I’ve said for a while that very few people realise the enormity of what happened in Scottish football in 2012. Some thought there would be a three-year blip before ‘normality’ was restored. Until very recently prevailing perception is that the current ‘abnormal’ circumstances may last 10 years. The old normal isn’t coming back.
When I talked about how few people realised the permanent consequences of Rangers liquidation on the Scottish football to my brother, he was of the view that the penny wouldn’t drop until Newco were in their second season in the Premiership.
They had all the excuses in the world when they were in the lower leagues, and a genuinely good excuse during their first season in the top flight, but when things don’t improve in the second season, a retrenchment will start.
By then it will be evident that the legendary gap below Celtic is huge, that Newco are effectively cannon fodder, that their fans are a cash cow topping up the coffers of every club they visit (including Celtic), but that no matter what they pay for their season tickets, Newco will always be underfunded.
Season ticket sales at current levels are not sustainable to watch a team fail so miserably. Even this miserable team is not sustainable with the current business model. The retrenchment will be real and painful. Questions are now being asked about how they get themselves out of this mess (16 years too late). There will be no answer.
They will win the odd game against Celtic, and pick up a cup occasionally (if Ross County can do it anyone can), but Newco will only win the league if Celtic get their big move. Many football fans in Scotland will live the rest of their lives only seeing Celtic win the league. Just think of that for a moment. Buying your losers ticket each season will be a painful business. Some will find other things to occupy themselves with.
The real question that should be asked, is how sustainable is a Rangers club that’s as much chance of winning the title as St Johnstone? The answer will be evident by this time next season.
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We have many stars at Celtic Park just now but Kieran and Brendan particularly are so special.
GlassTwoThirdsFull on 3rd February 2017 1:46 pm
“If they finish second, 40 points behind us and one point ahead of Aberdeen this will be spun as being back (sic) at the top of Scottish football with Celtic!”
Yep…..likely headlines “Old Firm dominate Scottish football” “Old Firm run away with league” “Old Firm leave the rest trailing in their wake”
Oh, and perhaps even “Moussa Dembele says he is going nowhere as he is just loving playing for the Old Firm”
The really amusing thing is that the ‘normal’ which Sevco fans and media cheerleaders hanker after was a great big lie in the first place. The relentless ‘success’ of the now-dead Rangers was built on the utterly unsustainable spending of money which wasn’t always theirs! Some golden age, eh?
TheOriginalSadiesBhoy on 3rd February 2017 1:49 pm
Magical.
I remember watching him look like the least effective player in the Celts young squad at Cappielow.
Here we go again
Thanks Thomthethim – it never lasts too long!
Good to hear ye and God Bless Donegal.
FOGHORN LEGHORN
yes I am that sad that I would know this.
On Wednesday 28 December 2016 we beat Ross County 2-0 at Celtic Park – both goals scored in 1st half;
On Tuesday 20 December 2016 we beat Partick 1-0 at Celtic Park – Sinclair in 16th minute;
On Tuesday 13 December 2016 we beat Hamilton 1-0 at Celtic Park – Griffiths in 36th minute;
On Wednesday 10 August 2016 we beat Motherwell 5-0 at Celtic Park – 3 goals scored in first half.
The only other midweek domestic games we played this season were 2-0 v Alloa and the past two 1-0s.
Didn’t look at last season as I think this season’s results debunk that theory.
Mort
Think Sevco….
Think Leeds.
The damned utd. Bye bye to both.
That missal is a thing of unfathomable beauty !
TOSB,
Smashing letter from the Killie fan.
I think BR chose them because, obviously, they are in the SPL and in a battle, so the boy will be tested.
Also, because in Norway, he was used to the Astro pitches.
However, a big reason is that, I believe, he is studying medicine at GU.
Off to Matagorda with daddy bear, still grinning, l8ers. H H. ;-)))
Reading Paul’s opener put me in mind of the old wisecrack. Where a guy says, ” I have enough money to do me for the rest of my life ” before later adding “providing I die by Saturday”,
Like all Tims, I am rejoicing in these glorious times but I honestly think that Paul’s comments are over the top and to be honest that type of bravado leaves me uncomfortable.
Nobody knows what may or may not happen within our own Club or within any other Scottish Club in the years ahead.
Live in the present, enjoy the moment, Personally all I’m interested in is the result of the game this Sunday.
I know we will win the League this year and I am thrilled about that, beyond that I take absolutely nothing for granted.
Angelgabriel / WITS from yesterday .
It was a common occurence , when we were wee , for grown men to stop on their way home from work and to join in our games .
Remember the old army surplus olive green shoulder bags that they used to carry their “pieces” and newspapers in ? Well they would put them and their “jaikits” behind the goals then join in .
So you had forty year old men with working boots on ( playing against eleven year old boys ) trying to dribble around the old couch that someone had dumped , the solidified bag of cement , the discarded hedge trimmings and a big hole that had filled with water during the previous rainy spell .
