Hibs fans to write to club after Rangers support 'crossed the line'

Admins of leading Hibs fan forum Hibs.net have called for support from fellow fans to sign a joint-letter to club chiefs to demand answers over their concerns.

The group intend to cite "clear" breaches of club policy on behaviour inside the stadium from Rangers supporters in the recent Scottish Cup tie on Sunday.

A forum post informing supporters of the letter - which will be sent on Wednesday morning - will only be served on behalf of those who request to be included and not the site or site users as a whole.

However, administrators of the site suggest there is a "strength of feeling" amongst supporters that singing and behaviour of Rangers supporters on Sunday "crossed a further line".

The proposed letter states such behavior is "not an anomaly" but rather a repeated pattern and claims the issue has worsened in recent years.

And the correspondence cites "songs of hatred" from the away stand as being a deterrent to some families and also impacts the match day experience of supporters.

The strongly-worded letter demands an answer from club chiefs over a "reluctance to act on or even acknowledge such behaviour from supporters of Rangers FC" and references "vile and threatening abuse of managers, players and club employees" amongst offences.

And supporters who sign the letter will also call for action from the club over "sectarianism and anti-Irish racism" in Scottish football.

READ MORE: Boyle shares grateful message after concussion in Hibs vs Rangers

A post on the forum read: "There seems to be a real strength of feeling among our fans that the singing and general behaviour from the Rangers support last night crossed a further line.

"The admin team have discussed this and feel we are in a position to coordinate a collective response that may carry a bit more weight with the club compared to individual emails.

"We want to make it clear this email and letter will only be on behalf of those who request to be included, it is not being sent on behalf of the site as a single entity.

"We feel this will carry more weight if sent using real names, we understand people may not be comfortable posting these on an open forum so if you wish to be included please PM this admin account and we will have you included.

"Please also add the names of any friends and family who would like to be included. If you are a ST holder and would like that information included as well, again let us know.

"The text of the email and letter we will be sending is below and we aim to send this before the game on Wednesday evening please let us know by 11am on Wednesday morning."

The letter reads: "We are writing on behalf of the below signed Hibernian supporters to highlight the behaviour of the Rangers support at the game played on Sunday March 10th 2024 which was a clear breach of the clubs official policy regarding behaviour within our home stadium as quoted below.

'Disorderly conduct includes; · Conduct which stirs up or sustains, or is likely or is designed to stir up or sustain hatred or ill will against or towards individuals or groups of people because of:
· Colour, race, nationality, (including citizenship) or ethnic or national origin.
· Membership, or presumed membership, of a religious group or of a social cultural group with perceived religious affiliation'

"Such behaviour is not an anomaly and is a repeated pattern stretching back decades. Rather than gradually improving over the years it is becoming worse. Whilst we accept the club cannot act on the wider issues in society, you are able to act on behaviour within our stadium. Extensive investigations into other incidents earlier this season and last season are evidence there is a will to tackle bigotry in certain circumstances. Listening to the songs of hatred being sung loud and clear from the Away stand is not only offensive , it is a continuing deterrent to some families within the Hibs support who simply will not attend when Rangers are the visitors. It also has a negative impact on the match day experience of those supporters who do attend.

"We are asking the club to clarify why there is a reluctance to act on or even acknowledge such behaviour from supporters of Rangers FC? In the recent past this has included vile and threatening abuse of managers, players and other club employees and a further example of this was heard last night when one of our players was clearly seriously injured.

"We are calling on Hibs to move on from the silence that has for too long typified the response to sectarianism and anti Irish racism in Scottish football. We ask the club to be true to it's own policy detailed above and to it's own stated zero tolerance policy on bigotry and sectarianism, a policy which is read out before every home game. This behaviour continues because no club is willing to challenge it publicly and the time has come for change."