It was an unfamiliar Celtic starting line-up at Pittodrie this afternoon which resulted in the visitors dropping league points for the first time in four months. Andre Blackman and Mikael Lustig made their Celtic debuts at left and right back respectively, while Charlie Mulgrew played central midfield alongside Joe Ledley.
Neither full back got forward as often as we are accustomed to see Celtic play, which perhaps contributed to the disjointed performance.
Charlie Mulgrew almost opened the scoring on 5 minutes when his swerving free kick rebounded back off the inside of Jason Brown’s far post in Celtic’s only genuine chance before the 28th minute goal. Mulgrew was key again in the move that counted, controlling a difficult ball before twisting his marker and knocking the ball forward to Kris Commons. Commons spun before playing a perfectly weighted pass into space inside the box for Anthony Stokes to run onto. Stokes first touch took the ball past Brown in the Aberdeen goal before he slotted his shot into the net.
Aberdeen were well out of the contest in the first half and had to wait until near the end of the half before they managed an attempt at goal, a Fyvie shot which was blocked. Then, only seconds from the break, a long ball forward to Fallon brought Aberdeen level. Fallon turned and his forward run drew Blackman, Wilson and Rogne, leaving the right back space unattended. Gavin Rae ran 70 yards to fill that space and fired a shot which was going narrowly wide before Blackman’s block bounced over Forster into the net.
A minute into the second half Ryan Jack almost reached a cross from the right as Aberdeen seemed to take encouragement from their goal.
Anthony Stokes looked Celtic’s best player but whenever he linked with strike partner, Gary Hooper, the ball invariably bounced out of play or to an Aberdeen player, most notably on the 55th minute when Hooper failed to control on the edge of the six yard box.
Aberdeen’s best chance to win the game arrived on 63 minutes when Meganson evaded Lustig but shot wide when clean through inside the box.
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/share/1712505
Appears, according to The Observer that charity cuts hit deprived areas worst.
Not if you der hun and taking the proceedings from a tainted ‘Charity’ match.
Tell you what is…. ‘tainted’…
Lamb that’s gone way past it’s ‘sell by’ date……
Bin it.
Howdy Bhoys, From the mail. The punishments have made a step up to go with the amount of clubs they owe money to. Its from Guidi so take from it what you will.
SPL clubs are drawing up a blueprint of financial penalties and points deductions for Rangers should the club shut down and reform as a new company.
With Gers having to save £1million a month to stay afloat there is growing concern inside Ibrox that liquidation is edging closer.
If they go bust but start up again under a name such as Rangers 2012 the newco would need to acquire the SPL licence from the administrators.
A new Rangers would also need the SPL’s approval to get back into the top flight.
That decision would be down to the six-man SPL board of Ralph Topping (chairman), Neil Doncaster (chief
executive), Eric Riley (Celtic), Derek Weir (Motherwell), Steven Brown (St Johnstone) and Stephen Thompson (Dundee United).
All of them, apart from Doncaster, are due to stand down in July but can be re-elected.
However, regardless of who is on the board, SPL clubs want their own conditions put in place but are also aware they need Rangers to protect the Sky TV deal.
MailSport can reveal it has been suggested a newco Rangers should start next season on minus 16 points and have their SPL payments from TV cash and bonus money cut for three years.
That would see the Ibrox club lose out on around £7million, which would be split between existing top-flight clubs.
However, any such penalties would need to approved by the 11 other SPL members.
Rangers would, of course, fight that proposal and David Whitehouse, of the club’s administrators Duff and Phelps, last night confirmed they are exploring what obstacles a newco would face.
He said: “A newco is a possibility in terms of a way forward. We’re communicating with various football authorities in terms of new rules and fair play.”
With Rangers currently owing money to Dunfermline, Dundee United and Hearts, there is little goodwill from SPL clubs towards them.
Every top-flight club will attend a board meeting tomorrow at Hampden in which several issues are on the agenda in the wake of Rangers’ financial plight.
There is a feeling that going into administration should carry a bigger penalty than just a 10-point deduction.
Also, if Rangers were still in administration on August 4 when the new season starts, they will again immediately be deducted 10 points and some clubs feel that punishment should be increased.
