With apologies to thread police for not using quote function--I wanted to make full quotes readable without need for clicks. Also with apologies to
Tyler Durden, and others--I completely agree with you all about what smoke / flares can bring to the atmosphere of a game. I also agree with you that they
can be safely used, with a bit of intelligence and self-policing.
BUT. Unfortunately we have to deal with the reality of how the things are currently actually used by a handful of our more cretinous supporters--ie with zero intelligence or self-policing--before
nopigfansintown has to stretcher his son out of another game, or one of our older travelling supporters gets one stuck in his hood and has a heart attack.
Sorry to be a boring twat, but until the way that flares and smoke canisters are used by a small group of our fans changes, the following look like the definitive comments on the subject to me:-
Quote
nopigfansintown "I've took my lad out of Oakwell on a stretcher, because someone thought it was clever to lob a smoke bomb. There are people with worse breathing problems than him. People used to police their own. Not anymore. Anything goes. Should I have to stop taking him? Already adapted as much as possible"
Quote
Canterbury Blade "A flare burns at great heat, it is designed to be seen from a long way by both the light it gives off and the excessive smoke it gives off. Flames and heat burn and smoke ain't good for the lungs.
It is thus by definition a little bit dangerous if used in the wrong place or by the wrong hands.
Throwing it at anyone is going to hurt if it strikes or will cause panic by those fearful of being burnt or inhaling excessive smoke. No one likes hot smoking things being thrown at them. Football grounds contain a mix of young, old and people with varying degrees of strength, athleticism, breathing difficulties and movement.
To the wannabees - there are loads of ways to fight your own equivalents. Please don't do it a cowardly way by throwing things. Equally, never throw it amongst your own fans or set it off in confined under seat concourses.
To the thick - the knob head from lowestoft at Colchester away last year was no hooligan. He thought it would be fun to let one off for 'atmosphere'. He didn't know what he was doing, became afraid and dropped it around some elderly Blades. I saw their reaction.
I don't like old or in fact any people being afraid, especially if they've travelled to watch Sheffield United and sit in a freezing cold stadium miles from home, when we were probably at our worst. They deserve the respect that another Blade will not frighten or hurt them.
So to me there is no place for these flares and they should become considered as offensive as some of the other things that used to be thrown at football grounds, said or sung. It is only that which will stop it due to poor searches.
Please, I'm no killjoy and love atmosphere, I just dont like the behaviours of bullies, cowards and knobheads affecting people who have no right to be affected..
Would you let one off in your local pub when your Gran and family were there?"
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sitwell "I just don't get the thinking behind someone who actually goes to a shop ( I wouldn't know where) and buys a flare a day before a game ,then has to travel to the game with the flares ,take them in the pub hoping not to get nicked ,smuggle them into the ground avoided detection from a search at the risk of missing a piece of history in the making. Lighting it up or whatever instead of celebrating a goal (what if we hadn't scored) ,taking a chance on being banned from future football ,risking your mates getting burned then lobbing it at some empty seats 20 yards away (what if his seat had been on the other side ?) Awesome
What exactly do you get out of that ? just don't get it . Having being stood next to an elderly bloke at Oakwell last season when one whisked by my ear and burned through his coat ,I would quite happily kick shit out of anyone I caught throwing one".
