To the Editor:
Firstly, we send our congratulations to Celtic on winning the William Hill Premiership in the most exciting of circumstances and send our commiserations to everyone at Heart of Midlothian following an incredible campaign.
We would also like to thank the referee and his excellent team of match officials for their cool heads on such a dramatic day. Given the speculation about the conclusion of the game, we would like to make clear that, before awarding the trophy, we were informed by the match referee that the match had ended and had not been abandoned.
Yesterday’s match showed off the very best of the Scottish game and the drama and excitement that it is rightly famed for. The eyes of the world were on Glasgow and the climax of the William Hill Premiership, with millions of viewers watching the match on Sky Sports and across the globe.
However, we utterly condemn the scenes that saw several Celtic supporters encroach onto the field of play. We await the report of our match delegate regarding any specific incidents that took place. Regardless, supporters entering the field of play in any circumstances is wholly unacceptable and puts those participating and working at a match at risk. We note that entering the pitch in England and Wales has been a criminal offence since 1991. We urge anyone with information about any alleged criminal activity to contact Police Scotland.
* Meanwhile, Reform’s Thomas Kerr has now suggested taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for any clean-up of the Trongate area, where around 3,000 people are thought to have congregated. He said he had been “inundated” with messages from “angry” constituents after the scenes, which have shamed Scottish football.
