Scoring minutes after making your debut doesn’t guarantee a great career at a club, but Scott Sinclair gave himself an excellent start with his winning goal at Tynecastle. Leigh Griffiths lead-up work was magnificent. The Hearts defence had no answer.
Scott’s transfer took weeks (and a lot of money) to complete but it was the player’s tenacity to come to Celtic which decided the matter. I hear Celtic met Aston Villa’s initial target price early in the negotiations, but Villa decided to hold their cards for a few weeks in an attempt to induce other bidders. Scott was clear from the off that there was only one place he was going, but while Villa sat tight, there was a worry that another club would come in with a seriously large wage offer. The deal happened when the player continued with the mantra, “I’m going to Celtic or nowhere”. This is a guy who really wants to play for Celtic.
Apart from Tony Watt’s excellent chance yesterday, which should have brought Hearts level, the home side didn’t have a chance worthy of the name. A policy of throwing yourself to the ground inside the box doesn’t count, so we can be happy with how our defence is performing with Kolo Toure in the team. There’s still a long way to go, but the direction of travel is clear. Watt and Conon Sammon will cause a lot of damage in the Premiership this season, but on the evidence so far, Celtic should outperform their 15 point winning margin last term.
So disappointed to hear Dave King’s £30m – £50m overinvestment isn’t going to happen until January. This guy has been so transparent. Honestly, they get what they deserve, there’s no helping or telling them. They backed a hostile takeover with a fantasy manifesto, while putting the thumbscrews on their club, to the extent it had to go cap in hand to its only source of funding, and hawk their commercial rights in the process.
As we’ve said here for years, the only people who can really damage a football club are its own supporters, in this case, with their inability to consider the consequences of the next action.
Running a football club is hard (serious understatement alert). You’re going to enjoy how Dave King finds this out.
620 Comments- Pages:
- «
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- ...
- 17
- »
Celtic player still the only one in Scotland to be retrospectively banned for diving?
Great start to the league by our heroes yesterday.
– Good to see Kolo “The Cube” Toure have a full game and take a lead role.
– Great debut by Scott “The Sink” Sinclair
– Smashing to see James “Timber!” Forrest make an impact
Gerryfaethebrig…
Thanks for that ….HH
I was told 10 days ago that Villa and Celtic had agreed a fee and that Villa were holding out until they had completed a major deal of their own, presumably Ross McCormack. Whatever the reason, the point is, as I posted on here a week ago, reports of 4 rejected bids were pure fantasy.
Celtic knew Sinclair wanted to come and had agreed wages offered, so were prepared to wait until Villa played ball, despite the Scottish media, and some Celtic supporters – led by cheerleader James Forrest – accusing the club of dragging their feet and wasting their time.
Hearing Paddy McNair coming in from Man U
CULTSBHOY – SEES RIGHT THROUGH LAWWELL AND THE BOARD on 8TH AUGUST 2016 2:36 PM
I don’t really read the annoying adverts on Cqn ( total night blight IMO) …
I wouldn’t know whether to check my post Brexit pension position , check out massive mamories of foreign politicians or consider taking drugs to become ( more of) a beast..
Seriously if we must have adverts couldn’t we get football .. Even Celtic related sponsors?
—————————————————————————
I think the adverts we all see are driven by what our PCs have previously been used to search for via Google etc. using “cookies”. They’re not selected for us by CQN. You might want to find out whose been using your computer to search for “Angela Merkel welpen”…
Aston Villa ‘snub’ 24th Celtic bid
Did I imagine it, or was McNair playing Defensive Mid for NI at the Euros?
Will he step into midfield?
NatKnow
You might want to find out whose been using your computer to search for “Angela Merkel welpen”…
————————————————————
I am in tears!
Natknow
Ole Cultsbhoy’s PC is polluted with adverts for heated drives?
DAVIDOPOULOS on 8TH AUGUST 2016 2:49 PM
NatKnow
You might want to find out whose been using your computer to search for “Angela Merkel welpen”…
————————————————————
I am in tears!
—————————————-
:-)))
AULD TAM
Is that a fact?
BOURNESOUPRECIPE on 8TH AUGUST 2016 2:49 PM
Natknow
Ole Cultsbhoy’s PC is polluted with adverts for heated drives?