Howls of laughter all round when one of them went on their “arse” .
One of our rules was hits it , gits it .
So , if one of the grown ups ( and I use that term loosely ) kicked the ball in to a garden then they had to retrieve it and suffer the wrath of miffed occupant .
Thinking back , they had no other outlet eg like our modern day five asides .
And so they would play until their mammys … sorry wives … called them in for dinner .
We were in an end terrace in Shawhead and used to play “keepy uppy heiders” against the wall .
Tosh Gorman ( brilliant old guy ) used to come in our gate to play .
My maw thought he was aff his heid .
PS That wee scheme produced a few kids that went on to play senior football :-
Kevin McCann ( Airdrie ) … yes , that Kevin McCann
Gerry Colgan ( Hamilton / Queens park )
Jimmy Lindsay ( Motherwell & Scotland U21 )
Joe McGivern ( Falkirk )
Gerry Loughlin ( Albion Rovers )
Corkcelt. Totally agree. Well said, hh .
Cadizzy 1:53
Aye, and if we qualify for the last 16 of the CL it will be the “old firm”!
Here is my latest offering. About the next SPFL ‘player of the month’:
https://theclumpany.wordpress.com/2017/02/02/a-shocking-player-of-the-month/
And something about how Sevco didn’t lose 4-1 to Hearts:
https://theclumpany.wordpress.com/2017/02/02/when-sevco-didnt-do-a-4-1-defeat/
As wise man once said “Expect the unexpected because life is full of surprises . . .”
The massive gulf in quality this year between us and them (plural, including Hearts and Aberdeen) is as surprising as it is welcome. Last May few of us would have predicted such a turnaround.
I think most, if not all of us would agree that it is primarily because of BR’s appointment. He is unquestionably a top manager and the stars aligned beautifully for him to be available just when we needed to up our game. We were going nowhere fast. We were downsizing to a point where domestic dominance could not be taken for granted. We looked to have a bang average squad which did not justify the budget that was being spent on it.
What a difference one man can make.
But the unexpected can work both ways. With that in mind, in 2-3 years what’s the likelihood of BR still being at CP and not to have got bored with winning everything? He will surely be offered a job with a top EPL team after a couple of good Champions League seasons and domestic doubles / trebles. The managerial merry-go-round down south will ensure he gets headhunted sooner or later.
I love the thought of another decade of domination, it’s like we are in a dream state at the moment. All, or nearly all, we ever wished for is happening in front of our eyes.
But life being life means we will be toppled from our perch at some point.
“When pride and presumption walk before, shame and loss follow very closely.” Louis XI
The hun will bag the breadman,they may well bring
in a coach who knows the time of day,they should be
good enough to beat 10 teams in a 12 team league,
therefore they will always be a threat to Celtic.
Thing is, our own crowds will start to drop in that scenario – unless we start being more frequent challengers in Europe – in either of the two trophies (or whatever format the future holds). Will they ever drop so far that relative incomes are closer? No, and frankly I think TRFC will be liquidated before that point anyway.
MORT on 3RD FEBRUARY 2017 2:05 PM
FOGHORN LEGHORN
yes I am that sad that I would know this.
On Wednesday 28 December 2016 we beat Ross County 2-0 at Celtic Park – both goals scored in 1st half;
On Tuesday 20 December 2016 we beat Partick 1-0 at Celtic Park – Sinclair in 16th minute;
On Tuesday 13 December 2016 we beat Hamilton 1-0 at Celtic Park – Griffiths in 36th minute;
On Wednesday 10 August 2016 we beat Motherwell 5-0 at Celtic Park – 3 goals scored in first half.
The only other midweek domestic games we played this season were 2-0 v Alloa and the past two 1-0s.
Didn’t look at last season as I think this season’s results debunk that theory.
Mort
———————————
ahh, but you are dealing in facts
thats not the CQN way
rumour and insinuation are our methods :)
must be just my midweek perception
ahh well, back to real life then…
Blane Valley…
Wonder what the wind will blow in!!!
Regards & Hail Hail
TBM
Cadizzy
Thought you bhoys where doing a tour of the west end pre match
Soal
Was in previous Wednesday and same outcome
THEBARCAMOLE on 3RD FEBRUARY 2017 2:40 PM
Blane Valley…
Wonder what the wind will blow in!!!
Regards & Hail Hail
_____________________________________________________
Yer wallet hopefully:)
Barney / Corkcelt
It’s the type of stuff that could’ve been written by a sevcoite in the Murray era.
It’s ironic that it’s being achieved under the model that Paul spent years telling us was unsustainable and would see us become the next Sevco.
Whilst many of us implored Celtic to think big, Paul regularly informed us we were being unrealistic, and every penny that comes in goes out again.
Flawed on two fronts.
1. It wasn’t going out to where it should
2. There wasn’t enough coming in.
A continuation of the previous thinking would have seen us descend even further than the EL also rans which we had become, and would’ve allowed Sevco a smooth passage back to contending for all honours.
