Not at any price...

I have a lot of time for the Green Brigade and the noise and passion they bring to Celtic Park. I’ve praised them when it’s due for excellent displays and imaginative banners. I’ve blogged on their persecution by the Police and have attended rallies in their support. I’ve also taken issue with them over things I fundamentally disagree with such as the singing of Political songs or the ill-advised ‘Poppy Protest’ of 2010. Today it was announced that UEFA will begin disciplinary proceedings over the ignition of at least 3 loud fireworks during Tuesday’s game with Cliftonville. Those of you who attended the game will no doubt have heard them explode with fairly loud effect. One old chap beside me jumped and commented, ‘Jeezus! That cured my constipation.’ Given that we were sitting in the Jock Stein stand and at least 100m from the fireworks one can imagine how loud they must have sounded to the fans in and around Section 111. It isn't certain by any meand that Green Brigade members let of the bangers but it came from that general area. They do attract some rather immature hangers on.

The Club is far from happy and are rightly concerned with safety issues in section 111. They released a statement which was quite clear on the behaviours they want to see stopped. They feel there were….

‘Concerns over overcrowding, the refusal of supporters to comply with safety stewards, "body surfing" and seat damage, the club said the safety of supporters was their primary objective. Following the events of last Tuesday's match, the club's position was to close Section 111, but following discussions between the club's supporters' liaison officer and representatives of the 'Green Brigade' that decision has been reviewed and the section will remain open," the club said. However, the situation will be monitored at both the Celtic FC v Borussia Monchengladbach match on Saturday, 27 July, and the Celtic FC v IF Elfsborg match on Wednesday, 31 July.’

Patience is wearing thin from the club and the majority of its supporters regarding the behaviour of a minority in Section 111. They may not all be members of the GB but they gravitate towards Section 111. The hardcore Green Brigade is clearly influenced by the Ultra groups abroad, particularly southern and eastern European groups, who regularly have impressive ‘Pyros’ at games and often have strong political views. Such displays are an alien import into the UK as our football fan culture was based on singing and flag displays. Although not caused by a ‘pyro’ display, the dreadful Bradford disaster of 1985 meant that there was little likelihood of any pyrotechnics being tolerated at British football grounds. Indeed since then the law strictly forbids them and clubs are bound to enforce this. Of course most Stadia are much safer now but the pyrotechnics are still dangerous and unnecessary. Lateral movement of fans is another safety issue the club worry about and if they come across like a nagging parent then it's simply because they don't want anyone hurt at a game. Similarly the use of green smoke bombs at Celtic games doesn’t provide a spectacle, it holds it us as the game can’t start until it’s cleared from the pitch. The guys who throw these things simply annoy their fellow fans and embarrass the club. UEFA will no doubt hit Celtic with another hefty fine but if this continues and no doubt warn them about future conduct. Celtic fans have previous for ‘Illicit chanting’ and that utterly moronic ‘F*ck UEFA’ banner and UEFA will look dimly on future transgressions. A closed doors game becomes a distinct possibility if such behaviour goes on. That is the crux of the problem; Why should a few undisciplined individuals risk all of us not being allowed to watch our team? Why should they cause the club to have genuine safety concerns?  Why should they feel they can endanger the good reputation Celtic fans have built over the years?  My argument with regards to the Political songs occasionally heard in Section 111 is relevant in this issue too. Poor behaviour by a few reflects on us all and that isn’t fair nor is it acceptable.

I note from my Twitter timeline a debate raging about these issues. The comments range from keeping safe and not endangering the supports reputation to backing the team with all the thunder and passion our support has. A few are openly abusive to those who challenge the Green Brigade’s bahaviour but their arguments lack conviction and boil down to a ‘We’ll do what we want’ attitude. Well, sorry to tell you but no you won’t. Celtic FC, UEFA and most of the Celtic support will see that you don’t. Ironically, we don’t need fireworks or pyros to show our team we’re right behind them. The noise Celtic fans can make is incredible and often leaves experienced visiting players awestruck. We’ve all read the comments from guys like Maldini, Messi, Pique, Iniesta and Pirlo. They comment positively on the songs, the passion and the unity we have with our team during those big games. Any third rate support can set off fireworks or throw smoke bombs. We don’t need to do that because we have one of the greatest groups of fans in the world.

