How to save football’s reputation was one of the big questions in a night that was a game of two halves, as the Edinburgh Grand hosted the second of the Herald On Sunday’s Cool Conversations yesterday.
After the banter of the first half, a chat in which tables were turned as footballing legend Gordon Smith interviewed presenters Amy Irons, of BBC Scotland's The Nine, and Si Ferry, host of Open Goal, the tone turned more controversial.
The issue of “strict liability” was raised, as Jacqui Low, chairman of Partick Thistle, introduced the thorny subject of how to change the perception of the game.
Low, in discussion with a panel that also included international footballer Joelle Murray, said, “I’d like to see the reputation of the game improve, because I have lots of friends who wouldn’t go to a football match because there’s a perception around violence… And that means talking about the strict liability law.”
The term itself was not, she said, one she liked. “I think we should not use the term strict liability... I think it frightens people. But I feel if we don’t legislate for ourselves, I fear people who don’t understand football – politicians – are going to come in and do it for us.”
What she advocated was a “voluntary code”.
“We need to come up with a code that embodies what is and isn’t acceptable in football.”
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