Hearts are set to keep sections of Tynecastle closed during visits from the likes of Rangers and Celtic as they look to combat unruly behaviour.
The Edinburgh club closed a section of 200 seats next to the away end in Tynecastle after an explosive derby match with Hibs.
Missiles were thrown onto the pitch and some supporters even indulged in racist chanting.
Speaking to BBC Scotland [as quoted by the Daily Record], Hearts Chairperson Ann Budge confirmed the closure would remain in place against Rangers, Celtic and Hibs.
“We have closed corner sections. That will remain in place because it helped,” said Budge.
“We closed some of our own sections where we’d trouble.
“These are open again. But if we have the same sort of thing I will have to address it.”
The news comes a day after Rangers were ordered to close a section of Ibrox for the visit of Legia Warsaw [Rangers.co.uk] after sectarian chanting earlier in the tournament.
The club has closed three sections in the stadium – including BF1 where the Union Bears are housed – and reiterated that there is no place for chanting at Ibrox.
It must act as a wake-up call for supporters. Should Rangers continue down this route they could see matches played behind closed doors or even expulsion from Europe altogether.
Budge would go on to praise the idea of more self-policing from fans in the stands.
“That is actually getting used more and more and more,” she said.
“As a consequence of that, if somebody sees another supporter or other supporters misbehaving to the point that they think ‘this is unacceptable’, we can do something about it, and we have done.
“If the supporters themselves are saying, “this is not what we want going on at our club,” that’s good. That’s what we need to get to.”
