Earthquakes Sanction 1906 Ultras

The San Jose Earthquakes have sanctioned the 1906 Ultras Supporter Group.

Last weekend's trip to Portland turned out to be a negative experience, not just for the players (most notably Alan Gordon) but for some of their fans as well.  A poor light has been shed on the 1906 Ultras supporters' group after a couple of rather nasty incidents took place in the Rose City following Portland's 1-0 win over the defending Supporter's Shield champions.

The Portland Police raised two issues with members of the group.  First off, members allegedly assaulted a Timbers fan for waving a Timbers scarf at the Quakes' traveling contingent after the match.    A news release also said the victim and others witnessed "10-12" members of the group jumping on a car and smashing the windshield.  No arrests were made in connection with these events, according to the San Jose Mercury.

According to the Earthquakes website, the club met with MLS officials and members of the Ultras last week in Santa Clara.  At that meeting, the group was placed on indefinite probation and hit with the following sanctions:

--The traveling privileges of the 1906 Ultras have been revoked.
--The group will no longer be allowed to use controlled smoke devices in the stands.
--Their language during matches will be monitored.

For their part, the Ultras issued a statement on their website:

 "We are troubled by some of the things we witnessed and have heard about before and after the Quakes-Timbers match.  We are in the process of investigating what transpired, and if and to the extent any Ultras members were involved, they will be removed from the group."

According to the Mercury, the group leaders have said that they will financially compensate any victims and will cooperate with any police investigation.

Personally, I'm glad the Earthquakes are jumping on this.  We don't need clashes between supporters groups to turn into the kind of junk that you see in Europe or South America. It's possible to be a supporter and passionately support your club, but violence should never play a part in this.  However, I'm generally in favor of supporters culture and I'm glad the Ultras will be conducting their own investigation and cooperating with law enforcement.    Hopefully they will take appropriate action IF any of their members were found to have perpetrated these acts.