HERE’S a useful test to gauge whether your football allegiances have caused you to lose all sense of perspective. Say the following sentence out loud; There is no justification for throwing a coin at Neil Lennon. If your immediate inclination is to add a ‘but’, then perhaps even an involuntary ‘he brings it on himself’, then I’m afraid to say you’ve crossed the Rubicon into zoomer country.

The fact this needs spelled out for some is astounding, but here we are. Now, I’m well aware that Lennon’s old teammate, Partick Thistle manager Gary Caldwell, actually uttered those words on live radio immediately following the incident. It is the old ‘every action has a reaction’ argument.

While stating there was absolutely no justification for pelting a fellow human being with a coin, Caldwell’s point was that by making a gesture at the Hearts crowd, what was Lennon expecting to happen? You can follow that logic to a point, but only if you first accept that violence is the appropriate response of a crowd getting a bit of stick back from a guy that has spent the best part of 90 minutes having all sorts of verbal abuse thrown at him.

One of the biggest myths in football is that football supporters pay their money, and so are entitled to say and do as they please. No, they aren’t. Verbal abuse is one thing, and I have no doubt in my mind that what was being rained down on Lennon for the majority of the night wasn’t solely focused on the colour of his hair. Religious abuse is in no way acceptable, but perhaps because as a collective we have become so inured to it, it is seen as something you just have to put up with on such occasions. The same cannot be allowed to happen with physical assault.

If whataboutery is your thing, the same goes for what happened to Hearts goalkeeper Zdenek Zlamal, who was punched by a Hibs supporter when he went to retrieve the ball from the away end. What is going on in the tiny minds of these idiots? If a member of a rival team is like a red rag to a bull for you, and you can’t be confronted by their presence without resorting to violence, then perhaps you don’t belong in a civilized society, never mind a football ground.

If you are the Hearts fan who threw the coin, or one of many who probably think Lennon got his just desserts, don’t take my word that you’re a wrong ‘un. Whoever you are, your own club thinks so as well. Craig Levein, your manager and club legend, said: “It saddens me really.

“There is no place for something like that. You can sing and shout and swear whatever you like. But I got a fright when I saw Lenny on the ground.

“I hope they catch whoever it was who threw it, it doesn’t matter whoever they support, they need to be dealt with.”

Or maybe you’re the Hibs fan who took a swing at Zlemal. Here’s what your manager thinks of you: “We don’t condone that. It isn’t the face of our club or way we conduct ourselves. A player getting punched trying to do his job is just an absolute disgrace. He is not a Hibs fan.”

This isn’t some uppity journalist getting on his high horse, these are people you probably laud and respect calling you out for what you are, a cowardly embarrassment and a disgrace to your club.

Elsewhere in these pages, you will see calls for strict liability to be introduced, but there are a couple of issues with that. There were around 18,000 fans at the Edinburgh derby who didn’t drag the name of their club through the mud. As Lennon pointed out after the game with his jaw still throbbing, how do you blame a club for the actions of a few unhinged dafties? These numbnuts simply don’t care what the consequences of their actions are for their club.

Secondly, there is a theory – one that has been scoffed at in some quarters – that fans would infiltrate the support of their rivals and bring punishments upon them by carrying out such acts as we saw at Tynecastle. If you don’t think there is an element in Scottish football capable of such calculated and twisted pettiness, then you haven’t been here long.

It’s a shame that the actions of a few have overshadowed what should have been a showcase of all that is good – and there is plenty - about the Scottish game. Perhaps if enough people repeat the mantra at the top of the article without adding any caveats or qualifications, then the message will finally seep into the deadened brains of the lunatic fringe; There is no justification for throwing coins at Neil Lennon.

AND ANOTHER THING...

THE impact of a new appointment in the dugout is oft-described as the 'managerial bounce', but I loved the black humour of the Dundee fan on social media this week who described Jim McIntyre's arrival at Dens Park as a 'managerial splat'.

Leaving aside the hoo-ha over Billy Dodds, the Dee have conceded 12 goals and scored none in McIntyre's first three matches in charge.

A crunch week awaits already with Motherwell and St Mirren next up. McIntyre must simply pray he can limit the damage and stumble on until January.