Tomorrow sees the start of three consecutive games in three different tournaments against Dundee United. Which sounds, on the face of it, a little bit repetitive, perhaps even boring.

Except the one offs against the Taysiders tend to be a little better than most games, as Jackie MacNamaras side won’t park the bus, and actually have the temerity to try to win these games.

Ahead of the first one, tomorrow in the Scottish cup quarter final, Celtic are a little thin on the ground with players either ineligible, Mackay Steven and Armstrong, injured, Izaguirre, Commons, Lustig, Mulgrew, Matthews, or no bloody good, Guidetti, Wakaso, Tonev.

Theres always Derk Boerrigter , I suppose.

From what looked like a fairly strong squad, the St. johnstone defeat in the week highlighted the fact that perhaps the fringe players are not quite as up for it as we had hoped.

Craig Gordon will start in goal, but don’t be surprised to see Darnell Fisher and Efe Ambrose take up the full back slots. Its no reflection on young Fisher, he’s capable, but to be thrown in at the deep end against a powerful United side is a big ask.

And Efe, god love him, is no left back. He tries, and arguably he defends well, but his forays on the flank are scary, and if he’s caught out of position…

Virgil van Dijk and Jason Denaayer are both expected to start, which is a relief, because theres very little cover in the middle of defence, and fortunately, centre midfield should be okay as well, with the in form Nir bitton and the inspirational Scott Brown.

After that though, it could be a case of “Who’s feeling okay ” when Deila picks the remaining four slots.

Leigh Griffiths should lead the line, with Stefan Johansen behind him, but the two wide berths are an issue.

Liam Henderson and either Anthony Stokes, Calum MacGregor or even Wakaso or Tonev ?

Well, perhaps Wakaso.

If we don’t get it right, theres no treble. No second chance.

Paul Dixon, the left back who was rescued from the nightmare of playing and living in Huddersfield, to er, play and live in Dundee, played up his sides chances. Dixon, by the way, should be on Celtics radar, preferably tonight.

“They are a good team, make no doubts about it — they’re top of the league for a reason,” 

“But every team is beatable, we have seen that.

“Any team can beat any team — that’s just football.

“If we’re right on the day, with the talent we have in this squad, we can beat anyone.” 

 “There is no need to fear it — 100%.

“You have to look forward to these games. This is great. It’s a great time to be here.

“We will just be looking to win the games and put February to bed.

“At the end of the day, you have to beat the team that is in front of you. We haven’t done that lately.

“We have to assess where we went wrong and change things. We need to improve.” 

Dundee United have lost a bit of form since Mackay Steven and Armstrong left, which from where I’m sitting, is a bonus.

But Dixon isn’t worried;

“Form is temporary, class is permanent,” 

Lets hope their form continues to be temporary, for the next three games or so.

Of course, an on form and rested Celtic should prove far too strong for the Taysiders, but Wednesdays loss to St. johnstone has served as a sharp reminder that nothing has been won yet, and theres still a lot of work to do to ensure a glorious first season for Ronny Deila.

The boss is fairly confident, with his usual pre match blowing of the smoke up Uniteds bottoms;

 …..Dundee United is a very good example of how to develop young players and how to play good football.

“I’ve watched them many times and they look a lot like what we want to do. Maybe we’re a little bit different in the defence, maybe we’re more aggressive and they’re a counter-attack team.

“They have been a good team and they are going to be a tough opponent. We have to be up for the game” 

The game kicks off at 3.30, which is better than an early start, but you get the feeling that Ronny is fed up with sky and treatment of Scottish football, and the Norwegian looks ready to offer them the rough edge of his tongue sometime soon.

He semed pleased that it was a later kick off, but in the back of his mind one wonders of he is worrying that the differing start times are interfering with players “body clocks “

 If you gear an athlete to perform at his best, training times, rest times and even mealtimes must be geared to ensuring that he is at his peak when the event starts.

