The Dairy returns today after a short break over the weekend. Saturday was spent helping a friend to move house, and as the Ireland scotland game was on the telly after we’d finished, Sunday was spent sleeping it off.
Scotland gained an important point in Dublin, and with home games against Poland and Germany to come, there’s every possibility that the final stages of a tournament could be in their grasp, but the tricky game with Gibraltar will no doubt put paid to that.
It wasn’t the greatest game to watch, as two sets of tired players struggled to concentrate on the game whilst wondering if the taxi would turn up on time to get them to the airport for their holidays, but it was better than watching the other guff that comes on the telly at weekends.
One high spot was the performance of Charlie Mulgrew, who had a good game at the back, and he gave us a reminder of why he won player of the year when doing that job for Celtic.
An experienced international in reserve for the qualifiers next month can’t be a bad thing if van Dijk decides to throw his toys out of the pram.
In what was a physical game, Scott Brown praised his players for not coming down to that level, and Celtic fans everywhere breathed a sigh of relief that the captain didn’t pick up an injury, so alls well that ends well, and we can forget about internationals for a while now.
Brown said;
“They tried to play to their strengths again and tried to wind us up but none of us took the bait.
“We got the upper hand in the first game and that’s what they realised they needed to do.
“They were trying to get at us early doors. There were a few late tackles because in the first game Charlie Mulgrew strolled it. He was flicking balls over heads, playing nice and easy.
“They didn’t like that so they tried in the second game to come out with more purpose and get in our faces and make a few late tackles. I’m sure Roy Keane would have loved that.”
The diary mentioned last week to keep an eye on what Ikeche Anya does this week, and he told the Evening Times that he wasn’t ruling anything out;
“Whenever any team is linked with you it means you are doing something right But I just focus on the football and if things materialise then they materialise.
“I don’t know anything about it. I just try to keep my mind on the football because that’s what I love. I just want to see how far I can go.
“I don’t ever cut myself off from anything I am grateful for the opportunities that are before me.
“I wouldn’t say no to any sort of league – the German league, the Spanish league. I have been out in Spain before in my career. I just work as hard as I can to get the opportunities that come to me and try to grasp them when they come.”
He’d be a more than useful addition to the squad. Left back is the one area we don’t have reasonable cover. and he’s capable of fighting his way into the first team.
There were developments over at Ibrox this weekend as well. Continuing with the military theme, the club announced only their fourth manager this year when Mark Warburton was given control of the war chest, which gave the support another chance to show they are losing the battle with reality.
Warburton did eighteen months or so with Brentford, where by all accounts he did quite well, and is though of quite highly down there. Not quite highly enough to keep him in a job, but highly nonetheless. He’ll be joined by the talented Davie Weir as his number two-presumably the press will refer to him as Warburtons lieutenant, as they do like that theme over there.
Not surprisingly, social media erupted into a frenzy as Ibrox supporters realised that they have got the brightest young manager in football. Warburton might turn out to be a class above the rest, but there’s really no evidence that he is. That didn’t stop the hordes from declaring he is the new messiah, and they should know.
They’ve followed a few.
A couple of examples….
Warburton has managed at a higher level than anyone else in Scotland. By far the biggest name up here & a great coup for Scottish football.
It would appear the board have delivered. Well done Murray, King, Gilligan et al.
How much do you and Warbs want the Rangers job Sir Davie? This much.
The press are drooling a little as well…
Gary Ralston , in the Record, heralds the brave new dawn…
Warburton, 52, and Weir, 45, have sought and been given assurances over their budget for players as they bid to take the club out of the championship and have agreed three year contracts.
They have already identified a list of signing targets and hope to hit the ground running this week before the first team squad returns to pre-season training later in the month.
Rangers released 11 first team players at the end of the season and the squad needs an extensive re-building job if it is to claim its place in the Premiership next season.
Warburton declined to comment to Record Sport today ahead of this afternoon’s press conference, but he’s delighted to land the job he wanted most after recently being linked with Fulham and Sheffield Wednesday.