( Think semi final 2 seasons ago)
The introduction of a proper manager ( which costs more) in turn leading to the money going out being spent properly, ala Moussa, Sinclair, and the rebirth of Armstrong and Forrest, is what has seen us rise to the current position.
Of course, the biggest plus is that we also play attractive football these days.
I’ll enjoy these glorious times whilst they last. That may indeed be the next decade or longer.
Whilst it’s unlikely Rangers will see a cash injection of such proportions that they’ll challenge us anytime soon, but let’s not start to adopt the attitude of self entitlement and superiority that made us / makes us hate everything they stand for.
Gloating is , however, very much allowed, indeed encouraged:-)
Petec
It was good to see that he is playing so well at Killie.
……………………….
THOMTHETHIM FOR OSCAR OK on 3RD FEBRUARY 2017 2:10 PM
TOSB,
Smashing letter from the Killie fan.
I think BR chose them because, obviously, they are in the SPL and in a battle, so the boy will be tested.
Also, because in Norway, he was used to the Astro pitches.
However, a big reason is that, I believe, he is studying medicine at GU.
………………………………
I enjoyed reading the Killie fans post. So many of the comments in The Herald are just tit-for-tat rubbish that it was great to see a well-written constructive appraisal of young Ajer. I hope he does well for them and that the writer gets to enjoy many good performances from young Kristofer.
I didn’t know that he was studying medicine and hadn’t thought about their plastic pitch. Good points.
One pit stop in Byers Road (where I met a guy from school in Greenock who I hadn’t seen in over 40 years)
pre match in BB’s (where I met another guy from school in Greenock who I hadn’t seen in over 40 years)
As Chic Murray said “It’s a small world but you wouldn’t want to have to paint it
(in between in BV……where we never met a soul (or a SOAL) that we knew.)
Cadizzy Mort and Deniabhoy in 1 afternoon
☘️☘️☘️☘️☘️☘️☘️
Welcome back bhoys
TBM
Hope to see you and yer big mucked on Sunday
Remember early mass as it’s 12.30 ko
corkcelt
If my memory serves me well we started singing “It’s gonna be 10 in a row” in January 1975. In fact I’m sure it is based on the chorus of the song ‘January’ by the Scottish band Pilot which was a hit at that time. If I am right nobody had ever sang that song previously in any version, certainly not for 9 in a row for example. And why not, we had indeed already won nine. Thing is despite being in a good position at the start of 1975 our league form collapsed and by the time of our defeat at Aberdeen at Pittodrie the writing was on the wall….
‘It’ll never be ten in a row”.
Moral of the story, careful what you wish for….
Waiting for our bus to the airport,a great week in Tenerife that flu past,two clean sheets and roll on Sunday.Mind the gap:-)))
Aneurin Bevan’s wee volunteer…
Here’s the irony comrade…
I have just blown in from Tredegar…
My base for the next few years, God willing…
Regards & Hail Hail
TBM
BT…
11:30 mass at St. Caddoc’s…
The wee Padre knows the score re Sunday lunchtime kick offs…
Will be in PV with my china,
MARSPAP…
See you the S…
Regards & Hail Hail
TBM
Aye Paul, that’s a couple of times now you have hinted, what are you not telling us ?
HH
frannyb67 on 3rd February 2017 1:52 pm
Big Judith looking absolute stunning doing the lunch time weather HH
JR CSC
=========================
A magnificently put-together woman.
I prefer her when she dresses like Darth Vader’s missus, but I’m sure many will agree there’s been a new dimension added to her hotness since BRTH spilled the ‘bians a week or so ago…
THEBARCAMOLE
Tredegar, hid tae google it!!!!
Something in the cider in BV, cannae spell or complete a sentence of any coherent meaning…
Must be the price, 50% hike on the valley’s tariff…
Regards & Hail Hail
TBM
BLANTYRETIM
It’s a CQN miracle
Mort
Corkcelt
Whilst I agree that , “Nobody knows what may or may not happen within our own Club or within any other Scottish Club in the years ahead.” I think Paul was simply recognising the importance of the unequal distribution of money in the modern game. Most Clubs in England are not as big as us in many ways but we cannot compete with them because of money. The same is true of Sevco in Scotland. In many ways, they are as big a club as us here but they cannot compete on financial terms. Whilst that gap continues to grow , and it seems inevitable that it will, then no team in Scotland is likely to win the League Title in the foreseeable future.
In conclusion, I think Paul`s comment is simply a reiteration of the financial reality in football and is not intended as a gloat.
JJ
PS ….and the only reason I have enough money to take me to Saturday is because today is Friday 0:-))
PPS Good to see you posting again. The more the good guys leave the Blog, the lesser a place it becomes .
PPPS The PPS theory excludes the return of Cadizzy.
Fred Colon @2:15
Tosh Gorman what a mhan HH