Craig Burley crawled out from whatever rock he’s been hiding under this morning, to have a go at those, especially in the media, who are looking forward to Sunday’s Scottish Cup semi-final on account of it being “the biggest derby in the world.”
I don’t like Burley.
I think he’s an arrogant little tosser, and his comments, in 2012, the last public statements he made on Scottish football, inadvertently did more to see that justice was done than probably anyone except Turnbull Hutton.
In that now notorious article for The Daily Record he called out the men at the “smaller clubs” for daring to take a decision regarding the Ibrox newco. His name calling was puerile and childish and it was the last thing he ever wrote in the paper.
Did the “diddy clubs” make sure of that?
Or did one of his own editors realise he’d gone miles over the top and actually damaged their cause?
No matter. He was soon gone.
There was also an incident at Setanta, one that was never properly explored, where he was accused of being drunk on the air.
What am I trying to say?
That even as hacks go he’s a joke, a complete halfwit who has no business at all being on the air or in print.
But today … man oh man, I can’t argue with him at all.
Burley isn’t impressed by the media coverage of the coming game, and I don’t blame him one bit.
I’m not impressed either.
He’s rightly pointed out that this is a match between the winners of the second tier and the SPL. It’s a mis-match in every conceivable way. He was also unimpressed by last year’s game between the two teams. So was I. I thought we played them off the park with effortless ease. It wasn’t even close.
If Celtic were fully motoring this one wouldn’t be close either.
It’s only not knowing which version of Ronny Deila’s team shows up which makes people think this one might be.
(I think we’ll still win it easily, it has to be said.)
I also agree with him that trying to package this as “the biggest derby on Earth” is absolutely pitiful.
This is a match between Celtic and four year old Newco.
It has no history underpinning it at all, and the history the press wants to dredge up and stick on it is all the wrong kind. I have never taken any pride or satisfaction in the so-called Old Firm game; it doesn’t have the outright passion of the Boca – River Plate game, or the football quality of the San Siro derby or the poetry of El Classico. Most of the games over the last years of Rangers were turgid, boring stuff … what this fixture had going for, all it had going for it, for years, was hate.
I want no part of that at all.
Most Celtic fans don’t.
That Rangers fans clung onto the Old Firm tag and that they’re trying to resurrect it even now speaks partly to their tendency to immerse themselves in culturual wars and hate but mostly to their desire to be part of something bigger than they are. It wouldn’t be hard.
But Celtic supporters plainly hate it and have for years.
This week ought to occasion deep embarrassment in the Scottish media. They’ve told the whole world that a four year old Newco founded from the rubble of a tax fraud and a liquidation is about to “save the game” in this country.
It is an offensive suggestion, and as if that wasn’t bad enough they’ve advertised our sport as “open for business again” as if it wasn’t before.
But their only “unique selling point” is that hatred.
Who in God’s name would want to invest in that?
This week we’ve seen this country’s media and our governing bodies at their very, very worst.
They have no self-awareness at all, no imagination to dream of something better … it stinks to high heaven and it is corrupting and morally indefensible.
That it took a complete halfwit to break ranks and point it out to them heaps shame and disgrace on every single one of them.
If only they saw that.
If only they cared.