An SPL insider told MailSport: “There is no doubt clubs are discussing how they would deal with the eventuality of Rangers going out of business and reforming as a new company.
“If it happened we’d be in unprecedented territory. There would be so many twists and turns and nobody could say with any certainty what the outcome would be.
“We hope it doesn’t come to this because it would lead to all sorts of internal wrangling.
“And it would be difficult to see a solution being reached that would please all member clubs.”
HH
KLV
WTF
Have I just woken out of a deep sleep….and some people on here
Are happy for rANGERs to repent and come back in some form in a
NEWCO for the decent fans.
The same fans who wanted our manager dead and chanted “what’s it
Like to live in fear “.the same fans who stand in silence while they sing about up to their knee’s in our blood .the same fans who sing the famine is over why do you not go home .
NO MERCY
NO NEWCO
Havingapartywhenthehunsdiex csc
Could this be Mr Struth returning to earth in his space hip calle “Dignity”?
Dubaibhoy on 4 March, 2012 at 06:14 said:
Isn’t it kind of ironic that a meteorite was reported flying over Scotland last night…
‘Orange flames’
Laura Yusuf, of Mitcham, in Surrey, said she saw the meteor while travelling on the M6.
“It was an amazing sight. Bright orange flames trailing behind it as it slowly burnt itself out,” she told the BBC.
Another witness, who called BBC Radio 5 live’s Stephen Nolan programme, said: “I looked up and saw these two huge tails of light coming off it and I thought it was a plane on fire going down into Edinburgh.
“It was massive, there was the red at the back of it, then these two huge white tails and then these blue bits at the very end.”
A red, white + blue meteor with orange flames – If I didn’t know any better I would suspect Awe Naw of working for the Beeb.
3mick3 on 4 March, 2012 at 10:42 said:
Looking for a bit of help.Can anyone tell me how to refresh the page on an iPad so I don’t need to scroll through all the posts to get back to where I was.
Mick
HH
__________________________________________________________________
Click on the time and date stamp on the last post.
Happy reading
iki
I have a letter from Neil Doncaster saying just that.
In fact I think it is time I posted the contents of said letter.
MWD
Nosympathyandkarmasabitch.co.uk
/getitupthem
KLV
Picked this up from the rtc blog. I agree with much of it. Of late I have it in my head that the ‘CorinthianSpirit’ of sport needs to be returned to football. Football is a great microcosm of what happens when everything depends on money. There are lessons there for the ‘privatise everything’ brigade. The pursuit of glory in football needs to be removed as far as possible from the influence of money.
Lists of pre 1990’s European Cup winners would suggest what might happen should football decide to limit sponsorship, limit ticket prices, limit TV money – or ensure that all of these revenue streams are shared out more equitably.
Here’s the blog:
TheBlackKnight says:
This gets to the heart of the “schadenfreude”; we are gloating yes, at least I am. But it’s more than that, so much more than that – vindication is the correct term. Vindication is the root of “Jelly and Ice Cream when Rangers die”.
All those years of no voice: the MSM simply swept the objections of many – and the evidence of their own eyes – aside and made jokes about paranoia. Anyone remember “I’m no a Billy, He’s a Tim” from the Citizen’s Theatre?
“Whit ur ye gonnae knit – a Conspiracy?”
Aye it was played for laughs. But it was a bitter joke too, because there was too much truth in it, from a Celtic supporters viewpoint. And all these years – we were right. There was a conspiracy, and it was one that was geared to Rangers emulating the Celtic achievement of lifting the Big Cup – to stand at the summit of European football. And to abandon Scotland for the lure of the “real money” – the EPL.
But every year that Rangers failed, bred an insatiable appetite to try, try and try again. Ego was everything for the Genius that was SDM. Corners were cut, laws disregarded, the principle on which all Sport is founded abandoned, everything seems to have been sacrificed to the achievement of that goal.
What a waste.
Even had Rangers emulated that feat, it would never have equaled it. Celtic won the Big Cup with a team of Scots, reasonably well paid by the standard of the era but by today’s standard’s – peanuts. They took on the best Club side in Europe in their day and beat them – not on wealth, but on guts and belief and raw talent. It was an underdog story to cheer any heart – you might think!
