There’s always some excitement when a player arrives at Lennoxtown with the intent of giving the club a look at his wares. 17-year-old Norwegian midfielder, Kristoffer Ajer, did exactly that yesterday, ahead of what we hope is a busy transfer window.
I’m pleased Ronny is scouting a market he knows well, and that we are looking to recruit below-radar players with potential. It’s also good to have prospects play training games with the squad ahead of any decision. It’s too easy to make multi-year mistakes but Kristoffer will be measured against the first team squad, and the Development Squad.
One of Celtic’s perennial failures is our inability to promote the country’s best youth talent into top professionals. Before Rangers liquidation we were involved in an all-or-nothing arms race. Every game was precious so the prospect of allowing youth players time to develop in the professional game was seen as a luxury too far.
With the greatest respect to our current rivals (including Newco, should our paths meet in the Scottish Cup), those competitive pressures have now eased. Ronny can afford to take a different view of team development. Until August, anyway.
I know what you’re thinking. You read the charges laid out at some of the characters involved with Rangers, old and new, and thought: haven’t Craig Whyte and Charles Green suffered enough? Surely calls for due process to be fulfilled are nothing short of bigoted rants? These men made their mistakes and have come through the mill, they should be allowed to get on with their lives!
Aye, I know, it’s a ridiculous suggestion.
The charge list includes “fraud, conspiracy and serious organised crime”, which is a Sword of Damocles hanging over Ibrox. No current Newco directors were involved in the criminality which is alleged to have facilitated the club’s setup, but that won’t change what happens in the event charges are upheld.
I’m sure the SFA are pondering the scope of punishment appropriate for this scenario. Irrespective of team loyalties, such is the seriousness of the alleged offenses they will be praying for not guilty verdicts.
Please note that all men charged are innocent until and unless proven otherwise and are entitled to a fair trial unprejudiced by public comment and desist from inappropriate comment.
If you have two minutes, take a look at Steven Donnell’s page here. He’s currently cycling round the Premiership’s 12 grounds to raise money for Accord Hospice in Paisley. In minging weather. With his dad, who is blind.
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Paul. ” our competitive pressures have now eased”?. Every game these days I’m relieved if we escape with a draw with Ronny in charge!
bluegrass celt
4 in a row
Top of the league
Norwegian Wonderkid Kristoffer Ajer is one of the most promising young talents in Norway.
Great eh. DBBIA will revert shortly with the vital height stats.
Young Kristohher has a lot to live up to. Vidar Riseth considered Thomas Rogne to be “the best young talent to come out for Norway in the past ten years”
No pressure then
Aye but we’re still pash and no guaranteed he haw going by this current form
quonno on 6th January 2016 1:57 pm
i have no idea how paul sees the blog, but it is a very important entity in itself, without the comments. i could live without the comments, i go long periods when i do, but not paul’s blogs, which provide the best, most intelligent insights into all celtic-related matters on the net
you are mixing up the sfa as a regulatory body and the law courts by the way, there is a very different burden of proof, and they are very different entities with different rules and regulations
http://www.philmacgiollabhain.ie/unsustainable-costs-and-hostile-debtors/
Paul67
The SFA aren’t in the dock so is it OK to wonder to what degree the setup and culture there enabled what has happened? :)
There will never be a better opportunity to change that than what is going to emerge in the coming months.
For example an apparent ommission from the charges against CW examined by the SFA Judicial Panel in March 2012 was non payment of the £2.8m owed to HMRC for the wee tax case bill.
The indictments did not miss this but strangely the SFA did. Had they no information in March 2012 about the wee tax bill? The BTC got a mention but nothing about the £2.8m never paid during CW’S time at RFC that forms one of the indictments.
The JP even mentions the circular to (Rangers) shareholders stating CW would cover up to £15m if HMRC won the BTC but does not mention the undertaking in the same circular to pay the wee tax bill.
Might be a plausible explanation I suppose but then again…
AN TEARMANN
Wee mention gave me a much needed boost on last pages for some reason. Thanks.
HH mo chara
An Tearmann
Best wishes to you too!
https://t.co/eWKLPmfJTC
The Proceeds of Crime Act could lead to the confiscation of all Rangers assets, including Ibrox stadium.
I am going to a friend’s “Bus Pass Party” on Saturday night in Crieff.
She does not want presents but requested, if anyone wanted to recognise her birthday, they could make a donation to a favourite charity of hers – The Aquinoe Learning Centre in Kenya.
When I looked it up……look what I found:
http://www.aquinoe.org/?attachment_id=1332
Nally81
All the best to you too Buddy!
You don’t post often enough!
Big Swee
Congratulations! I hope the twins and your good lady, as well as you, are fine!
Take care and sleep when you can!!
Big Swee
Paul has stated already that anyone who posts on this site is legally responsible for their comments.
Not Paul.
Take care.
Mhan am on a roll the day so a um!
C’mon the Celts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
There are comments all over the interweb re the ongoing hun court case, the speculation is rife.
The John James blog is a prime example.
The verdict has already been decided anyways, if it will hurt the hun, it won’t go that way, mark my words.
5 in a row!
TET
The huns will continue unabated.
