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by ANDREW SMITH A BUMPER crowd is expected as Celtic bring in the bells at home to Partick Thistle on Wednesday. With free tickets dished out and buses laid on, who knows, the Parkhead ground may even be at least half full. It hasn’t been that way recently. Indeed, the past two league games are the first back-to-back such encounters to have attracted crowds of less than 30,000 while the championship has been a live issue since the stadium became a 60,000-seater arena in 1998. Then, accurate attendances were given out. Now, these require freedom of information requests, with the club aggregating the number of paid-for-seats, which amounted to 46,000 for each of the victories over Hibernian and Hearts this month. If that appears undoubtedly healthy then what is not is that around 20,000 season ticket holders – around half the entire figure, in fact – are electing to think better of occupying seats they have already parted with their money for. It will be pointed out that the weather and time of year led to a dip in attendances throughout the country but that doesn’t explain what is driving down Celtic’s capacity to have punters come out to watch them. In the year-and-a-half the top flight has been devoid of the Rangers brand, Celtic have made great play of the fact that they have a standalone strategy not dependent on rivalry with a club playing out of Ibrox. And, having turned a debt into cash in the bank and posted a near-£10 million profit last year, they are making good on their assertion. Yet the declining interest from Celtic fans in watching a procession to their third championship demonstrates that they would struggle to operate at their current level if there was never again a team called Rangers in the top flight. The last two home games offered a glimpse of what would be the norm if the club operated in an environment in which they had no major – even from a numerical and cultural sense – rival. The 20,000 no-showers among Celtic’s season ticket holder base probably retain their tickets currently for two reasons: they received a £100 reduction on them last summer and it will probably be only 18 months before there is a Rangers to ridicule and lord it over in the Premiership. Without that promise of ding-dong derby days, most of these fans would probably chuck their tickets. In a non-Rangers world, then, Celtic would have a rain-or-shine hardcore of around 25,000. When they won the last of their nine-in-a-row run of titles in 1974, that was roughly their home average, as it was when they hit rock bottom in 1994. To live within the means that a 25,000 season-ticket-holder base generated, there is no way Celtic would operate with the £30m playing budget they have at present, or spend even sums of £2m on a couple of players every summer. Such a reduced season-ticket-holder figure – with child and younger person reductions taken into account – would bring in around £8m. Celtic’s ticket sales for the Champions League last year alone were £10m. In the Martin O’Neill era, season tickets sales coined in £23m. Celtic are too cautious to rely on Champions League income every year to prevent major losses. However much their club’s supporters may want to be in denial about it, then, with no Rangers permanently in their domain, Celtic would undergo serious downsizing and most home games the club’s stadium would be morgue-like. In turn, a lower spend on player wages would inhibit the calibre of individual that could be recruited, which would result in the team being weaker and potentially more vulnerable across the three rounds of Champions League qualifiers they require to negotiate to reach the group stages. It is perhaps surprising just how quickly almost half Celtic’s season ticket holders have canned watching domestic games. Two years ago, their team wasn’t even champions. The apologists would claim that the club’s treatment of the now dispersed Green Brigade and its perceived attempts to “sanitise” the support has helped turn off sections of the support, but few are buying that. In the Glasgow domain, for a great many it is quite clear that hatred of the other side fuels interest more than love of their own club. And without this adversarial outlet, it is noticeable how the stuggles of both Celtic and Rangers have become internalised. When it was put to Celtic manager Neil Lennon that some of his supporters appear to have short memories, he said: “And a self-destrcut button. And it’s not helpful.” The Irishman said he “can’t look at” the possibility that some Celtic fans have turned to navel gazing about their club as a more satisfying pastime than actually attending games. “My objective is to take the team forward,” Lennon said. “I am aware of the point being made because it is almost as if they need something to fight or argue about. But I can’t do anything about that.” In terms of the lowly 25,000 crowd estimated to have turned up for the 12.15 visit of Hearts last Saturday, Lennon pointed to mitigating circumstances beyond climate. “It’s the first time we’ve had a home game televised for a while and it’s Christmas as well which might have had a big effect on the crowd. We are always looking to give fans value for money and we’re always looking to bring a player in who might capture the imagination as well. But we’re 16 games unbeaten and we can’t do much more than that. Our away form has been very good but it’s a little bit different at home where teams camp in for long periods of the game. I know it’s up to us to try and break them down but we try to give the fans value for money at home as well. “I don’t think [what has happened with the Green Brigade] has had any effect. There might have been a Champions League hangover as well. We’re out of that competition now. I would expect over the festive period the crowds will pick up again and we have Partick Thistle on New Year’s Day and I would imagine there will be a decent crowd for that one.” A “decent crowd” these days, is very different from what it was five years ago. http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/latest/poor-attendances-suggest-celtic-need-rangers-1-3249508
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You know, some had to do it! Barrie McKay might be off to Morton for ONE months. Greenock Telegraph
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http://sport.stv.tv/football/clubs/st-mirren/257663-st-mirren-boss-paul-mcgowan-will-be-disciplined-over-police-officer-attack/ Surely he'll serve time for this? Can't believe it's not headline news given some of the stories on our players which have made it.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22037966 Hopefully this will herald a bigger sportlight on the shady goings on in the east of the city by CFC, GCC et all... -
