A Dons fan has narrowly avoided being banned from Scottish football matches after uttering sectarian comments at Pittodrie on Remembrance Sunday.
Daniel Fraser was fined £300 this morning when he appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court and admitted shouting and swearing at the Celtic supporters on November 9 last year.
The court heard the 24-year-old car valeter had been congregated at a segregation barrier at the football grounds during half time.
Fiscal despite Karen Dow said that he was joined there by a number of other Aberdeen supporters who were singing and pointing towards the Celtic supporters on the other side of the fence.
She said officers had been keeping an eye on the group and noticed Fraser moving closer towards the rival fans.
He was singing at the time.
As a result officers arrested him and he admitted making one sectarian comment about the IRA.
Ms Dow called for Sheriff Alison Stirling to impose a football banning order.
Fraser’s solicitor Mike Horseman said that he did not feel a banning order would be an appropriate way to deal with his client. He said the offence had not involved any violence and told the court his client had never behaved in this manner before.
Mr Horseman said Fraser had been banned from attending matches at Pittodrie since the incident but had still been going to away games.
He said that no further offending had taken place.
Mr Horseman put it to the Sheriff that his client’s behaviour had been at the “lower end of the scale”.
Sheriff Stirling agreed and fined Fraser, of 6 Deevale Gardens, Aberdeen, £300.
She said she did not think it was necessary to impose a football banning order.