ian1964

And all are champions

PETER LAWWELL last night vowed to nail the yobs who lit flares, flew a foul-mouthed banner and attacked a Celtic club steward in Italy. The Hoops were fined £12,700 by UEFA this week over pro-IRA chanting earlier in the Europa League campaign. And they are in hot water with the authorities once again, with Danish delegate Steen Dahrup having reported details of a “F*** UEFA” banner and the throwing of flares before the 1-1 Group I draw with Udinese. Spanish champions Barcelona were fined a whopping £87,000 earlier this season after fans threw 10 flares during the Super Cup clash with FC Porto in Monaco. Chief executive Lawwell, who was involved in a confrontation with a fan at Trieste Airport yesterday as Celtic prepared to leave Italy, warned the club will wage all-out war on those shaming Celtic. He said: “We don’t know what will happen yet, but the flares and the banner are in the delegate’s report. UEFA will get back to us in a couple of days. It deflected from a fantastic performance by Neil Lennon and the players. ì These people can’t love Celtic, given the amount of damage they have inflicted on us. î Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell “Off the pitch, over the last decade, we have built a fantastic reputation around Europe which we are all very proud of and basically want to protect. “Clearly, there is a very small, rogue element that has developed within our support which we have got to weed out. “We are not going to tolerate it. “The guy who had the banner assaulted one of our stewards. “He was arrested, spent the night in an Italian jail and he will be banned for life. “We are very hopeful of identifying the other guys who had the flares and the other people with the banners. “We’ve got video of the guys with the flares and we’ll look at pictures of the guys that held the banner. “We will identify them and take appropriate action. “I don’t know what their motivation is, but we are going to stop it. “These people can’t love Celtic, given the amount of damage they have inflicted on us.” Lawwell added: “This could well be the tipping point. People are sick of it. “In 2003, our four supporters’ groups stood at Celtic Park and collected the UEFA Fair Play award. “Eight years later, these banners go up. “It’s just not right, it’s not Celtic. A rogue element has infiltrated our support with whatever objective they have. “There is no logic to this. If it was logical, it would be easy to sort out – but there is no logic to it.” Chairman Ian Bankier called on Hoops supporters to help him hammer the neds. Bankier said: “We’re looking for the people in the travelling crowd to self-police the way the Tartan Army do. “We’re looking to take every measure we can take to stop this. It has to stop.” http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/290427/Celtic-chief-executive-Peter-Lawwell-vows-to-ban-yobs

Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell insists it would be wrong to point the finger directly at fans’ group the Green Brigade until the guilty parties in Italy have been properly identified. He said: “It is not the Green Brigade. There is possibly a small element within those ranks, but it is a handful of people who, for some reason, think this is the right thing to do. “It embarrasses the club and the vast majority of supporters. Celtic as a club will weed this out. “The Green Brigade have had a hard run. That is a group of maybe 300 people, but, with them, it is a minority within that minority. “We have still to identify which section of Celtic Park these people are from – or, indeed, if they come to Celtic Park. “Our own supporters will back us here and I have no doubt they will help us to weed these people out.” http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/290426/Celtic-s-reputation-is-in-ruins

Phew!!!!,just back from Italy,been on a secret mission..........................................:tongue:

The winger wants to leave Tynecastle having failed to force his way into manager Paulo Sergio's plans. Andrew Driver will hand in an official transfer request to Hearts on Monday as he looks to secure a January move away from the club. The English-born winger has failed to hold down a regular starting berth under manager Paulo Sergio, playing just eight times this season. Driver's agent, Scott Fisher, says the player has "reached the end of his tether" after being "constantly overlooked" by Paulo Sergio. "The only excuse Paulo Sergio has given him is that he isn't working hard enough," Fisher told STV. "Andy has forged a career being hard working so for Sergio to turn around and say that is laughable." "There must be ulterior motives as to why he's not playing." Fisher confirmed the lack of game time, coupled with repeatedly not being paid on time, has forced his decision. Having struggled with injuries in recent seasons, Driver has been fit all season but has only been used sparingly. His last appearance for Hearts came in their defeat to Celtic last weekend, playing the last 12 minutes after coming on for David Templeton as a substitute. The 24-year-old, who made his debut for the club in 2006, has made a total of 118 appearances, scoring 17 goals. http://sport.stv.tv/football/scottish-premier/hearts/288374-hearts-andrew-driver-to-hand-in-transfer-request/

Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell has vowed to "weed out" supporters who continue to hurt the club. Uefa may punish the club after flares were released by away fans during the Europa League clash with Udinese and a banner was unfurled criticising the governing body. Lawwell told BBC Scotland that Celtic will face the consequences next week. "These people are not Celtic supporters and we will weed them out. We are embarrassed," he said. Uefa fined Celtic £12,700 earlier this week for "illicit chanting" by some of their fans in the home Europa League game against Rennes. The Scottish club decided not to appeal against the fine. Continue reading the main story It's one or two, silly juvenile boys doing childish prank stuff and it's overtaking what was a fantastic performance Iain Bankier Celtic chairman Lawwell said the actions of some supporters "overshadowed a fantastic performance" in Italy, adding that "we have to get these people out of Celtic Park". "These guys who had the banner: we will root them out, weed them out and they're not Celtic supporters," he went on. "We will do all we can to identify them and take appropriate action. It's a very small minority; a rogue element have clearly infiltrated the support over the past six months to a year. "The vast majority of Celtic supporters are positively supporting Celtic. We've gained a magnificent reputation around Europe and this, unfortunately, is an embarrassment that we can't tolerate and will eliminate." Chairman Iain Bankier echoed Lawwell's views, saying: "We have to drive this out of the club. "It's not only doing us harm, it's doing the whole of Scottish football immense harm. "It's one or two, silly juvenile boys doing childish prank stuff and it's overtaking what was a fantastic performance." Bankier then appeared to play down the previous Uefa fine, which was for pro-IRA singing at Celtic Park. "It's doubly disappointing, coming right on the heels of a fine over something which was, in the whole scheme of things, not a major fault. Nevertheless, it was a technical offence and we took the fine." Liewell indeed,I wonder if it was the same fans that had the BLOOSTAINED poppy banner?,or did you get them Liewell ?

I do agree,however money talks as usual,but he would be better served seeing the season out at Ibrox for the above reasson. If he has a good second half of the season for Rangers and then has a good tournament with Croatia then he will get his pick of clubs.

The Champions 3 - Jelavic 2, Wylde ICT 0 :spl:

CELTIC could face a Uefa fine totalling tens of thousands of pounds after some fans lit flares before last night’s Europa League draw with Udinese in Italy. Despite warnings from Celtic that pyrotechnics should not be taken into the Stadio Friuli some fans did so and three flares were set-off just before kick-off. Although they were not thrown towards rival fans Uefa are still likely to take a dim view of the incident because the governing body’s policy is to regard flares as a danger to supporters. Flares used to be common at football grounds in mainland Europe, including Italy, but they are seen far less often since Uefa banned them. Barcelona were fined £87,000 in August after fans lit 10 flares during their Super Cup victory over Porto in August. Barca were unhappy at the severity of the fine and pointed out they could not be held responsible for what an individual fan took into a stadium. Earlier this week the German club Hanover 96 passed over a German FA £3330 fine to the fan who admitted throwing a flare. Celtic will learn in the coming days if Uefa are to take any action over last night’s flares. Fans also held up an anti-Uefa banner before the game as a protest against the recent £12,700 fine for illicit chanting in the group game against Rennes.

RENEGADE Celtic fans showed their contempt for football chiefs last night by setting off flares and waving a banner saying "F*** UEFA" at their Europa League clash. They held up the sign ahead of the teams' arrival on the pitch — before Neil Lennon's side were dumped out of Europe in a 1-1 draw with Udinese in Italy. A Celtic fan was arrested for attacking one of the club's own stewards. Parkhead chief Executive Peter Lawwell was in the crowd. Grim-faced Lawwell was spotted on his mobile phone immediately after the banner stunt. Hoops chiefs asked Italian cops to arrest the lout after the steward was attacked. The yob spent the night in a Udine jail. The scenes come just days after the club was hit with a £13,000 fine by the governing body over 'illicit chanting' at last month's home tie with Rennes. The flares were let off — in breach of Italian law — by rogue Hoops fans in the away end of the Stadio Friuli in Udine moments before kick-off. Celtic chiefs were desperate to avoid trouble and had issued warnings to fans spelling out what could happen if flares were lit. They said it could leave the club "exposed to disciplinary action." It is understood that Celtic will pore over video footage of the banner being raised and the flares being set off. Flashpoint ... illegal flares are set off in Udinese stadium Flashpoint ... illegal flares are set off in Udinese stadium Any fans identified will be banned from Parkhead for life. Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/news/4002253/Celtic-are-out-of-Europe-fans-are-out-of-order.html#ixzz1gggl1NIZ

