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Celtic Diary Friday June 27 2025: A Big Boy Did It And Ran Away

It’s going to be a busy day over in the east end of Glasgow, with indications that a couple of new signings will be officially unveiled.

Callum Osmand and Benjamin Nygren, the latest additions to the squad are all but ready to be shown off, and not to be outdone, the merchandisers are at it again, with the unveiling of the new third strip…

 

The only clue we have is that it has bits of orange in it. Although that could be gold. But it does look orange.

 

However, we have been assured that there is no trace of a sash on the front.

 

Green , white and gold, but mostly white would be acceptable, perhaps even desirable. As long as there’s none of that wavy lines pattern that seems to be all the rage in England.

 

And no doubt it will be in some modern, scientific material that allows those of us with naturally athletic frames to accentuate our, er, curves.

 

Given that Celtic may have returned to their heritage when selecting colours for a new kit, we hear that on the other side of the city, our cash strapped rivals have returned to their heritage, what little there is of it, and introduced a new training kit along a similar theme…

 

 

Fleggers hi-res stock photography and images - Alamy

 

there is also a ladies range, designed to accentuate their curves as well.

 

July 12 merchandise Belfast: Where to buy? | Belfast Live

 

You have to applaud the Orange Order, for not falling into the trap of using attractive young ladies to lure unsuspecting men into their cult.

 

Speaking of cults, ( check spelling-ed ) David Murray has finally surfaced after fourteen years in hiding since he sent the original Rangers on the road to oblivion.

 

Speaking to Andy Newport, of the Record, you knew there’d be no tricky questions, and Dodgy Dave was allowed free rein to blame everyone else for his novel and exciting method of running a football club.

 

So much so, in fact, that instead of being interviewed for the paper, it seems Murray has sent the Record an extract he’d like to be published…like they used to do in the old days when they wanted to avoid tricky questions about dodgy tax dealings, or improperly registered players.

 

First up to blame was none other than our own Peter Lawwell…

 

 

Peter Lawwell was someone I knew previously. 

“One of my companies GM Mining did business with Scottish Coal where Peter worked and I once invited him and his wife to Ibrox for a game.

“He was delighted to accept and back then was good company, but by the time he rose to become chief executive of Celtic he was on a completely different trajectory. 

 

A successful one, presumably. One which Murray seemed to desire himself, but he could never grasp that cheats never prosper.

 

“For nearly two decades he tried to build up a seat of power and I honestly believe that by the end of his time at the club he was wielding far too much influence in Scottish football. 

Er, he’s still at the club. And what he really means is that Lawwell had more influence than him, being in possession of the evidence that proved Murray was not following the rules. Which evolved into the Financial Fair Play rules we see today.

 

At one point, after I sold Rangers, it seemed he was positively revelling in the demise of the club. 

 

Not as much as I was.

 

Laurel Hardy Laughing GIFs - Find & Share on GIPHY

 

By the way, I wonder what he did with his windfall from the sale…I certainly hope he paid the tax due on it..

 

 

Who can forget the iconic picture of Craig Whyte, hovering over Murray, rummaging in his pocket , hoping he’d remembered to lift the solitary pound coin from the kitchen table at home, which he would use to buy the stricken club.

 

Paul Murray reveals how he turned to the Daily Record to save Rangers from administration | videocelts.com

 

The Express, on April 28, 2017, was certainly worried about something…

 

Rangers ‘warned’ over possible police probe into £1 purchase

A RANGERS director raised the possibility of a police probe into the funding of Craig Whyte’s buyout at Ibrox, a jury heard today.

 

 

“He held sway on committees through friends and always used the strength of his power base when he thought it was necessary. 

 

As opposed to Murray, who held sway over his bank manager, allowing the Ibrox club a limitless supply of credit and his own business a boost in work as the bank refused to lend any money to any club for stadium work, post Taylor report, unless they used Murray’s steel firm.

