POLICE chiefs have said there could have been fatalities at the Scottish Cup Final if they had deployed enough officers to prevent the pitch invasion.
The comments came as formal complaint over their handling of the Scottish Cup final that ended in scenes of violence and disorder was dismissed.
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The 'quality of service' complaint was put to the Greater Glasgow Division of Police Scotland by a fan in the wake of the chaos that marred the final between Hibs and Rangers.
The complaint raised concerns about the lack of policing at the match and failure to have control over the pitch invasion and subsequent crowd disorder.
Hibs triumphed 3-2 to win the trophy for the first time in 114 years, but the post match celebrations were marred by trouble.
By the beginning of August some 58 people had been arrested over the scenes of Hampden confrontation.
An SFA commissioned report into the after-match disturbances suggested that there should be a reserve of police available to call on to deal with such trouble.
But a five page response from the division to the complaint says that it would not have been feasible "to have hundreds, if not thousands of officers on standby" just in case a pitch invasion involving thousands of fans occurs.
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The police said: "In the face of thousands of people of people determined to enter the playing surface, the police and stewards had little or no option in preventing this.
"I can confirm that there were significant numbers of officers deployed to police this event and this was in line with our experience of previous matches...
"I would also point out that, in my own opinion, had there been sufficient officers to deter those in the front rows from entering the pitch, any such action could have had a catastrophic effect had the many thousands of fans at the rear of the stadium surged forward.
"In such a scenario, a crushing situation would have been inevitable and could have resulted in serious injuries or fatalities."
The police complaint response, was made before the controversial SFA-commissioned report by Sheriff Principal Bowen QC which was criticised by Rangers who said it was full of "inaccuracies and contradictions".
Sheriff Bowen in describing the events of the May final had found fault with both sets of fans in terms of their behaviour at the final.
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He also suggested the government consider making it a statutory offence to invade a football pitch.
The complaint response explained why police often make arrests after rather than during a match where there was disorder.
"It is the duty of all police officers to prevent and detect crime and police officers are expected to intervene and arrest persons when it is practicable and safe to do so.
"As such, to make an arrest during a fixture with thousands of supporters within the ground is not always deemed appropriate... as as that can lead to further public disorder.
"Many incidents are better dealt with at a later, more appropriate time, and this is a decision for the match commander who is an experienced senior police officer."
The complaint response says pitch invasion was the result of the dramatic ending to the final - with the winning goal coming in injury time at the end of the match.
"The result of this was a pitch incursion by many thousands of Hibernian fans who were intent on celebrating their club's victory, regardless of the safety rules and laws which are designed to prevent such incursions.
"It is also apparent that amongst the many thousands of fans determined to celebrate, there were a core of undesirable fans intent on 'goading' the Rangers fans and causing trouble.
"Regrettably, in amongst the many thousands of Rangers fans who were able to manage their disappointment, there was also a small minority who also were intent on causing violence and disorder and responded to the provocation offered to them."
The report says that after the invasion, the immediate priority was to prevent further Hibs fans encroaching intot he Rangers end and "thereby causing even more mayhem and violence".
To do that police resources were focussed on creating a segregation line across the entire pitch.
The police response said this took about four minutes to achieve and after seven minutes both sets of fans were back in their own halves of Hampden and the fighting had subdued.
Police said overall control of the fans and "a return to normality" was achieved "only 17 minutes" after the final whistle.
The scenes were viewed as reminiscent of the Rangers v Celtic Scottish Cup final clash of 1980 described as Scottish football's worst riot for 70 years as mounted police were brought in to deal with the trouble.
It was said that up to six Rangers players and staff were assaulted and injured as they tried to leave the pitch, with captain Lee Wallace, goalscorer Andy Halliday and former Hearts player Jason Holt understood to be among those who required medical attention.
The force complaint response said it was "not the case" that Hibs fans were given 'free hand' to enter the playing area and attack fans and Rangers staff.
"It is regrettable that there were some incidents... however thankfully no-one was seriously injured.
"Had the match commander focussed his officers on the many pockets of disorder that were occurring on the pitch, the resources available would have been swiftly tied up dealing with individuals, thereby allowing further fans to become involved.
"It is my opinion that the match commander correctly focussed on the right priorities and the speed with which public order was restored is a testament to this.
In moving forward, Police Scotland will seek to learn from this incident to further improve public safety at large events and, as such, we have conducted our own internal reviews...."
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