ian1964

Cos I happen to think it's pathetic and funny

CELTIC Football Club today announced that it is to mark National Famine Memorial Day on May 17, 2009. The day has been earmarked by the Irish Government to commemorate and honour the 1.5million people who either perished or emigrated from Ireland during the Great Famine from 1845 to 1851. As a mark of respect, the Celtic team will wear the clubââ?¬â?¢s Celtic Cross on their shirts when they plays Hibernian on Sunday. The Cross, representing a bridge between Scottish and Irish cultures, is the symbol of the clubââ?¬â?¢s charitable arm, established to continue the work initiated by the clubââ?¬â?¢s founder Brother Walfrid, an Irish Marist Brother. Celtic Chairman John Reid said: ââ?¬Å?Given Celticââ?¬â?¢s proud Irish heritage, this club is inextricably linked to the Great Famine and the subsequent immigration from Ireland. ââ?¬Å?Celtic Football Club, therefore, is proud to be marking National Famine Memorial Day in this manner as we pay our respects to all those affected by the Great Hunger, one of the most tragic chapters in modern world history. ââ?¬Å?The Irish Famine resulted in death, disease and displacement of people on an unimaginable scale, with the West of Scotland becoming a principal point of refuge. ââ?¬Å?The Famine is a lesson from history which should never be forgotten, but from the despair and death of famine arose new hope, new life and a new future. Part of that came in the shape of Celtic Football Club. ââ?¬Å?The desperate people who fled Ireland and their offspring born in Scotland, became the collective parents of Celtic Football Club. ââ?¬Å?The clubââ?¬â?¢s main inspiration, Brother Walfrid and Michael Davitt, the clubââ?¬â?¢s first patron, were both young children during the Famine in Ireland. ââ?¬Å?Celtic is a Scottish club with proud Irish roots, an organisation which represents a fusion of cultures between both countries. We are a club open to all and while we celebrate our traditions, it is important that we also celebrate our diversity. ââ?¬Å?During the past 120 years, Celtic has developed into a world-class football organisation which strives for excellence and success on and off the field. ââ?¬Å?However, while we always aim to build and grow, there will be one constant - we will always remain much more than a football club and we will always remember our proud heritage.ââ?¬Â

Some positivity ?..................Rangers maul the sheep and the Hobos beat the MOPES

KENNY MILLER has declared himself fit to face Aberdeen in tomorrow's massive SPL showdown at Ibrox. Kenny Miller, Rangers celebrates his second goalThe striker missed Wednesday night's 1-1 draw with Hibs at Easter Road due to a hamstring problem but is ready to return for the club's penultimate game of the season. With a win imperative for Rangers Walter Smith will be delighted to have Miller back in his plans and the Scotland star is desperate to get on the scoresheet and erase the disappointment of missing his side's midweek trip to Edinburgh. He said: "It was very frustrating not to be involved against Hibs. "The game against Celtic last weekend was my first start for a while but my hamstring flared up again after that. "It took a few days for it to settle down but I am fit now and will train with the lads today. "Hopefully I can be in the starting eleven against the Dons." Miller is expecting a tough 90 minutes against Jimmy Calderwood's men but hopes Rangers can get off to a flyer in their last home fixture. He said: "We have to win the game first and foremost because you never know what could happen at Easter Road on Sunday. "If we can go out and get an early goal that will help to settle any early nerves, that has to be our aim. "But Aberdeen are a good team as we have seen when we faced them earlier this season.Kenny Miller battles with Shunsuke Nakamura "We will give them respect but if we play the way we can I am always confident we can get three points." With Celtic currently on top of the SPL on goal difference Rangers will look to attack from the first whistle on Saturday and Miller insists they have the firepower to shoot down the Dons. He said: "In the first-half on Wednesday we did not really get started but Kyle and Nacho came on and did very well. "Nacho got the goal big while Laff played on the left and made a difference. "So the manager has options in the forward areas and there is no doubt we have the players that can create and score goals." Andrius Velicka is the only striker that will not feature this weekend due to an illness but Sasa Papac should join Miller in the squad having recovered from a knee injury.

Hope so mate, we need to trounce them

Think the ref will be getting pelters tomorrow, every decision has to go our way !!!