 

“Of course he had a job to do for his club – and no one could argue he did it well for much of his tenure – but with very few influential or credible figures working to Rangers’ benefit, he became a pivotal figure in trying to grind them down and make them suffer.

“To me, it seemed the mantra was always, ‘Let’s bury Rangers’.”  

 

There was only one person, and one person alone, responsible for the liquidation of Rangers.

 

And you’d have thought , after fourteen years, he could have come up with a better excuse than it was Peter’s fault.

 

Though, if he is right, which he isn’t, may I be the first to contribute to a statue for Lawwell, to be placed alongside others on Celtic Way, who have given us so much pleasure over the years.

 

 

Murray also mentions Sean Connery, the late actor, who he claimed was desperate to invest in Rangers. When Murray had to raise £50m via a share issue, which of course, failed by the narrow margin of around £49m, Connery would not be talked out of throwing in £1m of his own money.

 

Murray warned him ….

 

Football always will be a risky business.” 

 

Especially if you’re dealing with Murray.

 

For daring to show his face again, and coming up with such a piss poor excuse for his own greed and ineptitude, David Murray is this week’s Etims..

 

knob of the week – keith jackson – eTims

 

 

That’s Keith Jackson of the Record in the picture, the inspiration behind the award. Not Murray.

 

Sir David Murray says sorry over sale of Rangers to Craig Whyte - BBC News

 

 

This is David Murray, in a plain suit, instead of a stripey one.

 

Actually, if he were to face trial in the USA, the uniform might even sell well amongst the Ibrox support,

 

Orange prison jumpsuit costume top

 

 

On a serious note, whilst the passage of time has perhaps lessened the severity of Murray’s crimes, he was still behind the greatest sporting scandal in European history.

 

He could have ended Scottish participation in European club football, the national team’s participation in World events ( though Steve Clarke,  admirably,  is having a go at that himself.) and , as an improperly registered player renders a gane null and void, could have kicked off an unending round of compensation claims that could well have brought the professional game down with him and his club.

 

Murray used everyone else’s money to pursue his own aims, and lost the lot.

 

A compliant media turned a blind eye to it when it was happening, when he was caught, and are even now allowing him a platform to try to excuse his actions.

 

And if we ignore the lessons of history, we are bound to repeat the mistakes.

 

 

 

Like hiring the same kit designers year after year…

 

 

It looks like it’s already been washed a couple of hundred times.

 

 

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BJF
3 months ago

Kinda feel we owe David Murray, did a good job. Obviously feels big Peter put the knife in tch tch!

AntonDeclan
3 months ago

Great read Ralph….always the best start to the day, with a few laughs thrown in too! Ye canny whack it!

Woof Charlie
3 months ago

From his own mouth regarding Ayr United takeover bid in ’88, “In their most recent letter to shareholders (a copy of which has just come into my possession), the Board also made what verged on a character assassination, suggesting that I was a ‘most volatile’ and ‘very unpredictable’ person.’ They knew him. 24 years before meltdown. Honest Men indeed.

3 months ago

Poor Minty….. I feel his pain. The gnawing mental anguish and despair, that despite what folk say to his face, everybody knows.

Melbourne Bhoy
3 months ago

Remember seeing Sean in the jungle watching Dunfermline knock Celtic out of the Scottish cup in February (?) 1968. He had a bit of space around him and he cussing big time. Had a guy that looked like odd job standing beside him, totally passive with a collar which, to a fourteen year old, seemed unnaturally white. Heard that he phoned Celtic park looking for ticketsh as Sean Connery and was dismissed as a crank. Then Murray took him over to the dark side

Frodshambhoy
3 months ago

it seems Murray has sent the Record an extract he’d like to be published…like they used to do in the old days when they wanted to avoid tricky questions about dodgy tax dealings, or improperly registered players.

