QUEEN of the South has made a plea to supporters to “not overstep the mark” after personal abuse was aimed at the management team and players.
The League One outfit say that there has b<z8.200>een a rise in incidents of personal abuse towards staff over the last few weeks.
And it all seemed to come to a boil after the Doonhamers’ 3-1 defeat to Cove Rangers last Saturday. Queens have managed just one win in their last six games with their promotion play-off chances slipping away.
Eye witnesses at Balmoral Stadium say one supporter – who was standing yards away from the away dugout – hurled abuse to boss Peter Murphy and the players after the full time whistle.
And now the Palmerston Park outfit have released a statement saying that after an in-house investigation they have identified the fan and will speak to them in due course.
The Dumfries club said: “Due to the rise in incidents of personal abuse towards staff and players in recent weeks, we would like to take this opportunity to remind supporters that this type of conduct will not be tolerated.
“Having had time to further investigate the incident that took place at Cove Rangers on Saturday, involving one of our own fans, we are unwilling to accept the level of personal abuse aimed at our management team and players.
“As a club we are proud of the passion that is shown by our loyal fans, both home and away.
“However, we have to remind individuals not to overstep the mark.
“At the end of the day, our players and staff are all human and at their place of work. They don’t deserve to have foul and abusive language and personal insults aimed at them, it doesn’t help anyone.
“As a club we cannot allow these incidents to continue, if they do we will be forced to take further action.
“We have identified the individual involved on Saturday and will be speaking with them in due course.
“Can we ask that people please treat our staff, players and volunteers with respect and be kind.”
On the pitch, Queens’ miserable afternoon wasn’t just the result. More injuries occurred with Jack Brydon and Brennan Dickenson having to be subbed off.
Brydon has suffered a recurrence of his foot injury whilst Dickenson looks like he’s injured his quad.
The Doonhamers already have Matty Douglas, Mikey Hewitt and Harry Cochrane out with injuries so it could be a depleted back line for Queens against Alloa in what is a must-win match against play-off rivals Alloa Athletic.
Meanwhile, the club saw its operating loss reduced to just over £60,000 last year, according to its accounts.
Shareholders received the Palmerston Park side’s financial statement last week.
From the accounts, the turnover at the club is down £242,851 from the 2022/23 season with the biggest drop in ‘football activities’. The pitch and Queens Arena hire had increased by nearly £12,000. There was a slight loss in commercial activities.
Other operating income was up £224,918, mainly due to ‘government grants’. Meanwhile, expenses were down £153,251.
The Dumfries club had announced a six figure loss – £190,000 net loss – last year and warned they were expected to lose at least the same again.
Following the accounts release, shareholders will get the chance to quiz new director Jim McLinden at this year’s Annual General Meeting. This is due to take place on Thursday, March 27 at Nith Hotel, Glencaple.
Chairman Billy Hewitson – who at last year’s AGM announced himself, Craig Paterson and Mark Blount would all be stepping down – is to be re-appointed on the board alongside Mr McLinden.
