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Club Statement


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Following a high number of well publicised complaints by supporters of both Sheffield Clubs over the tactics deployed by South Yorkshire Police (SYP) following the Sheffield derby in March 2019, SYP commissioned a report from an expert in crowd safety from Manchester Metropolitan University. This report was submitted to the local Safety Advisory Group (SAG} in Sheffield. 

At a subsequent meeting of the SAG, the report was presented by its author and SYP. Sheffield Wednesday were asked for the club’s observations and it was made clear in the strongest possible tone that we took serious issue with the findings of the report. We also questioned its timing, the author’s analysis of events in March and the fact the report was conducted without the prior knowledge of the club.  

Alas, the SAG’s response to the report was to issue a Prohibition Notice and despite discussions running all the way up to Wednesday of this week - just three days before our first home game of the new season - the Notice was upheld. This prohibits the club from allowing home supporters to enter and exit the North Stand of Hillsborough via the Leppings Lane turnstiles and exit gates, beginning with Saturday’s Championship fixture against Barnsley.

The club has commissioned its own team of experts to prepare their own findings and provide the SAG with detailed responses and recommendations regarding crowd safety management and tactical options moving forward. Supporters can be assured that we are working diligently to resolve this matter and are fully committed to defending our position using all available legal routes in order for the Prohibition Notice to be lifted at the earliest opportunity.

We have worked around the clock with the EFL to ensure that Saturday’s game goes ahead in full accordance with the Prohibition Notice. The club notes the criminal offence nature of such a Notice served and the ramifications of a failure to comply.

Consequently, changes to the way in which the Barnsley game is managed will be in place on Saturday. Fundamentally, home supporters will be permitted access to the North Stand, albeit with a small reduction of available seats on the day. Access to the North Stand will be from Penistone Road only.

 

Club officials will monitor the number of supporters seated in the North Stand and may require some fans with tickets to be relocated to a different area of the stadium, either the South Stand or Kop. However, we believe this is unlikely to happen as a result of the club taking tickets off sale in the North Stand last Friday. 

Supporters with tickets for the North Stand are advised to enter the ground via the Penistone Road turnstiles as early as possible. Any supporter required to relocate will only be asked to do so should capacity be reached in line with the Prohibition Notice.

Following the final whistle, additional stewards will be deployed to aid the flow of supporters leaving the stadium as exiting the North Stand via the West Stand/Leppings Lane is prohibited.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused by these measures which are outside of our control and respectfully request your full co-operation to ensure the club complies fully with the Prohibition Notice.

The club will be making no further comment given any impending court proceedings. 

 


Owlstalk Shop

 

 

 

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This is above and beyond previous incompetence shown.  

 

If Vere Road etc are closed off the only way for supporters heading from leppings lane to access the North stand is under the South and then along Penistone Road, or down Leppings Lane to Law Bros then back along Penistone Road???

 

This will cause far more trouble, they've really not thought this through.

 

As mentioned above this is a complete stitch up

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6 minutes ago, owler66 said:

I think it's time we moved from Hillsborough the disaster casts a very long shadow and will not get better anytime soon 

 

^^^^

This

 

was there on that fateful day in 89 and on the pitch with those trying to revive the dying while stewards and police (understandably) were still more bothered about a potential punch up. 

 

We will never be allowed to forget what happened not just because of the sense of loss via Liverpool fans but also by SYP/SAG those who could have helped prevent what happened.

 

If we get promotion Chansiri should build a bespoke stadium on a different site which could include a museum of memories from S6 but allow a new generation of Owls fans to move on untainted. 

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So let me get this straight. 

 

There were issues exiting the stadium in terms of overcrowding etc. 

 

So their response is to make us shut off an exit and force more people to exit out of a different place. Which will bottleneck even more. And cause more people to be walking on the dual carriageway at Penistone road. 

 

:laugh:

 

Absolute joke. 

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Guest Willow Owl

What a complete farce. SYP are an embarrassment to the whole of the police force.

They balls up segregation and the club has to suffer. 

Why not just keep away fans in for ten minutes allowing crowds to disperse. Not rocket science is it.

 

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Anyone would think we don't pay for football matches to be policed.

 

Shock, horror, rival sets of fans wanting to have a pop at each other, before, during and after a hotly anticipated fixture.

 

Everyone takes crowd safety responsibly, but having independent reports that the clubs have no knowledge of whatsoever, until they are out in the public domain, are nothing but tantamount to shytstirring of the highest order.

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