falkirk and Partick Thistle found dialogue led to a significant reduction in the use of pyrotechnics.

"There is undoubtedly an element here of youngsters aping what they are seeing at bigger clubs and I do think Forfar's stance on this, particularly regarding balaclavas and pyros, is something other boardrooms could reflect on," he added.

Inquiries into the incident on 21 March are ongoing.

Ch Insp Grace Ewing said: "Anti-social behaviour and disorder of any kind is unacceptable and we recognise the negative impact this can have on the community.

"We work with a range of partners to address issues, provide solutions and determine positive measures we can take to prevent it.

"Part of this activity involves working with Forfar Athletic through pro-active youth engagement programmes and assisting through violence reduction campaigns in the wider community."