What a difference a year makes. About 12-18 months ago, new legislation was introduced in Scotland which sought to finally, once and for all, get Rangers fans in particular to shut up about Ireland and the Pope both at and going to or from football matches. Don't believe any nonsense about other club's fans, it was aimed at Bluenoses because Bluenoses were and are seen as the primary offenders. I had and have no problem with this: I was sick of such songs and chants at Ibrox and, since my fellow fans didn't show much sign of packing it in themselves, I agreed that they needed the threat of the law to encourage them to stagger into the 20th century, let alone the 21st. The law proved very controversial, but until this week I remained behind it, because Rangers could only benefit from it, even if some individual fans suffered. I am pleased to say that such songs are down to the absolute bare minimum and will, with the right approach, wither and die within a generation. So, the law is a success? Alas, things have become rather muddied. The spotlight has shifted from us to Celtic's fans, due to their repeated singing and flag waving about IRA people, disrupting Glasgow city with marches, singing about Orange Bastard managers from Ajax and generally being obnoxious. Curiously, this focus has been greeted not with societal opprobrium and condemnation, and certainly not legislation, but a willingness to engage with the reasoning behind such displays, deep thinking articles and much intelligentsia driven discussion. Legitimate displays of heritage are suddenly to include singing about terrorists, which unless I am mistaken is specifically illegal under the laws brought in after 7/7 and 9/11. You can dress it up as political activism all you like, terrorism is always wrong. But we have people celebrating it. This is frankly disgusting. As a long serving hand wringer and hater of all Orange ties to Rangers, this willingness to engage with Celtic's terrorist celebrating wing dismays me. Not just because newspaper articles which stroke their metaphorical chin and hmm, hmm, about the rights and wrongs of glorifying murder turns any sane person's stomach, but because it whips the ground out from beneath the feet of those Bluenoses who have argued for the club's fans to drop its baggage. How can I argue that Rangers should drop loyalist links when the rest of the country is falling over itself to analyse Celtic's Irish links? Whether I like it or not, and I don't, I cannot deny that such loyalist links existed. How can I argue that UVF songs are disgusting when the rest of the country has re-classified the IRA as merely a misunderstood political movement, who seem to have let off a few firecrackers by mistake? I am not subtle enough to distinguish between one murder gang and another; if one is allowed, it seems all must be. How can I urge Bluenoses to look to the future when the media in this country are hell bent on grovelling before Celtic's past? If fan A's heritage is so bloody important, surely so is fan B's? The case against sectarianism has taken a huge leap backwards in this country in the last few weeks, and all because some attention has been shone on Celtic's bigots. They are not politically active, they are not the cultural heirs of Finn MacCool, they are a parasitic leech on Scottish football which will do nothing for it but plenty to hold it back. But hey, we want some atmosphere at Celtic park, so that's OK. I imagine thousands of fans will be queuing up to enjoy said atmosphere. Mr Graham Spiers, on BBC Radio Scotland last night, calmly discussed the alleged terrorism-informed Irish heritage of Celtic as displayed by the Green Brigade group of fans - what an insult to both Ireland and Celtic, incidentally - then sounded like he was foaming at the mouth when discussing Mr Paul Murray, the wannabe Rangers director. This man's moral compass is not just broken, it is absolutely shattered. What a dispiriting and dismaying vista. An arch critic of Rangers' sectarian links, Mr Spiers has been at the forefront of pushing for engagement with these deeply misunderstood and intelligent, earnest young men and women, the better to understand why pictures of a 14th century Scottish killer, a 20th century Irish killer, and the suggestion that either are appropriate for the future of 21st century Scotland (or even Ireland), have become visible. The fairly obvious answer - that neither will do, and rather than banging on about centuries past both countries would be better served by looking to the future - is discarded, in favour of agonised intellectual examinations of political disengagement. Anyone who thinks we will revive the electorate by adding some more Irish history to football - this is the serious premise being put forward, by the way - ought to be debarred from even commenting on it on grounds of incipient cretinism. The avalanche of people who have attempted to legitimise utterly inappropriate behaviour by football fans as political has been staggering, but that doesn't make them right! As a paid up online intellectual chin stroker myself, it kind of pains me to say that people who actually have to live with this sort of crap are the ones who have given the best response to it. Mr Tom English and Mr Keith Jackson have given these people short shrift: self-obsessed and self-indulgent has been their judgement, and I would agree. Mr English is Irish, and presumably has an educated understanding of Irish history; Mr Jackson, to judge from his accent, grew up in the environment in which the realities of Old Firm sectarianism are well understood - i.e., broadly meaningless insults between people who go to different schools. Mr Spiers, we know from his insistence on providing us with details of his youth, did not. I won't be dragged into sectarianism just because I am a Rangers fanatic - sectarianism is such a waste of time and energy which embarrasses my club. Granted, any time you have a religion you will have people who oppose it; but it's got nothing to do with football. I'll argue against any Bluenose who wants a debate about our baggage, and have done for a decade. But it just got harder to justify that position (which I will not abandon) thanks to the pussy-footing around in the media, and it's mighty hard to persuade your fellow Bluenose that he out of order when his opposite number in green is molly-coddled to this degree. People like Mr Spiers do the game and the country no favours by indulging one side of this coin while castigating the other. Let's get this absolutely clear - terrorism is always wrong; sectarianism is always wrong; bleating about it at the football is always wrong. It really is that simple. Pandering to bigots will not cleanse Scotland of bigotry, and re-branding bigotry as political activism is about as cowardly and gutless as it gets, allowing those who have spent decades berating one class of bigots to avoid confronting another lot on the grounds of freedom of speech. Mr Spiers recently contacted Gersnet to complain about nine inaccuracies in one of our articles. I would be delighted to hear from him if he could point out the inaccuracies in this one...I won't hold my breath.
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Fucking weird bunch of love me cunts
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Five people have been arrested in connection with crowd trouble at the Motherwell v Celtic game last week A reported £10,000 of damage was caused to seats in a section housing Celtic fans, a flare was let off in the same area before the game and two green smoke bombs were thrown on to the pitch during the match at Fir Park stadium on Friday. Celtic said they were ''appalled'' by the actions and issued precautionary suspensions to 128 supporters preventing them from attending home and away matches, while 250 season-ticket holders seated in the Green Brigade's corner of Celtic Park are to be moved to other parts of the ground. Police said 18 smoke bombs, three fireworks and one flare were set off. There were also disturbances and vandalism in Motherwell both before and after the game. Officers said five people were arrested in connection with the disorder on Monday and inquiries are continuing. The incident was the latest in a spate of trouble at Scottish football matches. A teenage girl was arrested after a flare was thrown from the Rangers support after their win at Falkirk on November 30, damaging the pitch, and a smoke bomb was thrown from the Motherwell support during their defeat by Albion Rovers on the same day. Last Saturday, 10 people were arrested in connection with football-related disorder before the Falkirk v Raith Rovers match. http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/u/five-arrested-after-celtic-fan-trouble-at-motherwell-match.1386845170 -
Totally destroyed.Could and should have been more.
