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First?
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a telephone rings at Hampden park
Minty: Hullo Hullo Gordon
Gordon: Hullo Hullo Boss ... to what do I owe the pleasure?
Minty: Gordon I was wanting to do you a little favour
Gordon: Yes boss .. of course I want to
Minty: Its about our schedule. We would like you to arrange for it to be extended by a couple of weeks.
Gordon: Ok boss I´ll get one of my lackeys to give the SSM a call and get it arranged.
The SSM takes the call dismisses the lackey realises what they are up to and issues a statement on the Celtic website. Gordon phones Sir Minty.
Gordon: Sorry Sir Minty but the SSM says that it shouldn´t happen.
Minty: Gordon I wasn´t asking you I was telling you
Gordon: Sorry Sir Minty there is nothing I can do and all of the committee is of the same opinion.
Sir Minty: Well maybe their is something I can do to focus the minds of the committee. Now and in the future
phone is banged down and Sir Minty calls Mitty
Minty: Hello Mitty I have just spoken with Gordon and it would seem that all our players who will play next week are injured. I´ve also warned him about trying to call up Naisy, Burky, Thompsony and Whittakery
Mitty: But not Boydie I hope
Sir Minty: Of course not.
phone is banged down and minty calls both Darryl be the blues brothers
Minty: Dafydd can you call your mates and put out story number #1 again but with todays date. Big spend etc. etc.
Dafydd: Consider it done your eminence. Sorry I cant kiss your loyal ring.
Mean while the SSM calls WGS dont pull any of our players from the Scotland squad unless we really have too. I am a PR man after all.
Hail Hail
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1st!?
Lunchtime quiz..
Who are the only team to lose on penalties in a european match, and then go on to win the tournament>
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I have to laugh when Rangers supporters drag up the stolen throw in. We did not score directly from the throw in, play raged on for a few minutes before the goal, and rangers had several opportunities to clear their lines.
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Bazzabhoy :- Rangers against Sporting Lisbon 1972
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Was going to say you couldnt play Ed, but that would have given the game away.
See if that had happened to Celtic, I can bet you that Uefa would have just said tuff walters.
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HoopsIDidItAgain,
If Gary Stevens hadn't stood on the ball instead of passing it back to woods, wee Joe would never have scored.
The biggest misjustice in that game was Mel Sterland's "tackle" on Paul McStay that amounted to jumping on his stomach leaving 12 stud marks on our future captain's torso. No red card.....shock horror!!!
If a 20 year old decision about a throw-in in Celtic's own half is meant to prove that these things even themselves out, then we're in trouble
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Paul67
As i have suggested before, victory on saturday makes all this run in a much lesser for Rangers as they will feel a 9 point advantage gives them enough latitude to start rotating a bit more.
It is up to Celtic to make the run in difficult for them by constantly applying pressurer and getting resuts. I believe this title will be won in the minds not the legs.
If we were to lose on Saturday i doubt our ability to then not drop more points and beat Rangers twice.
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St.Gris and Token, from previous thread. I have to agree with Chairbhoy, If you are given the chance to play for your country it is a terrific opportunity that not a lot of people get.
The fact that they are pulling out on masse just goes to show you how much they are worried about our trip there on Saturday.
If the players in our squad that are selected and play for Scotland don't know what their job is for Saturday they don't belong in our squad for that game.
I also believe that our players who get a run out on Wednesday will actually be sharper for the weekend.
BF
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Chairbhoy @ 1221hrs (previous article),
I can understand your sentiments, and take your point re. any player unable to give full committment on the Sat following a Wed game.
However, my point was and remains that Celtic should be the players priority, not a friendly international. Why put themselves needlessly at risk with such an important match on Saturday.
Their duty as far as I am concerned is to their Club, not their country!
I don't see how that mindset is flushing our values away.
Rangers players have made it clear that they (or possibly their management team)see the game on Saturday as more important, why have our players (or management) not done likewise?
For the record, I am a Scot and like to see Scotland doing well and shout them on in whatever game they play, but THAT is as far as it goes. If they win, fine, if not, I cannot say that I would ever lose any sleep over it. I wasn't always of this opinion, but without going into details a bitter personal experience at a Scotland game many years, forever marred by veiwpoint of Scotland and it's "fans"!
Celtic First and Always Celtic First!