Former city trader Warburton and ex-Rangers skipper Weir teamed up last season to take unfancied Brentford to the brink of the Premiership, losing a semi-final play-off to Middlesbrough.
While Gary Keown records it in the Herald, with a quote from Warburton that suggests he won’t be spending any money and isn’t the tactical genius we are all supposed to fear…
Warburton has detailed his vision of the future at his next club and much of it will chime with an Ibrox board looking at a wholescale restructuring of all aspects of their business and a target set by the new chairman, Dave King, of bringing in 45,000 season ticket holders.
“I strongly believe in youth,” said Warburton. “I really believe that you can get young, hungry players who can embrace ideas and you marshal them with one or two senior pros who can really mentor them. That is a nice balance.
“I am also a big believer in smaller squads. I think Brentford used the least number of players, 24, over the course of the season. I think that tells you that you can keep a squad lean and hungry.
Well, if there’s no money for food…
“I don’t want to come across as arrogant, but I hope very much that the way we played at Brentford last season tells you a lot about Davie and me.
“People refer to playing the game the right way. That is nonsense.
“It is about playing the game your way. If you win trophies by being very long and direct, so be it, but I like to have players who can dominate a football, are comfortable in possession and enjoy being in possession.”
Win trophies ? He hasn’t won anything yet.
We can only wait and see.
Over the weekend Dave King disappeared again, deciding not to attend the EGM in case anyone asked him any tricky questions, and Mike Ashley couldn’t be bothered showing up either.
They’ve a manager in now, and only need some players, some scouts, some coaches and some money to make a right good go of things….
Is it true that the court office in Glasgow was “extremely busy ” due to a number of cases linked to the OrangeFest last weekend ? Was there a higher number of arrests for violence than we have been told ? Media blackout ?
Surely not.
Not when the offensive behaviour act is back in the news. A study commissioned by the Scottish government carried out by Stirling university did exactly what it was supposed to do. It supported the Act.
There’ll be a more detailed look at this in a follow up article, but the first question and answer tells you all you need to know.
XSF_Q1B. In general, how interested, if at all, would you say you are in football? (This could be either playing or watching)
52% said not very or not at all.
so whats the point in asking them anything about the game, how it’s run or how it’s policed ? You might as well ask the cat.
It’s of no interest to them, which leads me to think they will have little or no knowledge of what they are being asked about.
But they got asked anyway.
F_Q2C. The following set of questions are about Scottish football, this includes any football matches in Scotland, or any matches outside of Scotland that involve Scottish teams. We would like to take this opportunity to remind you that your answers are always treated confidentially and are never analysed individually. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
Er, more than half of those being asked have little or no interest in the game, remember…
“Generally speaking, sectarian singing and chanting at football matches is offensive”
54% agreed strongly, roughly the same as those with little or no interest….
“Sectarian singing and chanting at football matches is an important part of football culture”
56% disagreed, which probably included the 52% who have, er , little or no interest.
To be honest,with the wording of the questions here I’m surprised it wasn’t a lot higher. no-one wants to tell someone that sectarianism is okay, and the singing and chanting is fine, because it isn’t.
What it suggests is that , apart from those with little or no interest in football, it’s not a big issue for those who do have an interest. Possibly because it’s not as rife as the powers that be would suggest, and certainly not worth a law of it’s own, specifically designed to criminalise one section of society.
Further on…
“Generally speaking, offensive behaviour at and around football matches is harmful_”
You would think it would be 80, 90 per cent , even more. Offensive behaviour anywhere is harmful, surely ?
Only 50% strongly agreed, 32% tended to agree, but were probably bored by now and trying to get away.
Then sort of the same question;
“Generally speaking, offensive behaviour at and around football matches is harmless banter and should not be taken seriously”
51% strongly disagreed, 28% tended to disagree, while by now people were moving away from the interviewer, pointing to the bus and saying “Look mate, I really have to go. “
Moving on…
Q4B. As a reminder, by “offensive behaviour”, we mean any comments, singing or chanting that could be perceived as racist, homophobic or discriminatory. Still thinking about Scottish football… To what extent do you support or oppose laws to tackle offensive behaviour at and around football matches
“As a reminder ” Just to prompt the correct and obvious reply…
50% Strongly supported it. Less than those who said they were not really interested in football.