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Barcelona's board of directors will make a decision in January on whether to expand the Camp Nou or submit plans to move to a new stadium. The Spanish champions have commissioned a report over the viability of both projects with the objective to increase the capacity of their home ground to 105,000. Although progress was made at a meeting on Monday, the Barça directors will not announce their preferred option until early in 2014. A board spokesman Toni Freixa explained on the club's official website it had two choices: "The construction of a new stadium on the land on Diagonal, property which belongs to the University of Barcelona, or a profound remodelling project that would constitute a new stadium keeping the current structure of the Camp Nou. "Both would have a capacity of 105,000 spectators, the stadium would be covered, there will be a construction of a new Palau with a capacity of 12,000 spectators, an adjacent court with a capacity of 2,000 spectators, 6,000 new parking spots and access to the Ciutat Esportiva of the Miniestadi. "We've made advances, we have all the information and we're in a position to make a decision." Despite the sizeable financial outlay that would be involved, Freixa insisted any project would not harm the club, adding: "It needs to be viable from a technical perspective, urbanist and economic. We would never submit a project that would endanger the sustainability of the club." The Camp Nou is already the largest ground in Europe with a capacity of 99,354. http://gu.com/p/3y493/tw
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FOLLOWING events on Friday evening at Fir Park Stadium, Celtic Football Club today announced that it has issued precautionary suspensions against 128 individuals preventing them attending matches involving Celtic, pending further investigation. These suspensions will cover matches at Celtic Park and away matches. In addition, the Club will be relocating around 250 season book holders in Section 111 to other areas within the stadium, or offering refunds covering the remainder of the season to those who do not wish to be relocated. Events such as those on Friday night do not represent the Celtic support or the Club. These events were an embarrassment to our great football club and are absolutely indefensible. It is clear that there is an element which has no hesitation in bringing Celtic’s name into disrepute. This is something the Club will not tolerate and we therefore have no other option but to take this action. We will not allow the great name of Celtic to be damaged in this way any more - our supporters deserve more than this. While recent events are very regrettable, we would like to thank our many thousands of fans for the wonderful, positive backing which they continue to give to Celtic. We are sure these supporters will understand the position which the Club is in and we are also sure they will unite with the Club as we move forward. Celtic Football Club is in excellent shape on and off the field. The Club is in a very safe and strong position and we have a young, exciting team working hard to deliver quality football and success for our supporters, as they did on Friday evening with a magnificent performance. This is what we want to be talking about and this is what we want to celebrate. Celtic has a proud 125-year history and fundamental to that history have been our fans. Our supporters enjoy a wonderful reputation earned across many years, many families and many generations. This is something we must protect vigorously.
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I know I will get Pelter's for posting this, but thought I may get the other side of the coins thoughts. It was taken from RM and put together by a poster called TheLawMan "I recently posted about the Murray myths around debt reduction and Break even Domestic policy however i see today he is still claiming he helped reduce debt. His fans appear to believe him as well, despite the facts disputing what he says. Anyway, i thought i would take things a little further and look at the facts and figures of the people we are being asked to vote for. I know this type of thing normally bores people but I would urge you to read through Murrays CV. First an in-depth look at Paul Murrays Directorships – Past and present. Source : http://companycheck....ector/907102823 Lets start with his current active Directorships: Delamore Holdings (2007 to present) ( -£5m Net worth) – A flower and plant wholesaler – Assets of £1.68m and Liabilities of £1.78m. Cash in bank depleted from £652k in 2008 to £184k in 2012 year end accounts. Points to note. 2012 was a £973k loss following on from a £733k loss in 2011 and a long term loan was taken out to repay short term commitments. R.Delamore Limited (2007 to present) (£1.4m Net Worth) – A flower and plant wholesaler – Assets of £1.5m and Liabilities of £1.45m. Cash in bank depleted from £652k in 2008 to £0.8k in 2012 year end accounts. – Points to note. Due to cash depletion and a Going Concern issue, the company took out a new £2.25m loan to repay other loans and made a £628k loss last year. MGI Investments Limited (2004 to present) ( -£64k Net Worth) – A Management Consultancy firm – Assets of £23k and liabilities of £90k. Cash in bank depleted from £91k in 2008 to £3.6k in 2012 year end accounts. Vicast Limited (2013 to present) – A Business and Domestic Software Company – No information as no accounts filed but should be noted that fellow Directors are Martin Bain, John McLelland and Jacqueline Gourlay. St Marys School, Melrose (2009 to present) – (£2.85m net worth) – Education – Assets of £99.6k and Liabilities of £91.2k. Cash in bank depleted from £85k in 2008 to £6.7k in 2012 year end accounts. In summary, he holds 5 active directorships(there is a duplicate listing for MGI on the website) with a total Net Worth of Minus £814,000. Assets of £3.3m and liabilities of £3.4m. Total Cash of £189k. Now lets look at Past Directorships. Urban Life Properties Limited (2003 to 2009) – Dissolved in 2009 RFC 2012 PLC (2007 to 2011) – In Liquidation Wireless Systems International (2000 – 2002 ) – Dissolved in 2004 Martin Currie European Partners and Martin Currie Investment Management Limited (2003 – 2004) – Dissolved in 2007. Paul Murray was brought on board as MD of this business to launch a new £200m private equity fund. He only managed to raise 10% of target and left the business in 2004 after Currie suspended the launch of the fund. 3i PLC (September 1999 to April 2000) – Still active and a huge business with a £80m deficit of Liabilities v Assets Scientia Ferovia Limited + Scientifics Group Service Limited + Harwell Scientifics + Atesta Trustees Limited + Atesta Holding Limited + Scientifics Limited (all 2005 to 2006) – All non trading. It isn’t rocket science but looking at the above list, his Executive Directorships have been an absolute failure. 3 Dissolved, 1 liquidated, 6 non trading and the only 1 of any note, he only lasted less than 7 months in, and that was 13 years ago. Add that to his current directorships and we really need to ask...... WHY PAUL MURRAY ?? Anyway, lets now look at the total current directorships of Paul Murray, Malcolm Murray, Scott Murdoch and Alex Wilson from the above source. 10 COMPANIES NET WORTH = Minus £27.3m ASSETS = £29.4m LIABILITES = £86.3m CASH in bank = £2.23 million Now lets look at the other half which is principally Somers and Easdale. 13 COMPANIES NET WORTH = £294.9m ASSETS = £3.5 billion LIABILITIES = £3.4 billion CASH in bank = £1.3 billion SUMMARY The current record of Paul Murray, Malcolm Murray and Scott Murdoch is dreadful. Liabilities running at 300% to assets, dissolved companies, liquidations, cash only going one way over last 5 years in all of their companies yet we are expected to believe they are the team to take us forward. Contrast that with Somers companies whose cash has multiplied by millions and hundreds of millions in his companies. Huge assets, huge network, just huge all round."