————————————————
Mibbes aye. He’ll need to be a bit nicer to Big Peter though to find out where he buys the goose eggs he fries on said driveway! :-))
LEFTY
Yer telt. End of.
NATKNOW
Ffs,don’t mention goose eggs. My faither will be champing at the bit.
http://www.celticquicknews.co.uk/why-sinclair-wanted-to-join-hoops-rodgers/
Joey Barton’s – new boots
Davidpolous,
I dunno where Mcnair played in euros but he was originally signed by man yoo as a centre mid.
HH
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS on 8TH AUGUST 2016 2:53 PM
NATKNOW
Ffs,don’t mention goose eggs. My faither will be champing at the bit.
——————————————————————————————————
I’ve heard the Ayrshire geese are renowned for they ability to lay… ! :-)))
http://www.philmacgiollabhain.ie/ripping-up-the-sevco-script/#more-7781
The Celtic Enthusiasts
Not sure why we need to sign Toure when O’Connell is playing well enough
I’d only be interested if there is a prospect of a permanent deal down the line.
Not sure why we need to sign McNair* when O’Connell is playing well enough
timaloy29
My suspicion is he could be considered for a holding mid role (?)
McNair played midfield for NI. The assistant manager says that’s where a team would get the best from him.
More on Paddy McNair as a midfielder:
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/man-utd-transfer-news-mcnair-11418037
WINNING CAPTAINS 10:46 AM
“The point I was trying to make was Mowbray gave the cheats a green light straight away. As a former player he should have known better. They knew then he was a soft touch and as a consequence his side were the victim of honest mistake after honest mistake as he continued his ‘take it on the chin’ policy”
Not true he never gave them a green light the brothers already decided well before his appointment they were going to help them and Reid and Lawwell knew this. If anyone gave them a green light it was Lawwell and Reid because ultimately they sanction a coaches response to the authorities.
History has proved no Celtic team was going to get an even break from the refs that season. Tony Mowbray was always a quiet man that was his nature. He was up against their old snarling warhorse Smith when they needed the money for their very survival it was never going to be a level playing field whoever was the coach… fact !
Ask yourself why did the board appoint him, they did not appoint him for his outspokenness when it came to football authorities was that not their job….? And as an exemplary former player and captain he led out our troops while they spent tax free tenners to our tax paid fivers no one was saying feck all back then about soft touches.
What Tony Mowbray was guilty off was being too honest for the job and naïve to the politics he was never a Martin O Neill or a Neil Lennon waving an Irish flag round the place and shouting freedom
Anyway it’s obvious you will never cut the ghuy a bit of slack
I don’t hear you making the same criticisms when it comes to other coaches like Dalgleish/Barnes, Macari or Brady arguably bigger failures who worked at a time when the honest mistakes were less profuse as there were in season 2011 the season they had to win the league at all costs.
I think it is easy for you to have a dig at him because he is an easier target a quieter type of man and you are on safe populist ground.
NATKNOW
Hid it fae me when I was a lad-I had to go to Embra for that.
THINDIMEBHOY
I backed up your original point about four hours ago.
TM was not backed at all when he needed to be. And that’s me being exceptionally polite about it.
McNair in midfield could be nice. I would be happy if we signed him and Vorm.
As for Phil’s latest piece, pretending that DD and PL aren’t on the same page is wishful thinking. Anybody who knows how Celtic works knows that PL is the bag man for DD.
He really does try to endear himself to all things Irish
CULTSBHOY
Google Chrome and Adblocker Plus, no adverts at all on the PC.
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS on 8TH AUGUST 2016 3:15 PM
NATKNOW
Hid it fae me when I was a lad-I had to go to Embra for that.
——————————————————————
Why do you think I moved here, bud?! LOL! :-)
Away and gie me peace…… Tony Mowbray, so Celtic paid West Brom a substantial amount of money to buy out Moggas contract so that TM would fail….. That dastardly duo of DD & PL get up to all sorts of tricks, and as far as what page PL is on, he will be on the page DD tells him to be on, it’s called doing what your boss tells you to do, it’s how we all pay the bills or in some cases heat the driveway :-)
Anyway, it’s in the past what’s done is done….. Brendan is the future and I have a feeling “if” we make the group stages we have one box office signing to come
CULTSBHOY
Dolphin browser on iPAD also perfect, no ads, no equivalent for iPhone at the moment, no idea about Android devices.
