St Johnstone has given a lifetime ban to a supporter who racially abused striker Theo Bair on Saturday.
The Perth club acted swiftly to slam the “wholly unacceptable” incident which took place at McDiarmid Park at the end of the Scottish Premiership fixture against Aberdeen.
Bair made senior officials of the club aware of it and, in a statement, said what happened to him was “shocking, disturbing and unacceptable”.
Ian Flaherty, Saints’ head of operations, said: “We were appalled by the racist comments made to Theo on Saturday evening by a so-called supporter.
“St Johnstone Football Club strongly condemns all forms of discrimination.
“The person in question has been dealt with and given a lifetime ban. Anyone with such views is not welcome at our football club.
“We have given Theo our full support in what has been an extremely difficult few days for him and our support to him is ongoing.”
Bair, who is in the squad for Saturday’s game against Ross County, said: “What happened to me on Saturday was shocking, disturbing and unacceptable.
“I’d had nothing but good experiences in Perth at St Johnstone before this incident.
“I am grateful to the football club for dealing with this situation immediately and giving me their support.
“Racism has no place in our society or in the game of football.
“I now want to put this incident behind me and focus on our game on Saturday against Ross County.
“I hope people can respect my request for privacy on this matter from here on in.”
