How many times have you followed Leeds United away? How many times have you met people you recognise from previous trips, you don’t know their name but you’ve seen them before? How many times have you accepted the offer of a ticket at the last minute when your plans or circumstances have changed and the opportunity has presented itself? How many times have you seen friends outside a takeaway or in a pub at away games? The answers will vary but I am willing to bet you all recognise scenarios that have happened to you in the past and will probably happen again many times over in the future.
Now imagine that having been in one or two of the scenarios above you now find yourself grouped with eight others and told you are ‘risk’ element and as such are being handed a three year banning order? Do you think that can’t happen to you? Well it can and it has to one Leeds United Supporters Trust member who was one of the nine Leeds United fans identified and banned for three years for being at the wrong time and in the wrong place when Police Football Intelligence deem you to be a ‘risk’.
The Football Supporters federation (FSF) have watched the case against and against the ‘Leeds Nine’ with great interest having assisted the Stoke Fans wrongly issued with Section 27 orders win compensation against the Police, and they share our belief that what transpired in Court serves no purpose in promoting the safety of other fans both home and away nor was any evidence presented in a lawful manner.
All nine Leeds fans have the right to appeal a right which our member intends to pursue to the fullest extent and clear his name, the FSF are willing to support him in every way they can, as a Trust I hope we can do the same. We are talking about a hard working, honest, family man, a twenty years season ticket holder who has never been convicted of football violence, never had a previous banning order, never come to the clubs attention as a trouble causer, never raised an eyelid on the radar as being involved in any way in violence home or away. He is a gentleman in every sense of the word, has a passion for Leeds United and has followed the club home and away for twenty years and never been involved in trouble during that time. How can a banning order be justified against him? Well he was enjoying breakfast with a couple of Scandinavian Leeds fans at a pub in London that had welcomed them as customers before the Millwall game last season and en route to meet his supporters club mates before the cup game against Manchester United, one of whom had his ticket, was in a van stopped by Police and those inside issued with Section 27 Orders and placed on transport back to Leeds.
I would ask all Trust members to think long and hard about the implications of the rulings against these fans and particularly against a fellow member, is this reasonable action by the Police? Have the nine been dealt with fairly as individuals? Is the evidence against them anything other than circumstantial if anything? Could this happen to you?
Out Trust will never support or condone football violence and we applaud the efforts of Police Forces up and down the Country who have tackled the problems within the game but we feel those same forces are now looking for trouble where there is none to find, are pushing the boundaries of acceptable Policing against all football supporters and with the rulings against these nine Leeds United fans have overstepped the mark that the Law allows them and we feel betrayed. We don’t want to feel let down and often intimidated by those charged with protecting the innocent but in recent years we do, its wrong and its time to stand up and say its wrong.
I say to Police Forces all over the country: stop treating all football fans like animals, stop using powers afforded to you with good intentions against innocent fans who want nothing more than to follow their clubs and treat each and every one of us fairly, within the Law and most importantly as individuals.
Gary Cooper
Chairman
Leeds United Supporters Trust
Friday, August 6, 2010 at 3:58PM