Celtic Diary Tuesday April 23

Neil Lennons twitter yesterday-“Great feeling waking up today.”

For most of us, waking up yesterday was a bleary sort of experience, but as the day went on, the great feeling emerged. Despite what the media want to tell us, winning the league with four games to go does not make it a one horse race. The absence of a “rival” , such as Rangers hasn’t cheapened-or tainted-the achievement. After all, last night Manchester Utd won the highly “competitive ” best league in the world with four games to go.

However, if Celtic go on to win the Scottish Cup, then presumably that will be the greater achievement because Sevco Rangers were in that one. Well, for a short while anyway.

Some of the media coverage over the last two days has been little short of embarasssing.

The BBC, via Reporting Scotland said it was “another Championship win for Celtic, but how many of these players will be here next year?”

Then Sportsouns had those great luminaries of our game Chick Young and Tom English telling us how much we miss Rangers.

Categorically, not one Celtic supporter I know, or have spoken to online, has told me that they miss Bigot FC. Not one has said to me that the title win would have been better, or meant more if  the Rangers had still been around.

What the media seem to be getting mixed up with, is the lack of a main challenger, which in years to come could be any one of the other eleven teams. They seem to think that Scottish football needs Rangers. No, it doesn’t.

It needs, and will, in time, get, a stronger Aberdeen, a stronger Dundee Utd. New challenges from the Highlands and Edinburgh.

The football this season has been, by and large, at least as good as any previous year. Although the edge of a serious week to week challenge has been admittedly missing, that will come. With luck it may even come from two or three teams.

Instead of begging for Rangers to come back. the MSM should concentrate on talking up, and promoting, the other sides that haven’t cheated or gone bankrupt. Morally and financially.

Graeme Spiers, who likes to think of himself as the thinking mans pundit (A sort of Pat Nevin without the twiddly pen) said that the t-shirts worn after Sundays game by Celtics players  “Always have been  Celtic, Always will be Celtic” were in poor taste and an “unwise decision from the clubs point of view”

You’ll remember Graeme, he was the journalist who slammed the Rangers team who did the huddle at Celtic Park after they clinched the title a few years ago, using the free flowing EBT style of football.

Oh, wait, sure that was just banter.

Actually, I’m still a little disappointed my idea for the t-shirt slogan was rejected. “Fuck the huns” would have been a big seller.

Georgios Samaras has been speaking to the Sun newspaper, and in direct contrast to one or two former players who have written for that rag , he spoke of his love for the club;

“I love this club” , he said. Actually he said a lot more;

“I never thought my future would be elsewhere. We all have good periods and bad periods in our lives, everyone has problems but the thing is to keep thinking positively and keep working and playing because you love it….its all about winning games and titles. I play football because I love it . I want to have great memories when I retire.”

Rather emotional there from the big man. Could he have been on the pop?

You can’t blame him. Another picture shows plenty of the sponsors product in the dressing room-Tennents Lager, which must have left the players hankering  for next year when it’ll be Magners.

Speaking of next year, there seems to be an almost fatalistic acceptance that Celtic will lose a few key players, well, its more of an orchestrated media campaign, but you get the point. Manager Neil Lennon, speaking of Gary Hooper, says he has a gut feeling he will stay. Now, that may raise an eyebrow or two- just the one of you are a Sevco supporter reading this, the one that goes all the way across the top of your eyes-but I remember an interview with then captain Neil Lennon, who was adamant that the key players who stay should be rewarded financially ahead of any new players. That philosophy, if carried on to management would mean that he is willing to pay top dollar to players he trusts and wants to keep, rather than gamble on newcomers.

All we need is for Lawwell to be in a listening mode, and there is still the chance, perhaps not as outside a chance as some would have us think, that we could see this squad stay together for a while yet.

Meanwhile, Ally mcCoist, the joke manager of a joke team has said that his club must be cleansed. Gonna need a big brush and a lot of disinfectant for that one.

Ally was also said to be “privately seething ” about jibes from supporters of other clubs who refer to his beloved Rangers as zombies, which he finds insulting.

Alex Thompson, the channel 4 reporter so admired by supporters of the cash strapped/ debt free ( depending on who you believe) club, has tweeted that investment company Orlit still haven’t been paid the £400,000 they reckon they are due from Sevco, the share price, whilst briefly rallying yesterday has dropped again, Charles Green has turned his phone off , Walter Smith says his battery is dead, and all the fuss over who bought what from who is about to come to a head.

But, Rangers have launched a probe into alleged wrongdoings at the club, independent law firm Pinsent Masons will have a wee look at whatever papers haven’t already been shredded, and which emails and texts that haven’t been deleted, and they should report soon. Of course they will.

Meanwhile, Ally Mccoist has adopted a new tactic to all the fuss that is going on around him, and shows exactly how he is going to deal with these somewhat ominous warning signs.

Anyway, enough of them.

Some very, very  good news for those who have been following the progress of  Oscar Knox, the youngster who has been battling cancer. his facebook page says he has had the results of his MIBG scans, which look normal, and there is no sign of cancer activity. The family are still waiting for the results of a bone marrow test, but as his doctor puts it , this is very “encouraging”  Go on , wee man. Fabulous news.

Some great answers again yesterday to help my dilemma, but I solved it by simply buying more beer whilst wondering what to do with it.

Back to more serious, thought provoking questions today.

November 2002, August 2003, September 2007, August 2012. Which of these is the odd one out, and why?