IF you think back to the so-called Shame Game, a Scottish Cup replay at Celtic Park which Celtic won 1-0 thanks to a Mark Wilson goal, it is fair to say that the following things happened in that match:
1. Rangers players completely lost the plot and several were sent off. One even refusing to leave the field.
2. Ally McCoist said something into Neil Lennon’s ear that caused offence and resulted in the Celtic manager angrily pushing the Rangers Assistant Manager away. We have never been told what was said but at the time to Neil Lennon it was offensive.
3. The Scottish Government called for a summit after this that set us down the path to their ill-considered Offensive Behaviour at Football Act, thankfully now repealed.
Celtic Supporters at that so-called Shame Game did nothing wrong at all. Look, there might have been one or two shouts that would have been regarded as offensive by other supporters nearby, as this happens at every game, probably on every supporters bus every week and in pubs before, during and after a game.
In short, it’s football.
When a young female used to walk pitch side in the days of the old Jungle she would often be greeted with a chorus of get your ‘you know whats’ out for the Bhoys…that kind of thing doesn’t happen these days, thankfully. Times have changed.
“Bananas are raining in on Walters.”
On 31st December 1987, Mark Walters signed for Rangers FC.
It was his most successful period as a player, but Mark had to endure racist abuse from Scottish football fans.
More on Sportsound on BBC Radio Scotland on Thursday from 6:30pm. pic.twitter.com/GTsgxFHpUX
— BBC Sport Scotland (@BBCSportScot) December 28, 2017
Then there was the disgraceful banana episode involving Mark Walters, the Rangers winger. That gave Celtic enemies – especially those who have followed the various Ibrox clubs – plenty of ammunition to fire at us for decades. Recently when the Green Brigade were under attack from older supporters for setting off flares resulting in UEFA fines, a young Rebel from the standing section hit back at the older fans who he referred to as wet wipes users and reminded them of the banana throwing incident.
Racism is a weapon that is even used in a Celtic family argument.
That was shameful. Worse even than the idiot who threw the half bottle of vodka on the park against Rapid Vienna that many of us at the time thought cost Celtic a great chance to win a European Trophy. Rapid Vienna cheated us out of place in the quarter finals and went to the final where they lost to Everton.
That vodka bottle thrower was never identified so suffered no personal consequences as a result of his – or her – action. Let’s assume it was a bloke. He could have pointed to an earlier European Cup Winners Cup campaign – in the sixties when a late Bobby Lennox goal in the semi-final second leg at Anfield would have given Celtic a place in the final at Hampden. Lennox was too quick for the Belgian officials and was wrongly flagged offside. The referee later admitted his mistake, Lennox was a yard onside when he scored the vital goal.
The touchline at Anfield was covered in empty bottles that were thrown in disgust by the travelling Celtic Support, a fact Liverpool highlighted the next day.
Last summer a teenage boy on our bus when on holiday thought it was a good idea to get a temporary tattoo about ‘Not Playing Drums’ or something like that, on his chest. He also thought it was clever to post a ‘look at me’ picture of the tattoo on our supporters bus’ Whats App group. He might have thought that some people would have been shocked, others amused but he was wrong. He was widely condemned and it was made clear that he wasn’t welcome back on the bus and if he did show his face there would be more that a few who would be taking the matter into their own hands.
He hasn’t come back. Zero Tolerance. Consequences.
On 29 December 2019, just like in the Shame Game, Celtic fans did nothing wrong. We heard the small group of away fans chant about the Irish Famine and their perverse fascination with the shameful crimes that happened at Celtic Boys Club and there would have been more. Over the years you just get used to their nastiness. Evilness even. We have been hearing about them being up to their knees in our blood all our lives.
That is NOT to say that we are perfect. We are not. But let’s be clear about a few things shall we? When Alfredo Morelos tried to cheat his way to a penalty – for purely selfish reasons because the final whistle was seconds away and the Rangers already had won the match – he was rightly shown a second yellow card by Kevin Clancy and sent off.
The throat slitting gesture he made at the end of the game was either aggressiveness towards the Celtic Support – who had previously cheered him onto the park at an earlier game – as most reasonable people think or it was indeed some kind of ‘game over’ gesture as the Rangers have attempted to claim is a custom in his homeland, something the Colombian media shot down calling Morelos a disgrace for doing it incidentally.
What he wasn’t doing was reacting to any particular cat calls from the crowd in the main stand as he walked from the field making his gesture. There is no way that you would hear one or two people’s individual comments while walking from the park and having the noise from 60,000 agitated football fans in the most atmospheric football arena in Europe all around you.
Ask anyone who has played the game.
The video that the media claimed contained racist abuse towards Alfredo Morelos, we can confirm, does NOT. As we mentioned yesterday it does contain a reference to the colour of his tracksuit (not his skin) and there is also a mention of the name that the Tommy’s in the trenches called their German counterparts.
Such was the desperation from the Rangers to negate the potential consequences of the latest idiotic behaviour from Morelos – something we have continued to see off the park in the first few weeks of 2020 and as the Rangers dropped 5 points in a week (they also won a game against Ross County and if you watch the SPFL Highlights you’ll notice that Morelos dived near the end to try to win a penalty, he is a cheat).
But maybe the Rangers got lucky on 29 December. Morelos might not have heard anything racist from the Celtic Support but what if one or two idiots among our support at the game did shout something racist towards the Colombian striker? That would not be tolerated by the Celtic Support and it would be them that did something about it.
Any such Celtic supporter – even just one or two of them – if it is proven, would have no right to continue to wear the green and white scarf at a Celtic game. There is no place in Paradise for racists, and if the Celtic Support is self-policing and the appropriate consequences follow on from that then life-time bans from Celtic Park is the likely outcome.
If there’s mileage in this for those who had an apartheid signing policy at their old club, and have hatred in their hearts every day of their lives – In England the anti-Irish abuse dished out to James McLean is now regarded as racism then so be it. The Celtic family will just have to take that on the chin to allow us to put our own house in order. Zero Tolerance of Racism – It has no place in Paradise.
As far as the Irish racism among the away support at Celtic Park on 29 December. What say you Scotland, to Scotland’s Shame?
But to be clear racism must have no place in Paradise and anyone in the the stadium – including the away fans – must face consequences if they indulge in any racist behaviour. On 29 December we can all recall 800 racists in the corner, but sadly we might have had one or two of our own.
And the silence from Celtic since that day could be all about putting our own house in order.
Zero Tolerance. Consequences.
Some amount of sanctimonious pish flying around this morning.
If you want ACTUAL evidence of racist abuse here you go.
Don’t remember TV interviews being set up to ask Scott Sinclair if he “worried about his safety”
PR-managed pish. pic.twitter.com/aQNtpoqBVN
— Celtic F1rst (@CelticF1rst) February 3, 2020
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