 Thats obviously easier if all games are at 3 on a Saturday and 7.30 on a Wednesday. Of course, its been many , many years since that happened, but theres no pattern to it at all any more, and its no surprise that the occasional blip occurs, such as last Wednesday, when a jaded Celtic were beaten fairly comfortably by St. Johnstone.

 Tomorrows later kick off should help, but how will the players cope with the unfamiliarity ? Sunday games are usual lunchtime starts, so they will have to remain focussed for an extra few hours, which could be irritating for them.

 With Peter Lawwell being wrong footed by Peter Smith, of STV, and claiming all sorts of rewrites in Celtics history, during the kit launch the other day, the club moved swiftly to clarify the postion.

 “Peter Lawwell is well aware and proud of Celtic’s history and the club’s Irish roots. To clarify any misunderstanding, Peter’s comments related to the longstanding position of the Club.

“People who promote proscribed terrorist organisations are not welcome at Celtic.” 

It didn’t need the last line. It really didn’t.

 Joe O’Rourke, of the Celtic Supporters Association, wants Peter Smith banned from Celtic Park. Smith was the reporter who wanted to talk about discipline instead of the kit deal, and it still amazes me how he was allowed to.

Peter Smith of STV should be banned from Celtic Park; and it should be done in public so that everyone knows he is banned.

Before any Press Conference the media are informed of the reason for the conference and the agenda.

So what Smith did was a betrayal of confidence in him to act in an appropriate manner and to adhere to the agenda.

Why would he do that you might ask? I’m not really sure of the answer to that; but i suspect it was another attempt at tarring the Celtic Support with the same brush as the ones who support Sevco.

Celtic does have an Irish history. Of course we have; the first piece of turf was laid by Michael Davitt who was an Irish Nationalist; as has been many of our players and supporters since then. 

But as Peter Lawwell rightly said, we have been all inclusive since our inception; everyone is welcome irrespective of colour or creed.

I wonder if Smith asked questions at a Sevco Press Conference about their racist/sectarian singing; i very much doubt it.

I was actually surprised at the question being allowed; and even more surprised that Peter Lawwell actually answered it.

We don’t have to rely on the media in Scotland, apart from contractual obligations we should do without them unless it suits us.

I would put out a statement in Public on our website, telling all the people involved in the media, that if anyone ignores their instructions, then the person involved will be banned; as will the company they represent.

Finally while I’m on about the media. Come Sunday at Tannadice they will be waiting on us with everything in their power. They will have their microphone right in front of our supporters hoping to catch us singing songs which some people don’t like, we have a great song book; let’s use it for the benefit of the team and our great club.


We have a great reputation worldwide; let’s continue with that loudly and proudly. 

It is time to stand up for ourselves. I’ll be emailing Ian Jamieson and asking him why he isn’t controlling these conferences better, and protecting the image of the club from those who obviously have an anti-Celtic agenda.

 I’ll let you know what he says.

It looks like we are going to have to stand up for ourselves a lot more as well, now that Dave King is in charge at ibrox.

Somehow, those gullible fools who follow follow their team have been fooled again, and King , along with Paul Murray and John Gilligan, appear to be calling the shots now.

 Theres little point in going over the events of yesterday, but its worth seeing the reaction to them from certain members of society.

 Check for crooks ? At Ibrox ?

He’ll need this, then;

He also said that he had a Nominated Advisor ready to step up should he gain power, in answer to WH Ireland walking away. Now he says he’ll voluntarily delist from the AIM, which won’t have any effect on their shares whatsoever.

 Feeling duped yet, Billy ?

No, presumably not, as they are still out celebrating, even if they are not exactly certain of what they are celebrating.

 And this is just the start of it.

The MSM are happy. They won’t have to do any work now, and will receive their stories already typed up for them.

Then theres Graham Clark in the Express, saying we should all just move on….

 I’m not going to dwell on this, but want you to look at this , from Sports Journalist of the Year Keith Jackson, and join me in playing  a lament for the death of journalism in this country.

Keith Jackson:

The Daily Record has led the way

exposing truth about ropey Ibrox regimes

and we won’t stop digging now

IT WAS most certainly the most exciting 13 minutes of action Ibrox has seen this season.

