Today half of the media is running absolute garbage about the ongoing Ibrox ticket row.
The Sun claims that Celtic is “set” to deny Ibrox tickets for Parkkhead; at no time has our club taken such a stand. Ibrox is “writing to the SPFL” on the matter to demand their allocation. Which Celtic was always going to give them, as I have little doubt our club will confirm in due course, and especially after this hysterical response.
At the same time, The Evening Times is running a piece stating that Celtic were handed a assurances from a “safety expert” which should have made us feel more able to take tickets for the Ibrox fixture. This one didn’t come from Chris Jack but from one of his colleagues at the paper, which is an old political party trick to cloak the actual source of the story.
I have little doubt that Paton got that particular story from Jack and that Jack got his story from Ibrox.
They could have just published it under Jack’s byline, but that would have given this away for what it is; utter garbage.
This latest series of articles reek of panic.
They are a pure PR stunt, the latest in a long line of them where this issue is concerned.
The Ibrox hierarchy is starting to flap.
They know the connotations, for the watching world, if there are no Celtic fans in that ground. They cannot paint it as “a standoff” because our club is not barring their fans from Parkhead, in spite of their lies in this regard.
They realise, perhaps, the full scale of their mistake here.
Ibrox cannot win if this debate is had on our terms, and our view on this – which reflects the reality of our situation – is that Ibrox is not a safe ground for our fans to visit.
There are two strands to this.
The first is to attempt to make it seem as if we’re continuing the “standoff” element of it – which they know will collapse the minute we confirm we’d have given them tickets to Parkhead anyway – and the second is to re-frame the security aspect of it, and they are cynically trying to claim that Celtic is over-reacting or worse.
But they dare not make that putrid claim on the record, because that would subject their nonsense to genuine scrutiny.
So what if Ibrox’s own security team feel that they can make the experience safe?
This is absolute rot. The idea that more stewards and police will make it safe is equally preposterous … and begs the following question; who was going to pay for those? Ibrox itself? Don’t count on it.
Imagine the brass neck to offer extra police as a solution to this problem anyway.
The police are a taxpayer funded entity; no wonder Ibrox treats them with such cavaleir disregard.
But if thousands of its officers are on duty there because their club wants to appease the Goon Squad amongst their own fanbase, I have to wonder what that means for policing in dozens of communities up and down the West of Scotland, and I have to wonder if this isn’t the moment when our political class steps in to point out how unacceptable the further allocation of police resources here would be … and to finally bring this situation to a head.
Not that it matters.
Because all the police can do anyway is form a ring around our fans to stop a physical attack on the ground. That does not keep our fans safe from the hail of bottles and other objects which targeted them, from all sides, the last time they set foot in that place.
As long as our fans are surrounded by theirs, they are in harms way.
Today’s reports offer no new information whatsoever.
Indeed, the piece by Andy Devlin in The Sun is a tissue of half truths and outright lies, the most egregious of which is contained in this line; “Rangers had hoped to resolve the matter, but Celtic have now made their position clear.”
We know, all of us, full well that Ibrox has no intention of resolving this matter, and this attempt to frame it around our club, as if this were somehow our fault, is scandalous. I’d say it represents a new low except I know that to be equally false; it’s difficult to imagine, knowing that publication’s sordid history, what it would have to do to find a “new low.”
The truth, as usual, is simple and our club is entirely in the right.
Ibrox presented Celtic with a security plan and their own evaluation of the risks, Celtic looked at it, recognised it for what it was – an almost complete dismissal of our concerns – and told them it was not acceptable.
This is no different than what happened last season, after that first visit to their ground, when Celtic was shocked by the complete disregard their officials showed towards our wholly legitimate worries for our fan’s safety on their next visit there.
Which is why we turned down tickets then.
We’re no more satisfied here than we were at that time, which is why we’ve turned them down now.
Celtic rejected those tickets on the advice of our own security team, and we did so after submitting a list of questions and raising a number of issues which Ibrox didn’t even come close to addressing.
That the media has been urged, again, to repeat and push Ibrox’s pitiful “demand” that we “honour” our commitments to give them tickets for Celtic Park, which there was never any prospect of us not doing, reveals their utter desperation as this game edges closer to being played.
Let’s stick with the facts; last year, we turned down tickets for their stadium on safety grounds, after our fans had been subjected to a 90 minute torrent of missiles and attacks.
