I remember singing “It’s going to be 10 in a row”, but back then 10 had no significance. Neither did 9, it was like 8 in a row, another stop along the way. But when Jock Stein’s team finished their spectacular domination of the Scottish game in 1974 with nine successive titles and four European Cup semi-finals, “Nine in a row” became a phrase with extraordinary substance.
Of course, in years to come, for others, nine in a row became a target to surpass. In the late eighties Rangers changed the financial parameters of Scottish football for some time, and set their own course towards liquidation, but on the park, they swept all before them in the domestic game. By summer 1997 they had won their won nine in a row. McEwan’s lager billboard adverts featured the club with the line, “9 out of 10, could do better”. And didn’t we know it.
Celtic were in disarray having sacked Tommy Burns and with our three most cherished players, Di Canio, Cadete and van Hooijdonk on their way out the door. The new managerial appointment “the second worst thing to happen to Hiroshima”, as our mainstream media portrayed him to Celtic fans, arrived only two weeks before the start of the season.
After losing the first league game of the season at Easter Road Celtic lost 1-2 at home to Dunfermline; they were leading at half time. 10 in a row seemed inevitable but this season was the greatest example of why the prevailing currents of football are now always evident on the surface.
Have a read at this from the Independent after that defeat to Dunfermline:
“[The home supporters] cannot be fooled – even as the teams were announced it was clear they are unconvinced by the new signings. The mention of Pierre van Hooijdonk, Paolo Di Canio and Jorge Cadete before a game was enough a year ago to raise the roof in anticipation. On Saturday, Henrik Larsson and Regi Blinker hardly registered in the approval stakes.
“Larsson’s poor touch too often saw him lose possession. The blunt truth is he is not a proven goalscorer and Jock Brown, the general manager, will have to add fire power to the team.”
Don’t be too harsh on the journo who penned this, few dissented, and Jock Brown’s reputation was pretty much set by these incredibly inaccurate reviews. Although, “blunt truth” has never been used with such laxity.
The towns of the west of Scotland can be dangerous places after big football games but not 15 years ago today, when Celtic beat St Johnstone to win the league for the first time in a decade. Celtic fans of all ages poured onto the streets as the spirit of carnival took hold.
I remember hooped fans sitting on top of a set of traffic lights in Lanarkshire; green, amber, red, then rows of green and white. I walked around Hamilton town centre that night. For an evening, every pub was a Celtic pub, with rules about wearing colours suspended, and singing was celebrated.
And sing we did.
At the end of the night I could be found singing “Cheerio to 10 in a row” at a taxi rank outside a nightclub. The ‘brave’ soul standing in front of me waited until his taxi was moving away before mumbling his offenses out of the window.
Last summer I did an interview with Tony Hamilton for Celtic TV . When we drilled into what really made an impact on me as a Celtic fan I had no hesitation on placing that game against St Johnstone above Champions League victories, qualifying for a European final or beating Barcelona. We aspire to move beyond the confines of Scottish football but for 125 years this has been our home. In all that time, in domestic or European football, there have been, at most, only two more important games.
Enjoy the memories, but don’t play that George O’Boyle leap over in your mind; just in case you imagine him a few inches higher.
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This man is going nowhere.
Dream on ya hun Barstewards…
Zimmerman
Exactly my thinking, a village idiot and moonhowler in every hoose….
BMCUW,
rther belated I know, but i sent couple emails to you last week but they bounced back!
Anyway hope you bhoys’n’ghirls had agreat day/night out a couple weeks back. Sorry i couldnt make it, but as expected Mrs TTT has other plans in store for me on my return……and to be honest i was a tad tired into the bargain. (bed at 10pm that night!)
heard from a couple of CQNers on FB that it was indeed a fine soiree…….i’ll do my utmost to join the next one!
Anyhoo just wanted to mention that. thanks agin for the invite……until the next time!
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
9th May 1998.
Always will be my greatest Celtic-supporting day as long as I live.
For those of us who lived through their scurrilous 9 in a row, who cast venemous eyes at the comfort of the directors’ box as the families poured scorn on our love of the club they were raping, who wept with joy at Fergus’ revolution, who wept in empathy at Tommy Burns’ glorious failure, who never knew on the 16th of August 1997 as we sat bottom of the league with 2 straight defeats from our first two games what the season would hold….
For those of us then, the 9th of May was the movie climax to end all underdog resurgences.
It was the ending of dreams to the nightmare of a decade. I’ll never forget it. I’ll never again experience the unbound joy of seeing Harald’s shot hit the back of the net and know that it was, finally, over.