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@SonsofStruth: PROTEST ON TUESDAY Meet Copland Rd stairs seven o'clock. Protesting Stockbridge and Irvine to be removed from club. SHARE IF YOU CARE.
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..............to rescue Celtic and Rangers HUGH draws comparison with 40 years ago as he rubbishes suggestions that Celtic and Rangers meeting in the Scottish Cup is needed to save a season that is already dead on its feet. THEY used to be famous. Forty years ago there was one night when the pair of them played two European semi-finals in Glasgow on the same night, watched by 150,000 people. Celtic met Inter Milan in the semi-final of the European Cup and went out on penalties. If they’d made it to the final it would have been the club’s third appearance there in five years. Meanwhile, Rangers beat a Bayern Munich side containing the core of the German team that would win the World Cup in their own country two years later. The win at Ibrox took Rangers to Barcelona, where they won the European Cup Winners Cup. How the mighty have fallen. The police wouldn’t let the pair play in Glasgow on the same day in broad daylight last season. Celtic’s SPL match was moved to Sunday so Rangers’ Third Division game could take place in isolation 24 hours earlier. And an Under-17 Glasgow Cup final between the clubs at Firhill last April was marred by violence inside and outside the ground. Pathetic or what? Now there are those who say the only thing that can salvage this season in the wake of Celtic’s elimination from Europe is the prospect of the Old Firm being reunited in a Scottish Cup tie. Not presumably because it would be an epic match. But it would allow two lots of fans to release almost two years’ pent up frustration caused by them living separate existences. Dragged apart because Rangers lived beyond their means and had to be liquidated on their way to the lower orders. Now look at them. Celtic have been humiliated on the field by AC Milan, embarrassed off it by some of their own supporters. They have been reported to UEFA and will be the subject of a fourth disciplinary hearing in two years. One of their players is the subject of a report to the Procurator Fiscal concerning an alleged case of indecency and sexual assault. Meanwhile, over at Ibrox, the Serious Fraud Office have been invited to investigate alleged misappropriation of club funds. And the group battling to win control of Rangers from the existing board of directors have made accusations of intimidation against some of their members. Shall I go on? Let’s just say neither club is what it once was because of a lack of statesman-like leadership, and leave it at that. And the fans should take a reality check. There are Rangers supporters, obviously not born when their team went to Barcelona and beat Moscow Dynamo in 1972, who are looking for a street party because today’s side have gone 13 league games without dropping a point. Is that not what should happen when your multi-million pound squad of full-timers face players who need time off work to play some of their matches? Then there’s Celtic being held hostage by the political activists among their support. The Green Brigade by name, Wolfie Smith and the Tooting Popular Front in appearance. I’ll ask Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell a simple question. If it’s easy enough to ban me from his ground for a year and a half for an unspecified reason, why can’t he clean up the club’s image and do the same to those with a list of ‘previous’ the length of your arm? Lawwell says the illicit banner wavers on Tuesday night showed “clear disrespect for the club”. Call me old fashioned, but why don’t the club close down the troublesome area of their ground in that case? Celtic’s ticket office could, at the push of a computer key, give you the name of every occupant of every seat in the problem area. The troublemakers are deliberately undermining their own club. They must have known from past experience the banners would automatically qualify Celtic for UEFA punishment. Hoops boss Neil Lennon says his heart sank when he saw the banners. That was just before his team capsized. The Celtic team who lost to Inter 40 years ago dusted themselves down and went on to win another championship on the way to the first Nine in a Row. The Old Firm were in rude health then. What surrounds them now is just rude. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/hugh-keevins-itll-take-more-2871417
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Fire up the rolls & slice, pour a cuppa and enjoy/suffer the latest epistle from your local Handwringer in Chief. Liberal democracy is a good thing. It certainly has its faults, but overall a system which allows you to disagree with it without consequence is always preferable to one which imposes penalty on speech or thought. You might think, given the experience of the 20th century, that this is a lesson humanity has finally learned, but alas the lesson of history is that mistakes are seldom, if ever, absorbed. These thoughts came to mind last week as I re-read my copy of Clive James's wonderful 'Cultural Amnesia', a collection of essays on the effects of totalitarianism on humanity and the humanities in the last century. As always with Mr James, it is genius written with the lightest of touches: the best kind of teaching. You can pick up a copy for about £3 on Amazon and I'd heartily recommend it: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cultural-Amnesia-Necessary-Memories-History/dp/039333354X The defence of freedom of speech was quite the hot potato this week, with some idiot celtc fans feeling the need to compare a 14th century bandido with a 20th century murderer. As if the 700 years in between hadn't taught the Irish anything; no, they were fit to be subjected to medieval methods of warfare. If only they