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Fans at soccer game in Scotland jeer Pope
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-04-11 11:34 Fans at a Scottish Cup soccer
game jeered during a minute's silence for Pope John Paul II on Sunday, forcing
the tribute to be cut short.
The booing by Hearts fans came before the semifinal against Celtic, which has
mostly Catholic fans. Referee Stuart Dougal ended the memorial less than halfway
through because of the noise. The game was televised in Britain and overseas.
Hearts chief executive Phil Anderton criticized the fans' conduct and
apologized to Celtic and the Scottish Football Association.
"It is disturbing that some Hearts fans failed to see the significance of
this occasion," he said. "There is no room for that sort of behavior in the
game."
Hearts had appealed to fans on Friday to respect the minute's silence for the
pope, who died April 2. The tribute also was disrupted during Saturday's
semifinal, when Dundee United beat Hibernian 2-1.
Celtic's main rival is Rangers — whose fans are largely Protestant — and
games between the teams have led to violence inside and outside stadiums. Over
the past few years, however, hostility among the players has diminished mostly
because of the influx of overseas stars who don't involve themselves in the
religious conflict.
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