Exactly one year ago today, just after lunchtime, one of the pivotal moments in Celtic history occurred. Neil Lennon took his Celtic team to Kilmarnock, who had lost their three previous league games, and for 73 minutes looked like surrendering their league title chances just as Tony Mowbray’s team collapsed at St Mirren Park seven months earlier.
The manager later admitted to thoughts of resignation. 3-0 down at half time while already in heavy deficit to Rangers, who were riding a wave of positivity under the reinvigorating ownership of Craig Whyte, events looked to have escaped Neil’s grasp.
It is tempting to write the narrative that a half time talk or tactical change turned things around but turnaround was more difficult to explain. Celtic were awful for the opening 28 minutes of the second half; like condemned men waiting for the inevitable.
Anthony Stokes started the recovery by exploiting Kilmarnock’s weaknesses. A free kick drifted over a wall which didn’t jump and into the net. Had the wall jumped, would history have been different? Three minutes later Stokes fired into the corner of the net from distance, Jaakkola in the Killie goal was not equal to the challenge. Suddenly, we were back in the game, back in the title race.
Charlie Mulgrew, who erred to gift Kilmarnock their third, equalised with 11 minutes remaining, surely there was only one winner now? Not so, images of Heffernan’s last minute header from inside the Celtic six yard box gliding over remain vivid.
We escaped with a draw but it felt like a stay of execution, not a pivotal moment. Neil didn’t resign, he stayed, beat Stade Rennes in the Europa League and never looked back. The imperious positivity which surrounded Craig Whyte was ultimately proven to be a charade, those of us who told you Rangers were in peril were proven correct.
It is impossible to calculate just how much football has changed since Anthony hit that free kick, although imperious positivity still surrounds a charade which is doomed to fail, leaving a lot of football fans out of pocket. If only the football authorities had a warning from recent history that light-touch regulation is dangerous, or had the mechanism to order a financial audit. They do, of course, but despite the traumas of 2012 I doubt they have the appetite to head-off potential problems. It’s easier (in the short term) to hope everything will turn out well.
Not that you need worry about any of this, you can chill and enjoy the season.
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ItaliaBhoy
19:30 on
15 October, 2012
If Scotland becomes independent what do we do if Shetland decides it would like to independent? It’s culturally barely Scottish, is closer to Norway than Edinburgh, and would take all the oil and gas with it!
– > We would have to grant Shetland their wish to be independent, if Shetlanders genuinely wanted that outcome. In the same way that english people have zero right to pontificate that Scotland should stay under UK control.
Alex Salmond sent a letter to Sir Walter congratulating him on his title wins i don’t recall him doing the same for our managers and i don’t recall him coming out when our manager was getting attacked or when he was receiving death threats.
He also tried to get HMRC to do a deal with the tax cheats and he didn’t care about the creditors that were owed money so no i will never give this man my vote.
Blantyre Tim having problems with a bedroom tax?
Divorce her…
LuxCelt
19:33 on 15 October, 2012
Though presumably it would be OK for the Bank of England to decide interest rates in an independent Scotland.
Mountainbhoy, you are a funny guy! USA has produced for the vast majority of its people the best standard of living in human history! You think wee eck is going to better that? And don’t knock the EU after it is the cornerstone of SNP economic and social
Policy. See Nats? See logic?
@MattMcGlone9: Withey exits Rangers trial as intervener application dropped….hmmmm, wonder why? http://t.co/a4jtAeUr”
Italiabhoy, you are a contradiction, do you want no nation or nation? which is it man?
Mountain_Bhoy
A reasonable start.
Biggest problem is Westminster will NEVER relinquish the tax revenues from the oil and gas.
Without that revenue scotland is on a hiding to nothing.
None of it makes a blind bit of difference to me anyways, I’m well out of it never to return.
But, if I were still living in scotland, I would be worried by the SNP’s anti Catholic and by definision anti Celtic stance.
My kids have already suffered due to my supporting Celtic.
“..And a structure over time…”
Yup
A very revealing quote from The First Minister
HH
alasdair maclean
18:34 on
15 October, 2012
The Legend Johnny Doyle,
The most troubling aspect of your post is that you thought it worthy of being repeated.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Well I, for one, was pleased he did, since I thought it was ‘very much’ worth repeating………….
What if the SNP retained control and we didn’t get them to F
A most concerning scenario
Does it really matter?Are we not living in a Federal Europe anyway?
Italiabhoy, “vast majority” dont make me laugh!!! large swathes of the US are barely above developing world level
A vote for independence is not a vote for salmond
hen1rik
19:34 on 15 October, 2012
ABSOLUTELY SPOT ON……AND VERY REVEALING……!!!!!!!!!!!
Alisdair McLean – I do agree that the debate within the central belt is polarised. However thats because there are a lot of catholics within the central belt who invariably stand up to the bigotry. I have had lots of experience outwith the central belt which demontrated the anti catholicism. My friend also use to audit the Scottish Courts and he had some hair raising stories both with the courts and around them.
Really awful stuff.
But to repeat – political sectarianism as a means of outlawing aspects of catholicism? And I should trust this this country why?
The data wasn’t destroyed, only the COPFS’s copy of it. The data remains intact and held on the SPSA’s Criminal History System, the database that stores Scotland’s criminal records and court data.
A quick glimpse:
Between April 2006 and March 2011, there were 3299 charges brought before the courts for ‘Religiously Aggravated’ offences, resulting in 1801 convictions. 54%.
In the same period there were 21,588 charges brought before Scottish Courts for ‘Racially Aggravated’ offences, resulting in 4213 convictions. 19%.
The disparity in the conviction rates is stark.
Scotland’s Shame is that we really don’t like ‘the Other’ very much. We are an equality driven society only insofar as we offend regardless of Race or Religion.