could see how insulting they are to the people they stupidly profess to defend! And in fairness, loud had been the opprobrium from on high within Parkhead. Mr Lawwell don't like it, Mr Lennon don't like it, and surely the final nail for celtc fans, even Mr Spiers, he don't like it. But what is it they don't like, exactly? Well, the timing and the place. Not the picture of a mentally unbalanced killer with a persecution complex added to a natural penchant for psychosis on banners, but the doing of it in such a way as to embarrass celtc fc. In what was probably a throwaway but nonetheless revealing comment last week, Mr Spiers was of the opinion that 'there are rights and wrongs about the IRA but the football is not the place' to discuss them. I have spend a few days trying to think what the 'rights ' of the IRA were and have drawn a blank. Perhaps some other readers can write in with their solutions to this problem. A free bus ride around Belfast town centre, loudly setting out your thesis, will be the prize. On the rare occasions I think about Ireland, I guess that in the long run of history, it will probably end up as the one country. Not exactly plan 'A' to make you popular in amongst the Vanguard Bears, but there it is. But if it happens, it will be through democracy, not violence. Terrorism is always wrong. So here's where poor Clive James is roped in to educate the wretched Mr Spiers and his pals in the east. Terrorism is always wrong. Whether it be Bobby Sands or, as we discovered last week, some madmen in the British Army running about acting like an Argentine death squad, it is always wrong. And using it to score cheap points is always wrong, and not just on the grounds of timing - on the grounds that rehabilitating terrorists in the way that celtc fans and the BBC have done this week ('IRA hunger striker' is so much less aggressive than 'terrorist murderer', isn't it?) is dangerous to democracy. As the lessons of the 20th century showed us, we need to be on our guard against those who would deny free speech. It may seem hypocritcal to ask for free speech and then deny it for the Green Brigade, but with the freedom to speak comes the need to speak with responsibility. No more throwaway remarks about 'rights and wrongs', some things are always wrong. You don't have to be a cynic to wonder where the Scottish Journalist's Book of Adjectives to Describe Current Buns went this week: no 'vile', no 'songs of hate', no 'embarrassment to Scotland in the 21st century', 'no sectarian bitterness', no quotes from Peter Kearney about how awful it all is. Just 'rights and wrongs' and 'maybe the wrong time and place'. We can only hope that such lunatics as Bobby Sands never return to our shores to demonstrate to the likes of Mr Spiers just how thin the divide between liberal democracy and terror in our society is. Hopefully he will get 'Cultural Amnesia' for his Christmas - one way or another, he, and the celtc fans, need to get the message: terrorism is always wrong. But, as always, there's a but. And while it has been lovely to bask in the reflected inglory of the other mob this week, we must be careful what we wish for. For should the amazing happen and Vincent Lunny actually dare chib celtc for once, you can bet he will be on uber-Orange alert for something to even up the score. And we will give him the ammo he needs, I fear. 'What's the handwringer moaning about now?' I hear you ask. Well... 'Super Rangers' for a start. It is going to have to go, and it would be better if we did it rather than had another war. But even that is a bit old hat, and I'm not keen to have that same argument over again. What's bugging me is maybe something that Lunny wouldn't notice, but a super sensitive handwringer such as myself does. When big Daly got us off the mark against Arbroath, about 50 Bears chose to express their happiness with a burst of The Sash. You may think that a coincidence: I don't. I think it was a classless and tasteless riposte, along the lines of 'Aye, well, you may have scored, but don't think we're going anywhere!' At least they left out the add on, which about 10 Bears didn't at kick off. Nevertheless, what a nice touch to thank a model professional. I hope they get over it, and soon. Now, I actually think that reducing the idiot rump of our fan base to about 70 or 80 away fans is something pretty amazing, and the club and most of the fans ought to be congratulated for it. But they won't, you know they won't. In a society which falls over itself to avoid offending the sensibilities of IRA supporters you know that as long as one Bluenose yells FTP we will be hauled up. We could easily lose the musical two fingers to Jon Daly, and we should lose the forbidden line in Super Rangers. It will make them look worse, and that's always good! And especially, we could lose the UVF tribute lines....terrorism is ALWAYS wrong, remember. Weirdly, in Scotland support for terrorism seems to be considered slightly less offensive than what I stubbornly believe is meaningless yells from football fans with a drink in them. You'll never persuade me that the Green Brigade were all steaming when they rattled up what must have been the least catchy slogan last week, and you'll never persuade me that the vast majority of 'sectarian' events in Scotland are little more than Rangers-Celtic tittle tattle. But that's how the chips are falling, thanks in part to liberal consciences like Mr Spiers'. We can't let distaste for the like of him push us away from defending liberal democracy, but there are one or two things we could do to make it better. It may make you feel slightly sick to actually have to tell people this is 2013: it should do. But Mr Lawwell, Mr Lennon, Mr Spiers, and our own hero-worshippers: terrorism is always wrong.
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Barry Ferguson: There may be little left to play for.........