A big boy done it and ran away.
I can’t see the huns ever not playing out of the midden. They are untouchable.
TET / Philbhoy,
Unfortunately I think you are both correct. I’ve been waiting for them to die for years now. Ive lost all enthusiasm for various blogs that keep telling us otherwise.
HH.
Awe_Naw_No_Another_Midfieder_Anaw_Noo.
p.s. 1.96 metres © DBBIA
Interesting that the next installment “Rangers was the basket case they gave me for a pound” will be played out in Aberdeen. Stay tuned for the next episode
CraigyDogg1PoundCSC
L
tonydonnelly67 on 6th January 2016 10:31 am
JOE FILIPPIS HAIRCUT on 6TH JANUARY 2016 10:25 AM
This is pedantic but could you call our home park what is…Celtic Park
*Tony I may not always agree with what you say but can understand where you’re coming from at times.
Like you I’m old school and as I have said before have been following Celtic since George Hunter was our goalie.
You are being pedantic here; it’s always been Parkheid for me, as it was for my da, brother, uncles, cousins and all my schoolmates. Even Mrs TT’s family refer to it as Parkheid. In fact the only member of my family that didn’t was my mother and being a civil servant she talked polite and called our home ground Parkhead.
I would hazard a guess here that the President of the NAFCSC and all his Carolinas, including the son of a well known Glasgow pugilist, over in Bramumbai call it Parkheid.
This Celtic Park seems tae be a new term used usually by the type of supporter that you are not that fond of, i.e. the caps and gowns mob.
PB~GP
There is nothing surer.
If they are found guilty in any way, the charges they are found guilty on won’t harm the hun, the sfa or the cabal in what way, it’s in the stars :-)
HH
Where ye gaun?
Parkheid
Whit ye gaun ther fur?
The Fitba
Whit fitba?
The selic geme
Wher they playin?
Parkheid
Helenvale Street?
Naw Celtic Park
Awe a see
por cierto
Ibrox. Less an asset than a millstone it would appear.
I said in 2012 after they were liquidated tgat any chance they had of turning the new club in to a top flight success was to walk away from Ibrox, rent hampden or similar, recruit the ‘best of the rest’ and,a manager with lower league success on his CV.
Real football mem would have done this. Whatever the motives of the newco founders their methods chimed perfectly with the lack of repentance and huge superiority complex of their customers.
They couldn’t because others wouldn’t.
I’d be genuinely concerned if they’d gone that root, but the pretence of being the same club has brought the new one to it’s knees. And ibrox is largely to blame. They can’t afford to repair and maintain it if they do get to keep it and they can’t fulfill their ambitions if they don’t.
Ha ha ha ha
GREENPINTA
They died 2012. Currently going through liquidation por cierto
Awe_Naw_No_PARKHEID_CELTICPARK_AGAIN_Anaw_Noo
Officially there is only one football ground/stadium that is called after the team that plays in it. The stadium is Celtic Park the club is Celtic – am I right? H H Hebcelt (in the UK)
A wee bump for this. Please take a few moments to copy this and forward it to your MSP, adding your personal details.
Many thanks and Hail Hail.
———
Dear
In June 2015 the Scottish Government reneged on its promise to carry out a full and transparent review of the Offensive Behaviour at Football Threatening Communications (Scotland) Act 2012. Instead, the Minister, Paul Wheelhouse, in a twenty minute statement to Parliament, quoted selectively from a single piece of research and a highly skewed YouGov poll commissioned by his Department. During the ten minutes of questions he also lied to the Chamber by saying that Fans Against Criminalisation supported his diversion from prosecution scheme. I am shocked that he has repeatedly refused to withdraw this comment after being requested to do so by that organisation.
On Tuesday 12th January 2016 a petition will go before the Petitions’ Committee asking that Parliament carry out the review of the Offensive Behaviour at Football Act which the Government has conspicuously failed to do.
I am writing to you as your constituent to ask you to support the petitioner and the aims of the petition either in person at the meeting on the 12th or by writing to the Chair of the Petitions’ Committee in advance.
I look forward to your response.
Hebcelt
New St Mirren Park.
ROBERTTRESSELL
Good points. But remember the plan was made by people who are NOT anywhere near “Ranjurs Men”.
Ibrox had to be used to keep the pretence relevant.
They only needed it to remain upright until the share issue had been completed.
Job done por cierto.
BMCUWP
Who commissioned Pinsett Mason?
Don’t these guys come up with the answer they are told is wanted?
Call me a cynic. :)
Hebcelt,
You may be right but is St Mirren’s ground not officially called St Mirren Park.
HH.
Now, now you got to hand it to Sevco getting bigger crowds than Rangers, singing bigotteder ( spell? ) ( not a word) songs.
Green and Whyte, the last Ranger signing called Celic
If they ever get to make ‘Sevco the Movie’ , the original script would get rejected for being too far fetched.
Accrington Stanley CSC
Jam packed Ibrokes – 37k
Empty Celtic park- 42k
SMSM csc
Pinsett Mason – Lord Nimmo Smith separated at birth, never been seen in the same room either por cierto
Like BobbyM, it was always Parkhead when I was growing up, it always will be to me.