The rebels won that day, against all the odds, against the smirking entitlement, the backstabbing, pinkie-pulling cutlure of deferrence and obsequious servility.
And how we won – with hope and glory that would make the lyrics stick in their throats. We were on a wing and a prayer from the very beginning of that season; the establishment knew the bleak script – every black art in the black book was to be exploited to ensure history played out to a Hunnic tune.
In the end it was a collection of write-offs and a manager in whom the MSM found only comic value that destroyed the satanic plan decades in the making and millions in cost.
On the pitch, long after the final whistle I marvelled at the scale of the ne wstands which rose around us. I realised then such a moment in time might never come again and kept it close in memory – people weeping with joy, ecstatic with victory, dancing about , hugging, kissing the turf, taking the turf, scoring imaginary goals, bouncing across the podium in the centre circle wher ethe heroes had taken the adulation, roly-polies from the Hun end penalty spot into the goal, folk hanging, swinging and climbing over the posts and bar.
Not many words were articulated on the park during that time – most sounds were simple exclamations of happiness, songs and primal screams of triumph. I do remember one fantastically sozzled bloke star-jumping along the halfway line, barging into everyone, but fizzing with tears all the way and bubbling incoherently with such intense joy his face was a bright red watery mess of emotion.
If I could take a trip back in time to that day right now I’d ask only to walk the pitch again, a silent observer of the most unbridled Celtic celebrations I’ve ever witnessed.
It was a glory day born on the back of such longtime misery and suffering that the emotional release eclipsed anything I’ve felt since despite Seville, Barca, etc, etc.
It will never come again, precisely for those reasons, and I’m thankful for that. I’m thankful no young Celtic fan will ever have to feel the heel of the Hun jackboot for a decade.
But for those of us who did, who were there… Man, God Bless us, one and long-suffering all.
And God Bless wee Fergus and Wim’s Hoops. Cheerio to yer 10 in a row. Smell the Glove.
bjmac,
back in your youth, there were more than a couple of candidates in your household….
:-)
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
There are coo signs everywhere here, and having been here for five years, never seen a coo, not a single one.
I was enlightened that the coo signs are country wide, animals they mean, we have hunners of goats and sheep things, but no coos.
last time I saw a coo was when I was back in Ireland for a few days, jeez I miss them.
Zimmerman,
:)) Not on that occasion. But on the other occasion, they indeed “kettled” the tent. Seriously. We were cycling to the lake district. Camped 100 yards from the road. They kettled the tent, but as we were sleeping, realised we needed some provocation.
Me and my mate were out there within seconds, half naked, looking over the field gate from the main road, at a herd of cows, chewin the grass, and looking at our terrorised coupons as if we were idiots.
Coos should NEVER be under-estimated.
—–
BJMac,
Where it happened to me and my bro, was Carstairs Junction :)) I think someone let it slip to the local herds that we were Tims.
Desert Island Tims with Frank McGarvey
http://www.spreaker.com/user/billynowell/desert_island_tims_with_frank_mcgarvey
TET,
This is the website for you ;)))
http://www.cowabduction.com/
Sandman,
a fine post and fine sentiments indeed!
Like you i was there for many of those jack-booted moments under der Hun, not to mention almost unthinkable euro results (sitting in main stand at neuchatel, surrounded by their somewhat incredulous but very joyous supporters was a particularly hard one to stomach) , so that day v St Johnstone, the outpouring of joy was as you say a feeling that will never be repeated – thankfully! – by Celtic supporters ever again.
Sure there will be of course be unbridled joy – the night v barca for example – but not in the same manner as we experienced that day in 1998.
here’s to that day……..but heres also to the thought that it will never be experienced again!
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
Ok on that note, its time for my bed!
Good night CQNers one and all.
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
TET @ 00:24
Yep. This is the thing. If you were a livestock animal, and there were strange humans wanting to ritualise your blood while rolling up their trouser legs, what would you do…
Coos are running the game here. It was them what encouraged goat-blood drinking here in Scotia amongst the cabal.
Not that it matters much to us. But my main point is, that Ogilvie and Peat, Moisty and the Myth, are thicker than a herd of coos, and in fact, it is the Scottish coos that are telling them what to do…NOT to protect Sevco…but to protect the coos. Yep. Traditional ritualism has an ugly history :))
THE TOKEN TIM
Great day,canny thank everyone concerned enough to do it justice.
I’ll be catching up on my e-mails over the weekend,mate-been a bit hectic at work since I got back-so you should have a heads-up on the addy.