ian1964 posted a topic in Rangers Chat
...........but an Old Firm cup clash could save the season for Scottish football BARRY believes Scottish Cup clash between Celtic and Rangers would give our game a much-needed shot in the arm. LET’S face it, the season is over. It ended on Tuesday night when AC Milan stuck three past Celtic. If we’re being honest, Scottish football is just killing time now until the summer holidays – and we’re not even in December yet. Celtic’s European campaign is over but they already have the Premiership in the bag. Hearts need a miracle to avoid relegation. Again, we knew they were goners before a ball was even kicked. The rest of the world might have one eye on Brazil next summer, with players bursting a gut to win a place at the World Cup. But not Scotland. We’ll be coming? Nope, we’ll be going nowhere. The truth is, on the pitch, Scottish football is done for the season. Unless something crazy happens and Rangers and Celtic come up against each other in the Scottish Cup. Now wouldn’t that give our game a massive shot in the arm? OK, I accept, I’m biased. The Old Firm derby was always my favourite fixture. I miss playing in it and I miss going to watch it. Most of all, I miss the fact that it was the game which captured the imagination of everyone in British football. And I do mean everyone. I’ve played in the Birmingham derby against Villa and I’ve heard others bang on about Real Madrid and Barcelona, AC Milan versus Inter and United-City in Manchester. Listen, I don’t care what anybody says, none of them beats the Old Firm game. The guys down here can’t get enough of it and I know that for a fact because since I’ve been at Birmingham and Blackpool I’ve been running busloads of them up and down to Glasgow every time there has been a derby at Ibrox or Parkhead. That’s all I’d hear: “Haw Fergie, when’s the next Old Firm game? Can you take us to it?” Some of them would have tickets for the Celtic end. Some of us would have tickets for the proper part of the stadium. And at the end we’d get back on the bus and rip each other to shreds all the way back down the M6. But I’m telling you, these guys were still raving about it weeks later. They’d say to me: “Man, I’ve never experienced anything like that in my life.” And I’d say: “There you go, that’s a real football game.” These same people always liked to look down their noses at the game in our country. I looked upon it as missionary work. Once they’ve been to one, they understand why it’s such a special game and they can’t get enough of it. So what everyone has to understand is that, to the rest of the world, Rangers and Celtic are Scottish football. End of story. And the quicker they are back battling it out on the park again, the better it will be for everyone. Listen, I might be playing a couple of hundred miles down the road these days but I can smell the poison in the air from down here. There’s a lot of bitterness and bad blood because of everything that has happened over the last couple of years. For the record, Rangers didn’t die. They are not a zombie, they are the same club they always were but I can understand why Celtic are scared of them. It’s because they always have been – and vice versa. It is just part of the DNA in this part of the world. It’s a way of life when you grow up on one side of the divide or the other. It’s why when you’re a youngster it’s the game you dream of playing in. I remember scoring my first goal against Celtic at Ibrox. You just needed to look at my face as I ran away celebrating to see what that meant to me. As someone who prides himself on being a moaning faced git, I never realised my smile could be as big as that. But no other game brings out such levels of emotion. That moment right there was what dreams are made of. If I was still at Rangers and Celtic were down the leagues, I would be distraught. I’d be desperate for them to come back to get those games back four times a season. And I’ll bet you it’s the same for Celtic’s players right now. Their season is all but over, it’s all about going through the motions now and getting themselves over the line in the league. But can you imagine the lift they’d get if they knew there was a derby game just a couple of weeks away? That would more than make up for the disappointment of going out of Europe. Believe me, I’ve been there. You get addicted to them. I remember my big brother telling me about his Old Firm debut, how he was a nervous wreck and how he heard this voice behind him saying: “Calm down son, keep it simple and you’ll get through it.” When he looked over his shoulder, he couldn’t believe it was Tommy Burns who was trying to talk him through it. Well that never happened to me when faced Celtic. All I heard was: “Ferguson, you wee b******, you’re getting it.” And that wasn’t just from the players – it was every time I went over to take a throw or a corner in front of their fans. But that suited me fine. That’s the way these games are meant to be and there’s nothing wrong in being a fierce competitor. I lost count of the number of times myself and Neil Lennon would be at each other’s throats but I’d worry if it was any other way. Yes, it can go too far at times, as I learned the hard way after I was sent off in a 6-2 defeat at Parkhead. You may remember it as the Battle of Bothwell Bridge because I ended up scrapping with Celtic fans after going out for a couple of drinks. It was obviously a huge controversy but the only thing I regret about that night was being stupid enough to go out in the first place. Lesson learned. I never went out after another Old Firm game. If I wanted a beer or a glass of wine, I’d shut the curtains and have it in my house. The feelings around that match were just too explosive to take the risk of going out. So yes, it’s a volatile fixture and yes, emotions will be running high the next time the two of them meet. But it’s going to happen one of these days so the sooner the better as far as I’m concerned. An Old Firm Scottish Cup tie? It just might save the season. -
Nice to see Celtic showing why Scottish football is so vibrant and dynamic at the moment. Trying not to be too Jim Spence-like in my praise, but it's clear that only getting gubbed 3-0 by Milan is a clear sign of how healthy the SPL is. Surely that's the case. It can't be otherwise....
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Its perhaps ironic that I offer this piece of writing on the weekend of another show of support for terrorist murderers from the green brigade section of the Celtic support. I’m reliably informed however that their Saturday banner was not a public outing of themselves as closet Corries fans but was rather a show of support for Irish terrorism. I should not make light of such conduct of course, as it confirms the existence of a group of people who are still stuck in the past in a conflict which has itself left them far behind. Even Gerry Adams and Martin McGuiness have come to realise that the stoic British people of Northern Ireland will not be defeated by the bullet or the bomb and have abandoned terrorism. (Please no sniggering at the back of the class) I’m now going to astound you – Jack McConnell was absolutely right when he described sectarianism in Scotland as our “Secret Shame”. His comments following an Old Firm game were to prove the catalyst to an extraordinary McCarthyesque political campaign to uncover and expose the bigots under the bed. And with men such as journalist Graham Spiers spearheading such such a crusade what could go wrong ? Well pesky academics such as Dr Stuart Waiton and Prof Steve Bruce for starters. The latter having carried out the most in depth academic research into sectarianism in Scotland and written various discourses and books on the subject arriving at the following conclusion: http://truthonsectarianism.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/archive-professor-steve-bruce-article.html Dr Waiton’s study is more widespread and in his book “Snobs Law” he argues that football supporters in general are treated as some kind of underclass by the the authorities and politicians. He is particularly condemnatory of those who have led Scotland down a mythical path to a Brigadoon where sectarianism is rife. http://www.thinkscotland.org/thinkpolitics/articles.html?read_full=11857&article=www.thinkscotland.org We owe Dr Waiton another debt of gratitude however. For not only exposing the empty rhetoric of Graham Spiers, but perhaps more importantly, the insidious and sleekit nature of Spiers when his rapidly diminishing credibility or vastly inflated ego is challenged. Graham Spiers Twitter 22.02.2013 Given the propensity many of us have for disagreeing with Spiers – we too must be “faintly bonkers”. Oh the audacity. But exiting from the world of academia its perhaps worthy examining what the real world says about Scotland’s Secret Shame. