Middlesbrough football fans ordered to be quieter at matches
Published 10:28 24/02/09 By By Michael Haddon, Mirror.co.uk
Football fans have been left speechless after bosses at Premier League club Middlesbrough asked for them to make less noise during games.
Supporters of the struggling team, lying second bottom of the league, have been handed a note telling them only to make noise when a goal goes in.
But their team has failed to score in the last 5 league games, meaning fans would have not been able to cheer in more than 7 hours of action.
The letter from safety officer Sue Watson said: "I am receiving more and more complaints from our own fans about both the persistent standing and the constant banging and noise coming from the back of this stand.
"Please stop. Make as much noise as you like when we score, but this constant noise is driving some fans mad."
Stewards handed out the demand in the Riverside Stadium's South East corner before Saturday's 0-0 draw with Wigan, stunning their long-suffering supporters.
But Neil Bausor, chief operating officer, argued the club did still 'encourage passionate and noisy support'.
He said: "We understand the strength of feeling on this issue and we accept the letter could easily have been misunderstood. We apologise to any supporters who have therefore been understandably annoyed."
