I listened to Brendan give due credit to St Mirren at the weekend, and then to the granular analysis of his comment that they were the best Scottish opposition we have faced this season, and recalled an old story.
Archie Macpherson, a good friend of Jock Stein, told me that Jock would make sure he controlled the headlines in the week ahead of playing Rangers. He set the agenda by giving the media ready-made material.
Brendan’s assertion was not fanciful. Whatever has gone on in St Mirren’s season, their recent wins over Hibs and Ayr United, and their performance on at the weekend, they have clearly turned a corner. They were unequivocally better prepared for Celtic Park than most of the Premiership teams who have visited this season. If it was a stretch to say they were the best, at 56 minutes into the game it didn’t feel like one.
Kilmarnock (conceded 6), Motherwell (5), Newco (5), Aberdeen (4) and Hearts (4) were each clueless at Celtic Park this season, so there is a degree of accuracy in manager’s observation.
The Rangers Stein faced is a different proposition entirely from that which Brendan Rodger’s will be up against on Sunday (literally), but Brendan has taken an early psychological lead, whether he needs it or not.
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How is Wenger still employed?!
If Arsenal fans wait until the final whistle they should miss the traffic.
Is Arsenal fan Charlie Nicholas ok???
WENGER FOR SEVCO???
UEFA should have a serious look at themselves
Letting clubs like Arsenal ( who are totally out of their depth) compete in the Champions League is pointless
Only embarrassing for the club
and to think the emsm laughed at us after the Nou camp, FFS they almost equaled the deidco record of 12 goals lost in EC.
Jude
Good shout! :)
Alexis Sanchez was laughing at his own team whilst sitting on the bench.
I have found a really good video from a guy who has simulated how we would do in the premier league. Well worth a watch to all Celtic fans. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2L6bDR5hTw
Sky need to get their hands into their pocket and give these English clubs more money so that they can compete in Europe .
Delaney’s , just tuned into Sky’s football show. Charlie looks well scunnered , he said ‘ our best player tonight’ talking about an Arsenal player.
I wonder if he will get laid into his club like he does with his first club.
Tontine Tim
My late father Robert started taking me to Paradise in ’67 -’68 when I was 2. He told me his 4 favourite Celtic players fae the 50s and 60s were all called Robert. Collins,Evans,Auld and Murdoch.
10-2 Bayern but it was the ref’s fault. BT as delusional as Sky
Paul Gardner
You think that is ` a really good video` ? I realise it is only a simulation but I am at a loss as to how you could call anything which puts us at roughly the same level as Sevco being `really good`. `Really stupid` would be more fitting.
Are you promoting it because it Is your video?
JJ
MIT
Wenger is still employed as he plays the game his board want, i.e. CL qualification every year it keeps the tills ringing,no risk, their fans want him out as they are not realistic challengers for the league or cups, he is dull and I dont get the plaudits he receives they are unwarranted, the playing staff needs gutted, if they sacked him fingers crossed that they do not want BR, more likely they would go for people like Simeone or Ancelotti.
Dallas
When I tell my two sons that I used to idolise Charlie, they canny believe it. Showed Ryan a few of his earliest goals for us including the match we were at in Amsterdam. Ryan’s reply, “Crackin goals, but he is still a duck da.” :)
Think thats wot he said. Haha
wenger gets his team into the moneyspinning group stages of the Champions Lge every season with a top four place in the EPL L. Why should Arsenal get rid of him.
FAVOURITE UNCLE
Agree it’s the frustrating ‘dignified silence’ from Celtic, sure the SMSM take it as a free run to print negative stories and pundits like Walker can get away with ridiculing Griffith’s goal on Sunday.
GlassTwoThirdsFull
interviewed “out of the park”. ?????? incredible.
Delaneys Dunky
Sure the rule is first out plays first…. Celtic’s dignified silence again?
With the decisions at the Hun’s game my blood pressure’s peaking…. and that’s before Sunday.
The treble will be so sweet though :)
Arsenal pumped 10 – 2, makes our Barca score a little easier to take.
Floatin’
Paul, would you please pass my email addy to Art of War, so that we can have a scoop together, as he offered, when I visit later this week? Thanks from South Germany :)
Gerry
PLEBS ON ITV2 NOW VERY ADULT
It’s funny watching the pro EPL commentators on Fox squirm when their teams get gubbed.
Sanchez smiling on the bench is a reason they have no fight?
Hard not to blame a foreigner as Arsenal have few Englishmen in their team but if they only had one he would be the scapegoat.
The coaching in EPL is outdated and they get shown up by better European teams.
Conte is probably the only one that could compete at this level.
Both Pep and Jose’s system are outdated and to rigid in the modern game.
Bayern got rattled in the first after at the goal which was poor by Neur who is normally great.
Whatever Ancelotti said at half time Bayern were a different team and dominated which led to the penalty.
The result was fair reflection of the coaches performance.
Floatin
Didnae know first out plays first.
Probably voided cause Bertie Auld picked us first. Wee Maryhill bandit he is. ;))
God be with the days when Arsenal had players like Frank Stapleton, Liam Brady, Pat Rice, Dave O Leery and Charlie George , Frank McKlintok intheir ranks.
Delaney’s, Ryan is even smarter than I thought with his statement about our former player.
I read an interview with Charlie a few weeks ago saying ‘he doesn’t tow the Celtic party line like other ex Celts’ . A strange coment considering most of our ex players in the media apart from Hartson and Sutton, criticise more than praise us.
I know he is employed by sky to promote the EPL but he never defends us or Scottish football.
His only saving grace to me is saying Danny was the best player he ever played with.
