Celtic may turn down Ibrox tickets

[JFK-1 1,666]

Celtic may refuse tickets for next month's meeting with Rangers at Ibrox for security reasons, chief executive Peter Lawwell has told the club's AGM.

 

Lawwell says the club will advise fans not to attend the game if he feels there are safety concerns.

 

Rangers cut Celtic's away allocation in May and their city rivals responded by offering away fans fewer tickets for the September meeting at Celtic Park.

 

Brendan Rodgers' side won that match 1-0 thanks to an Olivier Ntcham goal.

 

The reigning Scottish Premiership champions are currently top of the division - two points ahead of Steven Gerrard's team, who are third.

 

Meanwhile, Lawwell responded to a shareholder's question about sectarian and unacceptable singing from Celtic fans by saying such chanting is dragging the club down.

 

The chief executive said the situation is difficult to manage but agreed the problem, from a small minority, has deteriorated recently.

 

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/46292679

[compo 6,073]

Good they won't be missed 

[cooponthewing 1,139]

Can’t control the groin brigade! There are thousands of others who happily sing along too. It’s another smoke screen to say it’s “only a few”. It’s a bi-weekly Shame FC IRA’Oke!

[barca72 440]

Any victim headline will do to bounce the paedo stuff off the news cycle. Lieswell was asked by a shareholder about the sectarian IRA singing by the CFC fans.
Liewell admitted it was a hard problem to deal with. How better to deal with the away fans than not allow them to be there to sing their objectionable songs?
The man can't be trusted to give a straight answer, fan safety my arse.

[Waltersgotstyle 297]

We have already welcomed Hearts, Maribor, Rapid Vienna and Spartak Moscow with no issues.

[onevision 1,436]

Oh please say it's so....

[BEARGER 1,829]

If they're not in attendance I would think that the Boys Club stuff may not be so vociferous from our side. One things for sure it has nothing to do with fan safety.

[26th of foot 5,825]

I was hoping Peter Lawwell might provide an update on his, 'no stone unturned' inquiry into identifying ra Sellik fan who threw a lighter and hit Fernando Ricksen on the head?

 

Thirteen years and counting Peter.

[ian1964 10,372]

'THE GUTTER'

Celtic AGM – Peter Lawwell and Ian Bankier blast ‘sectarian songs’ aimed at Rangers manager Steven Gerrard and Hearts boss Craig Levein

 

The Hoops supremos responded after a Celts supporter said the songs 'embarrassed' the Parkhead faithful and called for the club's board to take action.

 

CELTIC chairman Ian Bankier has told the Celtic fans who chant offensive songs that their behaviour “takes the club to the gutter”.

At today’s AGM one shareholder raised the issue of “sectarian” abuse from among the Hoops support.

He claimed Rangers manager Steven Gerrard and Hearts boss Craig Levein are both subjected to unacceptable songs.

Celts chairman Bankier agreed with the fan, while chief executive Peter Lawwell praised him for raising the issue and admitted the problem has worsened in recent times.

The supporter, who demanded the Green Brigade stop playing their drums while the songs are being chanted, had said: “I feel there has been an increase in sectarian chanting including calling Levein an orange b*****d.

“‘Cheer up Stevie G….’ we are better than that. It shames us, it embarrasses us.

“The song originated from the Rangers support as sectarian abuse to Tommy Burns and now we are doing it. Embarrassing.

“I’m not putting all the blame on the Green Brigade but drums and megaphones bring the beat for these unsavoury songs.

“There’s a higher prevalence of these songs than five years ago. I don’t know what answer is but want board to act on it.”

Bankier has called on other fans to show their disapproval when such songs are sung and show those singing they are in a “small minority”.

He added: “No-one on this platform has any time for this sort of thing; it takes us to the gutter every time.
“We will take this and do what we can, if not to stop it then at the very least reduce it.

“But other fans also need to make their disapproval clear.

“We would like to see this discussed at our next Fans’ Forum, when the Green Brigade will be represented.”

Lawwell agreed and said that it’s a small minority of fans.

He said: “This is a very sensitive subject and it’s brave of you to raise it.

“The club and our supporters have a great reputation worldwide and it’s a very small minority who behave like this.
“We have been consistently sanctioned by UEFA for that behaviour, which has deteriorated recently back to the days which were unacceptable.
“It doesn’t represent who we are and it gives our opponents, if you like – our enemies – a reason to categorise Celtic along with everyone else.

“And we’re not like everyone else; we’re better and different.”

https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/sport/football/3520007/celtic-agm-steven-gerrard-craig-levein-sectarian-songs-lawwell-bankier-rangers-hearts/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1542805393

[ian1964 10,372]

So there was a crush at Celtic park nearly ending in catastrophe and he is worried about fan safety at Ibrox!!??