They attempted to paint this as a “mutual” decision and turned down tickets for Celtic Park. This site and others claimed that their position was false; there was no “mutual agreement” to turn tickets down. They responded to what they knew would be a public relations nightmare by denying their own fans a chance to watch their team.
They cannot do that this season, and Celtic’s decision to continue boycotting their ground has wrong-footed them completely.
They have now basically admitted that their “concerns” of last season were groundless, and that their statements to the press were a fraud, just as we said they were at the time.
They want tickets for Celtic Park and are actually going to demand they get them … so what happened to their own concerns?
They never existed, as we said right from the start.
So our refusal to go to Ibrox makes them look dreadful. They are going to look like Hell in front of the whole world, and we’re going to make damned sure of it, and there’s nothing now that they can do to stop that except the one thing that they won’t do; get around the table and come to a genuine, equitable solution here.
Devlin and Paton have been played for fools, but let’s not give either of them any benefit of the doubt; they’ve played the role willingly, with their eyes wide open. They are Ibrox PR men today, not journalists.
James, is Chris Sutton’s safety guaranteed yet? HH
Something needs to be done about a club that refuses to make its ground safe for visiting fans and media.
That something that needs to be done about a club that refuses to make it’s ground safe for visiting fans and media would be done in any other country in the universe…
But Hey Ho – This Alas is NOT so very Bonnie Scotland – so nothing will EVER be done – and certainly not if it’s gonna upset Sevco !
Easy solution James ,don’t let these lying so called journalists into Celtic park for x amount of games.
Well said James, only highlights the scum for what they truly are and stand for.
No matter what spin the scum within the media try to paint thing’s the facts remain the facts of the matter.
Personally wouldn’t have such scum within our ground but that looks to be out of our hands now.
Believe the only option available to the scum will be to refuse tickets for our home game, which would be very welcome also imo.
Next the headlines will say that they forced us to fold when we do offer them the mandatory 700 or so tickets whilst still claiming, as they chant about being up to their knees in fenian blood, that the midden offers up such a great family atmosphere.
There’ll be no pictures of broken glass on the pitch or in or on Celtic fans’ or staffs’ heads. Thanks heavens for an independent press in Scotland. HH
It is exactly the same story they put out before based on Bigrove’s rant that the Security teams had met and decided things were safe. Obviously not.
So now it is the Security team have ensured it is safe. Same story.
Like I said before the stadium will be half empty by half time anyways. HH
Well get the message out there again just like with the BBC the evening sevco and the hun newspapers are told to BOLT until they correct themselves and print a follow up to lies printed with an apology.
The more these TRAMPS write this stuff and get away with it the more they will exaggerate the stories.
Strange how there is no comment or statement from celtic in the article. Any journalist with a brain cell would have contacted both clubs and the SPFL and printed the reply from each.
So you can tell straight away that it’s a PR piece. It’s trying to make sevco look good and celtic bad.this will be the first of many stories like this in the build up to the game at the crumble dome
And obviously they could not guarantee the safety of a commentator Chris Sutton hmmm
Dicko Tato The Living Potato
Regular readers, I’d like you to meet The Dick Who Has Fuck All Better To Do.
This is the guy, this guy right here, who sends me HUNDREDS of messages a week, all full of shite patter like this.
This is the guy who is responsible, in part, for the moderation policy.
You will know him under different names, as I do, but his pathetic comments are as inane and bitter and spiteful and stupid no matter what he’s calling himself.
Gentlemen and ladies, for 24 hours, after which I’ll delete his posts, you should make him feel “welcome.”
Those who wish to, the floor is yours.
A football stadium, or dump, as is the case here, is a place of employment and entertainment which should only have a safety certificate if it is a safe place to work and be entertained.. Glasgow Corporation should be asked about the safety of this place and if need be revoke the existing certificate if safety can`t be assured. Celtic could then claim the three points.
As for the “watching world” part of the story: I really don`t think anyone outside of Scotland will be all that interested
even if, by chance, it was mentioned in the commentary
In discussing the merits of the so-called safety nets proposal with a mate we both recalled pictures of a fan walking away from the end of a match at ye old Love Street many moons ago. St Mirren had nets between the away fans and their fans as a safety and segregation barrier. Said nets didn’t stop the dart that was still in his head.
No hun netting at the midden will do so either or for that matter stop the other small missiles the pie induced chin bigots will make specially for the occasion. Nets have more holes in them than their pretence.
