A marriage made in heaven

 

A marriage made in heaven

The dulcet tones of Karen Carpenter echoed around the Hydro in Glasgow this week as Celtic Manager, Ange Postecoglou took to the stage. The 13,000 Celtic fans present took up tune with gusto and belted out their own version of ‘Top of the world,’ with a slightly amended lyric… ‘We’re on the top of the league looking down on the Rangers and the only explanation I can find, is the form we have found since Ange has been around, Ange has put us on the top of the league.’ The big man smiled as they serenaded him and embraced him with their passion and affection. It was a moment few Celtic Managers have experienced and is testament to the job Ange has done at Celtic Park over the past two seasons.

The Hydro, that symbol of modern Glasgow with its luminous outer cushions of shimmering light, sits on the banks of the river Clyde just a few hundred metres from the Broomielaw dock where many of the forebears of those attending the event at the Hydro poured off cattle boats from Ireland in the dark years of the mid-nineteenth century. They often had little more than the clothes they wore and a determination to make a new life for themselves. One of them was a teenage boy called Andrew Kerins, who arrived in Glasgow over 170 years earlier. In time he’d train as a Marist brother and teacher, and come to realise the potential of football to help those with little or nothing. Not only did it give them the opportunity to raise money to help a very poor community, it also gave them a sense of pride and a vehicle to help begin the slow process of assimilating into Scottish society.

Perhaps that son of Greek immigrants to Australia taking the applause at the Hydro gets Celtic so well because he knows the struggles his father endured to make a better life for  his family in a new land. He said on Australian TV a few months ago…

‘This club was formed to feed poor Irish immigrants. There was a purpose to this club which stayed with it to this day. For me that resonates strongly being an immigrant in our own country. South Melbourne, Hellas Melbourne, Melbourne Croatia, Sydney Croatia, all of these clubs were set for similar reasons. They weren’t set up solely to be football clubs, they were set up to help people to adjust to life in their new land.’

Ange Postecoglou has huge admiration for his father, Jim (Dimitri) who could speak no English when he arrived in Australia after spending thirty days on a boat from Greece. He recalls one incident which illustrates the things his father endured to make a start in Australia…

‘There is the story of my dad being alerted by a neighbour that there was a mattress out the front of this house for whoever wanted it. They picked it up and were lugging it on their shoulders put forgot where home was and were literally walking the streets for hours because they could not even ask for directions. (He spoke no English) My dad used to tell that story and get a lot of laughs but I am sure when he was lugging that mattress on his shoulders it wasn’t funny.’

Those hard times formed strong characters and the no nonsense man in the Celtic hot seat was formed in those years. Watching the genuine pleasure he gets from the adulation of the fans, it’s easy to see that this is more than just a job for him. When his mother and father were working all the hours God sent to make a life in Australia for their children, Ange was beginning his football journey. His father gifted him the love of the game he enjoys to this day. His father pushed him to improve all the time and never to settle. That has rubbed off on Ange’s approach to management and his players know that to stand still is to go backwards. The constant push to be better, to improve, to keep evolving as players and a team comes from those early lessons his father taught him.

There is footage of Ange after winning the Australian Grand Final as a player in 1990. His father, who was in his 50s then, actually scaled the fence with other fans to celebrate on the pitch with his son. It meant that much to him to see his son succeed. It meant much to Ange that his father was proud of him, even if his old man didn’t say it in so many words. He recalled travelling home from Japan when his father was nearing the end of his life. They talked together and his father finally told him how proud he was of him. Ange knew it, of course, but it was nice to hear it.

In some ways, Ange Postecoglou and Celtic, is a marriage made in heaven. He understands the journey Celtic have been on and the tradition of fast, attractive football they became famous for. He has patience with fans who all want a minute of his time and deals with the snares our sporting media lays for him with ease. Like Jock Stein, Billy McNeill and other managers before, Ange gets Celtic. Stein famously said, ‘unlike many other Celts, I cannot say that Celtic were  my first love, but they will be my last.’ Gordon Strachan said, ‘when I came here, I wasn’t a Celtic fan, but I was when I left.’ I think Ange will have a similar feeling when the time comes. His footballing philosophy was summed up when he said…

‘I have never seen it as a job, something where I can make a living. It has always meant something more to me. We are in a ruthless business but for me it is never just about results, just about winning, it is about putting smiles on people's faces, doing things that are memorable.’

The big guy is sure putting smiles onto the faces of Celtic fans. His brand of football is exciting and good to watch. You get the feeling that whatever challenges lie ahead, he’ll meet them head on with his usual confidence and that determination to succeed instilled into his as a young immigrant in Australia.

As the crowds drifted out of the Hydro after a joyous night, strains of ‘top of the league’ were still to be heard echoing around the huge hall. Some were doubtless thinking of that other hit of the Carpenters and hoping it pertains to Ange Postecoglou and Celtic. It’s called; We’ve only just begun.