St Gris,
Apologies, I had intended to make reference to your post, but the blood began to boil again during my posting and I forgot.
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
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Paul
You have mail.
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The Herald sums up the farce of this friendly internationsl - set up by Duffield!
"Seven pull out but Burley grins and bears it"
The article also says: "However, the call-offs severely compromise the worth of the friendly at Hampden Park. It also raises the spectre of Celtic players being exposed to injury while Boyd, who is unlikely to start the Old Firm match, would be the only Rangers player to feature, thus placing Burley firmly in the maelstrom of an Old Firm week."
It would be sad if it were not so predictable.
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I am surprised that people are surprised at the Rangers pull outs.
Are they not being managed by a man who walked out on his country half way through a qualifying campaign?
We should not stoop as low as them.
There is no dignity in lies and deception. Note the 'injured' players will be training this week.
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The main article has been updated with news from Poland, thanks to Zbyszek.
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BhoysFour,
As I mentioned in my last post to Chairbhoy, I can understand the playing for the country sentiment, however do you honestly believe that these 4 Celtic players will NOT play for their country again in the future???
You may be right about the orcs being worried about our trip to Mordor on saturday, but I believe that they are more concerned about Sat's game and as such have rightly prioritised it ahead of Wed's friendly international. We should be doing likewise is what I am trying to say.
If anything, the Scotland game should be used to field other players from other clubs who do not get the chance to face international calibre opposition as our players do and, let's face it, what is Burley going to find out about our players that he does not already know????
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
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TheTokenTim,
Things are changing in Scotland, when I was a boy watching the national team - very few of them would be Celts – you only need to look at the Lions Cap count.
So we could say – what do we owe the SFA – or we can embrace the fact that the young lads who join our youth Academy will have as much chance to play for their national side as anyone else.
’………..Sat's game and as such have rightly prioritised it ahead of Wed's friendly international.
I believe the Celtic management know exactly where their priorities lie.
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Daveinlondon,
You have, at long last, got mail.
Martin
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Paul67 - Excellent post which highlights quite clearly the logistical and legal dilemma facing Lex Gold.
I have some sympathy for Gold as he is clearly under enormous pressure from those who don't care enough about Scottish Football to arbitrarily (and without precedent) act in a manner that will help out the team he supported as a boy.
Scottish football's credibility is truly at stake here.
We have a national team manager who has been irrevocably undermined by a member club before a competitive match is played under his tenure.
We have an SFA chief executive (who didn't meet the criteria for the job) who has stumbled from one crisis to another.
We have a top division club in administration with no ground and who will play a match in our "Blue Riband" league in front of a 3-figure crowd before the season ends.
I am sure that Lex knows we cannot afford our national game to be turned into an even bigger laughing stock in the eyes of the world.
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To represent your country is a tremendous honour - even in a friendly.
Personally, I would not be happy if any of our players feigned injury to withdraw from the squad.
Let's be better than that.
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From Celticminded.com
Now, the following proves either...........
a)That illegal drugs seriously damage brain function
b)Care in the community is not the answer
c)The "Art" of winding-up is alive and well on Fascist Fascist
d)Prescribed medication is not being taken as directed.
.................................................
Carlos Cuellar v Henrik Larrson
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The martian was a great player for the unwashed.
SPL scoring record and all that stuff.
Recovered well from a horrendous leg break, etc., etc.
His game was in large part based on running at defenders with the ball at his feet and giving them a hard time.
Alternatively, he would feed off the big striker who would knock it down to him.
However, I think King Carlos would've eaten the martian up for breakfast.
His speed and positional sense would've nullified the Swede for me.
Thoughts?
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i think you are right though i do wonder why you care.
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He would of got nothing, absolutely nothing, out of King Carlos.
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Who knows, there is no way to tell.
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thoughts !!! the martian proved on many occassions that he was world class(it sticks in my throat) king carlos is having a great 1st(of many i hope) season but we have yet to see a pacey striker have a go at carlos coz in the spl there aint such a player....all in my opinion of course
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Larrson is actually one of the few Celtic players I didnt hate. Always came across very profesional and didnt spend all his time trying to wind people up ie. Lennon, Boruc etc
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Larsson was an excellent forward who would give any centre back a hard 90 mins and Cuellar is a tremendous centre half....no idea how this would turn out though
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Its a bit irrelevant I suppose. Over 3 seasons, for example, there would be 12 old firm games not including cup games i reckon larsson woulve got one or two against any defender with the amount of games there are. In just one season you're looking at 4 games. I think the likelyhood of completely shutting out even vinegar, mcdonald and samaras is not high.