Note Q6B…the wording….
XSF_6B. You previously mentioned you agree that offensive behaviour at and around football matches is generally harmful. Still thinking about Scottish football… In which, if any, of the following ways do you think offensive behaviour at and around football matches is harmful? (Please select all that apply)
Did they ? Really ?
The full survey is here, with some graphs that emphasis the result they wanted, great big blocks who overstate the actual figures.
Survey’s such as this are not commissioned to decide what laws to make, or what rules to enforce. They are done to support a change that has already taken place.
Here’s a short survey, on the bill, that would give a completely different answer…
Q1; Do you attend matches , or have an interest in Scottish football ?
If no, thank the person for his time. If yes, move to question 2.
Q2 : Do you agree that a sensible and mature approach to policing at games would keep problems to a minimum ?
Q3: The arrest and conviction rate at football matches is very low in relation to the size of crowds. In general, do you agree supporters are mostly well behaved ?
Q4: Major incidents are extremely rare at football matches these days. do you agree that most supporters simply want to go to the game, enjoy themselves and then go home ?
Q5; There are somtimes minor incidents. do you agree that a sensible and mature policy of policing and stewarding, firm but fair, would save a lot of police and court time, thus saving public money in the process ?
Q6 ; Do you agree that football supporters should respect the same laws as the rest of society ?
Q7: Are you aware of the Offensive Behaviour at Football Matches bill ?
Q8: Would you agree that offensive behaviour is offensive whether or not it takes place at a football match, and as such, is already punishable by existing laws ?
Q9: Would you therefore agree, that the Offensive Behaviour Act is an unneccesary addition to the statute books, as the offences within are already covered by other laws ?
Nine out of nine would be a yes.
But thats not the answer they were looking for.
Fans Against Criminalisation are fighting this. and we all need to pitch in.
One day it could be you charged with walking on the cracks in the pavement in a built up area.
Which is next, you know…
FAC statement, and website. Read the Hamilton fans story. It could have been any of us….
Get involved. This is serious.
Twitter is @FACKillthebill
Speaking of fans, Rennes supporters have voted not to name their ground Celtic Park. It was one of the names suggested for their revamped ground, but they have decided against it. They’ve gone for the catchy “Roazhon Park” , instead.
Aye, it just trips off the tongue.
Caption competition you say ?
“The round thing…….kick it!”
Ralph why do you call it a caption competition when you never announce a winner and nobody ever wins anything ?
gives people a false sense of hope.
Two big tits and a hairy fanny!
Excellent stuff Ralph!
In answer to the question “… Still thinking about Scottish football… What animal comes to mind when you think about the OBFA law?”. 99% of those who know the facts answered – hee-haw, hee-haw, hee-haw, hee-haw.
Caption “I’m a little teapot.Short & stout. Here is my handle
Here is my spout. When I get all steamed up. I just shout… WATP”
Do all these upset football fans who cant sing their tired old songs show the same outrage at any other laws or are they just selfish?
pulls pin..throws grenade and walks aways…
It’s a valid question Desi, but my main problem with the OBFA is that it can – and has been – applied randomly/ arbitrarily / by a Police force who – generally speaking – also can’t be trusted not to let their own prejudices show. -Many of those arrested/charged to date are little more than “token” arrests, with little justification.
The simple fact that – when it’s convenient to them – clear breaches of the act such as >20K singing about being “up to their knees in Fenian blood” can be totally ignored by the authorities when it suits them, yet somebody else can be charged & fined heavily because their chant contained a swear word, is patently absurd.
To expand on what Ralph said: What’s needed is a common sense approach by the Police, applied when there’s absolutely no doubt that the intention/content of the song/chant is sectarian or discriminatory, backed up by law. – If a song or chant is not clearly a crime outside of a football match, then it certainly shouldn’t be seen as such, simply because of the environment in which it’s sung.
