Overkill or what. No history between us and Celtic fans as far as I know and yet there so many police both inside and outside the ground that if the police had started trouble the crowd would have struggled to contain them. Okay there is always the potential for problems with a large, noisy (but good natured) away contingent. However, apart from the rubbish thrown on the pitch at the Reading game there have been no problems with City fans at home in the last 2 years or so. Surely their numbers could have been toned down or kept in reserve off site, just in case?
I passed O'Neills about 10 to 7 maybe 30 or 40 Celtic fans in there and about the same nunber of Cardiff fans, laughing and joking together......................and 20 - 25 police outside, and two police horses and a van with dogs.........ridiculous overkill...................overtime for the boys springs to mind.
I suppose it's possible that the police were using the game as a rehearsal themselves for the season ahead, but I'm just guessing.
My guess is that they have to have procedures in place, just in case. If I were them I'd base my strategies on the worst case scenario. As they say in the Scouts, be prepared.
I agree with Aber, it's a cash cow. It appears that on occasion they make an effort to facilitate trouble in order to justify their presence and feed their hunger to fight. Scum.
I think maybe the South Wales police were just covering their backsides on this one and I would guess Celtic brought in the region of 5000 fans? or were expected to? If this was the case then I can understand why. Although Celtic have an excellent reputation when visiting English grounds in the past (on the whole, and they were brilliant at Norwich a few years back) they can and will turn nasty if provoked and perhaps there was a feeling for the potential to be there, hence over policed and 'played safe'.
the thing is aber can you imaging if there were no police, i think they do a good service overall but on occasions they do go over the top, at the end of the day if the hooligan element that all clubs have got were not there then the police numbers would be greatly reduced, by law whenever there is a gathering of people the police has a duty to be there, however because of past reputations the police presence are increased that at the end of the day costs to the clubs has got out of hand....its sad but i cant see no end to it.....
Aber, that is exactly the same as Chelsea in the cup, they new they had cctv coverage and wanted an off which they got. It's good to see some of the boys who went down are out - albeit on license.
The annoying part is the club are still getting the same policing bills as in the "good old bad old days" In the days when the boys used to perform, the OB used to earn their overtime fair play, now it's just a little jolly for the lads,,,,,,,,,on double time........and they get to recommend how many we should pay for So next time you see a copper on holiday or in a new car, thats YOUR season ticket money they are spending, the police are a necessary adjunct to society........but they often take the piss to line their pockets...........you try it I bet they bang you up
I'm not sure the club has to pay for all those police. you might find they were there on advice from glasgow police about their fans but I think that the club only has to pay for the coppers in and arround the ground. If there are riot wagons and dogs on xcowbridge road that is nothing to do with the football club.
With the cost of policing this game the club must have lost a fortune. I cannot see the point of having so many police at a friendly game - even if it is Celtic and they like a drink. What on earth did they think was going to happen? The club should never again arrange a game where such a ridiculous number of police officers 'need' to be deployed. Absolute farce!
Snaggle you might well be right mate, but the police say you need 100 police in or around the ground, here is the bill, when 30 would have been plenty, as for the others, well all I can say that when I worked near Crwys Rd I used to pop in the Police club for the occasional pint, and a City home game was like a lottery win for these guys, as many as wanted it could have overtime, whether they were needed or not, whether it comes out of your taxes or your season ticket money, well we are still paying for it, and I know that when there is a City game or a Rugby international well policing throughout the city often suffers. An elderly neighbour of mine had occasion to phone the police, feeling threatened in her own home by the antics of a bunch of pissed up/blocked up teenagers who had decided her garden was their toilet, and then proceeded to decide to light a bonfire in her front garden, she phoned the police on 101 (the non emergency line) she was told that they would respond, but they couldn't give her an estimate of time AS THERE WAS AN INTERNATIONAL MATCH ON (RUGBY) half the coppers in town were sat in vans, with their thumbs up their bums and their minds in neutral, watching the overtime clock. And to add insult to injury she phoned her son, who turned up with his two sons, and they gave a few of the neighbours a knock, and we persuaded these arseholes to move on. Guess what after it was all sorted the police turned up, one of her grandsons was threatened with arrest for telling the police a few home truths, and we all got a lecture about "taking the law into our own hands"! Don't get me wrong society needs a police force, and they do a thankless task, but don't tell me they don't milk it for all its worth.
In the past (and unfortunately a small minority in the present also) our club has had more than it's fair share of problems with hooliganism. But you knew this already and you are clearly trying to turn this into another "Cardiff vs Swansea" thread. I have a younger brother who used to behave exactly the same way, until he grew up and realised that this behaviour is both juvenile and pathetic. I don't, however, hold out much hope for you.