http://leggoland2.blogspot.com/

EVERTON are ready to battle Sunderland for Rangers striker Nikica Jelavic. Toffees boss David Moyes is desperate to bolster his strikeforce in the January transfer window and has made Jelavic his top target. Moyes launched a bid to take him to Goodison in 2010, but moved too late to stop him leaving Rapid Vienna for Ibrox in a £4million deal. Rangers' financial woes mean they are vulnerable to losing top scorer Jelavic who has already hit 14 goals this season. Last night Gers boss Ally McCoist confessed for the first time that he fears losing Jela next month. He said: "It's not something I want to happen but it's also not something I can rule out. It's as simple as that." Although West Brom, Liverpool and even Manchester United have also been linked with the Croatia international, the main worry for Moyes will be the interest of Sunderland. New Black Cats boss Martin O'Neill will be given money to spend in January and funds at Everton remain too tight to enter a bidding war. McCoist added: "I know Martin. I worked with him on television. He is an absolute diamond, a class act. "I'd rather Jelavic stayed here. The speculation's affected him, but he keeps doing the business. I was really pleased with him last week against Hibs. I hope he can continue that form against Caley. He's vital." Moyes last night agreed a two-month loan deal with LA Galaxy striker Landon Donovan. With Apostolos Vellios Everton's leading league scorer with three goals, Moyes is desperate for a long-term solution. Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/spl/4002207/Everton-in-for-Nikica-Jelavic.html#ixzz1gebhfySY

The Hoops' small band of travelling supporters had been in good voice before the kick-off but in the week that they had been fined £12,700 by UEFA for fans reportedly "illicit chanting" in a previous Europa League fixture against Rennes at Parkhead, it perhaps was not the best time to unfurl a banner which was derogatory in its sentiments towards European football's governing body. http://sport.stv.tv/football/288151-celtic-bow-out-of-europe-with-1-1-draw/

Will they be in trouble for their banner tonight ? http://www.snspix.com/5865712/print/5865712.html Also throwing flairs I believe!!

Have a listen to TLB,heard this before?,fucking twat of a man,get over it yer oot again!,new record again for the BHEASTS as they become the first team ever to get papped out of the same European competition twice in the same season ,and I think 1 away win in 33 games in Europe? http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/16081808.stm

It's not only BHEAST FC that deny this,it's also the mHedia & the SFA. Yet we hear Les Grey stating on live TV that he had to turn his TV down because of the sectarian songs he heard from Rangers fans at Easter Road . Really what chance have you got?

Doesn't matter if you're telling the truth or not though,it's what they allow you to say or think

Be carefull now mate,the tinternet police will be after you ya bigot

This bill is a sad day for all Scottish football fans and will create more problems than it will solve and it does breach your freedom of speech. I liked the comment of Les Gray saying '' if you use your common sense you have nothing to fear '',aye right Les will your police officers use their common sense ?.