Luxcelt, it seems to me the English are dictating anything. The scots are oppressed only in the narrow minds of the Nats. And on Shetland…. What would that leave us all to live off? Whiskey and golf. In the 21st century nationalism is an infantile insanity and in Scotland is coated in a thinly disguised but virulent anti Irish and anti Catholic veneer.
hen1rik
19:34 on 15 October, 2012
The vote on independence is just that; a vote on whether Scotland becomes an independent nation or stays within the union It is not a vote for or against Alex Salmond, and if you so wish you can vote against him and his party at the first election post the referendum.
Mountainbhoy… I think you need to get out more. You clearly have only a passing knowledge of the world outside Brigadoon. As for my nation? I have one thanks, but the welfare of my family and friends will always mean more to me than what wee flag flies nearby.
TBB
Some of the prosecutions brought under the umbrella of “Racially aggravated” are utter nonsense ….like calling WASP policemen ..black B’s
It’s no great surprise that a large number of them fail .. Also PF’s have virtually no discretion …therefore a large number of very poor cases are prosecuted
ItaliaBhoy
What veneer?
*rhetorical*
LuxCelt – this argument – that we arent really voting for Salmond – we are voting for independence is a regular retort.
Its got nothing to do with Salmond – but as minority in this country and given its rather appalling track record of bigotry and anti catholicism why should I trust it to do the right thing?
And can you answer the political sectarianism question?
The Prince of Goalkeepers,
what you say seems obvious to me but it seems to have gone over other peoples heads.
Independence doesnt mean we would be stuck with the same government for ever more, im sure we would be allowed elections now and again!
In saying that, whoever made the points about never getting oil and gas revenues and the openly anti-irish and anti-catholic behaviours in scotland also made good points.
i think i will abstain due to indecision!
Tuned into SSB 10 minutes ago …….. I see they’re up to their old tricks again “80+% Of Scotland supporters want rid of Craig Levein” ……. They did the same with WGS, while he was hammering the zombies, and it intensified when they realised he was single-handedly destroying them…..not old walturd, though….
Where the hell do they get their evidence from…..a few emails / texts / callers …….. they really are a despicable lot, and talk a load of agenda-driven old shoite.
I know, I know…….I turned it off…….I should turn on the Comedy Channel if I want a laugh ….
Salmond, Sturgeon, Illuminati…………..
Hen1rik
But all of these crimes were committed in A Scotland which is part of the union.
Do u think that if Scotland becomes independent the Orcs can behave any worse or hate us anymore?
neganon2
19:49 on 15 October, 2012
Correct …….
PF Ayr
I respect your view as you know, but you’ll need to do better than that.
hoopy-do
19:50 on 15 October, 2012
Thanks for the reply, have to say I haven’t decided one way or the other, but I’m thoroughly enjoying the debate on CQN tonight.
so post- independence
you’ll be living off golf and whisky
so what are you living off now
Half time: 0 – 0
67 heaven
There info is fabricated nonsense ….designed to please here listeners
Change channels auld pal ….they’ll do yer heid in eventually
Believe it or not, contrary to how I come across today, I am still very much open to being persuaded that Independence would be a good thing. I think everyone has a misty eyed romantic notion of their country being “Independent” and would love a logical reason to persuade the head that the romanticism can be reality. I enjoy my views being challenged and my mind changed however I am yet to hear anything to allow me to overcome the feeling that on just about every level, bar a one day party where we wave saltires, that Independence would be an utter disaster.
The argument I always get returned when I raise the inadequacies of the SNP and politicians in general is the one I have had at least 3 times today and one I have never had a cogent return argument made against.
You are voting for a concept not a party.
At the risk of sounding boring, that argument in my opinion just does not stand up. If we as a nation vote to become independent Alex Salmond and the SNP then have the mandate to set about creating a constitution for our new country. That constitution will be created in a partisan manner, by a political party, as is their want and right for winning the referendum. To say we can then vote him out 2 years later, after the damage has been done just doesn’t make sense.
The constitution of the nation is the foundation everything will be built on. I wouldn’t trust Alex Salmond and the SNP to put a foundation on a cheesecake. If you get the constitution wrong it can take decades to sort as people get almost religious about a constitution. Just take a glance over to our American cousins for numerous examples of that.
Don’t even get me started on them wanting us to vote knowing full well most of the details will not even be discussed until after the vote has taken place. There are in fact remarkable parallels between this and the upcoming Rangers IPO. Salmond and Green’s prospectuses will both be full of a blue tinted utopia and distinctly lacking in the pertinent detail that will sway a vote either way.
We will not even be given a fraction of the true picture. You will have no way of knowing what effect financially this will have on your or your children’s lives as the nuts and bolts will not even be discussed until after the vote. That for me is the real scandal in this, that this sort of decision is being asked to be made without 100% facts and transparency available to all.
As for the people bringing Irish Nationalism into the debate, well that is just laughable. There are virtually no parallels between the two situations and for people to say support for one should beget support for another is frankly laughable.
blantyretim
18:14 on
15 October, 2012
I’m too busy trying to deal with a bedroom tax problem to think about independance..
I am unsure at the moment.. probably swaying towards a no thanks…
Correct the bedroom tax is social engineering of the poorest in society.
http://youtu.be/qxdJ3VdxNBY
An old un but good un……..Rangers Crimewatch Special….
burghbhoy
19:53 on 15 October, 2012
Of course they can …….. Their majority vote will allow them to ‘direct’ / influence the agenda …….can’t quite remember at the moment, but there is a Provence not far from here, where this was prevalent until VERY recently……?
Burghbhoy
19:53 on 15 October, 2012
Do you agree that for at least 300 years Scotland was the most anti Catholic country in the world?
Do you think that history has no continuing effect?