Tash Targets Two By Andrew Dickson SLAYER of Spartans Natasha Anderson has Glasgow City in her sights as Rangers Ladies prepare for their first Unite Scottish Cup final this weekend. Drew Todd's team will meet their Premier Division opponents at Stirling Albion's Forthbank Stadium on Sunday afternoon as they go for a glorious double. Natasha Anderson celebrates scoring a goalIn their debut season, things could hardly have gone any better for the Light Blues as they've yet to taste defeat in a competitive game. Having won each of their first 16 First Division fixtures, they became champions when they won 4-2 at closest challengers Inverness with two matches to spare 10 days ago. Now, having won promotion to the top flight, their focus has turned to knockout success against the side which represented Scotland in European competition this season. Rangers' route to the final has been packed with excitement, with 42 goals scored in the five tournament matches they've been involved in up to now. After seeing off Boroughmuir Thistle B 7-0 then beating Dee Vale 11-0 in the opening two rounds, things got a lot tougher for the Murray Park squad. Premier League outfit Raith Rovers stood in the way of Todd's side in round three but they were beaten 5-2 after extra-time. A 4-2 win at Glasgow City Girls in the last eight then led to a semi-final clash with Spartans, one of the teams in contention to win this term's national championship. In a thrilling encounter at Toryglen Football Centre, Rangers trailed three times against their more experienced opponents. Natasha Anderson in action against CelticBut Anderson played a big part in their revival and scored four goals - including the winner - to swing the match in the underdogs' favour as they edged it 6-5 in 120 minutes. The 18-year-old has been a key player for coach Todd over the last few months, striking in other important matches such as the 2-0 Old Firm win over Celtic last August. Gers' success hasn't surprised the teenager too much but while even she didn't expect to be on the verge of a double, Anderson sees no reason why her team can't now get it. "It has been a really good season for us," the winger said. "We had a feeling we'd do quite well in the league but we didn't think we'd win every game so far. "Likewise, we didn't think we would get so far in the cup and everything has been perfect. "We've only been together as a group for nine months and from that point of view, we've definitely exceeded what we thought we could do. "Now we're looking to make our campaign even better and we feel we could shock Glasgow. "They're a great team with plenty of experience and a few Scotland internationalists but you never know what could happen on the day. Rangers Ladies captain Jayne Somerville, left, and Natasha Anderson"Nobody expected us to beat Spartans in the last round but we did. That was a great day and there was a lot of tension but we handled it well. "It's up to us to try to pull off a shock again this weekend so we'll pull together and fight for each other as we try to do that. "We are the underdogs and Glasgow are clear favourites but we'll take everything as it comes." Admission to this Sunday's game costs just �£4 for adults and �£2 for children and concessions. Families of four (two adults and two children) can also gain entry for �£10 and kick-off is at 2.15pm. If you are interested in becoming involved with either Rangers Ladies or the under-17 side, contact the Football in the Community department at Ibrox on 0141 580 8819. Alternatively, if you wish to take part in the girls-only training sessions at Murray Park every Sunday from 5.15pm to 6.45pm, call 0871 702 1972 to book.

If we do lose the league,which is looking more likely, I won't be looking back to this incident, I'll be looking back at the stupid points we've dropped St Midden, ICT ect.

Rangers 4 Boyd 2,Lafferty 2 Sheep 0

______________Alexander______________ _____Whittaker____Bougherra___Weir________ _________Edu_______Mendes__________ ___Novo_______Davis_______Lafferty____ _________Miller_____Boyd______________ Reply With Quote I'd go for this team

Do we need a back four at home to the sheep, when we need to score a shit load of goals?

Tom Boyd led Wim Jansen's side to the championship in 1998 to prevent Rangers completing a decade of dominance, but he is convinced that if Gordon Strachan's leaders claim the flag for the fourth successive season then they can consign their arch rivals to the wilderness for years to come. Richard Gough, who inspired Rangers to those nine successive titles between 1989-97, has argued that debt-free Celtic will go on to at least match that achievement if they retain the trophy. Rangers are around �£30 million in the red and desperately need the �£15 million which comes with the automatic qualification for next season's Champions League money. However, failure to win the championship and claim that revenue could leave them disappearing in Celtic's rear-view mirror. "Who am I to argue with Richard Gough?" said Boyd. "I certainly hope he's right. "If you believe the financial problems that Rangers have at this moment in time then this title is crucial to them. "Celtic are on this three-in-a-row run and if Rangers financial position is as bad as people say then they won't be able to afford the better quality players if they don't win the league this season. "The money that the Champions League brings in is colossal and it would be one of the most vital championship wins in Rangers' history for those reasons. "There was a lot of pressure on us in 1998 to win the title and stop 10-in-a-row and that was evident in some of our results. The financial position that Rangers are in now makes this title every bit as intense for them as it was for us then. "Rangers need the money to compete and automatic entry into the Champions League. We didn't have that back then as we had to negotiate the qualifiers and that money wasn't guaranteed. "There is an added pressure for Rangers because a lot could hinge on their success or failure in this title race." Murdo MacLeod won four championship medals with Celtic, including last-day successes in 1979 and 1986. Now an analyst for BBC Scotland, MacLeod believes that the current side surrendering their advantage would constitute capitulation. His main concern is that Hibernian's top scorer, Derek Riordan, signed and discarded by Strachan in seemingly arbitrary fashion, will have yet another say in this season's denoument. Riordan scored in the 1-1 draw against Rangers which handed Celtic an unlikely lifeline on Wednesday, and he will be out for revenge at Easter Road on Sunday. "If you're ahead with two games to play then I think you can only throw it away," said MacLeod. "You're at the stage with two games to go when you say: 'Let's win at Easter Road and then at Celtic Park'. That's a situation you would take all the time. "Derek won't hold back on Sunday, though. He'll look back on his time at Celtic and not be happy with the amount of games he played. "He felt he didn't get a chance. He's certainly capable of scoring and I'm sure that possibility is in the thoughts of a lot of Celtic fans just now. "I think he'll have a point to prove. Derek knows how tight it is in the title race but he has more affection for Hibs than anyone else. "He won't look at Celtic as one of his old teams that he has a soft spot for. He is a big Hibs man and, 100 per cent, he will be wanting them to win." http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/scottishpremier/celtic/5325733/Title-outcome-could-affect-Rangers-Celtic-battle-for-years-to-come-says-Tom-Boyd.html

