MOULTRIE — One of the longtime traditions of football games at Mack Tharpe Stadium has been for fans to go on the playing field after the final horn to congratulate and mingle with the players and coaches.

But when the players, coaches and fans commiserated on Tom White Field following the triple-overtime loss to Coffee on Oct. 6, they could not have known it was to be the last such gathering.

At a Region 1-AAAAA meeting held Wednesday, a new policy was adopted that will prohibit fans from the playing surfaces at football, basketball, soccer and baseball games until the players have headed to the dressing rooms.

The policy, which goes into effect immediately, reads: “No unauthorized person is to be on the playing surface or sideline without a field pass until after the game has been completed and both teams have cleared the playing area.”

The rule will apply to all Region 1-AAAAA contests.

The only people allowed inside the fence at Tom White Field at Mack Tharpe Stadium before, during and after football games will be those who have sideline passes.

Packer fans who previously mingled with players on the field after games will now meet them in the area behind the north end zone, near the field house.

Although the decision came just days after a confrontation between Valdosta and Lowndes players following last Friday’s game at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium, Colquitt County High Principal Bob Jones said the policy had already been in the works.

“That (the fracas in Valdosta) is not the reason we are doing this,” Jones said. “This is something we have talked about over time.”

But the decision is aimed at heading off similar incidents, especially at football, soccer and basketball games.

“It’s a good call,” Jones said.

“And it’s not so much about football.”

There was an incident after a basketball game at Tift County two years ago in which a Colquitt County players was struck on his way to the locker room after the game when the court was full of fans.

Colquitt County has had a policy for a number of years forbidding anyone to be on the basketball court following the final buzzer of basketball games at the Gladys Espy Gymnasium.

“If an incident happens, you can be scarred by it,” Jones said. “Thank the good Lord we haven’t had any problems here.

“This will reduce the amount of contact between the opposing schools and any intimidation. We just want to be pro-active before anything regrettable happens.”

One of those regrettable situations happened last Friday in Valdosta and could have been worse.

At the end of the emotional game between the cross-town rivals that has come to be called the Winnersville Classic, a fan from the Lowndes side of the stadium attempted to plant a Vikings flag in front of the Valdosta bench.

As might be expected, what was called a small fight or a scuffle broke out between players on both teams.

The altercation was quickly broken up coaches.

But it was an incident that might have been avoided if fans had not been allowed on the field before the players had been able to leave.