Footie thugs are smuggling flares into matches by hiding them in baguettes, it has been claimed. Dozens of flares, strobes, smoke canisters and rockets were set off at the Glasgow Derby Viaplay Cup final at Hampden in a crowd of 50,000 people on February 26.
Less than a week later, a smoke bomb was hurled onto the pitch by an Aberdeen supporter on Saturday evening narrowly missed Pittodrie midfielder Ryan Duncan by a matter of inches, with both clubs working with police to identify the culprit.
English fans have moved away from pyrotechnics in recent years, amid hopes Scottish fans will follow suit - but it was claimed some are using baguettes to smuggle them in.
Jim Goodwin, the Dundee United manager who was also pelted with coins, appealed to clubs to start using CCTV to prevent it escalating.
Ken Scott, the head of inspectorate at the Sports Ground Safety Authority (SGSA), met with representatives from Holyrood, COSLA and local authorities in Glasgow last week and safety certificates were discussed.
Mr Scott, the lead author of the definitive Guide to Safety at Sports Grounds document which the SGSA publishes, said the capacity of a stadium could potentially be reduced if there are persistent problems with pyrotechnics.
Mr Scott said: "There are many reasons why pyrotechnics should not be within a country mile of a football ground. They burn at high temperatures, they can start a fire and they have the ability to cause appalling injuries.
"Education and persuasion have had a bit of an impact in England. People are realising there are better ways of showing their support for their team than a blue, red or green pyrotechnic device.
"If fans don't listen, there needs to be a sanction. If the lighting and discharge of pyrotechnics was an issue at a certain ground, the certifying local authority could reduce the safe capacity down to a level which they thought the club's security team was able to manage.
"It is better to convince the fans of the risks. By and large, fans are listening. The number of pyrotechnic devices which are lit inside a ground is very small in comparison with the crowd size."
He added: "The difficulty lies in stopping pyrotechnics from getting inside a football ground. They are fairly small now and are reasonably easy to be secreted about the body, particularly if people conceal them in private areas.
"No matter how good the level of searching, if you are determined to get these things inside it is possible. There was a big display of pyrotechnics at the cup final. There were 50,000 people inside the stadium.
"That is an awful lot of people who could be impacted. But that is also an awful lot of people to search. There are dogs which can detect the black powder which is inside these things but they are more of a deterrent.
"The chances of them detecting all of the pyrotechnics being brought in is very slim. People also go to extraordinary lengths to get pyrotechnics in to matches.
"They have hidden them inside baguettes. They often put them inside the hood of a child's jacket because they know not many grounds search children. They use kids as mules to get these things in.
"If you put them down the front of your trousers nobody is going to search you there for obvious reasons. If people are determined to get them in then they can do it.
"I think people have to be educated about the risks of pyrotechnics. If they still insist on using them then, sorry, but they have to feel the full force of the law."
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