As Celtic supporters, we are kind of used to spotting the high levels of spin in newspapers and on the television. so when David cameron told us yesterday that he wants to give us the Good Life, we know he really meant that he’ll carry on taking our money so that we are forced to grow our own food.
We can spot the signs.
Tonight Celtic face Kilmarnock in Glasgow, and supporters are being asked to pop into a supermarket on the way in and grab a few things for those who are having it tough right now. Times are hard out there, and some people are having problems making ends meet. Theres too many bills and not enough pennies to go around.
A colleague of mine works for one of the councils round here, and part of his job is to allocate those in need with the neccesary papers to go to a foodbank to get help. The biggest criteria of those in need is not that they are scroungers, or any of the other words by those who would rather they all went away, but in fact it’s often the month-or two months-they have to go without pay or benefits after starting a new job.
If you will, think also of how many sleepless nights an average man or woman will have before admitting they need help, and how they must feel when they ask for it.
It’s not their fault, and we all need a helping hand from time to time.
If you can’t make the game, find out where your local foodbank is, and ask them what they need.
This kind of stuff, from a list tweeted by Harry Brady, is always welcome;
Back to the football, and Celtic are just five wins away from the league title. One of which should be secured tonight, although the teams been a bit wobbly of late. The papers, as we know, have been quick to pounce, and if some of the reports are to be believed, it’s because everyones away in the summer.
And those that are staying are pissed off with those that are away still getting a game.
Well, just John Guidetti, to be honest. Who has been rejected by Feyenoord after he asked for the equivalent of a transfer fee as his signing on fee. which is actually poor thinking from the Dutch club. If it were Celtic refusing to pay a decent signing on fee to make up for a relatively low wage, we’d be on the car park with pitchforks, especially for a proven player.
Thats not to say he’s likely to stay in Glasgow, however, as he may well have burned his bridges. Ronny Deila has been keeping us updated;
“The situation is the same.
“He has to come and say he wants to play for Celtic and then we can talk about it. If not then he will go away. We have done everything we can and he wanted to wait. I speak with him regularly but we will have to wait and see what happens.”
More or less, Ronny is saying that the Swede isn’t worth the hassle.
Another “negative ” story surrounds Jason Denaayer, who will be returning to Manchester City for a pre season assessment, and that, in turn , means he will miss at least the first Champions League qualifier. We already knew that, and none of us are really expecting him to be here next season, but football is a funny game, and it’s not always about money.
Denaayer has won the Premier League Young Player of the month award for March. Surprisingly, the all division award went to Rafaelle de Vita, of Ross County
Anyway, Denaayer is enjoying life at Celtic, and is not keen to give up his place in the Belguim squad, which is a real possibility should he return south.
‘I only try to focus my mind on what is happening at Celtic and try to do my best for them. I always try to give my best level for Celtic, that’s what I need to do if I’m to reach the highest level in football
‘I haven’t spoken to Patrick Vieira or anyone at City but I hope they are happy with my progress.
‘I feel that I have improved a lot from the start of the season, I’m a more mature player and my style of play is also different from when I first arrived.
‘Some of the strikers I come up against in Scotland are big and strong. They are big and a bit different to what I have been used to but I have improved with every game.’
What he really means, remember we can see through this sort of thing, is that he wants to stay where he is, and is hoping that Manuel Pellegrini gets his jotters, and the new manager hates Belgians.
Ronny was even handed about the issue, refusing to say what he really thought;
‘City want Jason back for pre-season to see what kind of level he is at and where he stands and get the group together and maybe he will be loaned out again or he will stay. That is up to Jason and the manager,’
‘We will see what happens – but it is very hard just now. We will look for a central defender anyway, one maybe two.’
Deila also announced the arrival of a specialist defence coach to help Denaayer get ready for his assessment back at his parent club.
There has been a delay in announcing the post split fixture list for the Premier League. This is because the league, the tv people, the police and anyone else who has wandered into the meeting cannot agree on anything.
Its a shame the fit and proper examination isn’t extended to those running the game.
The Daily Record says;
Doncaster battle against the clock ? I thought he was the , oh, it says clock. My bad.
The Record found a “source close to the talks “
“To say this process is proving incredibly difficult would be something of an understatement.
