After the defeat at Ibrox on 29 December, we anticipated changes, but the most significant decision Brendan Rodgers made was the most unexpected. Celtic’s man of the match that day was goalkeeper, Craig Gordon, without whom the score would have been significantly worse than the 1-0 defeat. Remarkably, he was dropped and has not played since.
The reason for this has nothing to do with Craig’s ability between the sticks, it gets to the reason we lost control of the game: how quickly and accurately we move the ball. Despite a man of the match performance, Craig was dropped because Brendan realised our game plan can be easily dismantled if we are pedestrian in possession.
While Scott Bain is better with the ball at his feet than Craig, and Craig’s liability in this area is limited, central midfield was significantly more culpable for what went wrong at Ibrox.
Since then Callum McGregor has been restored to his normal midfield berth, Scott Brown has retained his place and Olivier Ntcham has been absent through injury, so the manager has had no major selection choices to make in this area. Olivier is now fit and in with a chance of making his first appearance of the year in Sunday’s Scottish Cup tie, while just as we were at Ibrox, we are short at left back, where McGregor moved to fill in.
Brendan has some big decisions to make this week. A central mid of Brown and Ntcham is not right for the football we play. In taking the least expected decision, to drop Gordon for Bain, I hope we saw a sign that Brendan values the velocity with which we circulate the ball.
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Was it Cosgrove who got lifted in Queen Street Station for singing “have you seen a handsome hun”
Poor kick Johnny.
Oops..missed conversion…Scotland 3 Eire 5
Úd eile Éire
Hogg off…dammit…as our defence posted missing Scotland 3 Eire 12…we need to sharpen up
TT- yes
Úd Alba.
Scotlands try tune, Shang-a-lang? Oh dear.
That’s better from Scotland!
Was getting a bit scrappy…try Scotland and great conversion…Scotland 10 Eire 12
Almore, I hope your not swearing! :)
Touchdown Scattland
It was always thus.
I’m now being given a distant glimmer of hope of a level playing field at SPFL fixtures, in saying that i’m not holding my breath, for instant rectification of all things bad. However through many years i have seen some changes slowly begin to occur.
If we go back many years to the sevco policy of not signing catholics, i duly admit to being slightly swayed by the forces of the scottish media, and perhaps the hope that, surely no club could be that dark and medieval. It seemed illogical to me, even to an extent, mind blowing that any club should have such traditions.
I even took it light heartedly when Big Jock said, “If there were two players, one Catholic and one Protestant. We would sign the protestant. Because I know that Rangers would never sign the Catholic.”
Periodically we would be fed, that the old Ibrox blue room boys had stated “If the right player came along, no matter his religion Rainjerz would sign him”. I suppose like many others, i thought this seemed a plausible statement.
Then something happened. I had a good mate who was having a tremendous two seasons in junior football, around 1979, i actually stopped going to parkhead for a bit to follow him around and watch his journey, by his final season in the juniors, he was being enquired about by all the top Scottish clubs at the time, for his signature Celtic Rangers Thistle etc… he did some trials, and wee (ten therty) Bertie wanted him to sign there and then, for the jags.
It was one particular phone call to his juniors manager that changed my mind.
John Greig called up and duly asked about the players history, and as the manager started to give him some feedback on the boy, from youth teams to current development, he was abruptly stopped in his tracks by Greig, who said “I’m noa asking you that..I’m asking you what school he went to !” Of course the reply wasn’t the one Greig had hoped for.
About a week after that phone call my mate left Scotland to sign for Leicester city, where uncannily the ex Rainjerz boss Jock Wallace was the manager. Needless to say my mate later found out that Greig had phoned Wallace and asked him to take him out of Scotland before Celtic signed him.
So not only were they not interested in signing catholic players, but were prepared to use underhand methods to remove young talent who could in any way shape or form, hamper their progress in scottish football. This occurence then disproved to me on a personal level, the whole scottish media circus nonsense that sevco were not a bitter wee club hell bent on their own agenda and medieval traditions.
We have seen traditions such as the above removed from their football club, (at least on the face of it), but not their hatred of anything catholic, however if i had been a follower of a club who held these beliefs, i would hang my head in shame, that my beloved club were so utterly racist and shameless.
Long may the improvements i foresee continue.