NEW arrivals may be in short supply at Ibrox during the January transfer window; the month is more likely to be spent fending off interest in Rangersâ?? most valuable assets rather than parading fresh faces in front of the cameras. However, Ally McCoist will have at least one player to add to his matchday squad, with Kyle Hutton eager to impress and give his boss a selection headache in the title run-in. The midfielder has returned to Ibrox having completed his 93-day emergency loan deal at Partick Thistle but faces a frustrating fortnight on the sidelines, with red tape ruling him out of the championsâ?? Scottish Premier League fixtures against Inverness, St Mirren and Celtic. The visit of Motherwell on January 2 could be a fresh beginning for Hutton and, after emerging from his sojourn into the First Division with aplomb after a series of standout performances, the 20-year-old hopes McCoist will see the improvements in his game. â??I am going back to Rangers a better player,â? Hutton told SportTimes. â??The First Division is a hard, hard league to play in. You donâ??t get any time on the ball or to think, so it quickens you up as a player. â??Playing alongside the Thistle boys was great and you come up against a lot of good players as well. â??Playing regularly in a competitive environment is always going to make you a better player so I certainly feel as though I have improved over the last few months. â??I have played a lot of games and I am feeling the benefit of that. â??I have left with a lot of confidence and hopefully now, with the games and the match fitness under my belt, I can take that into the games with Rangers and kick on.â? Hutton may have been out of the Rangers picture in recent months but he has never been far from the thoughts of the Gers hierarchy or Light Blue legions. Rangers have kept a close eye on his fortunes in Scotlandâ??s second tier as the midfielder has helped Jackie McNamaraâ??s side rise to fourth in the standings after an impressive recent run of results. His last appearance in Jags colours came in Saturdayâ??s win over Morton, with the appreciation between player and club mutual after a fruitful three months at Firhill. Hutton became an influential stars during his time across the city but knows he faces a fight to prove himself on his return to Ibrox. â??I kept up-to-date with the people at Murray Park and there were a few of the staff that came and watched me in games and said I was doing well,â? he said. â??All I can do now is train hard and try and catch the managerâ??s eye and hopefully kick on in the second half of the season. â??It is never going to be easy when you have got the likes of Steven Davis and Maurice Edu in the middle of the park. â??You have to bide your time at Rangers. It is about waiting until you get your chance and, when you do get it, you have to be ready to take it and do your best when called upon.â? It is not just Davis and Edu who stand in Huttonâ??s way as he bids to become a regular fixture in McCoistâ??s plans in the second half of the campaign. Lee McCulloch, Kyle Bartley, Matt McKay, Alejandro Bedoya and Thomas Bendiksen are all capable of slotting into his natural central midfield berth, leaving the Scotland Under-21 international with the prospect of sitting on the sidelines rather than starring on the field. A loan move to English League One outfit Sheffield United fell through before he completed his switch to Thistle and while Hutton is keen to showcase his talents in Light Blue, he is happy to take the advice on offer from McCoist. â??I was sad to leave Thistle because I really enjoyed every minute of my time there,â? he said. â??It was a great experience for me, all the boys and the management team have been fantastic with me. I wish them all the best for the rest of the season. â??There is always a chance I could go back out on loan. â??I am not ruling anything out. If the manager wants me to go back out on loan again, either to Thistle or wherever else comes up, then Iâ??ll take it. â??I will have a chat with the manager and see what his thoughts are. I will just take it day by day and see how it goes.â? The 20-year-old emerged as one of the brightest products of the Murray Park youth system last season to help Walter Smithâ??s side to a league and cup double. He has seen young winger Gregg Wylde make a significant impact so far this season as the champions started their title defence in stunning form. Victory over Hibs on Saturday saw McCoistâ??s side maintain their four-point advantage over Celtic in the race for the SPL crown, with the Gers squad eager to maintain the momentum as they strive for four-in-a-row. Hutton said: â??Itâ??s about getting heads down and keeping going at this time of year. â??We just have to take each game as it comes and get the win on the day, because that is the most important thing. â??The boys had a couple of bad results against St Johnstone and Kilmarnock but they went through to Hibs and got the three points. â??I am sure they will kick on from that and hopefully we can keep getting results.â? http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/kyle-hutton-is-all-ready-to-provide-boss-with-window-dressing-1.1139948

