SK Rapid Statement

[PaulTheVillan]

Link

The Football Club SK Rapid Vienna is very disappointed in a small number of Rapid fans, who have publicly damaged the reputation of the club very much through their terrible behaviour.

During the match yesterday the injured player Andreas Weimann, a young Austrian player for Aston Villa, was stretchered off the pitch. On the way to the dressing room he and the medical staff escorting him were spat at, drinks were thrown at them and they were verbally abused. This disgusting, unfair and unacceptable behaviour by a small number of Rapid fans was not just noted in Austria, but also in England.

This is why SK Rapid would like to make this statement to avoid any misunderstanding:
No player or member of staff of a visiting team is allowed to have drinks thrown over them, to be spat at, to be discriminated against or even to be injured in any way. SK Rapid will also take any appropriate, unconditional action to prevent objects being thrown onto the pitch.

In the case of Andreas Weimann these actions are all the more severe, because this player, who is a product of the Rapid Academy, has always stood by the club. He is a Rapid fan
and also let it be known that he stood by the club in the run-up to the game. Weimann's family are all real true Rapid fans, who are members of the club and have season tickets.

SK Rapid would like to officially offer this statement as a means of apology to Andreas Weimann, his family and to the club Aston Villa.

[Salsa Party Animal]

Good statement, hope they will manage to find those fans and send them to St Andrews for season ticket as punishment.

[darren woolley]

It is good to see they are apologising to andreas for the dispicable behaviour of there so called fans.

[exigo]

I assume Guzan's apology has been lost in the post?

[dave.woodhall]

Fair play to them.

[regular_john]

Yup, wouldn't want a whole clubs reputation to be tarnished by the actions of a few stupid fans. Fair play to them. Now...let's stick the wannabe-kraut bastards on thursday!

[The Man With A Stick]

Credit to them for doing something, it's more than some other clubs would have done.

[Lizz]

Just looked at the Rapid Vienna website, and clicked on the flags [top left] to look at the site in both English and German. Out of curiosity, anyone know if a similar option is available on Pravda for people visiting the site from non-English speaking countries?

[frank]

Well done, Rapid. Their fans were excellent home and away last year and it's good to see the club condemn the idiots who behaved so badly this time.

[Quiet Lion]

A frank and honest apology, good to see.

[Leighton]

Well done to Rapid for that. Lets hope that the Villa fans show their fans the respect that they rightly deserved last season on their visit.

[timeoutbigbar]

Nice to see.  I was hoping that Uefa would react after the events of thursday, but after a public statement of apology i would let it slide this once.

[Guy M]

Went to the game with my mate Stuart and my brother. Stu and I were considering a brief detour to Bratislava while we were over there, but decided against it as we were pushed for time to do what we wanted in Vienna anyway. Having seen pictures of the Bratislava fans trying to climb the fences to get at the Stuttgart fans and chucking chairs at them, I'm no longer quite so disappointed we didn't get drawn against them and that it looks unlikely they'll make it through to the group stages (assuming we do).

I assume that the press over here haven't made any mention of Nigel Reo-Coker giving the home fans the bird as he walked off after the game? Came over to our support, passed his shirt under or through the netting and then slyly made the gesture with his left-hand. I saw it from the very back corner of the away section and plenty of their fans did too.

[brian green]

Good statement, well intended and disarmingly honest.

You cannot help but see the teutonic mind set shining through even a groveling apology in the phrase "visiting players and staff are not allowed to have drinks thrown at them".   perhaps it is a computer translation and the original German does not read as much like Herr Flick in Allo Allo.

[Des Little]

Does this mean the bin bag I'm filling with piss won't be needed for Thursday night's game?  Darn!