THE unfortunate scenes during the minute’s silence that was held to honour The Queen at Tynecastle on Thursday night were nothing new for Scottish football.
Disgust and outrage were expressed online yesterday after a video which was taken on a mobile phone before the second-half of Hearts’ game against Istanbul Basaksehir got underway was posted on Twitter.
The offensive shouts which emanated from one or two morons in the Wheatfield Stand were certainly highly regrettable and the furious reaction from those around about the culprits quite understandable.
An impromptu chant of God Save The Queen broke out in the Main Stand – very possibly in an attempt to drown out the knuckle draggers who had cried out and the subsequent rumpus – and there was another angry response from many of their fellow fans.
It was a wonder it did not all come to blows and a blessing when the referee blew his whistle to cut it short.
It is to be hoped that those responsible can be identified and punished accordingly in the coming days.
But was anybody really surprised that every single person in the crowd of 15,131 was unable to remain silent for 60 seconds midway through the Conference League group match? A fair few were doubtless the worse for wear, others of very limited intelligence.
It would, given what we have witnessed at grounds in this country on such occasions numerous times over the years, have been something of a shock if the show of respect to Britain’s longest-reigning monarch had been impeccably observed by everyone who was in attendance.
Hearts reacted swiftly and appropriately to the sad news that was announced by Buckingham Palace shortly before half-time. Their captain Craig Gordon and his team mates wore black armbands when they came back out onto the park. None of the players were made available for interview afterwards.
However, the Gorgie club and their supporters have been lambasted by the perpetually offended since. All because of the actions of a couple of cretins. Is it really fair that their reputation has been tarnished in such a manner?
The problem does not lie with Hearts, it lies in holding a minute’s silence at a football match in Scotland. The practice should be done away with and replaced by minute’s applause permanently. It would bring an end to the frequent and tedious outcries over the lack of respect shown to the deceased.
It would not have been in the slightest bit disrespectful to Queen Elizabeth II if her passing at the age of 96 on Thursday had been marked by clapping. It would have been a show of appreciation of her remarkable life and decades of loyal service.
The republicans in their midst could have stuffed their hands in their pockets and quietly fumed without disgracing their beloved club.
Holding a minute’s applause going forward would, too, prevent the deaths of public figures and former players and managers being weaponised and used to score points over their rivals by infantile morons.
It is not a perfect solution. Remembrance Sunday, when the nation pauses to think of those men and women who sacrificed their lives in two world wars, is a solemn event. Is applause a fitting way to honour those who fell on foreign fields? Or to pay tribute to those who died in the Ibrox Disaster or other tragedies.
Still, there is much glee in certain quarters every year whenever - as has, alas, often been the case in the past - the hardcore element among the Celtic support fail to stay silent before kick-off at the game that is played on or around the second Sunday in November.
Is their joy at such misconduct a touching homage to those who perished in the Battle of the Somme or on Omaha Beach?
AND ANOTHER THING
There is nothing quite like a big European game at Parkhead and the atmosphere at Celtic’s opening Champions League encounter with defending champions Real Madrid on Tuesday night was incredible.
The giant tifo display which was unfurled in the safe standing section of the stadium which houses the ultras group The Green Brigade before kick-off was impressive and added enormously to the sense of occasion.
So why did those responsible feel the need to set off a number of flares around about it?
A nine-year-old Celtic supporter was hit by one, had to be taken to the medical room and then transferred to a nearby accident and emergency ward for further treatment.
Police are investigating. With a bit of luck, the person who put their fellow fan, a kid who was doubtless excited about the chance to see Luka Modric, Karim Benzema and Vinicius Jnr in the flesh, in hospital because of their gross stupidity will be caught and charged.
Pyrotechnics should be handled by qualified individuals in a secure environment on Bonfire Night and not by fans in football grounds. Smokes cannisters and flares are dangerous and can cause distress, injury and even death.
This prevalent problem must be snuffed out by clubs and the football authorities before somebody is seriously hurt or worse.