Paul Gardner – is this a wind up?
Never mind the fact that it has Sevco close to us.
The stupid simulation has ARSENAL winning the league?
Have any of you responding to the troll ever seen him before??? waken up
Dallas
Danny was the best Celtic player CN played with by a mile. Name an Arsenal or Scotland or Dons player that he played with that could compete wi Drumchapel’s Greatest Son. None
‘GG on 7TH MARCH 2017 12:45 AM
Catholicism is at the root of our club. No need to revisit the early years. Growing up on the North Lanarkshire moor in the 50s, it was impossible to escape the connections with our faith and Celtic.
Pilloried and despised for attending mass and a Carholic school, Celtic represented a refuge and an outlet to express our identity. Even today it would be anathema to deny our origins and the influence Catholicism exerted on Celtic and for some, vice versa.
*We all know why our club was founded and also why the name Celtic was chosen as opposed to the popular Harp, Hibernian and Emmet etc. We were also quick to point out that although founded by Irish Catholics we were NOT a Catholic or Irish club, this was no more evident when in 1895 a resolution suggesting that the team introduce a limit on the number of protestants allowed into the team was rejected and the club has since remained open to all faiths. By not practicing any form of religious exclusion, Celtic quickly became the most successful football team in the country.
It should also be noted that the potato blight in that swept Europe did NOT single out just Catholics. Also many of Ireland’s greatest patriots were not of the one true, holy and apostolic faith such as such as Wolfe Tone, Henry Joy McCracken, Napper Tandy, Charles Stewart Parnell, Robert Erskine Childers, the bold Robert Emmett and Roger Casement, although the latter who had been secretly baptised a Catholic by his mother officially converted to the Faith just before he was hanged in 1916.
Let’s not forget Lillie Connolly (widow of undoubtedly IMHO Scotland’s greatest socialist), Grace Gifford (who we all love to sing about) and her sister Muriel, Maud Gonne (mother of Seán MacBride government minister, prominent international politician and a former Chief of Staff of the IRA) as well as Countess Markievicz who were all initially protestants but converted to Catholicism.
So therefore why would the founders of our club who were active in the Irish Land League discriminate against their own countrymen and sons and daughters of such?
Unlike Hibs who operated a Catholics only policy (in fact that should be practicing Catholics which meant weekly Mass and Holy Communion and the making of Easter Duties) which lasted for the first 17 years of the club and was only abandoned when they nearly went to the wall which incidentally had nothing to do with their policy but as a result of the chairman at the time in absconding tae Canada with the club’s funds.
By the time they reformed we, a fledgling club, had already won the SC and were on our way to our first 2 League Championships with an open signing policy which probably prompted the Cowgate club to do a 180 degree turn.
Some of our greatest heroes were ken dodds, including one that Tom Campbell has just written a book about and who practically single handily saved us from the humiliation of relegation, another held the cup high at “oh hampden in the sun”, 4 Lions and the mhen who gave us the untainted NIAR and stopped the polluted TIAR.
We are a club open tae all but tae deny their original Catholic existence or that the support was derived fae the same Faith in the West of Scotland is tae deny the very existence of the club.
Still recall the phrase “Parkheid Catholics” referring tae supporters who loved tae belt oot hymns on a Saturday but also enjoyed a long lie on the Sabbath.
M7
Just poured my coco pops. :)
Tontine Tim on 7th March 2017 10:15 pm
——
Excellent post.
And on a lighter note I’m sure the funds were only resting in the Hibs chairman’s account :O)
Evening Floatin
Good to see you posting.
This FatBhoysSlim stuff not easy, but you could support the Gooners, so life not that bad :-)
HH
CRC
The zombies choice for director of fantasy, ross Wilson, has turned them down.
Delaneys Dunky on 7th March 2017 10:19 pm
M7
Just poured my coco pops. :)
Even just oot your bed, you wouldn’t have fallen for that one :-)
TONTINE TIM
Great post.
I as a non practicing Catholic am proud of our heritage and defend it resolutely.
Gaz
Shhhokkk. I’m hearing one of his conditions was that he actually wanted to be paid.
Delaney’s at 10.14, exactly.
Some good stuff on etims twitter having a go at the London Times guy who wrote the article what’s the point of the Scottish Premiership and the Evening Times Chris Jack’s dig about Scottish club(s) in the champions league.
Good night all and sleep well.
Have been out for a good part of the evening, but I saw RT being interviewed on STV. What a great young lhad he is. He appeared not to be phased by the questions put to him and answered in a well thought out way. I wondered if Brendan had been giving lessons. to the players on how to deal with the media.
KT also spoke highly of Tommy Gemmell and of how real Celtic supporters are feeling in these days. I am sure Big Tam will have a word with the Almighty to ensure that KT will do as well as he did, or even better, and hopefully, that he has a long and victorious playing career at Celtic.
I was at the Mens Prayer Group in St Mary’s tonight and told Fr Tom of An Teach Solais’ kind gesture to give a donation as he had missed the Go Fundme Page last week.
Fr Tom expressed his real gratitude for the money raised by the Celtic Family; it really helps as it seems like a never-ending process to keep St Mary’s up to the standard.
We had a look around the outside of the building this evening as he has asked the mens group to do a bit of work in the garden at the Forbes St side of the Church to smarten it up. We then noticed that the stonework around the grate that ventilates the crypt had been damaged and someone has kicked the grate in! It will require a new sandstone block and then pinning the grate in place. Fortunately one of the guys can make a temporary cover for the hole until we can sort it on a more permanent basis!
Never-ending indeed!
KTF