Cuellar is an awesome defender. Thats all that matters.
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I thought Henrik was a tad over-rated; a top class player but not quite in the Laudrup world class bracket.
Carlos is Scotland's player of the year without a doubt but he is so far short of top class he is not even an outside bet for a place in the Spanish national team.
Larssen moved to Spain to further his career; Carlos left Spain to further his career.
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Because that's football.
What ifs, maybes, if onlys.
Cuellar has the potential to be the best centre half in living memory at Ibrox. If he keeps his consistency of performance up then he just might realise that position.
i would've loved to see him against the swede to see how they both fared.
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Quote:
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tambourineman
I thought Henrik was a tad over-rated; a top class player but not quite in the Laudrup world class bracket.
Carlos is Scotland's player of the year without a doubt but he is so far short of top class he is not even an outside bet for a place in the Spanish national team.
Larssen moved to Spain to further his career; Carlos left Spain to further his career.
I disagree. He fitted well into the Barcalona team and there fans loved him, same when he went to Man Utd.
I think big Carlos just oozes class, I hope he stays for many more seasons.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by macky1986
Larrson is actually one of the few Celtic players I didnt hate. Always came across very profesional and didnt spend all his time trying to wind people up ie. Lennon, Boruc etc
Anyone who is "Very professional" wouldn't be such a diving, cheating ..........
Henprik got 1 goal against Cuellar in his time in Spain.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by shotasdiscoshoes
Anyone who is "Very professional" wouldn't be such a diving, cheating ............
Henprik got 1 goal against Cuellar in his time in Spain.
Just my opinion.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pastmaster95 & 244
Because its a wee bit of conjecture and debate on a holiday monday night - that's all.
great post, life is all about what,if"s,but"s ........
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Larsson was sheer class. This was proven when he went to Barcelona and then Man utd.
The weird thing is I actually think he became a better player when he left celtic.
God knows how good he would have become if hed left 2/3 years earlier
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Quote:
Originally Posted by shotasdiscoshoes
Anyone who is "Very professional" wouldn't be such a diving, cheating ..............
Henprik got 1 goal against Cuellar in his time in Spain.
In this day and age, at the top level that is what "Very professional" means.
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Does anyone know of a clip of Moore's tackle on Larson when he put him 10 feet up in the air?
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The martian used to do a lot of his work from out wide and I wonder how King Carlos would've handled that.
Probably in his usual imperious fashion. ( A timposter shoorly !!)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by macky1986
I disagree. He fitted well into the Barcalona team and there fans loved him, same when he went to Man Utd.
I think big Carlos just oozes class, I hope he stays for many more seasons.
He was injured in his first season (cruciate I think) around November maybe. He was a bit part player at that time. He returned the following season and was a never a first team regular.
As for fans loving him - are you basing that on the Scottish press view of Barcelona fans? Or do you really know? It is a genuine question, because I have a slight knowledge of a couple of Barcelona based Scots and they think he is not as loved as Ronnie, Eto'o and locals such as Puyol and Iniesta.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tambourineman
He was injured in his first season (cruciate I think) around November maybe. He was a bit part player at that time. He returned the following season and was a never a first team regular.
As for fans loving him - are you basing that on the Scottish press view of Barcelona fans? Or do you really know? It is a genuine question, because I have a slight knowledge of a couple of Barcelona based Scots and they think he is not as loved as Ronnie, Eto'o and locals such as Puyol and Iniesta.
if you watched when barca won the league when he was there at the end of the game out of all the world class players they have it was larrsons name they were chanting
larrson was a class act i wish we had of got him beofre he joined the filth
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It depends really. Larsson scored goals at basically every level there is and that includes the World Cup. Dealing with Larsson at his peak would be a tough task for any centre half.
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Cuellar everytime, larrson was a cheat and in the end even the scumbags booed him. (You just couldn't make that up )
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pablophanque
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EdwardUrsus
I have left a few posts for u but dont think you have got them
When u get a corner at Ibrox what is every1 "singing"?
I am sure it is the letters U V and F combined to give a UVF horrible noise
Can you confirm what this is and if i am right, what are ur thoughts please?
