ian1964 10,875 Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Uilleam 6,504 Posted March 9, 2021 Author Popular Post Share Posted March 9, 2021 A piece of common sense and sanity from The Scotsman. An Edinburgh paper, too. Why Rangers shouldn't be blamed for controversial title-winning celebrations of some of their supporters Deflection tactics have always been a stock-in-trade of politicians. It appears they are now also a go-to strategy for Police Scotland’s senior management team. By Stephen Halliday Tuesday, 9th March 2021, 4:38 pmhttps://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/rangers/why-rangers-shouldnt-be-blamed-for-controversial-title-winning-celebrations-of-some-of-their-supporters-3159957 Amid the blizzard of criticism and histrionic outrage directed towards Rangers in the aftermath of their fans’ weekend title-winning celebrations, from Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf, Deputy First Minister John Swinney and Deputy Chief Constable Malcolm Graham, you would have been forgiven for thinking Douglas Park and Steven Gerrard themselves had been scaling statues and letting off fireworks in George Square. It was only during her own verbal broadside towards the Ibrox club at Holyrood on Tuesday afternoon that Nicola Sturgeon acknowledged the simple truth of the matter when she said ‘Those at fault are those who breached the rules’. But that didn’t prevent the First Minister from also doubling down on her government colleagues’ irrational insistence that Rangers’ senior management are also culpable for the scenes which breached her current coronavirus decrees. Rangers chairman Park has understandably taken issue with this narrative and has written in strident terms to Sturgeon, who also happens to be his club’s constituency MSP, to outline the wide-ranging dialogue and series of meetings held with Police Scotland and the Scottish government in the two weeks leading up to the weekend when the title was won. At both his pre-match media conference last Friday and his post-match media conference after the 3-0 win over St Mirren at Ibrox on Saturday, Rangers manager Gerrard addressed the issue of supporters’ gatherings in measured language which clearly recognised the ongoing Covid-19 restrictions. But if anyone believes Gerrard or anyone else at Rangers could have come up with a form of words or tone of warning which would have persuaded that minority of fans to stay at home, rather than celebrate outside Ibrox or at George Square, they are simply deluded. Just as Celtic and St Johnstone are not to blame for the fan gatherings prompted by their Scottish Cup and League Cup successes earlier this season, Rangers cannot be held responsible for the manner in which some of their support chose to mark the momentous occasion of their club’s 55th league title triumph. Similar scenes have been witnessed throughout the football world amid the coronavirus crisis, including large gatherings of Liverpool and Leeds United supporters to celebrate their respective Premier League and Championship title wins in England last summer. Regardless of the restrictions in place at any given time, a significant number of fans will continue to defy social-distancing and mark trophy successes by their clubs in similar fashion over the coming months as seasons reach their conclusion. When they do, it is a public order issue and not one which falls under the remit of any individual football club. The government can make the rules and the police chiefs can decide upon the most effective way to enforce them. Every sympathy should be extended to those rank and file officers who coped admirably with a challenging set of circumstances on Saturday and Sunday. But other than reminding supporters of the regulations and advising them to observe them, those in charge of football clubs have no control over events beyond the boundaries of their currently closed stadiums. No amount of deflection tactics should be allowed to obscure that reality. 6 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill 13,717 Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 (edited) With the relationship between Rangers and the SNP being made clearer by the day, I miss the perspective of our ScotNat Gersnet members. Unfortunately they seem to have run away and are no longer available to remind us by what deceit you can be a Rangers fan AND vote for Nippy The Lip. Edited March 9, 2021 by Bill 4 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CammyF 9,454 Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 Worth noting that as well as latest "lies" from Nippy, Rangers are still awaiting a reply to letter sent to her in December. Parks letter to Her and Her cronies is excellent, with clear timelines showing who is really at fault for the lack of communication and leadership over the weekend. Also, a balanced article from The Scotsman, maybe there is still hope for what was once the leading printed publication in Scotland. 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
compo 8,034 Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 I suppose these recent jolly times from our supporters diverts media attention from the Salmond case and the report on children's education that they are bursting their balls trying to suppress 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CammyF 9,454 Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 On 09/03/2021 at 18:46, compo said: I suppose these recent jolly times from our supporters diverts media attention from the Salmond case and the report on children's education that they are bursting their balls trying to suppress Expand It's exactly this - the oldest trick in the political book. I've learned to dislike all political parties and politicians, devious scoundrels the lot of them 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uilleam 6,504 Posted March 9, 2021 Author Share Posted March 9, 2021 On 09/03/2021 at 19:12, CammyF said: I've learned to dislike all political parties and politicians, devious scoundrels the lot of them Expand Well, I think that there is a strong argument that the SNP are the devious bastards' devious bastards 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CammyF 9,454 Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 On 09/03/2021 at 19:26, Uilleam said: Well, I think that there is a strong argument that the SNP are the devious bastards' devious bastards Expand I don't make any distinction of party affiliations, all devious bastards as far as I'm concerned. Fuck em all. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gonzo79 15,358 Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 On 09/03/2021 at 19:12, CammyF said: I've learned to dislike all political parties and politicians, devious scoundrels the lot of them Expand Agreed but there are those with good intentions and those purely out for themselves (and a whole load in between). The SNP is full to the brim with the worst kinds of politicians. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluedell 6,193 Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 On 09/03/2021 at 17:48, Bill said: With the relationship between Rangers and the SNP being made clearer by the day, I miss the perspective of our ScotNat Gersnet members. Unfortunately they seem to have run away and are no longer available to remind us by what deceit you can be a Rangers fan AND vote for Nippy The Lip. Expand I've seen some on twitter. Their first loyalty is always to Sturgeon and the separatists. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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