“It’s not just a case of two rival broadcasters arguing over who gets the best live games and when, but it’s also further complicated by the requirements of the police.
“At this moment in time it’s fair to say we are nowhere near reaching an agreement.
“People will obviously describe this an embarrassment which it is but it’s also a highly-complicated situation. On top of everything else there is an imbalance in this year’s fixtures which has been thrown up because Hamilton did not make the top six.
See that last line there.
Thats the giveaway.
See if the team they want in the set up isn’t there, say because it isn’t good enough, the whole game falls apart.
Don’t be surprised if Second Rangers find their way in there somehow.
The “source ” continued ;
“As a result of this, difficult decisions have to be made and it’s going to be impossible to keep everyone happy. When anyone is asked to play away from home three times in one season against the same club it becomes problematic. But these are the issues which arise from having the split and they have to be dealt with.”
Why talk of the one home , three away as “problematic ” ? It’s not a new thing, and therefore they should have experience of dealing with it. Perhaps someone should have mentioned this when they came up with the idea in the first place… Oh, we did.
And thats before any confusion thrown up if Hibernian get to the Scottish cup final.
The play offs are scheduled around the same time, and the Edinburgh side will be involved, so they may have to be delayed. Which is bad news forSecond Rangers, who may have to wait a while yet to sell any season books.
Dave King might yet need more money to keep Second Rangersgoing until the season book money comes in…
One way of avoiding this would be to employ someone at the SPFL who can make “difficult decisions,” without fear or favour, instead of this grinning imbecile . Because he’s in charge, and therefore he should sort it, or do the honourable thing…
I can’t figure out how he got the job. a drunk chap handed in a copy of his CV to Etims last week, and we don’t believe for a minute it’s true, but some of the references, well, it could have been him, I suppose…
After leaving school , he had his first job at a theme park,
where he proved he wasn’t capable of getting dressed by himself.
And when it came to health and safety…
Mind you, when he left, they had commissioned a statue of him. Our man swears he was in the room when it was delivered.
So, how did he end up in charge? Well, they needed a certain type of person, and when there wasn’t one available, Doncaster was.
Cartoonist Morris appears to have been at the final interview. Perhaps a few tougher questions could have been asked;
Ineptitude-or is it just corruption ?-is rampant in Scottish football. Sky TV sent me a letter, telling me the bills going up. They also offered me Sky Sports back at half price.
They just don’t get it, do they ?
The affiliation of CSCs tweeted this ;
We have our own , courtesy of Charlie Saiz,
And a number for you to ring..
0344 241 0266
By the way, for those of you who asked, my operation was a success, and the wife has calmed down now as well.
I know, lets finish with a caption competition…
Broony demonstrates what the Three Bears will have to do to their Sevco loan
This is your goodbye kiss George of the jungle as we are signing bale!
Go out there and show them how to play the Samaras way , Ya big Sexy Handsome Bastard .
On a non footballing note, I work in Money Advice and assist many of those who are receiving help from foodbanks.
As it says here, people will go some time before asking for help and the longer they wait the harder it is to sort things out.
I would encourage anyone who thinks they even might be running into problems to seek help straight away, its usually free (CAB in England, CAB and local Councils in Scotland) and completely confidential. You’ll also find out you’re not the only one, in fact, far from it.
Well said Morto in the true tradition of the Celtic culture you offer quality advice, God bless.
HH
Great diary Ralph. Very good cause being supported tonight, hopefully they get a great response, knowing Celtic fans I’m sure there will be. The fact that this is what its come to in the first world is a very sad indictment of our society. That there is a general election with no realistic prospect of a party coming to power who will do anything about this is even sadder.
Deals were done in 2008 to protect the financial sector from its own mismanagement and we will be living with the consequences of those deals made to protect the few for generations
I don’t agree with you about Guidetti – if his transfer fee would be £3m ish I don’t think its right this is gifted to him as a signing on fee before his £20k a week salary even kicks in – if he signed for 3 years it would be another £1m quid a year on top of £1 m wage a year he’s looking
Neil Doncaster. What to say? Any man, any man, his age who still has that hair style is a fud. I don’t care if you’re a Celtic fan, a flat top hair do is unacceptable in a man over 20.