And had SDM achieved his ambition – he would merely have joined the rat-race of the EPL, where tens of millions can be paid for a single player in pursuit of the same foolish dream – to win the Champions League. Today, the EPL spirals ever further into debt – trying to compete with Barcelona and Real Madrid. But the Spanish teams own their own TV rights, and so can pay fees for talent that the Manchester Utd’s and Manchester City’s can only dream of.
The EPL is on the same downward slope now that Rangers were; they are making noises to claim their own TV rights, the idiot argument being that if they don’t or can’t then the “talent” will migrate to Spain. They have to compete, so need even more millions just to stand still and yet millions to get ahead. If UEFA won’t play ball they might set up their own league. It’s the economics of the asylum, and it’s going to end in disaster.
What a waste.
If the Rangers debacle proves anything, it’s that we need to abandon the pursuit of illusionary wealth and transitory glory, and get back to playing the game. The “Beautiful Game”. If we get good at that, everything else will follow. We had many teams competing in the top flight before and we can do it again.
Celtic do NOT need the EPL and I’d hate it if they decided to opt out of Scottish Football if there’s yet another conspiracy to see Rangers parachuted back in. In such a case, Rangers will have learned NOTHING – and the stage will be set for history to repeat itself even quicker, because now there’s a precedent – they were let off before.
If Celtic abandoned the SPL as a consequence of a Rangers “parachute”, Celtic would be sucked into the same delusion cycle as every other team in that league: “Jeez I’ve got £40m TV money to spend – and it’s not enough!”
Compete on talent or not at all. As Celtic have proved many times, the talent is out there and it’s “cheap” if you can find it. (And not just Celtic either – a lot of good talent in the current squad came from Scottish teams. And how much did Larsson cost?)
Greed sank Rangers; greed for wealth and power and transitory glory, and if it couldn’t be achieved fairly, well what’s a few rules “bent” between “friends”, for the good of Scottish Football?
Hell slap it into them if they refuse to learn – and judging by Mr McCoist’s latest outburst, they haven’t learned yet and the indications are they won’t.
Do it Hector.
KLV
Best bit of yesterday- “Taxman” by The Beatles getting belted out by the tannoy at half time. The Dons fans in the main stand had a right good laugh at it.
Take that as another fly kick at your mob, Ally.
We were well off colour yesterday, with the most rested players the worst affected, Hooper had one of these days where nothing went right, Commons still a million miles from where he was last year- slow and ponderous. Thought Charlie did well in CM, the 2 new Bhoys did OK, Lustig is a player who really likes getting forward, I have real high hopes for him.
2nd best part of the day was on the way back listening to @dadbegg and Dodds hurting as the win was so cruelly taken from them. Billy Dodds as summariser- ALL he wanted to do was talk about Rangers, it’s as if Hearts did not exist. It was all about Rangers, Rangers, Rangers.
Roon ye both.
The moment the huns go bust – and it will happen – then SPL Rule H5 comes into play:
“If any Club in the League ceases to operate or to be member of the League for any reason, its playing record in the League may be expunged and the number of relegation places from the League shall be reduced accordingly.”
So there are currently 12 teams in the SPL. One of them, the huns, disappears and the other 11 play on. The number of relegation places is reduced from one to zero. At the end of the season one team (likely Ross County) is promoted so we have 12 teams once more.
The question is: where is the space for a Newco?
I know I’ve already commented on this bit but I want to be clear. As much as I respect JF, “..this is like humping a man’s missus after tying him up and sticking him in the corner where he can watch”.
I want to dissocciate myself from this comment as it implies that, in this context, rape is ok. I’m sure this is not how James intended it to read but it is an interpretation that can be taken.
Obviously, as Celtic fans, rape is abhorrent to us and we should not be condoning violence against women in any context!
Hail! Hail!