They’ve also failed to say if Sutton is being allowed back into the pigpen so in the absence of that I guess he’s not. The huns stated at the time that they couldn’t ensure his safety from their fans. Sorry did I write fans, I meant terrorist thugs. Ultimately that’s what they are. They spread terror with their missiles and there have been many victims of it so they’re terrorists by the very definition of the word, not fans. They are neither policed by their own supporters or their club. If you spread terror you’re a terrorist. Right.
So again I’m left to assume that in the absence of that reassurance to Sutton that they can’t or won’t guarantee the safety of that one man, so how can they do so with the 708 Celts and our staff without the overwhelming security of their pitiful ‘safety’ netting tosh. If they can’t or won’t then why should Celtic allow such terrorising behaviour from terrorists anywhere near Paradise. HH
Ibrox said they couldn’t guarantee the safety of our former players as commentators. How can they protect our supporters?
Where is Celtic’s recent statement on this anyway. Celtic Hierarchy need to be active and provide continual evidence on what the safety issues are.
Openly communicate Celtic.
Openly communicate Police.
Openly tell the truth media regarding safety concerns.
Just tell us the specifics Celtic Board.
In that referenced Andy Devlin article in “The Sun”, it also quotes;
“…Celtic had been accustomed to occupying the entire Broomloan Road end until their allocation was slashed in line with other Premiership teams…”
Eh?! 🙁
Was it not Dave King who made the unilateral decision to cut the CFC allocation?
The sneaky insertion of blatant lies to support the Ibrox spin is just one reason
why The DR in particluar, is deservingly in its death throes.
CELTIC SHOULD ASK THE SPFL TO CANCEL THE AWAY GAME TILL THIS NETTING IS IN PLACE NOVEMBER WOULD GIVE THEM PLENTY TIME OR OCTOBER IF PUSHED AND DONT LET UP ON THEM
Celtic need to get a statement out now that we’ve officially refused tickets. We need to say that due to incidents (and include examples, make these fuckers squirm) we deem Ibrox an unsafe place for visiting fans. Then say that we will, of course, provide Ibrox with tickets as has always been our policy and that we have no concerns about visiting support safety at Celtic Park.
Then watch what Ibrox do. Will they score the own goal and accept our absence then take their own tickets, showing the root cause all along? But we need to make it clear that it’s a safety concern for our fans AND GIVE EXAMPLES, also some info on why we’re not happy things have been addressed. Those words need to be in the public domain, attached to our club, before the 3rd of September.
As for TGM- I assume this stands for The Gormless Mutant- you prove that give 1000 monkeys 1000 typewriters for 1000 years and they won’t write the works of Shakespeare, they’ll produce indecipherable pish. I don’t agree with a chunk of the stuff James writes, but he writes it and provides it for free so we can talk about Celtic. What can possibly be so bad in your life that resorting to messages of this nature seems like a worthwhile endeavour?
The celtic board won’t open their mouths,because this board don’t give 2 FCUK,S about the celtic fans our board Has one love and that’s COLD HARD CASH IN THEIR POCKETS.
That’s the reason they’ve lost me as a paying fan after 25 years of going to every home game…
Do I miss it ? – Yep Absolutely…
But do I have principles ? – Yep Absolutely even More than missing it ! Clachnacuddin
I rathr never even play that posion! You cant deal with vile posionous hate and that is Ibrox top to bottom!! Only in Brigadoon Scotland would this posion be allowed this nonsense!! Journalists ha ha right then!! Cowards and like our supposed ” protectors” ha ha on the beat most are brought up in that mindset and they just love the ” o f” label ” bad as each other like” which is a disgusting lie and everyone knows it!! The evidence is there everyday!! Even wearing green in everyday life angers these Halfwits!! But such terms as ” o f” allows them to lie and feel comfortable with their hate!! Honestly I stop playing any club from that breeding ground of hate and vile anti social behaviour! What a place! As the mayor of Barcelona said in 2007 after they wrecked his city again!! ( it’s what they do everywhere)! ” Poor Celtic having to share a city with these people”! Exactly!
Give them 800 tickets and charge £1000 per ticket.They must be inside the ground 1 hour before kickoff and be “released” 1 hour after the game finishes. SEVCO must sign a guarantee to pay for all damage caused by their support.
KEEP THEM OUT OF PARADISE AT ALL COSTS.