Be Worthy

 

Be Worthy

Only twice in my life have I felt in real danger at a football match. One was in Nottingham in the 1980s during Celtic’s UEFA cup tie with Nottingham Forest. The other was when I was leaving Hampden Park after a cup final at the old stadium. Things got so dangerous on the crumbling old stairway at the back of the Celtic end that I opted to slide down the muddy hill at the side of the stairway. I got home wet and muddy but it was worth it to get away from the crush on the stairway. On both of those occasions I felt the icy hand of fear gripping my heart and it wasn’t something I ever want to experience again in a football stadium.

The reason for beginning this article by stating the above is to remind that tiny minority of Celtic fans who think that mocking the Ibrox disaster is acceptable that they are out of order.  There but for the grace of God could have been any of us in those days, such were conditions in stadiums around the country.  Let others wallow in that sewer if they choose to but be worthy of the great tradition of solidarity and empathy Celtic fans are known for. Those 66 fans were working class folk going to watch their team. It’s unacceptable to mock their memory, it’s not funny, it’s not banter- it’s sinking to the gutter.

The events at Ibrox stadium last Sunday are still the subject of heated debate in the media and the usual and very predictable polarisation has a lot of people blaming the other side. From the outset, when the DJ played the full version of ‘simply the best’ and thousands of home fans blasted ‘F*ck the Pope and the IRA’ into the nation’s living rooms, it was obvious that tensions were running high. I’m sure the shorter version will be in use at the next Rangers home game after that exhibition of medieval tribalism.

Radio phone in shows, the press and general media are quite happy to use the ‘Old Firm’ label when describing the disorder at the end of the game. The reality was that a few dozen Celtic supporters invaded the field after their team won the penalty shoot-out. There was no intent towards violence although a few were goading the home supporters still in the stadium. Surely such an outcome was predictable and the whole phalanx of police and stewards on duty should have been proactive and stopped it occurring in the first place? Similarly, at the other end, there was no concerted effort to stop masked ultras invading the field and heading towards the celebrating Celtic fans, and they weren’t heading up the field to shake their hands and say ‘well played, lads,’ that’s for sure.

Let’s be clear here; I’m not a journalist. I’m just one guy giving what I think and hope is a balanced opinion. As I saw it, there was only one side attacking Celtic staff, (for the third time in recent seasons) only one side was attacking police and stewards and only one side on the field was intent on violence. The throwing of flares into a crowded stand was criminally dangerous. Yes, any Celtic fans who mocked the Ibrox disaster or damaged the stadium are completely out of order and any who contemplated running onto the field should have asked themselves; what is the likely response to this from those in the opposite end? The Union Bears seemed to act with utter impunity as little effort was made to keep them off the field and even less to arrest those guilty of violent behaviour.

There are various voices suggesting ways to make scenes like those we saw last Sunday less likely to occur in the future. Among them are banning away fans or making the wearing of face coverings and masks illegal in public places such as football stadiums. They are worn for one reason only; to make identifying individuals virtually impossible. Another suggestion was relocating the ultra-groups to the top tier of the stadium from where field invasions are virtually impossible. I’m sure many measures will be discussed behind closed door although Rangers’ statement on the trouble at the game omitted any mention of their fans’ violence, sectarian singing or field invasion. Their focus was on reminding us that there will be an enquiry in time and focusing on the stupid graffiti in the away end…

‘What we can say now is that issues of stadium safety and the legacy of the Ibrox Disaster are deeply personal to this club. We were appalled to discover graffiti within the stadium referencing that tragedy. The memory of the 66 supporters who lost their lives in January 1971 deserves dignity and respect. To desecrate their memory is vile. It is cowardly. It is shameful. This is not football rivalry and it is not banter. It is the abuse of a tragedy that claimed 66 lives. Finally, it is important that the reputation of Rangers supporters is treated fairly in this discussion. Tens of thousands of people attended Ibrox on Sunday simply to support their team with pride and to watch a football match. We will not accept a narrative that ignores the full context of what happened.’

Whilst wholeheartedly agreeing that abusing a tragedy is utterly abhorrent, they could perhaps offer the same courtesy to the thousands of Celtic fans who had nothing to do with the graffiti and would be heartily sickened by it. It was likely the action of one or two immature individuals who lack the mental acuity to see how hurtful it could be. Rangers might also want to have a word with the stadium DJ who played the full version of ‘Simply the Best’ surely knowing that many of those thousands who were there to ‘support their team with pride’ would belt out their nakedly sectarian ad-ons?

Scottish football took a step backwards last Sunday. The rise of the ultras culture is part of what is going on. The colour and noise they bring to stadiums is laudable, but for some football is a vehicle for poor behaviour and a photo opportunity for social media. The re-emergence of sectarian chanting on the scale we witnessed from home fans at Ibrox last weekend is unacceptable but those who indulge in it are emboldened by the lack of action by the club and the inaction of the police. We’ve tolerated the intolerable for too long but alas history teaches us that football's governing bodies in Scotland will release a report condemning the actions of the minority at Ibrox and recommending certain organisational changes but do they actually have the will to grasp this poisonous nettle and pull it out by the roots?  