A shoddy, cobbled together act which allows the Police to do what they like when they like, with impunity, but with no provision for ensuring fairness in how it’s applied, is not going to solve anything, and in some cases could make things worse by – for example – ignoring the “cosy, institionised racism/sectarianism” within the Police & judiciary themselves which – generally speaking – are far more damaging to society than a “questionable” chant at a football match
(here endeth the rant)
BTW In the interests of balance I should say that, of the 193 charged under the OBFA in 2014/15:-
58 (30%) were Tribute Act fans, Aberdeen with 30 (16%) were 2nd and Celtic with only 19 (10%) were 3rd, followed by Hibs with 16 (8%) .. You could even argue that – percentage wise – that doesn’t seem “unfair”. However, when there’s not a peep from authorities about the >20K offenders at Hampden, and no clearly defined rules within the legislation itself, the act is simply not worth the paper it’s written on, and the “study” is a laughably un-scientific attempt to justify very poor legislation.
oh im with you there…Police should enforce the law not decide the law…the defence in court up at Inverness of “well it offended me” when a policewoman hauled someone for singing “OhAHSamaras” was pitiful but do folk blame the Police or the Government… hmmm..course not.
And to anyone moaning the MSPs should be getting onto the Police…well I can say i contacted my MSP about this ACT and about the Kettling and we discussed it and dubious Police execution ( well done James Dornan MSP)…So folks..can you say the same out there or is it just grandstanding offence?
Celtic site and a lot of the talk is about the SFA BIGOTS , TEAM,THE THOUGHT OF THOSE ASSHOLES IN KILT TURNING UP AT A BIG TOURNAMENT MAKES ME PUKE,SCOTLAND BECOMING A RACIST FASCIST COUNTRY,TARTAN TWATS AND THE RACIST BIGOTS OF THE SNP WHAT A SHITHOLE COUNTRY WE LIVE IN
Yer no gonna win any caption with that, Deadhead
Deadhead
once again…please write your thoughts in an article and post to etims.contact@gmail.com
We will happily post them up for others to analyse and review.
I for one would love to hear it, could you also write me a treatise on “Why looking back at Labours 50 year in power gets me hard”
i agree with everything dh67 says,as i feel the same
Oh theres 2, can you provide evidence to back up such claims…i look forward to reading and reviewing…cant wait.
So you feel like a prick as well?
What do you think of your new management team over at Kinning Park then, arsewipe?
If you don’t like our country, leave. You won’t be missed – in fact I’m sure we could organise a sheet for donations to help you on your way – I assume Engerlund will be your nation of choice – you’ll be at home with all the other unionists and can share the butcher’s apron with them.
‘if you don’t like our country, leave’ Now where have I heard that before.
If you cant see DH is a troll, then more fool you.
dh67, why don’t you fuck off then?
WHERE?
BACK TA IRELAND.
JUST PROVED DEADHEAD67s POINT.
BIGOT!
He never has a point!!! that’s the point!! He is not called dickhead for nothing
Deadhead67 I get it that the Celtic family embraces a wide diversity of opinion but if your comments reflect how you accurately feel and believe you must be fucking suicidal mate. Yours is a very dark depressing world. Lighten up buy a puppy, have a pint ANYTHING
Ralph
What a close season. If you keep this up the “Dairy” (your word today!) I wont be looking forward to the fitba starting again. Great stuff for weeks now from everyone including comments.
That bill is as bad as the other one on the white horse.
Caption:
Warburton, “Haw you, do you think Dave is not paying your salary this month to do that?”
Weir: “Aw fuck, another month drawin’ ma pension!”
H H
Did they hire Warburton because he is very big inbred?
“IT’S GOING TO BE HIS FAULT!!! “
dh67’s first useful, accurate interjection. Well, the bit about Scotland becoming a fascist country and the SNP being bigots is true at least.
