BY ALAN TEMPLE – Capital City Press
Hearts have condemned the actions of a group of their own supporters following disturbances prior to Saturday’s Premiership fixture against Celtic.
The British Transport Police (BTP) yesterday confirmed that two separate train journeys between Edinburgh and Glasgow were marred by anti-social behaviour.
There were alleged incidences of drunkenness, swearing and religiously offensive chanting which prompted complaints from other commuters.
With the BTP now examining CCTV footage in a bid to identify the culprits, Hearts have vowed to assist in the investigation and “bring them to justice”.
The Tynecastle club also moved to apologised to any passengers adversely affected by the ugly scenes.
A Hearts spokesperson said: “Heart of Midlothian Football Club strongly condemns any anti-social and offensive behaviour carried out by a small group of its supporters at the weekend.
“The club works tirelessly to create a family friendly atmosphere at Tynecastle and in the surrounding area and we expect all supporters to take these standards with them whenever they travel to see Hearts.
“We apologise to those individuals who were rightly upset by what seems to have been totally unacceptable behaviour and can assure them that the individuals in question do not represent the club or our values.
“This minority of fans claiming to support the club are not welcome at Hearts and we will be working very closely with British Transport Police to help identify any individual who is besmirching the good name of Heart of Midlothian Football Club and bring them to justice.”
Hearts and Celtic face each other again on October 28 after being paired together in the quarter-final of the League Cup.