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rankers recieve an apology from the bbc after one of there news journalists read out over the air an email from a listener expressing there views on human embryo research
The email obviously written by a celtic wag,said why all the fuss they have been creating half human half animal
research at ibrox for years ,the poor female reporter was blissfully reading this out unaware of the signifance to the hordes of neandethralls from the dark side,seemingly the orcs trust will now consider the words human,embryo reasearch,half,animal,hybrid to be sectarian and therefore never to be used in song or verse meanwhile back at the beeb the journalist abdeer mcintyre who read out the email is weighed under by the sacks of hate mail she recieved by the rightous from the darkside
louisebrown csc
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bazzabhoy
I think the answer is Rangers in 1972. Did the ref not make them play penalties in Lisbon by mistake when they had actually won on the away goals rule?
Paul
I like your style, as Patsy Gallagher once said 'retaliate first'. This is a farce of their own making but somehow I fear this extension will be rubber-stamped. I thought big Yogi on the radio would have been against it when asked the after their match v Hearts. Instead he gave it his blessing saying it was for the good of Scottish Football. This is not for the 'good of Scottish Football' but a case of 'good for Scotlands establishment team'.
Keep up the pressure Paul!
HAIL HAIL
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Token,
just responded to your post but it dissapeared.
i can see your point, If the idea for them is to save players for Saturday so be it, but don't hide it behind the injury veil.
The club v country debate is always going to be controversial, but I still believe given the opportunity...
Hope this takes you off the boil
:-)
BF
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Hello again
Been extremely busy and out of the country for much of the last 6 months.
However I am glad to see that many now see that we will not win the league with the current setup.
I also note that many are also now in agreement about our defence. I have highlighted this many many times.
I still stand by my prediction that Rangers will win the league by at least 10 points.
The reasons for all our failure will be
1. Shocking defence
2. Physical Rangers side
3. Referees
4. Gordon's refusal to play players in their proper positions or not playing them at all.
Many will say we have the best defence in the league in terms of goals conceded however the goals we have lost have been critical and would have made all the difference.
Hibs - Away
Hibs - Home
St Mirren - Home
ICT - Away
There have been other games where we have made shocking errors but they have gone unpunished.
The simple fact is that between us and the referees we have handed a very average Rangers team a treble.
As many of you will know I have played against Celtic & Rangers many times and in the main we always got away with more against Celtic than we do against Rangers.
The referees are very clever in that they give sometimes obvious decisions but it is the samll decisions they make which can make all the difference. From a player's perspective please think over the following
1. Area on the pitch where free kicks are awarded for and against.
2. Bookings for and against.
3. Break-up of play when any momentum is being built.
These issues fuel frustration and anger in opposing players which cause us to react in our play which in turn gives referees further reason to book you or send you off.
From speaking with supporters I believe that some of them think that we aren't human and we can't see what is going on around us. We do.
I challenged a referee once about a penalty he had given against my team for Rangers after the match and all he did was smirk and walk away. This penalty gave Rangers the victory by the odd goal near the end of the match.
I understand that I have taken stick for my bet earlier on in the season but it gives me no pleasure to say that I will be right.
When things are tight in this league the crucial decisions will always go their way.
Here is a thought for you.
My mind tells me that we will not be allowed to win at Ibrox on Saturday. I do not think we are capable even on a level playing field however that is another matter. Therefore it would make sense to bet on Rangers if you were a betting man.
However having watched many matches this season and to counter the calls of bias for Rangers I believe that a victory may be contrived for Celtic on Saturday but this will be sorted out in the remaining fixtures especially the ones at Parkhead.
This will counter the calls of paranoia and be referred to in the matches which fall after the weekend.
I will not be having a bet on Saurday as I am unsure how the powers that be are going to play out this carve up. They can sometimes be very clever.
Incidentally I was attended the Everton - West Ham match on Saturday and all I can say is that outside the top 4 the football is not all it's cracked up to be.
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pablophanque,
Carlos Cuellar v Henrik Larrson
Remember many moons ago I was surreptitiously reading my sister’s Jackie there was an article in there Bay city rollers vs the Beatles – conclusion BCR won it by a nose.
It seems the good readers of Jackie knew as much about music as your average Rangers fan knows about football.