Thats all you need to read, really. to get the general idea.

But theres more….

By reclaiming ownership of the boardroom on behalf of the club’s fans, King and his cohorts scored a momentous victory yesterday.

As a result of this routing Rangers have been freed from those who have abused and mutilated it beyond all recognition. The club is now back in the hands of people who wish to do no more than nurture it.

All of which deserves to be acknowledged and celebrated by the fans who have also been exploited and trampled upon by a succession of shameless characters.

Yesterday then was their moment of liberation and they roared in approval as King, Paul Murray and John Gilligan were swept across the threshold on a wave of raw emotion. 

Yes. If Dave King is the messiah, then Jackson will know.

After all, he’s followed a few.

That clip is astonishing, and best read with the Dambusters theme in the background.

But that was yesterday. From this morning King, Murray, Gilligan and Douglas Park – who was quickly appointed on to the new team – have an almighty task to confront.

They must begin rebuilding the reputation of a club which, over the last four years, has become the most toxic institution in British sport. How they do so will determine the extent of their legacy.

It is time for these men to prove they are worthy governors and they should expect to be held to the same level of scrutiny they demanded of the previous directors. In fact they should demand it. 

 Of course, which is why King is delisting from the stock exchange.

Which is why for those poor sods who think that he is the messiah, the press need to step up their game, they need to do their jobs properly.

According to Keith, they already have;

Yesterday was, in a smaller way, a victory for this newspaper. For four years the Daily Record has led the way in exposing all sorts of scandals and shenanigans at the top of the old marble staircase.  

The list of ex-board members and executives who have fallen out with this publication in that time reads like a Brogues Gallery.

Craig Whyte, Ali Russell, David Grier, Duff and Phelps, Charles Green, Imran Ahmad, Brian Stockbridge, Craig Mather, Sandy and James Easdale, David Somers, Derek Llambias, Barry Leach – all of the above have had reason to curse the paper we print on.

Some of them still detest the Daily Record and that’s fine by us. In fact, they can all consider themselves barred for life from reading it.

It was interesting then that yesterday, around half past one, the Rangers PR office contacted this sports desk to invite our reporters to attend King’s coronation. In effect, one of the first acts of the new board was to lift the ban imposed on us by Llambias. Not a bad start, we must admit. 

The  article then enters a sycophantic assessment of Paul Murray, who Jackson says has;

…at times single-handedly, led the fight against a succession of regimes and fallen out with many of the same names and faces as this newspaper.

It is preposterous to suppose he would willingly walk King into power if he felt it was in any way a risk to this club’s return to health.

Murray’s endorsement of King, in fact, may have been a crucial factor in persuading such a huge majority of shareholders to back him.

That both seem to be on the same page should comfort fans as the pair of them begin overseeing a forensic investigation, in search of historic skulduggery behind the scenes.

There is a touch of the Eliot Ness about Murray, whose determination to uncover what has been done to Rangers and by whom has driven him this far. Of all the main players in this saga he should be credited for his tenacity and honesty.

This is a man with a vision for Rangers involving meticulous levels of corporate governance as well as a willingness to work tirelessly for the club. He will also reach out to the rest of Scottish football, mending broken relationships.

Murray’s aim is not just to rebuild Rangers but to modernise it, ridding it of outdated cultures and the ingrained sense of entitlement which has done so much to hold it back.

Those who put self-interest or prejudice ahead of the good of the club are unlikely to last long under his watch.  

 Happily for Jackson, his tender, loving words were not lost on Murray…

Rangers interim chairman Paul Murray:

I’d like to thank the Daily Record for its

courageous journalism over the past four years

And there, as I said, is the death independent sports journalism in Scotland.

The old agenda is back.

The old guard are back in the saddle. We need to stop them before its too late.

Next week in the Record, can we expect to see a new league sponsor lined up, to put their name to a new sixteen strong Premier League ?

Time to stand up for ourselves again.

The biggest battle has still to come.

Another caption competition today, from yesterdays frenzy…

Ah’ll tell you this boy, we are the peepil.