Celtic's Disabled Supporters Association released a statement after an incident at Tynecastle last season which demonstrates clearly why flares and smoke canisters can be dangerous to their members. They said...

''After the recent incident at Tynecastle when a flare was thrown amongst Celtic supporters the CDSA felt it had to speak out about this. We appeal to those people who bring flares to games, and those who know people that do, to stop and think of the consequences as you have no control over the direction that the smoke will go. Many of our members have respiratory illnesses or respiratory limitations because of their disabilities including at least one member who is on a portable ventilator. If any of these Celtic Supporters, including myself, were to inhale a small amount of the smoke there would be extremely serious health repercussions which would come on very quickly.

We do not want to find a disabled Celtic supporter, or any other supporter, hospitalised because of someone's idea of fun. And we certainly do not want to find that it takes a fatality before this practice stops.  So we appeal to you, don't let this happen to your fellow Celtic supporters.''

The Green Brigade will no doubt feel that the mainstream support and the club are on their backs again but my plea to them is simple. You show incredible energy and passion at games and we all appreciate it.  Listen to your fellow fans and to the club. You can be the best Ultras in Europe and you don’t need fireworks or flares to achieve that as you’ve proved in the past. We want a united and noisy support which includes you so use your heads and stop goading the club and the rest of the support. You brought the thunder back to Paradise so don’t spoil it by causing a rift in the support. If there are a few wilder spirits among you who won’t show some discipline at games then they need to shape up or ship out. Celtic belongs to all of us and we have enough great songs and chants to back the Bhoys without the need for immature displays which cause problems for the club and your fellow fans. We want you at Celtic Park leading us in our anthems but not at any price. Think it over.

Postscript: 26/7/13...In the interests of balance it is worth reprinting what the Green Brigade say about events at the Cliftonville game. They make valid points about stewarding and their inability to control who accesses their area. They are also adamant that none of their members set off any fireworks at the game. It is to be hoped they have consistent leadership who can keep channels open with the club and we can all get back to supporting Celtic. That is, after all, why we are all there.

 

Green Brigade statement

"The Green Brigade find ourselves disappointed to hear that Celtic Football Club has deemed it necessary to release a statement which we feel unfairly demonizes our group as well as the Celtic supporters who sit in our section in 111. Following amicable discussions held behind closed doors it seems entirely counter-productive for such a statement to be released.

The group held discussions on Wednesday night with representatives of the club and outlined our position regarding the safety concerns that have been raised in Celtic’s statement. It was made clear that the Green Brigade were not responsible for any pyrotechnics which were used during the match against Cliftonville at Celtic Park and had no knowledge of any fan’s intention to use them. We accept that it took place in our section however and as a group we will strive to deal with the matter and have warned fans on our website against such behaviour in 111. We also demonstrated our willingness to work with the club regarding the mosh pits and crowd surfing which is concerning the safety team. It is however worth noting that the claim made regarding 131 broken seats is an exaggeration. Several of our members visited the empty section on Wednesday night following the meeting, and whilst evident that there was accidental damage, 131 broken seats appeared to be an embellishment. While this damage is regrettable it is totally accidental and simply a product of our sometimes boisterous style of support - intentional damage would not only be idiotic but it would not be tolerated.

A key safety concern mentioned was that of overcrowding. The group has worked with the club previously on this issue and urges those who do not have tickets for our section to stay away. We do our best to self-police the area in this regard however that has proven increasingly difficult, as Celtic this season had refused to allow us to control who has tickets for our block. If we do not know who has tickets for the area, and given that the stewards have proven their incompetence in this matter, it is extremely unfair to lay sole responsibility for this matter at the feet of the group. We have repeatedly requested that we have a regular stewarding team with whom we can build up a working relationship with in the hope that this will help with the issues raised.

Whilst the representatives of our group were willing to discuss the concerns that the club had, the club were extremely hesitant to discuss some of our concerns regarding the continual harassment of Celtic supporters. The Green Brigade have demonstrated a willingness to work with the club which is why we find it regrettable that the club have chosen to publicly castigate our section, and by doing so have invited the media to attack the Celtic support once more. At a time when Celtic supporters are being routinely harassed, intimidated and dragged through the courts we feel that this should hold greater priority than concerns over lateral movement.

It appears that Celtic Football Club are far more eager to publicly attack Celtic fans than they are to defend them."