GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - MARCH 08: Rangers Head Coach Danny Rohl looks dejected during a Scottish Gas Scottish Cup Quarter-Final match between Rangers and Celtic at Ibrox Stadium, on March 08, 2026, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Alan Harvey/SNS Group via Getty Images)
There was a lot to unpack from today’s Celtic win at Ibrox in the Scottish Cup. I will have much more to say about the scenes at the end, and I will cover them across several articles because there are many different elements to address.
There will also be a major SFA reaction, as opposed to their holding statement, at some point, and I will be very interested to see how the media decides to cover it. We all know how that usually goes.
Celtic supporters will get blamed. At the very least the media will frame it as a “plague on both houses” situation.
But the truth is very different.
For now, though, I want to talk briefly about the Ibrox manager Danny Rohl and his comments after the match. When he was asked about the ugly scenes at the end, he claimed not to know what the interviewer was referring to.
That answer is difficult to believe.
Even if he was in the tunnel, there are monitors in the tunnel and in the dressing rooms. News of what was happening on the pitch would have spread quickly. It is simply not credible that he knew nothing about it.
And there are many different factors involved in what happened today.
However, one factor the media will almost certainly ignore is his own role in creating the atmosphere that produced it.
Because the people who stormed onto the pitch today are the same people he has spent weeks, if not months, pandering to.
They represent the most dangerous supporter element in Scottish football.
And he has effectively acted as their chief cheerleader.
From the beginning he has pursued one obvious strategy: keep that element onside in order to protect his own position. It has been one of the most gutless displays of managerial politics I can remember watching.
These are the very same supporters who hounded the previous manager out of his job through sustained intimidation.
Any responsible manager would have condemned that behaviour.
Instead, Rohl’s first instinct was to ingratiate himself with them. Presumably he reasoned that if they destroyed the last manager, they could destroy him as well.
So, he chose appeasement.
The problem with appeasing people like that is simple. It never works. The moment they decide you are finished, they will turn on you without hesitation. And if results continue the way they are going, that moment will not be far away.
Pandering to them has bought him nothing.
He has lasted longer than his predecessor, but that is about all he has achieved. If he survives a full year in the job, it will be something of a miracle.
Should his team finish third this season, there are already serious questions about whether he will even survive the summer.
And if that happens, all that ingratiation will count for absolutely nothing.
Rohl will go the same way as Russell Martin. The same way as Philippe Clement, Michael Beale and Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
Managers who pander to the mob never control it.
Eventually the mob consumes them.
That is why a manager in his position has a clear responsibility today. He should condemn those supporters in the strongest possible terms.
Instead, he chose silence.
There will be endless blame-shifting in the days ahead. There will be attempts to frame this as a shared failure between both sets of supporters. I will deal with those arguments in more detail elsewhere.
But what happened today is obvious.
And it should be obvious to him as well.
Rohl has prioritised his relationship with that supporter element above doing what is right. That choice is scandalous. And it is gutless.
At best he knows exactly what happened and has chosen to remain silent. At worst he knows exactly what happened and deliberately stayed out of sight so that nothing could stick to him. Either way, the responsibility still sticks. It sticks to him like glue.
The correct response today was obvious. Rohl should have made it clear that supporters who behave that way have no place in his stadium.
But when your position is already fragile, and when a few more bad results could bring those same people to your door demanding your job, some individuals choose silence instead.
History has always had a word for people who make that choice.
We call them cowards.
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The SFA should force the huns to play their home games behind closed doors for the rest of the season.
That would only help them, Johnny. :)))
Good point Magua 🙂
Quite simply no fans should have gone on the pitch. The SFA and Scottish media will make no distinction between those who were celebrating and those who reacted with the sole purpose of violence. The difference between the wee lassie who was on the pitch for a selfie versus the Onion Bears with their Smurf Masks will be ignored.
Watching with my wife (English and quite dispassionate about the whole affair – despite my best efforts!), she immediately called out the thugs with their blue masks (“why are they wearing them unless they want to avoid being identified?”).
But it has always been so – alcohol was banned after Rangers fans couldn’t take losing the SC Final in 1980.
Now to the most important game of our season – the next one, being Motherwell. I’m hoping we have some players back from injury and the physios and coaching staff get to make good use of a week without a midweek game!
I do agree that both clubs will be punished no matter how unfair. The Stewards and the police probably live next door to the Onion Bear members and were reluctant to stop their 80 yard charge and perhaps even enabled it.
