Lowy, who again rammed home the zero-tolerance policy on anti-social behaviour, promised a review of FFA’s unpopular banning process, adding a new policy should be finalised by the next board meeting in February.
He said it would involve extensive consultation with all stakeholders, including fans.
But supporters reacted furiously to FFA’s stance that while it would address the possibility of making evidence against banned fans transparent, it was far from a done deal.
The issue of confidentiality is a complex one, with FFA largely relying on vision supplied by police and security bodies.
But it’s understood a condition of this agreement is that such footage is not legally allowed to be given to third parties.
“It (also) occasionally comes from fans themselves on the basis it doesn’t become disclosed that they gave it to us,” Gallop said.
“On the one hand, you want to have transparency and, on the other, you want to protect the ability to get that information.”
The Wanderers’ active supporter group the Red and Black Bloc (RBB) and Melbourne Victory’s North Terrace responded with Facebook posts declaring they would both boycott their clubs’ games indefinitely until FFA changed its procedures and relationship with its biggest stakeholders.
They reiterated their demand for transparent evidence and an end to the involvement of security firm Hatamoto, also accusing the “out of touch” organisation of substantiating bans based on hearsay.
“Football fans in this country are sick of being treated like second-class citizens, being watched by anti-terrorist groups, surrounded by riot police weekly, and treated with less regard by our governing body than those on trial for murder,” North Terrace’s statement read.