All the best,mate!
Zman
No diny do this to me, the heeds fried enough.
As things have it, I have managed to work out why there are no coos here….seriously…and not a conspiracy to boot.
There is no grass for them to eat….as simple as that, believe it or not.
One thing that I can’t question >}}}
HH
Sandman
thats what i realy meant to say earlier….stand up for the Champions!!
God bless phil o’donnell ..tommy burns and wimms tims h.h
Time for bed,with mp3 player on to drown out the sound of Sundays dinner from the nearby slaughterhouse,…..poor cow.
moo moo,
i mean
Hail Hail.
zimmerman @ 00:28
:))
When that figure gets to a Chuckles Green 500M, then it will all make sense :)))
The disappearing coos have discovered the art of possession, and the huns are their easiest target :))
FFM
Oh Dear, you are comparing sally and the lord of the brown broguery with a herd of coos.
When did you ever see a herd of coos sink that low FFS.
And I thought that Tims were supposed to be above average on the scale >}
Moonhowling at its finest tonight as coos are discussed at great length,
where would we be without after hours CQN..lol.
Don’t stay up too late howlers.
Why you should never let a female hun buy you vodka.
http://youtu.be/XS1eo5_JDlE?t=4m51s
Anyways, had visitors tonight, lovely people, yer man is right into his football, a Boro supporter for his troubles.
We had a wee talk about the great swalex, he is not impressed, he reckoned swalex only achieved anything when he was at Aberdeen, I agreed, and when I told him he done it with Big Billy’s team………he proceeded to reel of so many other managers who have done better.
Quality.
Off to bed, up in a few hours, things to do.
Take care and god bless Timland
HH
KTF
Memories of 98 etc…willing to stand corrected here, but as I remember…Huns v Killie on the Sat, us v Dunfermline on the Sunday. No matter what, if we beat Dunfermline we stop the 10. I we lost to the Pars and they won their last 2 games they won the league.
I also seem to remember that a good few of the Huns team, Laudrop, Sally n Albertz etc, were leaving in the close season that year. With that in mind I seem to remember they all done a lap of honour, with their kids etc, waving to the fans and having a laugh, immediately before the Killie game, as it was their last home game before the season finished. I thought, hmm, they should be treating this game a wee bit more seriously. As it turned out Killie scored in the last minute of extra time to win the game, time added on by Bobby Tait hoping the Huns would win!!! Beautifull Karma! It turned out we lost to Dunfermline…
Fred C, that always brings a tear to my eye, great vid.
I was out tonight watching my boy play competitively for the last time. It was a bad end to his season. His team were beaten 4 – 2 in extra time in the DD YFA cup semi-final. I’m gutted for the boy as he wanted the final so much. For me, it’s hard to take that I won’t be on the sidelines making an arse of myself again and noising up fat funny referee’s. After nine years of standing about in the pishing rain, cold, snow, fighting with other mental parents it’s all over for me. The boy is hanging up his boots.
One part of me says yeeeeeeha, I get my life back. The other says, I’m going to miss watching him play. From U8,through school, Angus County, Dundee District and East of Scotland Region teams he’s played in, its been a bunch of ups and downs, sadness and pride.
Its all about his education and his golf from here on.
Anyway, whats that got to do with your vid you might ask? When I watch that video of Neil Lennon again it gives me the same sense of pride I get when I watched my boy tonight.
Hail Hail and thanks Fred C
youngacgr.com
Danny Finkelstein – right wing commentator and football stats analyst – was on about Alex Ferguson on Newsnight this week. He made an interesting point: most managers have little or no impact on a team’s final league position. It’s the money that counts not the gaffer. But he also said that a very few managers do buck that trend – managers like Ferguson, like Moyes and like Allardyce.
If this theory is correct it may explain why the likes of Smith and Souness enjoyed huge success in Scotland followed by fairly abject carriers in England.
Anyone hasheard
Mart1n abi alwhor.
Martin
TET @ 00:38,
Nah nah. The coos aren’t “sinking” to their level. The coos rule the roost. Fat Ayrshire Coos control the hun mindset – it makes so much sense now, how did we not feckin see it before now?!? It was the coos that were spying on the Jacobites. :)
ACGR @ 00:47,
How you doin fella? Touching post there. As you know, the memories will mean more to you than ACGR jnr. But if you’ve following been faithfully, you’ll obviously miss the football games. At least he was in a reasonably decent team. Any football team I played in lost 5-12 v nil regularly. As regular 1st team right back, I am well aware that we should have replaced the goalkeeper.
fritzsong @ 00:55
Think that’s very true.