3-3-4.................formation for sheep game

One thing is for sure, we NEED to go into the DUTD game in front, which means a good few goals scored against the sheep, the MOPES will win their last two games, but not by much IMO

'Ball Was Over Line' By Andrew Dickson NACHO NOVO and David Weir voiced their disappointment at being denied a win at Hibs after referee Eddie Smith refused to let one of the Spaniard's efforts stand. With 21 minutes of tonight's game at Easter Road remaining and Rangers trailing, the former Dundee hitman appeared to force the ball into the net. Ross Chisholm hooks away as Rangers' players claim for a goalBut having apparently turned to run for the halfway line, linesman Martin Cryans did not flag to give a goal after Ross Chisholm hooked away. That decision prompted a furious reaction from a number of Light Blues stars and both Pedro Mendes and Kyle Lafferty were booked for their protests. Novo later levelled and the game finished 1-1 but it could and probably should have been a more positive result for Walter Smith's team. It was the third time this season that Gers weren't given a goal when they arguably should have. DaMarcus Beasley and Kris Boyd had strikes chalked off at Aberdeen and Motherwell in August and November when they were perfectly legal. Had those and Novo's effort stood, Rangers would potentially have been six points clear of Celtic and on the brink of the title tonight. Instead, they're level on 80 points with their Old Firm rivals and trailing on goal difference and goals scored. Pedro Mendes complains about Novo's effort not standingNovo said: "The ball was definitely in, even their players told me that. Their skipper (Rob Jones) and Ian Murray both said so. "They admitted the ball was over the line themselves but there's nothing else you can say. "Sometimes things go against you but you just need to keep going. It's one of those things but we have to move on now." Skipper Weir added: "We had one disallowed which was clearly a goal and that's hard to take. "We had other chances to win the game but didn't take them and that was disappointing too. At 1-0 down, Derek Riordan scored a great goal and we fought back well. "Nacho and Kyle Lafferty came on and gave us an added dimension in attack but unfortunately we couldn't get a winner."

You can't tell if the ball was over the line or not from the tv pictures, how can you expect the linesman to give it ??, inconclusive and we should not need to rely on that one incident,we were utter pish the first half, as were the HOBOS, they scored a cracking goal although I thought Bougherra should have closed Riordan down, we had enough chances the second half to easily have won the game, we didn't, so on to Saturday and shag the the sheep and hope the HOBOS take something off the MOPES, then it's game on again

And your point is ?

I'm being serious here, although we are up against it once again, let's just see what happens, if we give the sheep a right good humping, no pun intended, the pressure is back on the MOPES...............BELIEVE

'' My argument is quite simple ''................just like me

Agreed. Make no mistake Lafferty is/will be a big player for us next season, but excuse me for still thinking this league title is not finished yet

Na, it aint over yet my friend

If you change just a couple of ratings I'll agree, Davis shite, Mendes shite

Ok, all I'm trying to say is BF is not has not been our worst midfield player this season, I lost count of the amount of times Mendes was sitting on the CH toes to take the ball of them only to play a sideways pass, sound familiar ?

As I said, I am not defending BF, I just laugh when I hear everybody praise Mendes & Davis so much, the truth is they are decent players but I would not like to depend on these two to win us much when the going gets tough

We are all hurting tonight, but once again we need to point the finger of blame at an individual !!!, the whole team were to blame, no individual