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Hoople @ 1352
"To represent your country is a tremendous achievement - even in a friendly"
I am not disagreeing with that sentiment, but each of our players have all, and will again, go on to represent their country. However I would say - for me anyway - representing Celtic would be a far bigger honour, especially in a game that will go a long way to deciding the destination of this season's Title!
With regards to your feigning injury comment, assuming you are aiming that comment at me (possibly amongst others), never and at no time, did I mention feigning injury, that is what they do, not us.
I was advocating stating it like it is, the Celtic players would not be included for the Scotland squad purely because it was felt by Celtic Football Club that Saturday's game against Rangers is more important and the club felt that the needless risk of injury to any of our key players is one not worth undertaking.
I should state that this is based upon the fact that the 3 or 4 day rule does not apply to friendlies.
However I would ask one question:
What, to you, is more important - Scotland V Croatia or Rangers v Celtic?
IMHO your answer to that question should define your thoughts as to what Celtic's players should be doing this midweek.
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
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welcome back in the dark
your optimsm was sorely missed!!!!!!!!
Rangers to win the league by 10 points! Ha, you're having a laugh.
Keep the faith.
9 games to go and onto 3 in a row
Hail Hail
Mort.
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Token,
The Ibrox match is far more important.
Pulling players out isn't the answer, BHOYSFOUR made a very valid point, a football match against quality opposition could be great preparation.
If Scott Brown plays a blinder and scores a goal he could go to Ibrox with his confidence high or he could get injured and we have to play one of our other half a dozen midfield players.
Let me ask you a question if Boruc was playing for Poland and McGeady for ROI would you stop these guys playing?
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BhoysFour,
Thanks mate :)
Think its time I gave up on the Club v Country discussion. Its pretty obvious where I stand.
As stated many times before by many people, everyone is entitled to their opinion and just coz it differs from mine doesn't mean they are wrong and I am right......except when it's Ed and Govanrear of course :-)
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
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On the plus side Hartley could probably do with a run out against Croatia. Robson as well had he been fit.
I wonder if McDonald will be fit for Saturday ?
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On the International situation, I have to say I don't blame Rangers one bit for doing what they have done.
For this meaningless match to be scheduled for a midweek that has been known since June was 3 days before an Old Firm game is ridiculous.
I would love it if we had no players away on International duty this week. Everyone should be at Lennoxtown going over the tactics and set-plays over and over again. For us to have only 2 full days to prepare for this game, and with probably 4 players having played the night before that who can expect to start on Saturday is a joke. This match is far too important for this, whereas without playing what would be close to a full team, the Scotland game has no value.
We shouldn't need to dress it up as injuries if we had pulled them all out. Just tell the SFA we want our players fully prepared to do their jobs for the Club that pays their hefty wages in the biggest match of our domestic season so far.
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In the Dark
Correct me if I'm wrong, but you said before that your backing Rangers to win the league was a head-ruling-heart, pragmatic decision, leaving us to conclude that, as a good Celtic man, you hoped you were wrong and that Celtic would prevail.
Many thought at the time that the gesture of putting money on Rangers still showed a lack of good faith, but that was then and this is now.
Now you say you are "glad" other Celtic fans have come round to your point of view.
I can't square that circle I'm afraid.
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Stuart Dougal is the ref on sat
I just rang Drew Herbertson
to be published on the sfa website shortly
Operation STOP 3 in a row is well under way
The guy is a cheat in my opinion
he wanted all the refs to go on strike after lennon ONLY got a 2 match ban
the guy is a cheat
did he not also deny lennon a stonewaller at ibrox?
or was that kenny clark?
on a positive note, he is not as big a cheat as mccurry!
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Celtic First
I do not mean glad in the sense that you are suggesting. I am glad that more fans are now realising what the problems are and are more importantly asking why no attempts were made to rectify the problems that existed.
The fact that Gordon chose not to invest decent money in the defence told us he was happy with what he had combined with the hysterical decision to make a very average player our Captain told me all I needed to know.
I can assure you I take no pleasure from my opinions being proved correct.
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Chairbhoy,
I am not suggesting its the answer, I am suggesting it as a preventative measure. Prioritise. That's all.
To use another analogy, what if Steven McManus and Gary Caldwell play and Scotland get hammered and the two of them get the run around from the Croation frontman - quite possible scenario - I'm sure that would do wonders for their confidence!
Also what if happens if one, or worse, both of them get injured, tha......hang on that may be something.....BB and D'OD centre half partnership at Mordor...lets go for that :-).
