It is now nearly forty eight hours since a Celtic official was injured at Ibrox, hit by a thrown bottle. As the time has passed, and we learn more, the details of what happened that day both inside and outside the ground get harder and harder to stomach.
Apart from a few words of outrage, nobody seems particularly outraged.
Police Scotland lumped events in which people were injured in with an attempt to spray expanding foam into a couple of keyholes. I’m not minimising that, but I don’t think those two criminal acts should be competing with one another in order of importance.
There are no Shame Game summits.
There are no hastily convened meetings between football and the government.
Neil Doncaster has given one of the most spineless interviews I’ve ever heard from someone involved in administrating the sport, and it was brazenly dishonest as well.
The Ibrox club has not issued an apology to Celtic over the matter.
Earlier in the season, the Ibrox club refused Chris Sutton entry because they could not guarantee his safety.
Their claim, not ours.
If you’ve seen the police operation which is necessary when only 700 of our fans are in the ground, it is entirely obvious that it is a dangerous environment and the bottles thrown onto the park were only a small matter compared to what Celtic fans had to endure in that tiny section they were given. I have read some of their accounts and it was an horrendous afternoon, and one that asks serious questions about the home club.
But who is asking those questions?
Nobody.
Their decision to cut our ticket allocation has made the fixture manifestly hazardous and the police, who should be taking that decision out of their hands, do not want to.
The SFA should not be allowing it.
Instead we get mealy-mouthed talk about how the game is better off without strict liability.
But let me repeat the headline fact, as it does not seem to be getting anything like the attention that it deserves.
At the weekend, a member of the Celtic backroom team was hit on the head by a flying projectile, at Ibrox, launched not from the cheap seats but from around the area where the cost of a season ticket is many times higher than elsewhere in the ground.
That is a momentous, and dark, development in the long running history of these games.
That should be making everyone in this country pause for a minute and draw breath.
Their club has not made a statement expressing their regret at the injury done to a member of the visiting team’s party and the Scottish footballing authorities are dancing around the subject.
So too are the media.
Chris McLaughlin didn’t even sound particularly convinced that it had happened and STV chose, last night, to present their story on the disorder with a picture of a Celtic fan. The press applauded Ibrox’s SLO for commenting on the bottle that was launched at our goalkeeper but never asked him why he won’t talk about the one which hit our physio.
Does anyone actually give a shit?
Even Celtic has not made an official statement on the disgraceful scenes at the weekend, but it must be clear to all at the club that Ibrox is not a safe environment either for our fans or for our officials and staff.
The home club’s failure to offer an apology or even an expression of regret can only have amplified that view.
I’m certain that Celtic isn’t doing nothing … but whatever it is, you have to wonder if the low-key approach is really going to cut it this time.
If the media and the authorities aren’t interested in dealing with this on their own, then our club should be putting its anger and frustration and lack of faith in the security arrangements in the public domain, because that will spark the debate, that will move the needle and it might end in something getting done.
It’s time we refused tickets due to safety of fans and did the same at Parkhead They are out of control What next coming onto park and stabbing one of our players It needs to stop NOW
We should have refused them this time when they offered 700.
the celtic board should have publicly condemned the incidents – hostile/aggressive and dangerous incidents from each corner of the dump – and also highlighted the sectarian and racist songs from the majority of the bitter, bigoted sevco fans….
but….as usual…..they have kept quiet…….spineless bastards.
Ban them
Funny how at the last “Old Firm” game at CP no “Old Firm” fans threw anything, sang any illegal songs, or invaded the pitch…is there a better stewarding setup at CP? Oh wait, no, it’s because there was NO SEVCONIAN KNUCKLE-DRAGGERS PRESENT.
The filth have bared their nipples into every authority that could do something to effect change…so it’s the status quo for the foreseeable….bastards.
DON’T let them near celtic Park it’s time the BOARD stands up for it’s employees and fans and BANS SEVCO FANS FROM ENTERING CELTIC PARK ENOUGH IS ENOUGH when this happens the sfa spl and the bigoted press MIGHT listen and help clean the Scottish game. WELL DONE ? CELTIC GREAT SHOW????
I was hit with a soft drinks container nothing really but there was constant barrage of coins n at least 4 glass bottles thrown into our section police just stood n watched it really is a cesspit just lucky none of our fans were seriously injured
I brought this up on another forum 2days before the game about safety all has come to fruition about this lot Doncaster’s statement what a load of pish sfa/spfl the police, their board all corrupt vile bile liars.
The Celtic Board are gutless , they do not care if anyone in green and white get injured, all they are interested in is their big payouts at the end of the season. NO BACKBONE.
I believe they caught the three guys with the expanding foam, but have not caught any one for the bottle incidents, hard to believe eh
The rangers fan’s should not be aloud at any away game from now on! I’m sick of hearing about there sick behaviour, and the SFA need to act now! They could of injured there own players when that broken bottle was through into Hart’s box. A bunch of nasty animals.
thats cause it never happened, when it was supposed to have happened Tom Stoltman was doing the half time draw, and i was directly behind that dugout, so if it had happened there would have been medics, police, backroom staff there talking to police. but you wont show this as it doesnt suit your narrative….. “Celtic Blog” hahahah
I’m letting this ridiculous post onto the site to highlight it and subject its writer to the mockery and contempt it undoubtedly deserves.
Absolutely disgraceful Celtic should be making a official complaint against sevco for failing to control there so called fans would call them animals but that’s a slur on the animal kingdom as for the s.p.l no surprise there how about point’s deduction for clubs that can’t control there fans might make more aware of the problems ???that exists especially going to greyskull I personally gave up going there years ago wouldn’t give them the money but we did the business albeit in a poisonous environment well done the Celtic proud of the team great display ????
Your article speaks volumes James. Unfortunately, the indigenous establishment still treat the Irish diaspora with contempt and this includes anyone associated to Celtic football club.
If this had taken place at Parkhead the media would be relentless against us.
Scottish society has an undercurrent of intolerance.
Hope our staffer is recovering, remember he was injured at work!!! Maybe Digby Brown will take his case on.
To all Celts let’s keep our class and do our talking on the pitch. HH
Totally agree with your comments but as a celtic fan for over 50 years I would be thinking of stopping any fans from ibrox entering celtic park till they get an apology from ibrox. Plus the sfa spl and the media because I think there going to brush this under the carpet,
There’s no surprise in this silence and little action taken against this club it has been happening since 2012 and their previous administration since 1872 and will continue to be swept under in this land of secret societies which seem to rule us