Ashely hates conflict

We’ve often talked about the only real danger to a football club: internecine strife:

Internecine, def: pertaining to conflict within a group, mutually destructive.

In football, your enemies can’t inflict permanent harm, that can only come from within.  This morning’s media cover threats from Sevconians to boycott (clearly in homage to Irish tradition) club/company products.  More power to their elbows, they should boycott every piece of tat Newco’s disparate IP rights holders churn out, apart from the occasional novelty duck.

Here’s the thing, before you turn the tanks inwards, you’d better be sure you’ve got the ‘What happens next?’ question sorted.  If you don’t, you’re playing a real life version of Lemmings.

Threatening Mike Ashley?  Aye sure, that’ll work, knock yourself out.  I’m sure Ashley’s known as a big pussy, he hasn’t got the money to face down the malcontents, either.  I bet he’s already writing his capitulation letter, “Dear Sevconians, by noticing that I can’t handle conflict you’ve outsmarted me.  The game’s up.”

What was it Charles Green told John Brown he would do to Ibrox?  Hmmm.

Blame the SFA, SPL, BBC, Celtic, Her Majesty’s lawyers, the Daily Record and Raith Rovers but you need to be on the inside to wreak havoc like this.

Interesting front opened by the English Premier League today on the copycat use of pyrotechnics at football games.  “Someone could get killed”, said policing minister Damian Green.  You’re 20 years out of date, Mr Green.

Here’s the problem: it’s possible to discharge one of these devices in a crowded area without accepting the safety/reputational/fine consequences.  Enormously invasive searches of unconnected people would be required to prevent pyros being taken into a stadium which is just not possible, eradication requires everyone to decide not to participate.

The only practical method I can see of stopping the use of pyrotechnics in Scottish football is to give Sports Direct exclusive distribution rights.  Who’d buy them then?

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