Today, a new low for The Daily Record as they’ve taken to openly threatening Celtic and Scott Brown over the appeal against his red card yesterday, by raising the spectre of an increased ban for a “frivolous” decision not to take it lying down.
They’ve even taken to twisting what Brendan said in the aftermath of the game, wherein they are suggesting he “accepted” the red card.
I listened carefully to what he said; he did no such thing.
He spoke in a moment of anger, at the end of a fraught encounter where, frankly, we were cheated and, as he said, Brown reacted after being provoked.
Reacted. After being provoked. That’s what he said.
At no point did he say he agreed with the decision. A tackle can be mis-timed, even rash, and not deserve a red card from the ref. And this ref has a very different interpretation of what a rash and dangerous challenge is from the rest of us anyway, as Kieran Tierney found out to his cost earlier in the season.
Yes, it’s the same guy.
The same ref who thought this challenge was a yellow.
As per usual, with what is no doubt a PR inspired piece of toilet trawling, there’s no name on The Record’s report today, with the “credit” attached to it reading “Record Sport Online”, the favourite fig-leaf when one of their gutless wonders wants to do the bidding of Jim Traynor and the Ibrox hierarchy without wanting to be named.
And that’s what their article is; gutless. Inflammatory.
A naked attempt to cast our decision in a bad light, to rob it of legitimacy from the start.
Look, in my view this is a blatant attack on our captain, our manager, our whole club in a season where we’re on the verge of making history. I’m sick of writing that the paper should be banned from our ground; if Celtic are happy to allow that, to let through the doors people who work for an organ which does not mean us well, then this will happen periodically.
To my knowledge, no standard has ever been set for these people, no line drawn over which they cannot cross.
This particular attack on us is brazen, and naked, and open for all to see. If the club allows it I do not know how they justify it to Brendan or Scott, because this threatens the rest of our captain’s season, robbing him of any presumption of innocence at all. The Record has already found him guilty, and from now until the hearing will dribble this poison … I am lost for words at our continuing to allow them to get away with this stuff.
Honestly, Celtic, how far is “too far”?
Are we going to wait until one of the “Record Sport Online” articles slanders us in the manner of Kelvin MacKenzie? Is that what it’s going to take? Another “Thugs and Thieves”? I warned in my last article yesterday that the strategy would be to try and de-legitimise the appeal; this is exactly what I expected them to do.
They aren’t even trying to hide their intentions.
I don’t have to tell Celtic fans not to buy this rag. They know that.
The problem no longer lies with the supporters; it lies with the club for tolerating this sort of stuff.
Celtic will appeal the Brown decision. We are entitled to do so. The regulations permit it.
To the best of my knowledge no-one has ever had a ban extended for a “frivolous appeal” … I hope they try it.
The media will cry over this – The Record has already started; the tone of the article reeks of petty spite but also fear and childish anger – and those inside Ibrox will chafe over it, but hard lines. Brown will play in the semi-final and there is damn all they can do about it.
On a final note, I see the media is running with a story about how Brad McKay of Inverness is tweeting his glee over yesterday’s cheating, referencing John Guidetti’s dive at Tynecastle from December 2014 … two and a half years ago.
Oh man, he’s held on to his bitterness over that for a long time, eah?
Perhaps – and this is just a suggestion – he should keep his mouth shut and do his talking on the park, where it belongs, instead of raking over the coals. His team has lost 62 goals this season, the most in the league, the equivalent of nearly two every game. They are rock bottom and heading for the Championship. I don’t know … if that was me, I’d want to hide under the bed instead of using Twitter to trawl for attention.
Inverness fans must love him.
What a season he’s had.