I’ve got to totally disagree with you, for they have went too far this time, they have crossed the line, for firing flares at opposition fans is far too dangerous to be swept under the carpet. Whether they want to or not, the SFA will be duty bound to act.
There isn’t anywhere in the national media can you get the truth. Celtic staff member assaulted and glossed over. Celtic fans started it.
The Celtic media must link Andrew Cavanagh’s name to this at every opportunity. This is the level to which he has sunk. Also even though there is no actual connection to the club , The 49’s. Someone in the fan media should write to them and ask their opinion.
Unpopular opinion coming up…Celtic fans coming onto the park to celebrate did actually cause these disgraceful scenes. I get that they were celebrating and not trying to purposely provoke trouble, but that’s exactly what happened. It’s IBROX ffs, 3/4 full of the most volatile, odious and arrogant fans anywhere. What the fuck did these fans think was going to happen? That the hun hoard would turn a blind eye? It was pure stupidity, and I just hope nobody was injured when those morons fired flares into our fans. Hopefully tv cameras can identify them.
Saying that, it should never have been ALLOWED to happen in the first place. A far heavier police presence around the ground when it first went to penalties would have prevented this kind of trouble, and after 8years of reduced allocation they really should have been more prepared.
Maybe they thought that the Sevco fans, like all other fans do after a defeat, would be on the way home, or on the way to the pub.
The Ibrox fans have a roll of dishonour over the years, of attacking opposing fans and players whilst they celebrated Cup victories.
1965 League Cup Final winners Celtic FC.
1980 Scottish Cup winners Celtic FC.
2016 Scottish Cup winners Hibernian FC.
2025 Quarter Final Scottish Cup winners Celtic FC.
FrankieBhoy we get enough cover ups coming from the enemies of our club, without you doing it for them. Celtic fans”Causing Disgraceful Scenes” get a hold of yourself Ffs, so the fans who ran 100 yards to try and confront the celebrating fans were poor wee innocents. My God, that from a so called Bhoy. Methinks you’re either a fool or a lurker.
Just checked the calendar, that should be 2026.
I’m neither, Micmac.
But I do know stupidity when I see it. And where do I suggest that their fans running up the pitch were “poor wee innocents”? Them having a roll-call of violent behaviour only highlights my original point – why the fuck would anyone do that knowing it could, and actually did, cause a riot, and one of our back room staff to be assaulted.
Frankie Bhoy,
People celebrating in the moment are very seldom aware or stop to think in a sensible fashion. You are blaming the celebrating fans who have got no violence on there minds for “causing these disgraceful scenes”. I think that is a ridiculous summation, and is making excuses for the violent reaction of the people who ran the length of the field to confront the celebratory fans. The Scottish media will deflect and do that, without Celtic fans doing it for them.
Not related – but I wrote to Brian Wilson this week (and also emailed our Fan Liason Officer with the same letter, asking for it to be forwarded to Brian Wilson and MN). We really need to push to have the Green Brigade back in for the title push. The more that push for this the better our chance of winning this league. Email to John Paul Taylor our fan rep is: jptaylor@celticfc.co.uk
Content of letter I sent is below.
Dear Mr Wilson,
I write to you as a fellow Celtic supporter of more than 50 years. In that time, we have celebrated many highs and endured more lows than we would care to remember. Winning the Double in our Centenary year—complete with late drama at Hampden—and being fortunate enough to attend the 2003 UEFA Cup Final in Seville remain two personal highlights. I try not to dwell on the difficult periods, particularly those we faced during the 1990s.
However, in all my years following Celtic, I have never experienced a season quite like this one. Comparisons have been made to 1985–86, but it is often overlooked that, at that time, clubs outside Glasgow—most notably Aberdeen and Dundee United—were frequent challengers. This season’s competitiveness stems largely from our own missteps and of improved consistency shown by Hearts and Motherwell.
My focus, though, is on Celtic and what we do as a Club. Whatever mistakes have been made cannot be undone. We are extremely fortunate that the Board persuaded Martin O’Neill to take charge not once but twice this season. His leadership has steadied the ship and kept us within reach of both the league title and the Scottish Cup. As you have rightly said, giving ourselves the best chance of success requires the entire Celtic family to unite behind Martin and the team and offer our full support.
I do not condone the behaviour of the Green Brigade, and they must accept the health and safety requirements in place, particularly around stewarding and policing at Celtic Park. At the same time, I cannot deny the atmosphere they help generate at Paradise—the energy that makes our home a fortress and poses a challenge for every visiting side. From what I have read, the Club’s conditions for their return appear reasonable. But it also seems evident that trust and good faith between the Green Brigade and the Board have broken down.
