Behaviour in football grounds has improved massively over the years but they can still be a pretty unforgiving place, writes John Payne.

The England midfielder Alan Lallana may have been with Southampton for half of his life, but that didn't stop him from receiving some vitriolic abuse when he returned in Liverpool's colours at the weekend.

Fans are prone to vent their bile at opposing players and officials alike: one thing the Premier League has failed to sanitise is the systematic chants against referees for incorrect decisions.

And yet, somehow, when that abuse is transferred to a non-league ground with say 50 people huddled behind a goal it somehow feels even worse, certainly much more personal.

The shouts are crystal clear, usually accompanied by a few knowing guffaws, and an individual's voice can have a much more gnawing effect than comments which get lost in the noise of a crowd.

Invariably the man most in the line of fire is the goalkeeper. The mocking for a stray kick, what he shouts or even the way he walks can be pretty unrelenting.

And whereas a Football League goalkeeper at least gets to change ends at half time, there is no getting away from the stick in non-league where fans invariably switch to the end their team is attacking in the second half.

Which is why, although Kingstonian goalkeeper Rob Tolfrey was undoubtedly wrong to jump into the crowd at the end of Monday's 2-1 home defeat by Bognor Regis, the FA should think very closely before throwing the book at him.

The fact the incident was filmed should ensure a sense of proportion is kept.

This was no out-of-control Eric Cantona-style kung-fu incident – even if Tolfrey's attempts to confront a fan were misguided, at least he had the courage to stand up for himself.

A whole culture still exists where people thinking handing over their cash at a turnstile gives them the right to shout what they want.

Making Tolfrey a scapegoat would merely reinforce that view.