Celtic chairman Iain Bankier (no, me nether) has come out and strongly condemned the fans who indulged in misguided bed sheet graffiti and some firework throwing.
He said:
“We have to drive this out of the club. It’s not only doing us harm but Scottish football is harmed. It’s one or two silly, juvenile boys doing funny, kid pranks and it’s bringing the whole of Scottish football down. It’s overtaking what was a fantastic performance.
We’ll weed them out. We know this guy and we’ve got him. There were arrests made last night and these guys will not get back intoCelticPark.
We will just keep on that road until we have weeded them all out. We’re talking to the supporters organisations about what they can do for the people in the travelling crowd to self-police, the way the Tartan Army do.
We are looking to take every measure we can take. This has to stop.”
Most of the statement is welcome while other bits just are spew inducing, shake of the head lazily stereotype misconceptions.
Though, the Tartan Army comparison will have those who have come into contact with the Doe A Dearing kilted loons wondering what he is going on about.
Eh no thanks a think we should stick to being Celtic supporters never mind this tartan army shite hail hail
Yes, that is strange. I’m an English Celtic supporter but would far rather associate ourselves with Irish fans (who have a stronger cultural link) rather than Scotland, who don’t always cover themselves with glory. Wouldn’t most Celtic supporters feel the same?
Why be more like the tartan army? they sing ” Flower of Scotland” a song about rising up against an invading army and sending them home, these types of songs are not allowed
Yeah, well said. I’d hate to think the Celtic support became a bunch of drunken people who make friends wherever they go and sing songs from bloody musicals!
This
🙂
I have been to a number of Scotland games in recent years and I have gradually come to dislike the tartan/drunken army. 🙂
Rule No 1 they can do anything and won`t be arrested.
Rule No 2 they are more important than the team. 🙂 (this may be true)
Rule No 3 they are so fun loving that finding them obnoxious is your problem.
🙂
Fact is most of the Tartan Army are from teams who never make it into Europe. For them this is their “lads’ trip away” – booze it up and oh yeah, there may be a football game one. The best part of supporting Scotland or indeed teams outwith the “Big Two” is that you never expect a result so its a nice surprise when you get it (OK bit like us in Europe), it’s the travel and the craic. The kilts do set Scots apart and make the fans a bit of a spectacle (insert own gag here), so the lack of a real footballing threat and the carnival atmosphere does mean they get away with more than Celtic fans do.
I hung out with The Tartan Army in Paris the night before Scotland’s famous win against France – I was there on biz and travelled back the day of the game). I met some right nuggets in the pub who took the hump when I said I was a Celtic fan, giving “you want to be Irish” pish (coincidence one had a blow up “hand” with FTP scraweled in biro on it?). Saw the Tartan Army in full force (many hundreds) outside a pub called the Auld Alliance and tbh it was great fun singing Doe-a-Deer (sorry).
Pub couldn’t cope some some of the older guys sent their sons to buy from the off-license and they came back with beers and a couple of local girls! All good fun – other than the trashed car that was literally danced on by loads of Scotland fans, crushed the roof. I did say at the time they shouldn’t be doing it, but the guys I was hanging with joked it was illegally parked anyway. Self policed? Not exactly.
Point is – every big group has some tw@ts, and the Tartan Army is no different. We’re under immense scrutiny right now – the effort to “even up” knows no bounds.
We Celtic fans need to be smarter, we need to re-earn our reputation.
Oh yeah – and how many games to the Tartan Amry actually muster for? We’re videoed what 50-55 times a year, with everyone poring over the pictures until they find something to bust us for (idiotic banners notwithstanding)….