Saw on twitter last night the spilt has been going 17 years!? I still don’t understand it or see the need for it, but I am a slow adapter – I’ve just about come to terms with numbers on the back of our jerseys.
What is that picture of the bear about by the way – have you seen the size of its –ahem- lunchbox!? That should never be near kids, jeez oh
Come on the hoops for tonight, lets run across the finish line to this title rather than stumble
congrats to David McCarthy of Daily Record fame. He has caught onto the fact that when football is played on Friday and Sundays due to the greed of SKY and BT sports the crowds dwindle and we get near to no money for the broadcasting. Has this not been mentioned on the diary for the past ehm…..eternity, good to know what he reads for his research.
I find it alarming that nearly a week has passed since it was revealed that SD have claimed both official OF trademarks without a word of response from the Board. But maybe it’s just me being contrary. However, on the back of the comments made by PL to Paul Larkin, I really can’t see why any of us can truly deny our complicity from the outset to the beginning of next season in regards to the continuing omnishambles of the past.
Ralph
Welcome home from Dunoon the water. I am just back from up the creek myself or, as most guys put it, in the wife’s bad books. Or if you were poorly, then join the club. I haven’t had two beans to rub together since I agreed to a joint account. Seriously, I hope you are well.
You deserve a genuine accolade for that first section of today’s Diary. Not only did you promote the good cause, explain why it is happening but exposed or hinted at the underlying reasons why people are experiencing this deprivation. I am regularly shocked by the comments, often by those claiming to have a strong moral or religious background, about the shameful behaviour of those “taking advantage” of food- banks. These are people who are “forced” in almost every case to “take advantage” of an utterly humiliating process. Anyone who experienced the coupon years might have a teeny understanding of want and need, especially its effects on children. In my lifetime I have witnessed in my own extended family those who were not sure where any meal would come from far less clothes and footwear. And remember, in those days close knit and supportive communities still existed. Are there any people can turn to today? I do not see them myself so the food-bank exists and by its very nature tars its users with unwarranted but definite shame. Oh, what a wonderful world! I await the incredible results of our fans’ generosity and hope those who can will help restore dignity to those who are humiliated by what they will see as a begging experience. Well done Ralph. You are way up there.
I have to mention you also tickled me totally pink by using a phrase I lived with in my working days but have not heard since my hair was black – it never was really – “is hoping that Manuel Pellegrini gets his jotters”. Great to hear some propur English.
Now to the crystal balls of the media people – the only ones they seem to have. Please do not tell me they are starting already to negotiate our transfer deals. All I will say is, we need some better blood from somewhere and there is a whole forest of failures out there that need to be cut down chopped up and shipped out. A lot but not all (of mine) have been mentioned above.
Why, why, why do you even give a name to that apology of a so called executive. I think your drunk guy went to the SPL before you for a job. Just like some readers, those interviewing obviously do not read your captions or fail to see the point of your photos. There were two pricks in them today and neither were in the position they should have been. And, Ralph, I really think you miscalculated how much credit should be in that parcel for Dumbcaster. I am going to leave kings till Christmas. Those three always drop in, head back home and are never mentioned again. Maybe by this December the current one will do the same and take the “biggest fan(ny) base in the world” with him.
Thanks for a terrific Diary today. I needed it after Saturday – only because the wife came back to me – or the dug.
“Ok, Broonie, but no tongues mind”
H H
“gets his jotters” is the actual phrase in case anyone thinks I was having a go at Man City. Now would I?
H H
My understanding (may be completely made up!) was that the spfl basically predicted the top 6 at the start of the season and set the fixtures so those teams would play each other 4 times, twice home, twice away and vs all the others 3 times equating to a total of 19 home & away games each, when the prediction doesnt come true (every year!) then we get some imbalances.
So, IF that is true… who picked Hamilton, who came up in the playoffs last year, as a top 6 team before a ball was kicked this season? Can only have been Doncaster!!
Also, I remember seeing an article about relative tv deals across Europe. Has anyone seen a proper hypothetical financial analysis of the spfl with current tv deal vs no tv deal but full stadia every week?
Ralph,
You missed the opportunity to say that the money saved on Sky could go towards feeding the needy. Thus, charitable duty to cancel Sky … 😉