I must’ve missed that. When were that lot asked tricky questions

Andy
3 months ago

This issue of new strips really annoys me. Not only are they obscenely expensive, most of the new kits are horrendous. Businesses tend to go their customers to find out what they want, why does this not happen with new kits?? If Adidas (but not only Adidas) constantly bring out crap kits knowing if it’s got a Celtic crest on it they will sell it. Also Celtic has a rather annoying habit of bringing out a third kit which is predominantly white (like the hoops) so WHEN are they ever going to wear it. Get a grip Celtic

3 months ago

The man always knew what he was talking about in fairness

“Rangers administration: David Murray claims Celtic would toil to thrive without Rangers”https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/latest-celtic-news/rangers-administration-david-murray-claims-celtic-would-toil-to-thrive-without-rangers-1637995

The Cha
3 months ago
Reply to  desimond

To be fair, that was the position of the Celtic board and Lawwell, who bemoaned that we’d lose £5-10m a season with the Huns demise.

As today, our custodians were in lockstep with fans opinions.

portpower
3 months ago
Reply to  The Cha

The £5-10m was over a period that sevco FC weren’t in the new SPFL.

portpower
3 months ago
Reply to  The Cha

Like Celtic, the positionsare key may Chello?

Woof Charlie
3 months ago

“In their most recent letter to shareholders (a copy of which has just come into my possession), the Board also made what verged on a character assassination, suggesting that I was a ‘most volatile’ and ‘very unpredictable’ person’ DM 1988. The Honest Men had him sussed.

Fredrick Hitzzledorff
3 months ago

The Celtic top is atrocious but the butcher’s aprons, on a Celtic site, are a million times worse.

Dresden CSC
3 months ago

DM’s trying to tarnish Celtic and PL for his own benefit. If I was PL, publish the 5-Way agreement and say it was a business decision. Then as a duty of care to Scottish football, go after the trophies won during the EBT years and the awarding of a licence to Diedco when they had the tax case. Just saying like!

Cartvale
3 months ago

Sure the Scottish media will sanitise the diarrohea spoken. King with his pack of cards, Murray with it was there fault, the usual. No one likes them they don’t care

Chris McDougall
3 months ago

The Cunt (no need to check the spelling, Ed, should’ve been locked up.

portpower
3 months ago

There to behold thy ably assisted lump sum sevconian.

Take it to the limit
Take it to the limit

Take it to the duped limit 1 more time, David.

sevco when the bright lights have faded to bloo FC.

portpower
3 months ago
  • Associate equated new…
  • There’s an all-seeing eye to be kept on Patrick Stewart with his suited seating within expressed Scottish Football.
portpower
3 months ago

Was Connery not a Kilmarnock supporter?

Yoker Bhoy
3 months ago

It’s now looking extremely likely that the young Japanese defender Hayato Inamura will be officially signing for us next week, a move that will probably produce a lot of mixed feelings. Essentially he comes into the project category and I don’t expect him to walk right into the first team. Although he appears to be comofortable on the ball with good passing ability I very much doubt that he’d be anywhere near ready for the rough and tumble of the SPFL (memories of Kobayashi still haunt us) so it might make sense to loan him out to a team like Falkirk or Dundee Utd in order to help prepare him better for domestic competition.

Yoker Bhoy
3 months ago

We generally need to ship out a good 3 or 4 of the central defenders that are on our books, although it could be useful to keep young Dane Murray in the squad. We seriously need to bring in at least one new CB of higher quality to play alongside CCV.

Inamura only has roughly one year’s experience as a pro in the J League but he’s served his full uni football apprenticeship, which shouldn’t be scoffed at as this involves a very serious and rigorous learning process incorporating his culture’s traditional ethics based on extremely hard work and pefectionism. Reo Hatate and many others came through the same system with very positive results. If the deal does finally come through, I wish the boy the best of luck and maybe we’ll get a far clearer picture of what he is about during these upcoming pre-season friendlies. He is a versatile player as he is also comfortable in the LB position.

Fredrick Hitzzledorff
3 months ago
Reply to  Yoker Bhoy

True but he’s built like a feckin golf club.

Those bruisers in the sheep and killbilly teams will rag doll him every game.

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