Seriously though, that would severely curtail WGS' plans for ibrox game I would imagine, regardless of our own personal thoughts on the CH partnership.
Re, your AB/AMcG question, reading between the lines it appears that you feel I have some agenda against Scotland - Not the case and I think it is pretty pathetic that you veil your question so.
To answer you, of course I would stop them as well. I thought from my previous posts this would have been obvious.
Again let me state, I would much rather that ANY Celtic player did not participate in meaningless International friendlies when Celtic have a match on the Saturday immediately afterwards.
CELTIC FIRST AND ALWAYS CELTIC FIRST!!
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
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Emdy know what's happening with the Cardigan and the Ned's expulsion from the Hib's game?
Our manager receives a two match ban for stopping a bullying steward from having a go at one of his team, surely the Cardigan should be given a 12 match ban!
BF
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inthedark,
After the Barcelona game WGS brought up the fact that our defence cost him 500k. I dont think he was proud of that fact. He was just pointing it out. I reckon that he was pointing out to all and sundry that you get what you pay for. Which brings me nicely to your accusation that "Gordon chose not to invest" this is absolute speculation and should be treated as such.
Our captain will become on Wednesday the national captain. Out of interest and considering the financial restraints that WGS works under. Who would you have made captain ?
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In the Dark
I'm not trying to suggest anything. That's what you wrote.
Celtic are very much in the hunt for the title, but you talk as though trophy already had blue ribbons on it.
A bit of positive thinking goes a very long way, I find.
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Bhoys4,
I believe that the SFA have already issued a statement saying that Walter has served his punishment and that no further action is necessary. WGS got into trouble for a second time at Pittodrie.
maketherulesupasyougoalongCSC
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Token,
'Not the case and I think it is pretty pathetic that you veil your question so.
It wasn't a veiled question, you already stated you support Scotland when they play.
Rather it was for two points, one withdrawls could be condoned in this case due to Rangers lack of support for the national team and two to focus on the ramifications this act would have regarding international football.
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OK, annaoan I give up, what punishment?
BF
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Tokentim.
Personally, I stopped caring much about the national team a long time ago, however I think the players chosen want to play for Scotland and if picked, how can they refuse?
You can't have a situation where players pick and choose if they're going to play or not.
I agree there's only one game of any consequence this week and it's not this meaningless (to us) friendly.
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bhoys4,
an automatic two game suspension where he had to sit in the stands. He also stated that he wouldn´t appeal mmmmhhhh wonder why .. unlike WGS who did appeal the Mc Glynn incident. His appeal was still pending at the time of the Pittodrie incident. Hence the threat of a 10 game ban.
How they actually behaved is unimportant as far as the SFA is concerned.
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Forgot to say
WG Your post the other day was first-class.
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In the dark,
As I previously said to you
it is of course a free country.
Personally I couldn't put money on Rangers. It would rankle with me. I would not enjoy collecting the cash or spending it..but thats me. As I said its a free country.
As an ex player it was interesting to read your views 'from the pitch' so to speak.
I still beggars belief that a bunch of Rangers supporting refs and SFA officials can orchestrate the outcome of a league title before a ball is kicked.
I mean surely an operation of that magnitude requires intelligence to organise.
One would need the strategic nous of Napoloen. The management skills of a Managing Director skilled in managing a multitude of employees as well as managing a multitude of companies.
One would have to mobalise his officers in a way that would be non transparent to the to the masses.
He would have to have the ego of Thatcher and the cunning and devilment of old nick himself.
I mean, in all seriousness, who in Scottish football could qualify for such a heinous operation?
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Awe Naw
If you consider how much money Gordon has spent on the defence versus midfield and attack it is a safe assumption that he chose not to invest in this area. The fact that he chose to leave the best CB at the club (Balde) out of the team also tells me that he was happy with Caldwell and McManus.
To answer your question I would have built from the back - signed 2 experienced defenders and gave one of them the captaincy. I would have utilised my budget a lot differently to Gordon even under the constraints he was under. I would have prioritised the defence using my budget and went on from there.
Only my opinion.
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ANNAOAN,
Thanks for that, it is remarkable how the Ragtops clam up when it is one of the establishment.
BF
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At 25/03/08 15:08, Hoople said…
You can't have a situation where players pick and choose if they're going to play or not.
