GILLINGHAM supporters' reputation as being among the best behaved in the country has been endorsed by Home Office statistics on last season (Tony Hudd writes).

They show that nine offences were committed by Gillingham fans last season - five at home and four away. Of those offences, four were for public disorder, two for throwing missiles while three were alchohol related. Only Wimbledon, who have far fewer supporters than Gillingham, did better.

The worst behaved among the Nationwide League, Division 1, clubs were Nottingham Forest fans who registered 56 home arrests and 85 away. Next were Burnley with 121, Sheffield United with 106 and Sheffield Wednesday (104).

The Home Office figures show that 71 per cent of Division 1 games were trouble-free. The total number of arrests was up by 19 per cent to 4,793. Of these 57 per cent were made outside grounds.

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