HH
Bet Middlesbrough to beat Leeds @ 15/8.
Leeds equalise 11 minutes into injury time.
?
Great pressure Scotland…great defence Eire…our possession comes to nowt
Ireland lucky to be ahead at half time. Scotland had far the better chances.
JTT53: Moi, a nortside Dub swearing? Never?
Head would say Alba will shade this but heart screams
C’mon Éire.
‘The League One match between Arbroath and Stranraer has been called off after 12 minutes due to high winds.’
380 mile round trip, no problem huh.
I played golf in those highr winds in Arbroath this morning. Footballers? Huh !
:-))
Almore I had a friend from Coolock years ago and he liked a good old sweary word!
Anyways, I’m not a rugby fan but I have to admit it’s very interesting to hear the referees comments. Wish it happened in Scottish football. might explain a thing or two.
Úd iontach Éire.
JTT53: Coolock is just up the road from me. I taught in a school there for a year. F¥<k!n& m€nt@|?
I love the refereeing in rugby and can’t wait for it to be introduced into Scottish football. I won’t hold my breath waiting, though.
ASUPPORTERWHOGOTLUCKY on 9TH FEBRUARY 2019 3:01 PM
About a week after that phone call my mate left Scotland to sign for Leicester city, where uncannily the ex Rainjerz boss Jock Wallace was the manager. Needless to say my mate later found out that Greig had phoned Wallace and asked him to take him out of Scotland before Celtic signed him.
*yer mate didnae come fae the Renton BTW.
Just noticed that kid on socialis,t you know the one that gave bader and the ballymena demagogue knighthoods, is in the stand at waster Road, he’ll be in good company in that boardroom.
NOTICE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE iRISH sUPPORT WHEN COTLAND ARE ATTEMPTING A KICK AT GOAL AND THAT OF THE sCOTTISH sUPPORT.
Oops ! Didn`t mean to shout….which is what the fans of Caledonia Fair do when Irellad are kicking for points.
Back to what is an excellent game.
JJ
HOT SMOKED on 9TH FEBRUARY 2019 3:27 PM
watching the rugby.big pile of bodies and the scotland no 1 PROP FORWARD lands himself on top of pile.
SO whats the point and can you translate TONTINETIMS post.he baffles me with his description of people.
FAVOURITE UNCLE on 9TH FEBRUARY 2019 3:53 PM
HOT SMOKED on 9TH FEBRUARY 2019 3:27 PM can you translate TONTINETIMS post.he baffles me with his description of people.
8You must lead a very sheltered life, I live 3.5k miles away and I know who they all are. The kid on socialist is gordon brown, the ballymena demagogue is paisley and bader is the ayrshire rag and bone man, neither of the 2 “lords” are friends of Labour, naewhere near it so that’s a craft(y) move.
Watching Madrid derby via hesgoal then bein sports. Good game only spoiled by some Geordie guy co-commentating. American commentator is speaking more sense about the “soccer”
Anyone know where I can catch 2nd half of Atleti v Real online?
Hate playing against my Irish brothers and sisters.
Ireland were super composed in the 2nd half. Scotland weren’t. Ireland won. Simples really.
HH jg
Éire win in the end, unconvincingly. Alba have made big improvements.
Can’t wait for the Dubs v Kerry later.
Scotland Rugby Captain criticises Ref shocker.
Thanks for compliments re my article about us, the sfa and the mitb. I didn’t mean to make it so long but once I started the words just kept flowing, a bit like Robert Plant when he penned “Stairway to Heaven”, BTW not a fan of Plant or Led Z although I do like his favourite team.
Since I posted it the merde continued to flow and I wasn’t in the least surprised about the events of Wednesday night, another example of why they don’t care, and they really think they are the “untouchables”.
Like recent events we have in our history been subjected tae disputed penalties, testicle interference, kicking and stamping, agricultural tackling and outright lying, not fibbing or spoofing but lying.
I have mentioned often that the sfa have despised us since we along with Renton FC orchestrated the formation of the Scottish Football League thereby removing both theirs and Queens Parks power.
Twelve years after that one of the other defecting clubs by virtue of their chairman the repulsive former Lord Provost of the dear green place, ure primrose, pledged them to the craft. They immediately started to recruit from the goatshaggin ludges.
