Ireland v Yugoslavia

Sir, - I fully support the Government's refusal to grant visas to the Yugoslav soccer team

Sir, - I fully support the Government's refusal to grant visas to the Yugoslav soccer team. It is not right that our national team should play against a team representing a country currently engaged in genocide and whose leader has been indicted for war crimes. However, I am slightly confused by the stance being taken by our European partners on this issue. While they support our position vocally they have done nothing to back up their words with actions. If the Dutch and Belgians, who will host the finals of the European Championships, were to say now that they will also refuse to admit the Yugoslav team for the tournament then UEFA would have no option but to either expel the Yugoslavs or to replay the fixture at a time when the issues in that country have been solved. With this in mind, I call on the Government to press the Dutch and Belgian governments to back up our position with similar action, rather than engage in cost-free rhetoric. - Yours, etc,

Andy Crawford, Antwerp, Belgium.