All clubs have their share of less cerebral followers within their support but we should never lose sight of the fact that most football fans are decent people. The fact that this particular fixture brings out the worst in some should spur the police, stewards and clubs to be more proactive in their planning and not be so easily caught on the hop when fairly predictable events occur. Some fans need to get a grip too or they’ll face being locked out of the very fixture so many of them love best. They'll also deny the opportunity to enjoy the game to the vast majority who know how to behave.

 

 

Sectarian Trash

 

My old man told me once that in his youth he attended a Celtic v Rangers game that was among the most subdued ever. It took place in 1952 and came on the same day as the Celtic side and a good few of the Rangers team, attended the funeral of John ‘Jackie’ Millsopp. The young Celt was just 22 and breaking into the side when a burst appendix took his life. He was, by all accounts, a lovely young man and his death hit his team mates hard. Sean Fallon said in his biography;

“I had got to know him well because we’d shared a cabin on the boat over to America the summer before, when the club took us over for a tour after we had won the Scottish Cup. We became good friends and Jackie was a lovely lad. Everyone at Celtic liked him, and it affected us all for a long, long time.”

Before that Celtic v Rangers match on the day of Jackie’s funeral, a minute’s silence was held and was impeccably observed before a voice cut through the silence shouting an obscenity about the Pope. My old man, brought up in the Calton area, informed me that this incident led to the culprit receiving some rough justice from fellow Rangers fans. Some things, even in the rough and multi-layered Celtic–Rangers’ rivalry, were considered going too far. Celtic won the match all those years ago but goalscorers, Walsh and Rollo, barely raised a smile given that they’d attended their team mate’s funeral just hours before the game.

That incident came to mind when I watched the Rangers v Celtic match on Sunday. All clubs, Celtic included, have their share of idiots in their fan base but Rangers have a fan base that seems totally lacking in self-awareness. The club has had fines and parts of the ground closed for racist/sectarian chanting and were warned by UEFA that they will close the Copland Road stand if there is one more act of racism. Yet on Sunday, the old poisonous bile was pouring from thousands of throats as the SPFL and SFA look on and do nothing. One English based newspaper had the cajónes to print what it saw after Rangers took the lead…

‘At this point, Ibrox was raucous. Far too much of that racket involved the kind of sectarian trash Scotland’s football authorities and Rangers themselves have allowed to return due to pitiful inaction. Rangers, now under American ownership should be working hard to remove this archaic stain on the club’s reputation.’

The Scottish editions ignored the songs of hate which echoed around the stadium and focussed instead on a couple of idiotic Celtic fans who seemed to be mocking the Ibrox disaster. As long as the football authorities, the police and the media keep ignoring the poison at Ibrox, the longer it will continue. As a society we need to look with fresh eyes at this and say to ourselves, this isn’t normal behaviour, nor should it be acceptable in 2026.

Another aspect of the home support’s behaviour that went unremarked in the media was the banner mocking Jock Stein, a man who literally helped with dead and dying Rangers fans on that awful day in January 1971. Jock is one of the towering figures of Scottish football; a man who put our game on the European map. The success he brought to Celtic stuck in the throats of many with no love of the club. He led Scotland to the World Cup and literally died guiding them to another. What are Rangers’ directors going to do about these shameful banners and chants? The answer appears to be nothing.

Any time I write about these matters, we are deluged by a tsunami of whataboutery, but this is not about putting the boot into Rangers, it’s about asking their more reasonable fans to speak up on forums and to the club about this barnacle of intolerance and bigotry which sticks to the club like superglue and drags it through the gutter. There seems to be no sewer the lumpen element at Ibrox is unwilling to trawl in their quest to try and offend the ‘tarriers.’ From banners about Jock Stein and ‘Popery’ to songs about child abuse and Fenian blood. More worryingly though, is the fact they do it with such impunity and such a blinkered view of the damage it does their own club.

So, what can be done about such a deeply ingrained culture? It isn’t the fault of players so deducting points for such behaviour isn’t a fair or viable option. Imagine that scenario when the league is as tight as it is this year? UEFA deal with it by closing stands or even having matches behind closed doors if racism or bigoted chanting continues to be heard, but we all know the SPFL and SFA are a pretty spineless bunch and lack the leadership skills and courage to drain this swamp.

A decade ago, Legia Warsaw played one of the biggest games in their history when they met Real Madrid in the Champions League. Due to the behaviour of some Legia fans in a previous match with Borussia Dortmund, the Polish club were ordered to play the Real game behind closed doors. It stung the decent majority of Legia fans and their anger wasn’t only directed at UEFA, but also at the unruly fans who caused the ban. It needs fans themselves to see the damage certain behaviours inflict on their club before change occurs. Just as you can’t pass laws to stop people hating or behaving badly, it needs education and cultural change too. It is now half a century since Willie Waddell, stood on the Ibrox pitch and said…

‘It is to these tikes, hooligans, louts and drunkards that I pinpoint my message. It is because of your gutter-rat behaviour that we are being publicly tarred and feathered.’

We have made great changes to the football experience since then. The stadiums are safer, the alcohol culture lessened and the game is more of a family experience. It can still be the visceral and tribal occasion it always was, but there are, there must be, limits. Some though, seem unable to control their base instincts and still wallow in old hatreds and behaviour patterns. If they refuse to join the 21^st century then the game would be better without them.