A new campaign "is being launched to warn of the dangers of fans using flares and smoke bombs" after it was revealed that children as young as eight "have been used as 'mules' to smuggle pyrotechnic devices into football grounds," according to Martyn Ziegler of the PA. The campaign by the Premier League, Football League and the FA "comes after a growth in the number of incidents -- including a linesman being struck by a firework at Aston Villa in October." Concerns "have intensified" after CCTV at one Premier League ground "caught a young boy handing out fireworks to adults from his rucksack." Fans "will be reminded that fireworks are illegal at matches, carrying the risk of possible jail sentences, and warned of the dangers" (INDEPENDENT, 12/3). In London, Louise Taylor reported a government-endorsed campaign "consequently aims to tackle the problem with pyrotechnic detection dogs, amnesty bins, an advertising campaign and improved camera surveillance and body searches." The survey shows that, in the first three months of this season, there were 96 pyrotechnic incidents in the Premier League, Football League, Football conference and domestic cup competitions. It is "both a worrying and growing trend." During the entire '12-13 season, that figure was 172, a "sharp step up" from 72 the previous season and only eight a year earlier. Significantly, last season saw 71 arrests for "possession of a firework/flare at a sporting event," an increase of 154% on the '11-12 season (GUARDIAN, 12/3).
THE SURVEY: The BBC's David Ornstein reported the Premier League-commissioned survey of 1,635 supporters "found more than half of fans had witnessed pyrotechnics at a match, 24% had had their view obscured, 10% had suffered from smoke inhalation and 2% had been affected by heat from a flare." Premier League Head of Supporter Services Cathy Long said, "It's the biggest concern we've got among fans at the moment. There have been incidents across the world where people have had bad injuries or died. We've been lucky that our leagues haven't had such major issues yet, but we want to stop that from happening" (BBC, 12/2).
SFA REACTS: In Edinburgh, Stephen Halliday reported Scottish FA CEO Campbell Ogilvie "has pledged to come down heavily on the use of flares by supporters." Meanwhile, Scottish League 1 Rangers Manager Ally McCoist has also condemned the “needless damage” caused to Falkirk’s pitch at the weekend. Flares "were thrown on to the artificial pitch by away fans" during Rangers’ 2-0 win at Falkirk and "were also set off at another William Hill Scottish Cup fourth round tie between Lanarkshire rivals Motherwell and Albion Rovers at New Douglas Park." Rangers and Motherwell "now face potential fines from the SFA," and Ogilvie "is determined to see the growing trend dealt with firmly." Ogilvie: “Flares have crept in over the last few years. Like missiles in the past, we have to come down heavily on it. We have to be vigilant and we work closely with the clubs on these things. If you compare us with some other countries, we have it under control, but we can’t have flares at games" (SCOTSMAN, 12/2).
