Queen of the South issue 'fuller apology' for George Galloway attendance

Queen of the South have issued "a fuller apology" to fans amid a backlash over politician George Galloway attending Saturday's match with Dundee.

The 66-year-old, who was present with his family, tweeted a photo during the Scottish Championship game in Dumfries.

The image provoked an angry response from supporters not allowed to attend due to Covid-19 restrictions.

Police Scotland have reminded the club "of their responsibilities to comply with the law".

A spokesperson said: "We have spoken to Queen of the South to explain the legislation and will not be taking any further action."

Having apologised to supporters on Sunday, Queens added on Monday that they "fully accept and understand" the fans' anger over a "genuine mistake that shouldn't have been made".

The club insists Galloway was given permission to attend when Dumfries was in tier one of lockdown, which permits a partial crowd at games.

But mainland Scotland was put into tier four at midnight on Christmas Day, which forbids stadia being open to spectators, and Queens admit they "should have informed Mr Galloway that he could no longer attend".

"We realise it was a total error of judgement and we should have been more considerate of our loyal supporters," the club added. "We would again like to issue an unreserved apology to our fans."

Scottish FA rules state that no guests, only club officials, are allowed at games in tier four.

Former MP Galloway, who originally tagged Dundee's Charlie Adam in his tweet during the game's first half, took to Twitter to defend his attendance, claiming he lives in Dumfries and Galloway, has a season ticket and "is about to become a sponsor".

One supporter wrote on Twitter it left "a nasty taste in the mouth", while former Queens player Colin McMenamin described Galloway's admittance as "quite shameful", insisting that the club had "let their fans down".

Queen of the South lost the match 3-1 and remain bottom of the Scottish second tier.