FANS
Hibs had their AGM the other night. Amazing that fans of a club in such a shocking state have time to rail against other fans singing songs they don’t like and the letting off of flares by certain away supporters.
However you feel about flares or certain chants, it’s pretty remarkable that supporters at a club which continues to flounder in abject mediocrity can be so focussed on the fans of other clubs. You would think they’d have more to worry about.
But again, a group of fans is demanding that their club cut the allocations of our supporters. This insanity spread from Ibrox and now toxifies the game. And it is high time that Celtic drew a line in the sand over those and took definitive action on this.
The utter stupidity and selfishness of the clubs in this league is dreadful to watch. Decades of pent-up jealousy and bitterness has erupted since Ibrox took its wholly self-defeating decision to cut our numbers at their ground. Every club in this league now feels free to follow suit. The away match experience is being eradicated, not distilled but eradicated.
But only for our fans and theirs. Their attempts to dress this up as being against pyro and “sectarian singing” are transparently false. Hibs and Hearts still give each other thousands of tickets, and that reveals this for the naked attempt at gaining a sporting advantage that it is, and I can’t believe we’re allowing it to happen. Celtic shouldn’t be tolerating this.
Clubs who cut our allocation to the hundreds should be told we’re turning them down and that their own fans are banned from Celtic Park until we get an equitable solution to this.
I don’t know why we’re soft-soaping this any longer, and if the governing bodies don’t want to act and safeguard the rights of away fans then we shouldn’t allow any at Celtic Park. That will slap the sanity into some of these clubs and force the governing body to actually govern.
This long since passed the point of being ridiculous. These other clubs are run by petty, small-minded people who would actually voluntarily lose money than treat our supporters with a modicum of respect. The prejudice being shown here is sickening and nothing shows up those who run this game more than that they refuse to do something about it.
Their idea of putting it to a vote is a non-starter. That’s not a way of showing responsibility. The clubs who are doing this aren’t going to vote against it, and we all damned well know it. Away fans have no rights in Scottish football, and that would not be permitted anywhere else in the game, and since the SPFL has no interest in granting them we need to force them to.
Our club should make one effort – one public effort – to resolve this crisis, and publish an open call for clubs in this league to respect the rights of away supporters and legislate for change immediately, without further delay. And if they won’t we must reserve the right to do whatever it takes to push the SPFL and the SFA towards taking it out of their hands.
I wouldn’t worry so much about it. It’s their coffers that are being affected and they’ll realise this in a season or two. I agree, cut their allocations right back. It’s rotten for our away fans to miss out, but I don’t think this issue will see 2026.
The crazy thing is that it’s the fans who don’t let off flares etc who are penalised by not receiving tickets. The ultras who let them off at every game ALWAYS get tickets by hook or by crook.
Haven’t had a ticket for away game in 2 seasons but these guys manage regardless.
We’ve got to play hardball . Dont take any tickets off any spfl club , and dont give them any .
This matter is far more nuanced than your assessment. I’m a former Celtic season ticket holder that got sick of being taken for a ride by the board and now attend Hibs matches fairly regularly as my local team. I still consider myself a Celtic fan but have no interest in attending until there is a board and backroom staff clear out.
Most of my friends are Hibs supporters, as is my son, and the behaviour of the horde in January was appalling. We all left early due to the songs of hate. Whilst the conduct of Celtic fans was undoubtedly better a few weeks ago I’m afraid that the IRA songs are not well received. The debates about the number of tickets that I’ve been party to have always focused on behaviour and not about defeats or sporting advantage.
I don’t doubt that the Huns and their Edinburgh cousins as clubs are attempting to gain sporting advantage but I’m not convinced that’s what’s going on at Hibs. A lot of season ticket holders don’t attend against either Glasgow club as they don’t enjoy the atmosphere.
I agree that this matter is being weaponised but the conduct of some of the Green Brigade and their sidekicks is frankly unacceptable. If we expect a more welcoming environment Celtic needs to eliminate the drunken morons and IRA songs from the away support.
Mike – Ma wee granny (God rest her) was a Hibernian fan but I fell for The Hoops of Celtic instead…
Off topic slightly but my ex girlfriend (Renfrewshire lass) didn’t wanna go out too much in Glasgow or Paisley and preferred me to take her weekends to Edinburgh which I duly did and enjoyed but in no way can Edinburgh lecture Glasgow or Paisley – That’s For Sure And on a football front the chants from Hibernian supporters and Heart of Midlothian fans at Parkhead certainly weren’t for a Sunday school choir for sure !
I just think football fans from EVERY club have their moments and I myself sang every freedom fighting Irish Rebel Song in my time of going to The Jungle at Parkhead so personally I cannot lecture anyone on this subject…
But that’s just me though !
Absolutely correct I’m sorry for our away fans but sometimes we have to draw a line and say no more of this crap and ban every away fan until we get a exceptable amount and don’t back down until we get what we want
The money that I used to shell out on a Celtic season ticket now goes towards a couple of trips to see ma favourite English Footy Club – (an unfashionable one in The Championship)…
Every time I’m down (twice a season) Scottish Football is mercilessy mocked –
Reading the above article…
NO FCUKIN WONDER !