Unless they play for the orcs that is.
At 25/03/08 15:18, corrib04 said…
...One would have to mobalise his officers in a way that would be non transparent to the to the masses.
Or alternatively, you could bank on media & establishment support for your campaign from the get-go. Much easier that way.
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thegreentrumpet,
My point, exactly!
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Surely a better solution this week would have been for Rangers to play one of there many backlogged fixtures to allow them that peace of mind they desperate for, SHOULD they progress through all tournements as opposed to extending the season! thoughts anyone? also would they have so many injured payers had this been the case!
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Corrib04 and the Green Trumpet
Yes …
… but we can still beat them, in spite of everything—their strengths, our weaknesses, the help they receive from all quarters, the disdain and contempt that the establishment in Scotland still demonstrates towards Celtic (the last vestige of a generations-old suspicion and dislike of Irish people and Catholicism, which you cannot now give vent to without breaking the law of the land, while hating Celtic is legal) …
In spite of it all, we can win. The prize is there for us to grab.
Bring it on.
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Players want to play.
The experience of facing Croatia can only be beneficial in the long run.
Barring injury of course !
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Lennindinho18 :- Due to problems with blogger Paul is posting far more threads than usual, this can lead to mix ups in a replyI left an answer on the last thread and have pasted it here.
Lenondinho18 :- This isn't a cop out but I honestly haven't heard that chant at Ibrox, if it were being chanted I would be happy to condemn it. Sorry about not answering last time, I do remember reading it and meant to answer. The only chant/sound that I can think on that I've heard used at corners outside the normal songs is a long drawn out "ooooooh" like the Zulu chant in the film of the same name or the chant by the Germanic army in Gladiator.
I'm not saying no one at Ibrox shouts out paramilitary slogans but it's been a long while since I've heard any concerted chants about it.
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Hi in the dark welcome back and as usual your posts are very enlightning
However in a recent team comparison
they are evenly matched, defences about the same, the rfc midfield are hardly gigantic are they,
with celtic having a height advantage up front with gs and jvoh.
Unless you are confusing brawn with the will to win, where then are we going to be bullied (unless assisted by the mib)
if we play the right players.
If as you say we might be contrived a win how do you propose
as an ex pro we do the unthinkable and beat the establishment and rfc in the celtic park tussles
for the record my midfield would read
McGeady,Hartley,Brown,Robson.
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Loumacarisbettingslip :- Would you have felt the same if the comment had been read out about Celtic and Celtic fans? My own view is that it's quite funny but I do realise not everyone shares my sense of humour
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Token,
I didn’t make my last post very clear – so let me try to elucidate;
’CELTIC FIRST AND ALWAYS CELTIC FIRST!!
Always
Club vs country
We have had this debate before on CQN and the vast majority of posters would agree with you in principle that the club should be allowed to withdraw players from international duty.
BUT
Clubs must make players available for international duty by FIFA rules
Here’s why I disagreed with you - you stated:
’I would like to ask who sanctioned this at Celtic, as for me, this is tantamount to dereliction of Duty!’
HOWEVER
These players are not injured – you stated:
’never and at no time, did I mention feigning injury, that is what they do, not us.’
SO
If you are not proposing bending the rules, then the only alternative is to break them - by refusing to release players.
I would NOT expect anyone in Celtic management to sanction this.
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We may be at the business end of the season Paul but it´s more like too much monkey business in and around the people´s game. And there lies the crux of the matter, some are intent on wrestling the game away from the people. Lex Gold may have your sympathies, but what exactly has he been in the game? A Goalkeeper for Morton, a physiotherapist at Raith Rovers? I am fairly out of touch with scottish football but I have never heard of him.
This whole carry on started with big Feck asking for a free Saturday to train Scotland before the Italy, or was it France, game. "All for blooming Scotland." we were told, and where is Big Fecky now? All for Scotland, no? No the chant now is "All for Eck..and all for Duffield ...and all for Ally... and all for Wally.....