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-22904552 Race Crimes 4,012 Religiously aggravated 687. Does that make racism Scotland’s Very Very Very Secret Shame ? Are we to see a new dedicated Policing Unit to deal with this apparent epidemic of racism ? Is our funding of anti-racism initiatives nearly six times that of our anti-sectarian ones ? Furthermore of the 40% males in Glasgow convicted of such religiously aggravated crimes who would be willing to bet a large percentage of those crimes occurred in or around the vicinity of Ibrox or Parkhead ? Dont look for a big windfall – the betting is odds on. But perhaps the second most interesting comment in that report is this : “Police officers were the most common target of religiously aggravated abuse” Did I miss something – are our bobbies now plodding the beat sporting large crucifixes or “Proud to be a Prod” badges? Or were these by and large victimless crimes with the religiously aggravated behaviour targeted at no-one in particular ? For those amongst us who like a flutter – Im afraid thats another odds on. I said second most interesting because the article itself reveals the McCarthyesque route we have gone down with regard to sectarianism. In an article which demonstrates crimes against our ethnic minorities is nearly 6 times worse than our religiously aggravated ones, where are the interviews with our ethnic minority representatives or their associated charities ? Why is no-one suggesting a mandatory rehabilitation programme for those convicted of race crimes ? It is after all by far the most common type of hate crime in this country. Sectarianism is Scotland’s Secret Shame – but not for the reasons Jack McConnell alluded to. It is our secret shame because we have condemned ourself as a country publicly for a problem which does not exist, we have allowed ourselves to be brow beaten by insidious idiots like Graham Spiers and diverted money and resources to this mythical problem to the exclusion of a far greater problem within our society. Perhaps the final word should be left to Prof. Steve Bruce.
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http://www.scottishfa.co.uk/scottish_fa_news.cfm?page=2986&newsID=12878&newsCategoryID=1 Not a surprise...
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Coming up on SSN. Sons of Struth @SonsofStruth 28m You should tune in to skysports news if your a fan of SOS. Chris Graham @ChrisGraham76 55s Rangers news coming up on Sky Sports.
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Hello, I was hoping for a few fans opinions on the following: I am currently entering my third year at university and am about to begin my dissertation. For this I have chosen the subject of fan ship. Specifically I am looking at the relationship between Rangers and Celtic fans. The main focus of the study will be how this relationship has changed since Rangers changed operating companies. Issues I will be examining include: Is the relationship as intense considering the two teams are no longer challenging for the same titles? Is this change a benefit for Scottish football and Scottish society, for example is the league more or less competitive? Does the new league structure provide lower leagues more money? Is there a reduction in societal issues such as violence etc...? Or has the loss of the “Old Firm” damaged the commercial pull of Scottish football? Ultimately I want to know whether people believe the relationship between the two sets of fans has changed due to the transformation in Scottish football? As part of my study I am hoping to speak to fans from both sides and ask them their opinion on some of the topics mentioned above, hence this post. I realise a lot of these are in-depth questions and may take some time to answer; I appreciate all the replies and feedback that is given. Thank you in advance for any responses
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http://www.rangers.co.uk/news/headlines/item/5579-club-statement Now that's a statement we can all agree with. Let's hope club means what they say rather than offering a sop to concerned fans.
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Scotland's claim to be fighting the cancer of sectarianism and hatred took a severe dent at the weekend. Perhaps sadly, the decision not to hold a one minute silence prior to the Ross County vs Celtic match, came as no surprise to many of us. Its embarrassing, unedifying and sickening to hear a one minute silence being disrupted and dishonoured. But there is something worse, far worse in fact - not holding such a ceremony at all. Because in failing to do so we have acquiesced to the morons, the bigots - we have handed them victory on a plate. Let the moronic and shameful actions of bigots within the Celtic support shame all the devils in hell - rather that than our country is forced to fail to remember the fallen whose sacrifice ensured our freedom from evil and tyranny. This morning I wrote to Ross County asking for an explanation into such an omission on Saturday and in particular who made the decision to dispense with the one minute silence - was it from someone in the club or from outside the club? The Ross County support have previously made their club aware of the importance of Remembrance Day and its significance within their support. http://www.north-sta...oldiers-667.htm Furthermore this is an issue which must ascend Old Firm rivalry and the often tit for tat churlish and pedantic tribalism. It is time for the Scottish press and media to stop avoiding the issue and to speak out - ignoring it will not make it go away. It is untenable and unacceptable that men who laid down their lives in order to defeat that which is unacceptable cannot themselves be remembered and honoured due to the actions and behaviour of some in our society which is in itself – wholly unacceptable.
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Lifted from FF: From the Sun website: SFA boss in Savile twitter bust-up Beast's victim blasts Regan Exclusive By PAUL THORNTON Published: 10 hrs ago A SICKENED victim of Jimmy Savile last night slammed footie blazer Stewart Regan for comparing the Rangers saga to the scandal over the TV pervert. The SFA chief executive’s shocking Twitter gaffe came after a fan asked him about the Ibrox spat between former club supremos Craig Whyte and Charles Green. Regan, 49, bizarrely replied: “Over four decades, many people believed Jimmy Savile was a paedophile. Yet he still walked free. Actionable evidence was necessary to provide the proof. “The same is true in any democratic judicial process.” It sparked an immediate storm of online protest from stunned followers. And Caroline Moore, 54 — molested by Savile as a helpless 13-year-old — branded Regan an insensitive “idiot”. She said: “He’s a prat, an absolute idiot and should think before he says something. “Nobody would say the Savile thing is anything like the same as a row at a football club.” Wheelchair-bound Caroline, of Paisley, was attacked by Savile in 1971 at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, Bucks, following an operation to fuse her spine. And she is furious that Regan used the monster’s name to debate sport. Caroline added: “He’s made himself look stupid and I would imagine he’ll regret it.” Twitter users were also horrified, and one message from ‘Sharpie’ simply read: “Embarrassing.” Liz Corkhill also slammed him for “pursuing that tasteless analogy.” Former Top of the Pops host Savile was exposed as a serial sex predator following his death, aged 84, in October 2011. Last night, the SFA refused to comment on the Regan row. But it’s not the first time the footie chief has had problems with Twitter. Regan called in cops and closed his account in July 2012 after it was flooded with abusive comments. These related to his handling of league reconstruction and the financial collapse of Rangers. At the time, he said: “When you get threatening messages on Twitter and you get emails and letters that are uncomfortable, you have to listen seriously to what the police are saying.” Whyte and Green were infamously locked in a battle over the ownership of Rangers. Yorkshireman Green claimed he duped his rival to get his hands on the club. Former brewing executive Regan replaced Gordon Smith at the SFA in 2010.
