Normally no team goes out there on a soccer pitch to lose a game. It is possible for a team to be cheated whether deliberately or inadvertently by match officials.

This has happened many times throughout football’s history. For instance, if referees fail to award legitimate infringements and award bad penalties to opponents,a team may be undeserving losers. Teams may also lose games if their players under perform against the rival. But none of these should convert into license for supporters to cause violence.

There is no acceptable justification for group of people – who gather to watch footballers play – to vandalize stadium seats because they were victims of bad officiating decisions.

Without mincing words the conduct of the few Hearts of Oak supporters on Sunday September 2nd at the Babayara sports stadium must be condemned by all. It is shameful and does not match the historical sporting excellence of the club they support. What makes this more worrying is the fact that supporters of the club are rather, gradually, building a bad reputation as violent stadium attendees.

In 2016 after a 3-1 home league defeat against Wa All Stars, Hearts of Oak were slapped with three-home games behind close doors due to misconduct of the home supporters.

Have people not learned lessons from the gruesome memories of May 9th?

If anything Hearts of Oak supporters must be reference point for all other supporters group in the country but this is not the case in the past few years.

It is however not too late to change their ways. As the slogan of the club says ” Never say die until the bones are rotten”.