SC Villa Jogoo has condemned acts of violence exhibited at St. Mary’s stadium on Saturday in their 1-0 loss to Vipers but have distanced themselves from the culprits.
The away fans turned violent at the stroke of half time when referee Alex Muhabi looked on as the ball hit the hand of defender Shafik Bakaki in the area.
But in a statement signed by the club CEO Valley Mugwanya, the club condemned hooliganism but insisted the fans involved where masqueraders set to taint club image.
“SC Villa Jogoo wish to condemn the act of hooliganism at the concluded game against Vipers on Saturday 23rd September 2017 at St Mary’s Stadium Kitende which ended 1-0 in favor of Vipers…. Read part of the statement.
“As SC Villa Jogoo, we wish to express our concerns at people masquerading as club supporters to dent SC Villa’s Image. As a club we strongly condemn any form of violence.
The club however in the same statement said they will do all their powers to investigate the incident and if any of their fans involved will be brought to book.
“As SC Villa, we are going to investigate and whoever was involved in hooliganism will be punished and banned from watching our games.
They also appealed to all stakeholders to fight the vice of stadium violence.
“As SC Villa Jogoo we appeal to all football stakeholders to come on board and deal with the issue of violence in all stadiums in the country and we wish to cooperate with the management of Vipers FC to put the whole situation in order after our investigations.
They also appealed to their fans if any involved in the act to desist from the barbaric act.
“As SC Villa Jogoo wish to take this opportunity to appeal to our supporters, those that love football and those that are bent on soiling our name as “SC VILLA JOGOO” to desist from acts of violence or hooliganism because it’s affecting us as a club. We are a club that respects the statutes of the game and it should remain that way.
A heavy punishment is expected to fall on Villa but Vipers president Lawrence Mulindwa has promised to deal with individuals involved according to the law.