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Your Sunday morning thoughts on the man who needs a grievance like normal people need air. The SPFL are coming under fire from the permanently disaffected manager of celtc, Neil Lennon this weekend. The monotonous drone of the Ulsterman complaining is as much part of the landscape in Scots football as long balls, a lying media and lunatic supporters, but this time some may feel he has a point: sending his team north to Dingwall immediately after a Champions League match, in which he and his footballing troubadours carry the hopes and good wishes of all Scottish fitba fans, seems scant reward. Leaving Holland immediately after their game - unsurprisingly, given the state his club's supporters left it in - Lennon's team will have gone to bed late on Thursday morning, possibly coming in for light physio or a rubdown that afternoon, leaving only Friday for the tactical plans for the Ross County game to be discussed and players assessed. One session is not enough for any coach to form a coherent plan, but is Neilly right to have a good at the SPFL? I don't think so, since it's the TV companies who are calling the shots. And since the SPFL, which is in effect run by his boss at celtc, Mr Lawwell, signed up to the deal it's a bit rich complaining about it now. The bad luck for celtc is that this weekend is a Super Sunday in England, with first Spurs v Newcastle at lunchtime; then Sunderland v Man City; topped off with the mouth watering Man U v Arsenal clash in the evening. They don't even have space to fit in the always pleasing Swansea game, so what chance of them fitting in what is, frankly, a game which won't interest anyone outside of Celtic or Ross County fans? With FA Cup kicking off this weekend as well, there was no space on the Monday night schedule for the celtc game; and it obviously couldn't be played on Friday night. The bottom line is that the game panicked and sold a rubbish deal to Sky & BT; the only teams they are interested in are Rangers and celtc; therefore they will do as they are told and lump it. The sight of SPFL bigwigs in China this weekend crowing about another deal - £20m this time, which unless it is broken up in a hugely unfair manner means an average of £50,000 per club; one might even raise the spectre of sporting integrity here - drives home the mistake they made when signing up to Sky. The need to get the game on TV and bring in some money is seen as paramount, not just for financial reasons but also because they were terrified lest the absence of Rangers drive away coverage, revealing the rest of the game outwith four Old Firm clashes to be what it is - of no interest to TV companies. All right, if they feel that way, sod them! I might not care about Dundee United games but no doubt Dundee Utd fans do, shouldn't the SPFL be looking after them first? I might not ever look at a St Mirren game but I imagine Saints fans do; why aren't the SPFL watching out for their interests? It's all been said before, but poor old Lenny's latest whinge brings us back to where we started: small leagues and 4 games a season is killing the game, and instead of finding some medicine we are doing the equivalent of buying smack from Sky and ignoring the real issues. Lennon is right that the SPFL is out to lunch: but given who runs it and given which club it appears to be run for the exclusive benefit of, whose fault is that? The chance was there to revamp the game and instead the head burying, the claims of a bright new dawn, the willful refusal to notice the ever emptying stands and the ever diminishing quality goes on. I watched AFC Wimbledon v Coventry last night and the London club had better players than I saw watching Ross County v Inverness the week before. This is not something that fills me with joy but there's no point lying about it. Anyway, no need to run crying to the press, Neil. Just walk along the corridor to Mr Lawwell's office and get him to explain why his Professional Game Board signed up to a shit TV deal. I warn you in advance though, you won't like the answer: because when it comes to football on Sky or BT, celtc (or Scotland) doesn't count for a fart. The shoehorning in of this celtc game at Ross County is proof if ever it were needed that we are nothing more than an afterthought once the real games, the proper football, has been scheduled in. Perhaps in the future we will reject a deal which doesn't allow a certain percentage of each club's games to be played at 3 on a Saturday. Since in effect this only applies to two clubs it ought not be that difficult to manage. Perhaps the resultant coverage of other teams will spread TV money a bit more fairly, creating a more level playing field. Perhaps more fans may turn out to watch if teams play with less fear, although it may be too late already. But perhaps the people who dropped the game in the shit will have the decency to stop moaning about it when they get some on their shoes.
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Hibernian forward Rowan Vine faces disciplinary action after remarks directed at Celtic boss Neil Lennon . Scottish FA compliance officer Vincent Lunny says Vine made "offensive comments on Twitter suggesting the use of violence". The incident took place following a 1-1 draw between Hibs and Celtic. Vine has until 15 November to respond to the notice of complaint and a principal hearing date has been set for 28 November. Lennon, who said he was "not surprised" that Vine had been cited for his comments, had criticised Hibs' defending as "shocking" and "reckless" in the draw at Easter Road. Responding on Twitter, Vine said: "I hardly touched the boy and there were no 'reckless' tackles in the game. "Might get me mate Alan Shearer to send him another size 9 Umbro Speciali in the dish if he don't pipe down." Vine went on to admit that he had never met the former England captain, nor Lennon, personally despite his reference to an incident during a Newcastle-Leicester match. Responding to a tweet from Lennon asking "did I read that right?", Vine replied: "Was light-hearted, just thought your comment was poor, thought it was a good physical game. "Apologies obviously if you've taken offence." http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/24870112