If our sole priority is supporting Martin O’Neill and the team in their pursuit of the SPFL title, the Board can take meaningful steps to rebuild the relationship with supporters by:
– Lifting the ban on the Green Brigade for the remaining home league fixtures this season;
– Publishing a clear timeline for discussions between the Club and the Green Brigade early in the close season, aimed at agreeing conditions for 2026/27;
– Making it clear that both parties are taking these steps in the interests of Martin and the team.
The continued breakdown in relations between the Board and sections of the support is harming Celtic’s reputation. Failure to finish this season strongly risks substantial financial damage to the Club. Now is the moment for the Board to take a positive step—to repair some of that damage and avoid the financial consequences of falling short. Failing to take the initiative could reasonably be viewed as a breach of the Board’s fiduciary duty.
Yours in Celtic,
If the GB make concessions they will get back, but I think they are holding out for a regime change, and us marching to 2 trophies without them doesn’t help them much. They should be publishing the minutes of their meeting with the board for full transparency..why the big secret. The collective were slow but they did eventually publish the minutes..nothing from the GB…why?
Well done Porto, but I really doubt if Brian Wilson will acknowledge receipt of your letter, never mind reply to it. They have proved time and again that they don’t care about the ordinary fans, but good luck just the same.
We can only try Johnny!
Herr Rohl,
Brown brogues-check
Suit-check
Poppy-check
Arrogant wank-check
Supremacist mindset-check
What is it with Sevco managers?
And worth remembering when the Scottish media talk about Celtic’s lack of attacking threat today, we had six first team outfield players missing today…
I think this will result in no away fans and that is probably the best decision. It certainly has put the chance of getting the full Broomloan on the back burner for sure. We are already banning our own fans so CFC are accepting they have a problem.
Let’s be honest why have the Ibrox neds at CP anyway? Better for the city as a whole if away fans banned for both fixtures.
The club and the GB need to get behind the table and concessions must be made especially by the GB and they can then show that they are not like the Ibrox neds but they have to accept that they will be policed like everyone else.
Good article James but one thing…Schmeichel, Els and McGregor have been missing almost the entire season…its like saying Kenny was missing today.
I’d gladly have no huns at CP. At the last game it was 90 + minutes of absolute filth coming from the away support. Another thing that seems to be lost in the conversation is that the huns started all this due to consistently being spanked and defeated. Not forgetting the other incidents where Celtic staff have been assaulted. Ban the orange bastards for good.
If that’s to be the very final Free Broomloan Party it’s been a fuckin GREAT ONE !
The cops messed up badly. They must have know what would happen as the hunss did the same last week. We were hemmed in by cops and security and they were allowed to run on the track a pitch a d challenge us, with no action taken against them. The scenes on Broomloan Road about 12:30 were dangerous due to only one entry point to the stadium and the cops gave up on ticket checks because of the crushing. There were no signs notifying road closures and fans travelling by car were forced through hun designated areas leading to more trouble. Ignoring the sepsis of Scottish football fans is in the cops. I would like to know who represented Celtic at the planning meeting, they need a boot in baws
Surely the nazi bears’ same disgraceful scenes in the city centre will eliminate any theories they were only acting in retaliation to Celtic fans celebrating their victory. My wife and I had to go to Glasgow Central to meet our son who had travelled back from Liverpool where he’s visited his sister. It turned out they had to get off the train at Motherwell due to the fire and we got him at Argyle Street station. Our bus intially went up Hope Street as the fire hadn’t started yet, but there were police armoured cars and a mob of the same nazis running towards that building firing flares. We didn’t see any attempts to arrest anyone, they appeared to be just trying to contain them, which failed miserably, as they just had to fire the flares over the police cordon.
I saw Cavenagh on TV and he looked absolutely distraught, I thought it was the scenes at the end that caused it rather than the defeat. His organisation are known for campaigning against this very type of behaviour in the US, so it will be interesting to see what they do about it. My guess is they will depart ibrox completely now that they know the sinister element they’re dealing with.
This fixture was always going to be a powder keg. The media started it and fuelled it by not stopping the narrative of us getting the full allocation of tickets in the Broomloan Stand. If they had stopped this, they would not have been hyped up about it. The media will sit back and control the narrative to say it was nothing to do with us.