'I feel safer than I do in a busy supermarket': Hibs fans state reasons for attending Easter Road after Covid advice

The majority of Hibs supporters have the opportunity on Wednesday night to see their team in action for the last time until, well, nobody really knows at this point, after government restrictions limited crowds to 500 across Scottish football.

Hibs fans in attendance at Easter Road. Picture: SNS

Furthermore, John Swinney said he believed the club’s Premier Sports Cup final defeat to Celtic on Sunday could have been a “superspreader” event as the Omicron variant continues to seep through Scotland. The Cabinet Secretary for Covid Recovery also suggested fans stay home tonight instead of seeing their favourites in action.

Outside of Easter Road, the Evening News talked to supporters attending the match against Aberdeen, which will be the first for new boss Shaun Maloney, and what they thought of Swinney’s advice.

Callum Laidlaw, 40, said: “If the government were that worried about us attending they should have made the decision to cancel it. I do a daily lateral flow, I will be safe at the match using a face mask and hand sanitiser and I’m triple vaccinated. Going to the football and seeing my friends is an important part of my mental health so I’ll be taking this last chance for a month or so.”

Kelli Buglass, 36, responded: “I feel it’s as safe as anywhere can be right now, outside venue, vaccination checks etc. I feel better about going to the game tonight than I felt being in a busy supermarket this afternoon. Although, I also appreciate that I only live next door to the stadium so I don’t have to travel on public transport.”

While Mark Lacey, 40, added: “I’ve had Covid quite recently so feel like balancing the risks I’m comfortable with going to the game. I’m also going straight to the game, no pub before or after and I live a 10 mins walk away, so don’t need to get public transport. If the government really felt strongly enough about it they could have said no crowds but chose not to. Plus who knows when I’ll be able to go again!”

And finally, Matty Fairnie, 44, said: “It was a case of assessing the risk myself, taken all reasonable precautions and likely won’t get the chance to see the team again for a while so didn’t want to miss it.”

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