THE RETURN OF Old Firm derby matches was raised in a Moray court this week when a Sheriff ventured that she was perhaps witnessing ‘a sign of things to come’.
Sheriff Olga Pasportnikov made the comment at her court in Elgin on Thursday, when three different cases appeared before her – all with links to the Old Firm Scottish Cup derby match played at Hampden Park last month.
Elgin man Nicholas Crowley, 24, was sentenced to 100hours unpaid work and ordered to pay £200 compensation after admitting punching a man in the face in the Brander Arms in Lossiemouth on April 17.
That incident came hours after Crowley had been watching the Old Firm match earlier in the day when a great deal of alcohol and been consumed.
In the same court, Sheriff Pasportnikov dealt with Keith man Graham Watson, 42, who admitted being over the drink-drive limit after drinking two pints and six bottles of beer after watching the Old Firm match that day. He received a 15-month ban and a £500 fine.
32-year-old Celtic fan Kris Brown, from Huntly, also appeared and admitted he had lashed at police trying to remove him from a bar in Keith’s Mid Street. Brown was fined £500 after the court heard he had been drinking from early morning on the day of the game, after which he was “drowning his sorrows”.
Regular clashes between the Glasgow football rivals will resume next season following Rangers’ promotion to the SPFL after a four-year absence.