Alan Pattullo: Keane can't halt crowd drain

Published on Tuesday 9 March 2010 22:19

INTEREST has been piqued by the news that the Scottish Football Association has initiated a scheme, in conjunction with Mars, to encourage over 18s to return to football. This, however, refers to the actual playing of the game.

Noble ambition though it is, the announcement might also serve to worsen the current downward attendance trend in Scottish football, with the Scottish Premier League having been afflicted by a malaise that was perhaps most startlingly displayed last weekend in the crowd figure for the Hamilton Accies against Aberdeen game. Just 2,030 turned up, which meant every match in the First Division had an attendance which exceeded that for a fixture involving a team with one of the traditionally strong away supports.

Of course, the circumstances in which Aberdeen currently find themselves – playing for little except continued occupation of a spot far enough away from relegation – had a lot to do with a travelling support that was reported as numbering only 234. But just as startling for the wrong reasons was the attendance at the Falkirk Stadium on Sunday, where Celtic – including the 65,000 a week 'superstar' Robbie Keane, cast by many in the days following his on-loan signing as being great news for opposition club chairmen – were the visitors.

Keane kept up his side of the bargain – scoring twice and being the game's leading light. But what effect did his presence have on the crowd figure compared to the last time these teams met in Falkirk, before Keane's arrival? Three fewer turned up, with the crowd on Sunday numbering 6,792, compared with 6,795 for the 3-3 draw – also televised – in November.