This also occurred around the same time of Harland and Wolff, as a result of the increasing political instability in Ireland, acquired and amalgamated 2 shipyards in Govan bringing their toxic workforce with them and so they were also recruited from.
It wasn’t just players and officials but also supporters, business associates, tradesmen, clerks, accountants, police, officers of the court, and most importantly the smsm. Their run of success happened almost immediately.
This was nothing short of match fixing until they were caught red handed (pun intended) by detectives from the City of London police, it would have been swept under the checkered floor if the Glasgow polis had been involved.
With the sfa controlling the mitb and the huns the smsm it’s surprising how well we have done as a club but that can be put down to our founders who were by-products of “Black 47” and weren’t going tae allow any bowling club members to tell them how tae run their business.
We also have tae consider when we were at our strongest was when we had strong mhen, Wullie Maley, Jock and MON, at the helm, and even then they tried and sometimes succeeded at cheating us. Great but nice Celtic mhen such as James Edward and TB were nae match for the sleekit scot symons and naesurnames.
The feeling was not so much take it on the chin but that’s just the way it is, in fact on being hired Sir Bob said something similar tae Jock who according tae the late and great Hugh McIlvanney allegedly replied “aye that’ll be right”
However, we now live in different and exciting times, the last 2 years have been a revelation with the “Me Too Movement” and “Black Lives Matter”, no more sitting at the back of the bus, didn’t Baron Reid of Cardowan suggest this before departing 7 year ago, unfortunately we also live in a lying culture.
Our support includes children of a fighting race as well as descendants of the Highland Clearances’, let’s not forget who orchestrated the “Massacre of Glencoe”, aye the same wee dykeplugger that is still heralded on the streets of Scotland by the trailer trash that follow follows them.
The population of the UK is approx 66.6 million, with around 5.3 million in Scotland. It is estimated there are roughly 200,000 goatshaggers in England and Wales, a drop of 150,000 in the last 20 years which is why they now have an open door policy, around 0.3% of the population.
Ludges are closing at a rate of 100 a year and just 2% of trooser lifters are under the age of 30. There are no figures for the craft in Scotland, it’s a secret lol or mibbees they’re drappin and don’t want it known.
I wonder if the mersey mooth is a member of annfield ludge 2215, his former club were founded by craftsmen.
So given there weakening outside the borders, and probably inside, of the best wee bigoted country in the world why does this antiquated boys club hold so much power in the land of my birth, a power that has as indicated above dissipated elsewhere, in fact in capitalist America the last President craft member was leslie lynch king aka gerald ford, enough said there.
In saying that we’re talking about a country where for some it’s like the land that time forgot and are still stuck in the 17th century.
It looks on the face of it that last night justice has been done although the sheep’s nose must be out of joint, they still lost 3 points. Has the worm turned, are our leaders jumping all over the former cove huns and queens park players, let’s not forget that although PL left the sfa he is still involved with the spfl and we are once again in a powerful position in the Scottish game after years of suffering from the tin pot rag and bone man’s dictatorship. Let’s wait until Sunday night to see if we are in the hat for the next round.
Just heard on the trannie there that if we win tomorrow it will be Brendan’s 25th domestic cup win in a row, setting a new record currently held by Sir Cardigan of Sevco who managed 24.
50 SHADES OF GREEN on 9TH FEBRUARY 2019 10:09 AM
Belter! ?
T
Mulumbu starts v Huns.
Tontine Tim on 9th February 2019 3:43 pm
ASUPPORTERWHOGOTLUCKY on 9TH FEBRUARY 2019 3:01 PM
About a week after that phone call my mate left Scotland to sign for Leicester city, where uncannily the ex Rainjerz boss Jock Wallace was the manager. Needless to say my mate later found out that Greig had phoned Wallace and asked him to take him out of Scotland before Celtic signed him.
*yer mate didnae come fae the Renton BTW.
———————-
Tontine Tim
My Apologies, i’m not sure exactly what you mean from above, however if you’re asking if he came from Renton, then no, he was a Maryhill boy, brought up a good stones throw from where wee Bertie learned his trade, in the big back of Garscube Rd, commonly referred to as the gaspipe.
Best regards
HH
I predict a Killie win 2-1.