This may be of interest to some of you. It probably should be of interest to all of you. I've just got back from a Football Supporters' Federation event about the criminalisation of football fans. I posed the question about the behaviour stewards in the lower leagues. I wanted to ask the question after what happened at Torquay.

For those of you who weren't there I'll keep it simple. About six stewards waded in to the Town contingent behind the goal to take away a fan. I believe it happened after Dis took us 2-1 up before half time. A steward was about three rows up and with his back to the pitch. Dis scored and Town fans celebrated. Some possibly more exuberant than others surged forward. The steward with his back to the goal was knocked over. His response was to get to his feet and try to land a few punches. Seconds later five other stewards joined him and took the fan away. First of all, I was a few steps to the right of the fan who was manhandled and taken away. To my knowledge he had done nothing wrong. What was quite telling at half time was how two police officers gave the steward, who tried to land a few punches, a good dressing down.

On that point, how many of you feel as though some stewards at away grounds act beyond what is specified in their job description? The response I got tonight from the FSF panel was that due it costing more to have numerous police officers at matches, stewards who aren't trained properly are drafted in from private security firms (same as door staff) and feel it is their duty to act with force.

Not even bouncers are allowed to land or throw punches their job is to try and keep the fans quite whether that means warning them before throwing them out but that must be worse case scenario.  If a steward was to land one on a fan then the fan can get the steward done for abh or gbh which ever one it is regardless what the copper said.

Quoted from Meza

Not even bouncers are allowed to land or throw punches their job is to try and keep the fans quite whether that means warning them before throwing them out but that must be worse case scenario.  If a steward was to land one on a fan then the fan can get the steward done for abh or gbh which ever one it is regardless what the copper said.

Which is why the Town fan at Torquay was allowed back to watch the game and the steward received a rollicking from the police.

Quoted from WappingMariner

Which is why the Town fan at Torquay was allowed back to watch the game and the steward received a rollicking from the police.

Thats good to hear bloody over zealous stewards I wonder how our stewards fair to others .  Wasn't their issues at Alfreton last season with over zealous stewards

Everyone down to Torquay next year to dish out retribution on their stewards then !

Egg him lol then throw fishmeal at him

Quoted from WappingMariner

Which is why the Town fan at Torquay was allowed back to watch the game and the steward received a rollicking from the police.

not everyone ejected at torquay was allowed back in , there was absolutetly no reason for them to be in among the town fans acting like thugs, they should be the other side of the hoardings if they cannot control themselves

Quoted from codcheeky

not everyone ejected at torquay was allowed back in , there was absolutetly no reason for them to be in among the town fans acting like thugs, they should be the other side of the hoardings if they cannot control themselves

Thats crazy surely there actions might have caused a response from a number of town fans then it makes town look bad when in fact mr spit your dummy out would have been the instigator.   I bet he wouldn't do that if it was stoke fans like what they did in 89-90

Quoted from louth_in_the_south

Everyone down to Torquay next year to dish out retribution on their stewards then !

Torquay are going to get promoted as well?

Another point is that the heavy handed stewarding could, with a different group of Town fans there, have turned into a major incident.

Sadly football fans will always be criminalised. The only way I see that changing is if clubs, the FA and to some extent the police help to change it and we all know they won't.

A lot has to come down to training and it is clear there is minimal training taking place. My biggest fear isn't n over zealous tattooed skin head trying to act all hard throwing me or someone out, but it's when there is an actual incident that is posing a huge risk to the safety of the whole crowd because let's face it, they'll intercourse it up royally.

For some stewards in particular it is also an ego boost. Anyone that sits in the lower findus will have seen that moron with the overinflated ego and the poor army haircut roaming around when the crowd get a little shouty at a bad decision etc...

I'm not expecting stewards or even the police for that matter to understand the many different behaviour theories and ways to deal with them but the way they present themselves etc needs to change.

98% of football supporters. Go to football, enjoy it and go home. I have attended football matches all over the country for 33 years and not once had any issues with Police, stewards or opposing fans. If you have,  you have been either unlucky or part of the 2% only you know which it is. Not all stewards are good but in my opinion neither are some football fans.

Put a uniform on, and people change

Quoted from Tangerine Chris

Put a uniform on, and people change

Put a decent bloke in a football ground invariably he changes.

Quoted from AlanPoutonsTackle

Put a decent bloke in a football ground invariably he changes.

Including yourself? Or is it just everyone else?

People always bring out the 'I've been going x amount of years and never had any issues'...it's merely an opinion. I know many a decent bloke, not in the slightest aggro etc but still end up with an issue with over zealous steward from time to time...

Personally I think the over the top banning orders and the like are a joke similar to the easy target fines of motorists. Easy cash, easy conviction, looks great for figures...

No just panne him     Flour egg and breadcrumb  what would you add to the ingredients to make stewards more appetising ?. 8)

A nice simple battering would do .

Best stewards were the chuckle brothers at Southport last year great fun and hated Brodie more than us!!! I think rightly or wrongly we have a reputation and in general town fans are guilty in eyes of stewards/ police before getting near the ground.
Last year at Alferton I was talking (sharing a joke about where the town fans had put smoke bombs to get through pat down checks on way in)to a steward when his mate came over and said " do you need help is this tw@t causing you trouble which the steward said no. His mate walked away and the steward who I was joking with said his mate had been looking fwd to Grimsby coming as he will get some action!"

Act responsibly..get treated decently... has always been my experience with GTFC...and that includes the tyranical reign of Jim Probert at B.P

Fck about, be abusive (and.... i have) then expect some form of discipline.

As the damned annoying meerkat says...Simples.

Quoted from AlanPoutonsTackle

Put a decent bloke in a football ground invariably he changes.

Yes thats the point I do. Although I like to think I have a respect line i don't cross, by that i mean respect for individuals not to be treated in the way we do treat one another at times. Also with your put someone in a uniform he changes. Don't you think people have to change slightly on wearing a uniform. Bit like a footballer. Really nice friendly guy perhaps down the pub but you want game face, strength and no nonsense on the pitch. Surely that's the same thing.

There are grounds and clubs where fans self police, admittedly much further down the Pyramid, and it happens a lot in the grade of non league football I watch in Scotland. Policing is kept to a minimum and stewarding is only rarely used - for big games or where teams are known to have a more than enthusiastic following. Because of this we rarely see any trouble and the fans freely mix, both before and during the game. So much better than the herding in and out of towns and grounds that I used to experience before moving north in 1991. Treat people like adults and inevitably it's paid back tenfold.