We all know how Attillas hordes react to anyone GIRUThem, big screens breaking down, any flash of green, any expression of identity outwith their narrow wasp parameters can set them off, therefore i think it’s incumbent upon chiefs of police, senior politicians of all political persuasions etc to tell Sally, Jabba, Hately et al to ‘cool their jets’ when stoking the lowest common denominator of hunnery. They should be told that unfortunately for them, we and anyone else are entitled to scoff, laugh, mock and ridicule them for what is most definitely their own stupid fault, no one elses and that they and anyone else contemplating stoking the fires of hatred will be held accountable for their inflammatory utterances if the hordes lose the plot on the 25th. When i’m at it i do hope that the police here don’t copy their counterparts in Port Said Egypt recently, Belfast 1949 or http://www.thecelticwiki.com/page/Witness+Statements+following+the+Janefield+Street+'Riot‘
Weep for yourself, my man,
You’ll always be what is in your heart
Weep Little Hun Man,
You’re not as brave as you were at the start
Rate yourself and rake yourself,
Take all the courage you have left
Wasted on fixing all the problems
That you made in your own head
But it was all your fault not mine
And it was your team on the line
You really f****d it up this time
Didn’t you, my dears?
Didn’t you, my…
Tremble for yourself, my man,
You know that you have seen this all before
Tremble Little Hun Man,
You’ll never settle any of your scores
Your hate is wasted in your face,
Your boldness stands alone among the wreck
Now learn from the Celtic or else spend your days Biting your own neck
But it was all your fault not mine
And it was your team on the line
You really fucked it up this time
Didn’t you, my dears? (x2)
Didn’t you, my dears?
Ahhhhh……
But it was all your fault not mine
And it was your team on the line
You really f****d it up this time
Didn’t you, my dears? (x2)
Didn’t you, my dears?
Good read Robert, vindication my friend. My own feeling is much deeper than happiness and it has become part of what and who I am and many of us will feel vindicated but we are still holding our breathes for an escape route for them. I know they’re done but never underestimate your enemy.
Kevin
I know it is not a popular shout but I would love it if we did not buy one single ticket for the Ibrox game. Not a penny in their begging pi** pot from the Tic.
Hoop hoop Hooray on 4 March, 2012 at 10:46 said:
Ralph topping is a Hibs fan mate.
paddy thats complex mate, i feel the same but we cant have our bhoys going out to a full ibrox full of animals with no one there to defend them.
KLV
Stringer back on the wire. Where’s Avon? or is is B.
KLV
Big, brave Alastair…
Well, no so big. And no so brave either.
And I think I’ll go with Sally as well.
Tub thumping rhetoric – The supporters of Rangers love that stuff, they lap it up. In its purest form it is crystallized into ‘We are the people’ – a statement they could no more explain than they could describe the taste of water.
But Sally, you’re not very good. At it. At much, at this point, either.
You don’t even have the courage to name people or establishments. No you make veiled allusions and empty threats. In fact your full pathology is the above described tub thumping which you hope other folk will run with. What is your mandate here? That your fans receive the poorly hidden cipher and blame.. Well who exactly? – because you stop short of naming folk or establishments. Leaving your followers to make their own minds up. And sure as night follows day it will end up as some ‘taig’ conspiracy.
Only, as I said, your not very good at it. It’s not exactly ‘We’ll fight them on the beaches…’ is it?
No.
And you’ll not be on the frontline anyway. Because by your own words – when the players are getting their P45s you’ll be ‘outside’
muttering sounbites to your brethren – ‘Firsy and foremost I’m a supporter and I would like answers…’
No, you’re the manager of a professional football club. You should bloody well act like it.
…
Angelfc67
Thanks for that.
Mick
Traynorhunts out the succulent lamb and fine red win
MWD
The bunnet
http://vimeo.com/37830276
I cant see the link creator so I hope it works
On McCoists rantings I think it is understandable. Laughable, but understandable. He’s hurting.
Mind, I wonder just how he thinks they will get back at those of us who are kicking them. Hopefully NEWCO will keep him on as manager and their 3 seasons in the lower leagues may turn out to be a lot longer. Mind you they won’t have the distraction of cup runs to deflect them from the main prize – the 3rd Division title.