The only answer to these people is on the park. The Celtic players need all our support, but they have to want it enough too. If we fail to play well against Rangers, and that should be our yardstick not whether we beat Rangers or not, Gordon Strachan's time is up in my opinion. Because in the wake of the Barcelona matches I think we need to show on the big stage that we can play at high tempo and pass effectively. I'm a bit pessimistic I must say about this as Paul described our passing against Gretna as very poor, and that was against Gretna! But that would be just typical of this rollercoaster season if Strachan was able to do a Houdini and come away from Ibrox with points
If I were manager, for this game, at Ibrox, this weekend, I would throw the pen drive tactics documents out of the dugout and pick eleven players in a format, and issue these choice instructions;
1 Remember boys, you are playing against 11 players, a referee and two linesmen.
2 Get stuck in.
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Paul67,
Novo got a straight red card on the 10th March and served an automatic ban for their next match. Do you expect a further punishment and when do you expect this to be announced as the game was 2 weeks ago? Maybe the autorities will try and tie in with Cousin's return in 2 weeks....
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The chant at Ibrox has nothing to do with zulu warrior cries or the like. It does sound like it but its not and it is directed at a Celtic great. We all know fine well what it is.
As for the call offs nothing and I mean nothing surprises me about that no good shower of, (better leave it there).
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CelticFirst :- I agree with you that it's wrong to hate anyone because they are Catholic or Irish, it's always wrong to hate someone for their race or creed (with a couple of exceptions i.e I would hate anyone who was a nazi no matter who they were) but there is nothing wrong in hating Celtic nor should there be. You are entitled no matter how petty it may be to hate your rivals.
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Edward,
Hating Celtic surely not - You seem quietly confident at the moment, I must say you are in a good position
You win - Crisis at Celtic
You Draw - I'm sure you'd take three draws from the match
You lose - We go ahead on goal difference, but with two more head to heads and a game in hand...........
I still think we'll do it don't think you've got the squad for the run-in.
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new article posted.
Newsletter, cheers.
Porridgeand, Zsa Zsa has already been pulling strings over this one.
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Alobundy :- While I do know there are chants against a Celtic great take place and I do disagree with them I think you have your chants mixed up, I can't see any way the "oooooh" chant can be against anyone connected with Celtic.
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In the dark - you're spot on bhoy! Assuming he made the right type of signings at the back - I believe our entire team would be stronger. I personally dont think Bobo is the answe long term, however the massive lift he gave the team by hs sheer presence was obvious throughout the team - we looked stronger and played freely
I'm not sure if GS tried to sign centers and wasnt given the budget or players not available
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inthedark,
We have no idea how much control WGS has over spend and budget and under what restraints he is working. Who is to say that he´s been told "No blue chip money for defenders ?" and that Hinkel wasn´t a peace offering to him ??
All speculation I´m afraid so I dont buy your safe assumption stuff
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Chairbhoy @ 1506hrs,
Apologies for misreading the intent behind your question and therefore my response to you.
In further answer to both you and Hoople, as far as I am concerned, if, as has been stated elsewhere, the Fifa Rule does not apply to friendlies, any player that does not wish to participate in any friendly international has the right to withdraw himself from his country's squad, should he wish to do so.
It may harm his future chances of international call-up's (dependant upon the international manager's thought's) but I think the right to do so should still be there, especially when the player/his club has a match of vital importance the following weekend.
Can I now draw a halt and withdraw my participation in this subject please? I feel jaded and need to recover my energies and focus for the important articles coming up this week :-)
HAIL! HAIL!
Token.
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re the fod pulling their players out of the mid week Scotland game,
I think I'm right in saying that we had a free weekend before we played Aberdeen in the SC replay at Parkhead, whereas Aberdeen played an SPL fixture at Pittodrie that weekend. A fat lot of good all that free time done us - we were hopeless in the replay.
Also, we all know that the fod got their weekend SPL game against Gretna postponed so they would be fresh for the midweek CL tie against Lyon. Same outcome - they got dumped out of the CL the same as we got dumped out the SC.
So don’t panic about our guys playing on Wed while their guys rest up, judging by recent experience it won't do them any good.
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Reading about Murray's munificence as he graciously distributes free tickets to the needy, the image came into my head of Don Cheech (not sure how that's spelt) in "The Godfather", strutting self-importantly among the peasants glad-handing and bestowing his benediction on all.
I can see the Great Illusionist in that white suit and hat.
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Anaw - re a telephone rings at Hampden.
I think it was funny, but obviously not being part of the CQN clique, and thereby not knowing to whom SSM and Mitty refer, I cannot really tell.
I find it very annoying that some regular contributors to CQN insist on using initials and in the know nicknames so often in their posts.
Ah Well.
Ho hum.