This dumb, unjust law is Salmond's first own goal LIKE most people concerned about freedom of speech, I've been watching the progress of the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications Bill with mounting alarm. Outlawing the singing of songs at football matches seemed such a ridiculous proposition that initially I thought the Scottish Government weren't serious. That Alex Salmond just wanted to "send a message", and that the loopier parts of this unnecessary legislation would be dropped. And if not, MSPs would realise that such a law is as unworkable as it is objectionable. Surely, reason would prevail. It hasn't. Yesterday, MSPs in Holyrood passed a law that could make the singing of the national anthem punishable by a five-year prison sentence if it is associated with "offensive or threatening behaviour" in any context that involves football. No-one knows exactly what "offensive and threatening behaviour" is, and anyway, because of the Catch-22 drafting, the very singing of "sectarian" songs is itself deemed offensive. There is no list of proscribed songs because to compile one would invite ridicule – Give Ireland Back to the Irish – Paul McCartney? This dumb law could also make the carrying of flags, colours or religious symbols illegal at football matches, in the trains going to football matches or in pubs or any public place where football is being shown. It could make singing The Sash illegal in a pub, but not in the street outside it. This is utter madness. Anyway, there are worse things than singing Up the 'Ra at a football match. Using the law for political purposes is one of them. This legislation is otiose, contradictory, authoritarian, subjective, illiberal, anti-democratic and contrary to internationally accepted definitions of basic human rights. It is threatening and offensive to freedom of speech, freedom of association, freedom of thought and to personal liberty. It hands discretionary powers to the police that are wholly inappropraite in any civilised society, effectively giving individual officers the power to deprive people of their liberty if they don't like the way they are behaving. It also offends against the most fundamental principle of the law: that there should be equality before it. The singing of Flower of Scotland, for example, which celebrates violent behaviour against English people, will be illegal at Hampden but not at Murrayfield simply because they play rugby there. Why on earth should a song be offensive at one sporting event and not another? And don't tell me that people don't engage in offensive and threatening behaviour at rugby matches. Just look at what happens on the pitch. Behaviour liable to lead to public disorder is already illegal. Section 38 of the Criminal Justice Act 2010 outlaws "threatening or abusive" behaviour "likely to cause a reasonable person to suffer fear or alarm". The Offensive Behaviour Bill takes the law into an entirely different realm altogether, into subjective hate crime. It will criminalise thought and behaviour that other groups might find offensive. Well, someone should tell the FM and his MSP clones that the right to offend people is the most basic right in any democracy. Now that this law will be applied in football stadiums, there will inevitably be pressure to extend it to workplaces, public spaces, parks, meetings, concert halls, theatres, cinemas. schools – indeed anywhere where "offensive" ideas might be ventilated. For if they are illegal in one public setting how can they possibly be legal in another? How could films like Michael Collins, about the IRA leader, be shown in Glasgow cinemas? Should Scottish Nationalists be allowed to chant the bloody anti-English dirge, Scots Wha Hae, at Bannockburn? That's threatening and offensive. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe will become a playground for litigants claiming to be offended and threatened by productions like Singing I'm No A Billy I'm a Tim. The Government has tagged a feeble "freedom of speech" clause to the Bill which only underlines the extent to which this is in violation of it. The Lord Advocate insists that jokes and satire will not be actionable. But who is to decide? The law has a notoriously tin ear when it comes to irony, and is incapable of distinguishing between banter and abuse. Yet now, calling someone a "Hun", a "Fenian" or a "bluenose" could lead to imprisonment and a hefty fine if the words are uttered while footie is on the TV. Well, if my experience is anything to go by the police will be prosecuting workplaces and homes throughout Scotland. One of the ways in which people have sought to defuse sectarianism is by lampooning it, parodying it, satirising it. Many Celtic supporters call themselves Tims. Are they now to be prosecuted if someone overhearing these remarks feels threatened? Pity the publicans who are required to enforce this nonsense. Worse, the Government has attempted to curb freedom of speech on the internet by saying that "threatening communications" will also be punishable by five years in jail. Leave aside the virtual impossibility of enforcing this law on social media sites like Facebook which has 800 million users, who on earth is to rule what is and is not threatening? Two years ago, Paul Chambers, a 27-year-old accountant, lost his job and was fined thousands of pounds for a joke tweet that read: "Robin Hood airport is closed. You've got a week and a bit to get your s*** together otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!!". Alex is going to have to hire a lot more police. No wonder they're about the only people who support it. This is an unjust law which has been criticised by almost every legal body that has reviewed it. It has achieved the impossible: uniting Rangers and Celtic, the Church of Scotland and the Church of Rome, lawyers, civil liberties organisations, the Conservative Party and the Greens – in opposition to it. It has been frog-marched through Parliament by an act of elective dictatorship. This is Alex Salmond's first own goal, if you'll excuse the pun. He should have listened to Parliament and dumped it last summer when he had the chance. The only hope now is that courts and juries will treat it with the contempt it deserves. Iain MacWhirter http://www.heraldscotland.com/comment/columnists/this-dumb-unjust-law-is-salmonds-first-own-goal.16167952

http://leggoland2.blogspot.com/

No quotes?,me thinks it's just another piece of shit journalism:smile:

Aye Merry Xmas & a Happy New year to all on gersnet. I'm off to work on Sunday for a month so no Xmas or New Year for me:sad:,at least the weather will be better:grin: And more importantly I hope the champions have a successful time on the park through the festive period:spl: