Ibrox’s Behind The Scenes Apology To Celtic Is Cowardly And Dangerous.
Soccer Football - Scottish Premiership - Rangers v St Johnstone - Ibrox, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain - August 12, 2020 General view outside the stadium before the match, as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Pool via REUTERS/Ian MacNicol
So Celtic’s John Paul Taylor – an outstanding representative, as it happens – has confirmed today that the Ibrox club offered an apology to Celtic over the deplorable incidents at the weekend, and in particular the one where our physio was struck by a bottle.
They did so in private.
The question is, why didn’t they do it in public?
That club is absolutely gutless.
Why not say sorry to Celtic in public?
Who do they think would have objected to that?
The majority of their own fans abhorred the bottle throwing – although, as I’ve pointed out, they have tolerated the appalling songs and banners which fed into that atmosphere of absolute hatred.
Do they fear the small minority of nutters this much?
The nutters, as they should be aware, are the ones throwing the stuff in the first place.
Why is Ibrox still pandering to them?
For a visiting official to be struck by an object is a disgrace to the club and a source of deep shame.
An apology, in public, would have treated the issue with the gravity that it deserves. The club could then have publicly disassociated itself from those who carried out the incident. They have done neither.
This is the club that encourages some of its worst elements by putting them in the press room, fully credentialed. It knows that there are elements in the support – and in particular one specific section of their ground – which need rooted out.
They refuse to tackle these things in any meaningful way.
A private apology to Celtic is pandering to those people, Peepul they suspect might have renewed their squeals of outrage.
But think about what that would have done; it would have put the spotlight on the kind of “fans” who consider a display of solidarity with another club over such an incident to be unacceptable … what could do more to highlight their own disturbed mind-set?
That would have made them easier to take on.
Celtic will be appalled that the club does not feel that it can make a public statement on this matter in the face of their own supporters … it is a dangerous signal to send to the lunatic brigade, and it comes at a time when the club has done that already by cancelling the AngeBall Tour game in Australia.
No other club would behave in such a manner.