PLANS to revive the annual Scotland v England football fixture are in jeopardy because of the violence involving Rangers fans in Manchester, the chief executive of the Scottish Football Association warned last night.
Gordon Smith said trouble caused by rioters attending the Uefa Cup final earlier this month had tarnished the image of Scottish fans and cast fresh doubt over the future of the proposed home international.
Smith has been in talks with the English
Football Association over plans to revive the annual game between the two nations.
The event was abandoned after 1989 because of problems including hooligan violence, but in recent years enthusiasts have attempted to reinstate the popular fixture. It was hoped it would be played again at Wembley in 2011.
However, Smith admitted the troubles on the streets of Manchester, witnessed by television audiences worldwide, had now hampered the prospect.
He said: "It might have put back our chances of reviving the Scotland and England game because of the attitude the English have taken over what happened in Manchester.
"In the English press, basically the story has come down to a disgraceful act by the Scots and how Scottish football fans are badly behaved."
Smith added he hoped "things might blow over" as more facts about what happened in Manchester emerged. "The whole scenario could revolve around what emerges now," he said.
"There might be a bit of publicity that improves things because it might be reckoned there was a lot of faults in terms of how the whole thing (Manchester] was set up, whether there were other factions involved in the trouble, and that type of thing. So we hope still to be able to discuss it."
Images of drunken Rangers fans looting, attacking police and fighting in the aftermath of the clash with Zenit St Petersburg shocked audiences around the world.
CCTV footage showed policeman Mike Regan knocked to the ground, kicked and punched.
Tartan Army spokesman Tam Ferry said last night that the onus was now on fans to stay on their best behaviour at international matches, to avoid further criticism.
Scotland play the Czech Republic later this week in a friendly international. He said: "There will be a lot of focus on the fans there. There's more responsibility on the Tartan Army to keep the good name going."
While doubts over the future of the fixture increased, ministers in Scotland called for the closing of a loophole which could mean the Manchester hooligans escape justice.
Fans who were arrested in Manchester two weeks ago may be handed Football Banning Orders by police in England, which will bar them from attending any game in the country.
However, the orders will not apply north of the border, thereby allowing the fans to carry on attending games in Scotland.
SNP Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has now written to Home Secretary Jacqui Smith calling for fresh legislation to ensure the loophole is closed.
The full article contains 492 words and appears in Scotland On Sunday newspaper.
