GIOVANNI van Bronckhorst has called for fans who throw missiles at players to be banned from Scottish football - and warned that Rangers have VAR for supporters in place at Ibrox.
Van Bronckhorst’s players complained to referee David Dickinson after being pelted by objects which were hurled from the stands during their cinch Premiership match against Motherwell at Fir Park on Sunday.
The Dutchman feels the problem is far more severe in his native Netherlands – where matches have been stopped this year due to crowd unrest - than it is in this country.
However, he would still like to see the yobs who target footballers barred from entering grounds.
And he stressed, as the SPFL prepares to roll out VAR this week, that Rangers have cameras in place around Ibrox and are able to identify anyone who is guilty of the offence and punish them.
“It’s very difficult,” he said. “What I’ve seen here in Scotland so far is way less than I’ve seen in Holland. In Holland this season, it’s really terrible with throwing objects on the pitch with beer.
“I think last time they had to interrupt a game for 45 minutes because of the problems with the fans.
“In Scotland, of course it will happen, but it’s always difficult to identify. But in the stadium, we have a system where you can go all the way back and see who throws it.
“If you are in the stadium, you are there to enjoy the game, help the team, criticise the team, but you should never throw anything on the pitch. Make sure the players are in a good environment and that means not throwing objects.”
Van Bronckhorst added: “They should be banned because they do something that gets players into a dangerous situation. Of course they should be punished. It’s normal.
“With VAR -and we will have it at the weekend - if a player hits someone on the pitch we can watch everything. You have to make sure that you don’t make any mistakes because you will get punished with VAR that’s for sure. It should be the same for supporters.”
