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I can’t let the controversy over the Manchester derby match go without adding my two penneth. The row is over whether to have a minutes silence to commemorate the Munich air disaster or go for the new fad of a minutes applause.

The request has been made by the Manchester City Supporters Club to have a minutes applause because they fear that a minority of the City fans might interrupt the silence and cause offense/create a bad atmosphere. To my mind Manchester United have quite rightly refused to do so.

Applause for a tragedy like this is completely inappropriate. For players or people connected to the game that have had a long and fulfilled life, then applause might be considered the way forward. But clapping people that died prematurely in a plane crash is simply wrong, in the same would be wrong to clap 9/11 or the Hillsborough disaster.

Without sounding like an old git this is symptomatic of what is wrong with society today. We repeatedly take the line of least resistance, in order to appease the minority - in this case the mindless minority - that might not be able to bury their rivalry for 60 seconds and show some respect. To appease these few the rest of us more civilised people must suffer in some way.

So good on Manchester United (there’s a phrase I never though I would say). Go ahead with the minutes silence. There are cameras watching the crowd anyway, so pin point the rabble, evict them from the ground and ban them for life.

While we are on the subject of respect, a quick mention about National Anthems. When did this fad of booing the opposition’s Anthem start? The problem is it started in football and is spreading to other sports too. I’m glad to say though that as yet it hasn’t reached hockey.

I went to the Euro Nations Indoor Hockey Finals on Sunday and the crowd stood in respectful silence to Anthems from all nations. It isn’t asking too much is it surely?