By Mike Slater

16th Apr, 2023 | 9:10am

Stephen McGowan reacts as Rangers fans may now end up in court after Kevin Clancy controversy

Stephen McGowan has sent messages of good luck to those Rangers fans who may end up in court after sending threatening messages to Kevin Clancy after the defeat against Celtic.

Writing in the print edition of the Scottish Daily Mail [15 April, pg 116], the journalist insisted that clubs are not directly responsible for the actions of their fans.

Despite that, he did admit that the influence of clubs on their fans is too high and more has to be done to prevent this from happening in the future.

McGowan wrote: “When certain officials get decisions wrong, fans of Celtic and Rangers don’t think they are hopeless. They think they are cheating.

“Football clubs are not directly responsible for the actions of fans who take things too far. Good luck to the accused who stands up in court and blames a statement released by a football club for a threatening email to a referee.

“That’s on him, no one else.”

Saga.

Yes, the decision was wrong and it ended in defeat, but there are no excuses here.

Putting the personal details of officials online and then sending threatening messages is embarrassing, especially when it will be fully-grown adults likely doing so.

Have these so-called fans got nothing better to do with their lives?

Rangers made contact with the Scottish FA and looked for answers, and it should have been left at that, not these fans who tried to take matters into their own hands.

Away from that though, more also has to be done to train these officials so they can make better decisions, and make better use of the technology they have available in the shape of VAR.

When that is done, fewer moments and controversies such as this one will happen, and that is better, not just for the officials and the clubs, but for Scotland as a whole on the sporting scene.

In other Rangers news, wantaway attacker has already been targeted for a new transfer in the post Ross Wilson era