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Monday, 18 June, 2001, 10:07 GMT 11:07 UK
Time for fencing in cricket?
Pakistan's win over England was marred by a pitch invasion in which a steward was injured.
Should fencing be introduced to prevent such incidents?
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Security is to be stepped up at Trent Bridge for Tuesday's one-dayer between Pakistan and Australia.
In response to events at Headingley, Nottinghamshire CCC are doubling the number of stewards on duty.
They are also set to install plastic barriers to help control spectators.
It is hoped these temporary measures will prevent a repeat of Sunday's scenes.
But is it time for grounds to install permanent fencing for all matches?
England should follow South Africa's example of surrounding the perimeter of the field with police acompanied by well-trained police dogs. This should happen a couple of overs before the completion of the game. This will resist people invading the pitch more than a fine would.
I find it a shame that a sport like cricket is now getting a bad wrap. Cricket has always prided itself on sportmanship both for the players and fans a like. Putting fences up would be a black mark on the game. We don't have violent gangs and fights like football. It is a shame what happened to the official, and the people who stormed the pitch were blatant idiots. But when have you ever heard of something like this happening before?
I find the entire situation deplorable. Intruders should be fined as they are in Australia both to protect the ground, as well as the players and officials. There is no need for security fencing, only stricter enforcement of rules and tough penalties.
Mark Pickering, UK
What's more annoying about this particular game is that it was academic, and neither side had anything to play for except England for pride. The fans that invaded the pitch should feel ashamed of themselves. The pitch is for the players not for parties.
Comparisons between football and cricket are irrelevant. Cricket grounds are designed to be far more open than football stadia and allow greater freedom for spectators to move around. One of the reasons we don't see pitch invasions at Premiership football stadia is because potential invaders are deterred by the thought of losing their season ticket. It doesn't seem possible to me that a similar deterrent would work in cricket.
Some form of barrier must now be considered. To prevent a Hillsborough type disaster, it should be designed to give when excessive pressure is applied and also be designed to minimise visual intrusion. For the time being, fans must be given the clear message that an invasion would result in penalty to their team. Waqar Younis should not have accepted Alec Stewart's concession, but rather insisted that the game be declared a no result. This would have sent a sterner message to would-be pitch invaders.
Surely an active police presence and the arrest of as many people as possible the next time an invasion like this happens will be a deterrent. All the invaders need not be arrested so long as the ones that are get prosecuted to the full extent of the law. This will mean that others will not risk the chance of getting caught. A £10,000 fine per offender tresspassing will make supporters a little more hesitant about rushing onto the field.
Greg, New Zealand
As has been noted already, fines, bans and extra stewards can only deter small numbers of fans from invading. Permanent barriers would be intrusive and possibly dangerous. What about a transparent barrier that is raised mechanically shortly before the climax of such matches?
Quite simply, if a team's fans launch a major pitch invasion before the game ends, that team should be disqualified, even if they would otherwise obviously have won. And, yes, that goes for England too.
It would be sad to see fences installed at grounds like Lord's and the Oval to contain unruly spectators. However, something has to be done after the disgusting behaviour by a section of fans. The playing field should remain off limits to fans. Hopefully, the officials can put into effect a fines system like the Aussies have, or even dogs like South Africa. Fences though, would be too extreme.
Stricter measures must be applied to prevent pitch invasions. I agree with fencing and, in addition, there should a fine imposed for anybody invading the pitch. If the person contravenes this law for the second time then they should be barred from all cricket fixtures. South Africans and Australians have a great passion for the game and yet do not tolerate this type of behaviour, while still managing to keep the game very much alive.
Sagie Moodley, England
The introduction of fencing would only be giving in to the idiots that invaded the pitch, spoiling it for everyone else. There should be more stewards on duty at on International games and spot fines or imprisonment for a few hours for anyone who invades the pitch. Let the majority kick out the minority of thugs.
Everyone keeps citing Australia as an example, but no one has addressed my point. How does the 'arrest and fine' approach work when there are 400 or more fans involved? This policy may deter streakers from acting by themselves, but 500-600 people? Get real. You cannot realistically hope to arrest and detain that many people.
Surely the easiest way to prevent this from occurring in future is to punish the team whose fans invade the pitch. Fairly soon the supporters are going to realise that by doing this, they jeopardise the future success of their team.
No matter how much it seems like an over-reaction, fences will be erected if pitch invasions continue and officials are injured. It seems absurd that a small proportion of the cricket-loving community could force this change on all of us. I hate the thought of watching matches behind wire fences, and urge a little self-control from enthusiastic fans.
Steve Dunjey, Australia
Absolutely not! Talk about going from one extreme to the other. What's wrong with following Australia? A heavy fine for anyone foolish enough to invade the pitch seems to be working pretty well over there.
I find it incredible that anyone would mention fences. If football fans can be contained then I am sure that a few cricket fans will be. Let's not overreact.
Has no one learnt from the farce of football stadia and fencing?
In the event of an emergency any sort of barrier will cost lives.
The approach has to be better policing as has been done with football. CCTV, life bans from grounds and removing passports etc.
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