Q8: Would you agree that offensive behaviour is offensive whether or not it takes place at a football match, and as such, is already punishable by existing laws ?
A. No. Offensive behaviour, where there is no threat to the safety of others, should be protected under a free speech law that the politicians should be trying to implement rather than trying to criminalise speech they find disagreeable. Offence is taken, not given. Your freedom to offend is more important than my freedom to avoid taking offence. Anyone thinking otherwise can go fuck a goldfish.
It’s a brave new world we live in ladies and gentlemen.
Thats nice you can call people fascist and bigotted…evidence to back that up please?
two new little boy blues with the laptop loyal begging to blow thier horns ha ha
“It’s not a nazi salute, it’s an ulster salute. I saw the hun supporters doing this in Israel at a match.”
I hear that Warburton is a late bloomer, and this is a real upper crust appointment. Wonder how much dough he’s on?
Warburton…hope he’s getting paid a lot of dough in his new role and that he uses his loaf when making his team selection…
He’d better get off to a good start or he’ll be toast…
Why’s this guy in front of me all blurry!?!
Haw Blackie!!! Blackie!!!!!
Pick up that empty irn bru bottle!!
Over there….over THERE YA DUMB PRICK!!!
Atta boy Blackie. We’ll add that to the war chest
Warburton son is Norn Iron U16/17 youth player…he signs a crocked Lewis McLeod to give sevco a few bob….and gives Weir a job when no one would touch him….sounds like a hun to me….
Caption should read hay sally get away from that allotment as me davie or goin need it next .
I don’t buy anything blue or orange for that matter, I have not bought anything from Sports Direct for years and threw out any clobber and trainers that were made by adidas. But my favourite bread, really!! Back to Hovis it is then.
First up…
I’ve helped mates to move furniture etc;…but..
Move their HOUSE…??….
Feck me… that’s a gig and a half…well done you.
As for the article…top class as usual…
Just wish you’d lay off big Virgil ‘though…
He’s a professional first and foremost…which means money comes first..always.
That’s what most professionals do…( Paul McStay is a rare exception.)
He never rolled up saying we were the only club he ever wanted to play for…so if he’s offered more bread somewhere else…he’ll take it.
He’s not the first…and he won’t be the last.
Rant over.
As for Warburton….
“For fuck’s sake McLeod…watch that twig.”
The glib and shameless liar must have done a great Pinnochio at the interview, if you read what Warburton thinks he has signed up to. We’ll recruit from the academy, what academy, haven’t had a decent academy set up for…well ever? War-chest, what War-chest, given it took Warburton north of £50m to build an unsuccessful Brentford and they are struggling with the sale of season books looks like being bargain basement time.Brilliant stadium, what.. it’s a crumbling wreck, poisoned with hatred and asbestos… and he is going to put the team back where they belong, which I can only guess is the championship or division 1 or 2 because that’s the highest they have been..ps the other lot died Mr Warburton
Fitba: If the season started tomorrow it would best be:
Gordon
Lustig/Van Dijk/Ambrose or Mulgrew?/Izzy
Brown/Bitton
Mackay-Steven/Johansen/Armstrong
Griffiths
I think this will work for the CL qualifiers as well.
Commons and Forrest will also be key.
Boyata might be ready too.
If Van Dijk leaves do we go: Boyata/Mulgrew
Mulgrew/Ambrose or Mulgrew/Ambrose?
We need another striker.
I’m optimistic. My green glass is half full–in fact it’s in danger of overflowing.
Over on blue websites they are all getting excited about a man who has won nothing of any note. But he is a modern thinker and will modernise them and bring them into the 21st century.
I seem to remember them saying the same about Paul Le Guen. He wanted 24hour 7 day a week athletes. He wanted to change the way they ate as well as trained. He wanted to change the way they played.
Remember how long he lasted.
Monster Munch and Irn Bru anyone
Hey Devoy45.
After speaking aboot the cunt in Seville. I googled him and he is noo a factory manager in the Ukraine.
A dream for a Russian sniper!