Hull City issue financial warning as MKM Stadium statement made
Hull City have issued a warning to a very small number of supporters who they say are costing the club money at home games
Barry Cooper
You must log in or register to see images
Hull City's MKM Stadium (Image: Ryan Crockett/News Images)
Hull City have hailed the impressive atmosphere being generated at the
MKM Stadium but have urged fans to be mindful of causing damage which is costing the club thousands of pounds.
City say that while the atmosphere being created, especially in the sold-out North Stand, has been having a positive impact on Liam Rosenior’s team, the financial cost of damage to seats is having a negative impact on the club's budget.
The club say around 20/30 seats are being damaged during every game with people standing on the back of them which has seen the Tigers landed with a £16,000 bill to replace the broken chairs, while the cost to replace and refit will see that bill rise significantly. The club have also installed a new state-of-the-art camera system which will be in use for the first time on Saturday’s game against Southampton, the first of three home outings in the next five games.
The Tigers are also keen to stop some fans surging towards the away fans at key moments in games, particularly as they look to encourage more youngsters and their families to games. Tickets for youngsters against Preston next weekend have been slashed to just £1 and City have called on the small minority migrating towards the away section to think about the impact on those youngsters.
Last season,
City were on the cusp of going into the EFL's version of special measures following a host of indiscretions including missiles being thrown and pitch incursions, but the club's work with the police, safety advisory group and working with supporters has seen significant positive progress made, and the Tigers are keen to keep that going with crowd numbers booming and a growing sense of positivity around the club.
Safety officer Cliff Edens says he’s keen to break down the traditional barriers that exist between fans, stewards and the safety team at the MKM, and help build a hostile environment for opposition teams, but one that doesn't impact the safety of others or damage the ground.
Speaking exclusively to Hull Live ahead of Saturday's home date with Southampton in front of another 20,000-plus crowd, Edens said: "We've got a special group of stewards who are meeting and greeting fans as they come into the stand, taking them to their seat and making them appreciate that they have to sit there. It breaks down the barriers between the stewards and the fans. I've been walking down into the concourse, meeting with the fans, trying to break down the barriers between the safety team and the supporters.
"We've changed the segregation line. We have an area between the two fans (home and away) where the stewards and police can stand and they can engage with the fans on either side. We try and speak to the fans and try to learn a little bit about them before they go and sit in their seats so they can enjoy the game and support the team. We're trying to get people focused on supporting the team within the North and East Stands, not to cause anti-social behaviour, not to antagonise the away fans constantly, but to support the team.
"One of the big issues we have is people rushing towards the segregation lines when Hull City score or the opposition score. Some of the people near that segregation line are people with young children coming to watch the game and support the team and they're getting injured. People are rushing across not thinking that they're actually crushing their own fans.
"My intention is to try and prevent that by asking people politely to stay in their seats and if they don't do that then we will eject them and give them a ban.
"It's about letting people know that if you do this, you might think it's a bit of fun but it's a criminal offence. If you throw anything in a football stadium it is a criminal offence and you can be arrested for it. If you use any racial, homophobic or discriminatory chanting, it's a criminal offence. It's not just a bit of fun and if people realise this then we steer ourselves away from it and support the team.
"You can feel it. We're in the control room at the back of the North Stand and you can see the intent, the passion that stand has. It's fantastic, it's great to see and this is where the singing starts. This is where the atmosphere in the whole stadium starts, it's the catalyst. If we can build on that and get away from the anti-social behaviour elements of that particular stand then it's going to be a fantastic place to be.
"
We are talking a small number. We are not talking hundreds and hundreds, maybe one hundred to 150 people who are doing things which are jeopardising people's safety and causing issues which could aggravate the away supporters and once you get that aggravation between two sets of supporters, they just want to fight each other and that's something we want to suppress.
"My message is to come and support the team, that's what we're here for. Come and support our team and I'm sure Liam will appreciate it."
For those fans ejected and handed bans by the club's safety officer, City are pushing ahead with their project to help rehabilitate offenders by offering the chance to shorten bans by working with the Tigers Trust, and positive results are already being seen with fans helping fix and upcycle damaged bicycles for disabled people, along with coaching.
You must log in or register to see images
"When we eject for a relatively minor issue I will issue a ban of sorts. I'll meet with them and I want them to meet me. Often, I'm sitting there with somebody who is under 18 and a parent. These people are nice people but they're getting caught up in the furore of football and they've acted outside of their normal behaviour.
"It upsets the parents and that's what some of these men need to understand, it's not just affecting them but it's affecting their families. Some other stadiums will issue year-long bans but I've been issuing three and five-game bans for minor issues and then getting the person to sign up to an acceptable behaviour agreement which says they're going to behave themselves. If they breach that then they'll get a year-long ban, but it gives people a chance.
"For the more serious offences, I'll issue a longer ban, two or three years. One of the things we like to include is to offer young people the chance to be involved in the restorative justice programme with the Tigers Trust to give something back to the club. If they engage in this then their three-year ban will be reduced to a season, it gives them an incentive to get back quickly and that seems to be working."
