Fans gathered outside Ibrox and in Glasgow's George Square to celebrate triumph; 28 arrests were subsequently made; Government accuses club of not doing enough to prevent congregation but club has insist this is "inaccurate"
Tuesday 9 March 2021 09:39, UK
Rangers have clashed with the Scottish Government over their supporters breaking coronavirus lockdown to celebrate the Scottish Premiership title in Glasgow.
Gers on Monday wrote to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to express concerns over her deputy's claim that the club's "silence was deafening" while thousands of fans gathered at the stadium on Saturday and in George Square on Sunday.
Sturgeon also hit out at "infuriating and disgraceful" scenes in the city, which saw 28 arrests, seven fixed penalty notices issued, and Scotland's lockdown easing threatened - but Rangers insist they went to considerable lengths to warn fans against congregating to mark their triumph.
The club say they initiated contact with Government and league officials on February 22, also asking police about how to "utilise" manager Steven Gerrard's ability to reach the fans, and he reminded fans about "safety and social distancing" ahead of the weekend.
Rangers also say they agreed a "form of words" over statements with police and the Scottish Government on Saturday afternoon, and claim the Government would "follow up" - but the club say they did not hear any more on the matter until after fans started gathering.
Rangers believe Deputy First Minister John Swinney's comments on Monday that the "silence is deafening" are "inaccurate, unbalanced, and unfair", and they have also highlighted the club's public address announcements asking them to disperse from Ibrox a the time.
Swinney said: "The Government and Police Scotland reminded Rangers of the need to advise fans to adhere to the current restrictions in discussions on February 26 and March 5. It is a matter of profound regret that that did not happen.
"The Scottish Government will be making our extreme disappointment at the lack of leadership clear to the team management and will be speaking to all the authorities about what further assurance they can give ahead of future planned games.
"On messaging, I think it would have been of essential advantage to all of us - indeed I think it would have been the duty of Rangers - to say clearly and simply to fans that they should not come out to celebrate and when they did, they should have gone home. But the silence from Rangers was deafening."
Police Scotland's Deputy Chief Constable Malcolm Graham also "strongly condemned the lack of support from Rangers Football Club over the messages we repeatedly asked them to put out to persuade fans not to go out celebrating and encourage those who did gather in large numbers to return home.
"It was very clear through the lack of messaging that Rangers did not take seriously their responsibilities in terms of seeking to persuade their fans to celebrate safely and responsibly," he said.
Earlier on Monday, Rangers insisted: "We have proactively engaged with our local MP, the Justice Minister, the Scottish Government, Police Scotland and the SPFL in relation to maintaining a cohesive message regarding public safety during the Covid-19 pandemic.
"We understand the jubilance of our support across the world who recognise this has been a historic year for the club. Nevertheless, it has been of great frustration for all football fans across the world that they have not been able to watch their team within stadiums, especially for the loyal Rangers season ticket holders who have stood by this football club through thick and thin in the last decade."
Thousands of fans gathered outside Ibrox and in Glasgow's George Square to celebrate the triumph on Sunday as Celtic's failure to beat Dundee United ensured Rangers were crowned Scottish champions for the first time since the 2010/11 campaign.
Reasons for those arrested included assaulting police officers, breaching coronavirus regulations, disorder, use of flares and sectarian breaches of the peace.