The man is being deified by the Daily Record/ Hunday Mason/ BBC Alba/ Clyde/ STV. In the midst of the chaos they need a rallying point. They are prepared to overlook three straight home defeats, cup humiliations, blowing a 15 point league lead in just over a month, buying McKay, Ortiz, Bedoya and others while neglecting to strengthen the strike force knowing that he would be unlikely to see the season out with Jelavic among other stupid decisions.
Start criticising McCoist and you have absolutely no ‘Hero’ to rally the troops to. Davis? No personality. Any other players to rally the troops? McCullough? An empty vessel. Directors? Paul Murray? Possibly until you delve to deep and find that he and Alan Johnstone, Dave King etc will all be on a sticky wicket getting ‘fit and proper persons’ clearance.
McCoist is all they have as a rallying point. In his campaign for Beatification (I know!) he has played a good game until his announcement that he would not be in with the players when they were made redundant. A braver man would say he would be sitting beside the players as the news was delivered, as unpleasant as that might be. But this will be overlooked by his sponsors in the media and press because they have no other hero.
Maybe I am missing something in this but I for one hope the Orcs continue to buy up tickets and keep rangers afloat for as long as possible. I do not see any benefit in it for them long term. For that reason I would back Celtic supporters buying tickets for the 25th March – so long as they are getting an armed convoy to get them in and out of Kinning Park on the day. £1million a month just to keep going to the end of the season? Money spent now by supporters is akin to pumping out enough water to keep the ship from sinking, it is not repairing the huge hole below the water line. And the longer Admin goes on the better for everyone except rangers.
I hope Aberdeen, Hibs and DUFC are preparing to bolster their squads with some of rangers cast offs and looking further afield for decent players and indeed to their own and rangers youth teams to find lads who can give them a realistic chance of putting it up to us next season. Rangers in Administration next season (unlikely I know, I can see no outcome other than liquidation) would be bottom six material.
Hector@09:42
You’re havin’ a laugh Sir!
What’s up with a nice piece of calf’s liver sautéed with onions?
Garlic mushrooms on the side. Yum Yum.
CarnivoresCSC
bunnurybhoy
The thought of that makes me feel more sick than I would be if the Huns survived and were LODGED straight back into the SPL.
:-))))
MWD it sounds offal
Traynor caught a cracker. Hope this makes it onto your call. Sneaky man
KLV
From the Herald
Apart from turning up at games in numbers, they had fundraising nights, and even a calendar of female fans, and it may be Rangers fans have to go down the same sort of road.
Heaven forbid!
Greenlion2 on 4 March, 2012 at 11:12 said:
Just watched that, God Bless The Bunnet, I am sure he has a wee smile on his face today..
SP
Che on 3 March, 2012 at 19:32 said:
For Sale:
1 Nave Blue Cardigan (Size fat)
1 Pair Brown Brogues (Size 9)
Any reasonable offer accepted, but make it quick.
Call Ally at Ibrox Ext 1690
———————————————————
peach LOL
Seriously though…
If you study the rangers manager’s comments yesterday, they are quite dark and threatening.He really is pandering to the worst part of the mob.
Calling them to join him sometime in the future to do violence on anybody perceived to be enjoying their present (self inflicted) predicament.He will lead of course.From the back.
HH
An orcette calendar?
Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
starry plough on 4 March, 2012 at 11:19 said:
When he talks about the folk queuing in the rain to buy shares the hairs on th eback of my neck stood up
stringer bell 11.03
ralph topping is a hibee.
total nonsence pal.i used to work with him at MECCA BOOKMAKERS.he told me of traveling on the local bus to eyebrox,party tunes were not allowed but a tape of them was played loud n proud.he is a nice guy but a H4N just the same.
Robert Tressell
Good post.
Walter Smith Knew
TT
Robertressell
The last couple of days, you’ve been on fire.
Keep it coming, mate.
Periodically getting dragged off by the wife to do family things. She’s been calling me a teenager all morning as I try to get my priorities right by catching up with the blog.
Aff oot noo with her and my 3 beautiful ghirls.
Lovingitasmuchasyouare CFC
HH and KTF bhoys and ghirls!
Greenlion2 on 4 March, 2012 at 11:28 said:
Aye and a few tears too Mate…
We are Celtic.