And if Sooooonis and the myth realised that while plying their trade down their for mid-table positions, it might explain why they were comfortable in paying over-the-odds fees to sign hun players from Minty’s Minted Emporium, such as Boomsong.
FFM, cheers buddy, I’m doing fine but as you witnessed I’m a bit down on the boy’s team getting humped oota the cup. I’ll get over that easily, its the not seeing him play again that will take some getting used to. Celtic can provide some welcome relief on that score though, starting on saturday.
BTW, I think you and I could have played in the same team by the sounds of it:-)
Someone posted earlier “I never met a hun I liked”.
I’d go further and say I’ve never met a hun I trusted. I’ve met a few I got on with and liked but I wouldnt trust them to put an x on a spot the ball coupon.
Never trust a hun.
A Ceiler Gonof Rust….
Every huns a hun.
Some are just better at hiding it than others.
The better ones hide it behind a mask but it will eventually slip.
Always does.
No such thing as a good hun.
bjmac
00:18 on 10 May, 2013
________
Being a Carluke area man, would you happen to know the Mooney family?
In particular a Tommy Mooney who is now over here in the US of A?
ACGR,
If we’d played in the same team, you’d have the mental scars on show like I do. Doesn’t do the confidence good, losing every game for 8 years, and drawing one.
Honestly, had to be a mince GK and rotten CF. Wis nowt to do with me guv :))
Although in retrospect, we also played in a mingin strip. We could have had BTM managing us and we’d still have lost….
Aye, was the strip :))
Re huns, I’ve got a few I’d trust with my life. It’s a strange set of affairs, but if that “club” just died, then so would the poison that comes with it imo. (as long as we sack all Strathy rozzers aged over the age of 25 at the same time, to aid the cleansing process).
TET
If there are no cows, then where do the bulls come from for the bull fights?
As a country boy I’ve had a couple of run in with the bovine herds.
We used to throw stones at them when we were crossing the parks.
A couple took exception once and charged us. I got knocked over and my chest stood on as they stampeded.
Got a home visit from old Doc Scobbie. Not the first or last time either he had to come out to sort me or one of my brothers.
FFM, sacking them rozzers wouldnt help, they’d find new employment in other areas, council, media, government even. But I think you’re generalising.
My neighbor is a rozzer, hates fitba, knows nothing about glasgow (apart from fancy shoe shops). I’ve quizzed him on his opinion of the treatment of football supporters, obviously from a GB / celtic perspective and his ignorance is frightening. I know more about whats going on with the new polis force than he does. He’s working his ticket for the good life, in other words, retiring at 45.
Then again being a copper in glasgow is different from hicksville where I’m located.
I say we melt them down, except the cute female ones.
I dont nomally do the prediction thing but here goes………………………..
My team for Saturday to hump St Johnstone is as follows:
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CELTIC
Bring balloons, party hats, tooters & jelly and icecream.
Hail Hail the Champions of Scotland.
We Are Celtic
ACGR,
If he’s outwith the Strathy and L&B cabals, then it’s a different kettle of fish.
The female rozzers are just as bad. Heard a story today of a woman going to court on trumped up charges from two female PCs. Not a shock to me. When someone joins the rozzers in Strathclyde (for the right reasons), their life will go one of three ways: institutionalisation, a quick change of career, or a long 20+ years ending in alcoholism and a life breakdown. Seen all three often enough.
It’s an institution (like the SFA). Salmond jumped into bed with that rotten institution, and effectively gave it control of Scottish law enforcement. We’re all seeing the repercussions of it. Not just as Celtic Supporters, but look at the revenue they’re collecting for him using the budget he gave them for “road safety”.
As if the legal system wasn’t rotten enough already. He just made the rozzers even worse. How powerful will the legal establishment feel now….
Salmond will be gone in a few years, while the rest of us have to deal with the repercussions of what he did to try and consolidate his position.
Apols, on a rant again :))
Morning Celts,
Early start for me as I’m off to Lanzarote via Manchester, priority no 1
Is where to watch the game ra morra, I know all the haunts in puerto del Carmen but I’m a bit further out this time, Los piscolos end.
HH
Jobo it’s back to bliddy winter down here on the Fylde coast.
Oh and Happy Friday.
Good luck to all the new Blantyre tims tonight at the KoSC do.
HH
Vhan, lucky bassa. Enjoy the sun and find a good bar for saturday.
HH