Hearts have “utterly condemned” what they called “shameful scenes” at Celtic Park at the end of their 3-1 defeat which meant that The Hoops were crowned Scottish Champions.
And the Tynecastle club claimed the events “have, once again, embarrassed Scottish football”.
The seven paragraph statement confirmed that the team left Parkhead without doing their post-match duties and it continued: “Reports of serious physical and verbal abuse towards our players and staff, both on the pitch and elsewhere, are deeply disturbing.
“We are investigating this fully and are in dialogue with Police Scotland.”
The statement added: “We will make no further comment at this time other than to say that it is completely unacceptable that our players and staff were put in that situation.
“Given the menacing and threatening atmosphere inside the stadium, our entire staff had no alternative but to leave immediately, without undertaking post-match media duties.
“To our media partners, we apologise, but the safety of our staff was our prime focus during these unacceptable scenes.”
The pitch invasion, the statement went on, caused a chaotic end and nobody seemed to know whether or not the match had been brought to a finish.
And the document added: “Our players were then denied the opportunity to thank our magnificent fans – sensational to a person – for their backing this afternoon and all season long.
“We expect the strongest action possible to be taken by the footballing authorities in the interests of protecting the safety of players and supporters, and the integrity of our game.
“This season has seen Hearts capture the imagination of football fans, not only in Scotland, but the world over. We pay tribute to Derek McInnes, his staff, the first team and the supporters, who have done the club proud this season. None of them deserved the disgraceful scenes that unfolded.”
PASSION: Hearts fans show their support ahead of the Falkirk game last week. Picture Nigel Duncan
