28 Oct 2008SFA and SPL to meet police over offensive chants

Football Leagues/ Association and Governance

Scottish FA president George Peat confirmed yesterday (October 28th) that he intends to meet with the Scottish Premier League (SPL) and the police in relation to offensive chants by Rangers fans.

Peat claimed he heard a section of supporters singing the 'Famine Song' - which refers to the 1840s famine that killed around one million people and saw a mass Irish migration to Scotland - during Rangers' 3-1 win at Hamilton on Saturday.

The song, which includes the line "the famine's over, why don't you go home", is particularly offensive to bitter rivals Celtic, who have always had a huge Irish following.

Peat said: "At the minute, we've left it in the hands of the SPL to look into things and try to eradicate it.

"We know that clubs have tried hard. Listening to it again at the weekend, it would appear that there's still some way to go.

"Obviously, it's got to be stamped out and we'll be having a meeting soon with the SPL and the police to see what we can do about it."

The SPL claimed last month that it would investigate the matter, while Scotland's sports minister Stewart Maxwell has also expressed his desire to stamp out sectarianism and bigotry at Scottish grounds.

Rangers have won a total of 51 Scottish league championships, although their last victory came back in 2005.

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