Everton

On 5Live's phone-in, 606, on Saturday night, there was the normal range of whinging, one-eyed football fans sounding off about their teams as if they were the most important things around. An Everton fan came on, saying that he had been at the home defeat to Wigan (which is amusing enough as it is, but that's another blog). He was saying that the team had performed so badly that Everton fans were righting each other in the streets around Goodison Park after the game, and that something had to be done about the team so they didn't cause this.

Several points:

Does anyone actually believe that they have a right to blame a team's performance for them starting a fight? Do they not have some responsibility for their own actions? Are they too stupid not to be led sheep-like into violence? (I realise that metaphor breaks down a bit as sheep tend not to be too violent). In today's culture, it is always someone else's faults for your actions, be it your parents, your doctors or the performance of your football team.

Also, did nobody stop to think that they were fighting simply because they were Scousers and they they enjoy that sort of thing. Although you could say that they were fighting simply because they were football fans and they they enjoy that sort of thing.

Surely this is just "anti-social behaviour", but if it was properly condemned and punished by society it might actually have an effect.

Does this ever happen at rugby and cricket games?

Did they stop to think that alcohol might actually have had something to do with it?