The day after winning at Tynecastle when Celtic score a dramatic winning goal.
However, with the Bowen Report on the Scottish Cup Final barely read through the questions that should be asked include:-
Why do the fans of some Scottish clubs think that they are above the law?
Why do the fans of some Scottish clubs think that other fans are not entitled to the same rights?
Why do the fans of some Scottish clubs assume that a sense of entitlement when they act aggressively towards selected other clubs and fans?
Why has no real and meaningful deterrent been used by football authorities of the Police to address any of this?
Those are particularly pertinent after yesterdays game.
For decades, Hearts fans have been getting away with some of truly awful behaviour, outside and inside Tynecastle.
The ambushing of Celtic fans outside or near their ground were (and might still be) regular occurrences. These were not the pre-arranged confrontations between violent groups. These were serious assaults on individuals or perhaps twos or threes of Celtic fans.
Inside their ground, their fans’ behaviour is just as objectionable but usually directed towards players or coaches.
The farce surrounding the criminal assault on Neil Lennon is a stain on that club, the SFA, the SPL, the Police and the Procurator’s Office. Some suggest that there could so easily been a repeat of that incident yesterday. The fact is that there was a repeat.
Scott Sinclair WAS assaulted yesterday. The assault was complete merely by the offer of violence by the Hearts fans, more so again by the swinging of a clenched fist or open hand towards him and most certainly when he was spat upon. These issues range across civil and criminal law, but there is no doubt that each of them on their own constitute disorderly behaviour. That simple fact means that the offenders should have been ejected as the minimum sanction. As we know it didn’t happen. There was no sanction applied at all by any organisation or agency. The offenders got away with it.
Each SPFL has its own Ground Regulations, all pretty much the same, which are applied to fans as a condition of entry to the stadium. They were not applied to Hearts fans yesterday.
The SFA even has its own Unacceptable Conduct Policy.
This makes it clear that it is unacceptable for spectators attending a football match to engage in violent
conduct or disorderly conduct, or if they assist or encourage other supporters to do so. Violent conduct is defined as actual, attempted or threatened physical violence against a person or persons or intentional damage to property. Disorderly conduct is defined as conduct which stirs up or sustains hatred or ill will against a group of persons based on their membership of that group, using threatening, abusive or insulting words, displaying writing or an image which is threatening, abusive or insulting or using words,
conduct.
That policy was not applied in any incident involving Hearts fans yesterday.
There were multiple breaches of Ground Conditions and the SFAs policy during the game and no apparent action was taken by stewards or Police. No retrospective action will be taken either.
So back to the Bowen Report and those earlier questions.
Why do fans invade pitches?
Because they get away with it.
Why do Hearts fans (and others) think it is acceptable to attempt to strike opposition players & managers?
Because they get away with it and they know that they are given more behaviour latitude at their own ground.
There were two standards in operation at Tynecastle yesterday. For Celtic players and fans this was nothing new.
Jamie Walker should have been reported by the Police for his goading of Celtic fans after converting the penalty. He had just cheated to win the kick then delighted in trying to provoke those frustrated fans.
As far as I am aware, NO stewards took any action towards any Hearts fans despite several incidents where rules, laws and policies were breached.
Tynecastle is unique.
Fans are far too close to the goals and also have the advantage of being well above the players, by virtue of a bonkers Edinburgh City Council’s Safety Team decision. They allowed Hearts to build stands that encroach far too much, simply to get more people in the stand. The proximity means that mere momentum from players who score goals propels them into the faces of fans, (sometimes opposition fans). The height means that fans merely have to lean forward to assault or congratulate players.
Compare this with the 60 yard sprint and hurdling that players have to undertake to achieve the same effect at Hampden.
There are no special provisions for this situation at Tynecastle. EG More stewards, empty front rows at higher risk games (like CL games), or even some leeway to players who almost fall onto fans as Sinclair did yesterday.
We are told that he got a yellow for his celebration, and that rules are rules.
But as we know from games at Tynecastle and elsewhere, rules are NOT rules when it is expedient to disregard them.
The Safety Team pushed their discretion beyond acceptable limits by allowing those stands behind the goals to built to that specification.
The SFA repeatedly ignore breaches of their own Unacceptable Conduct Policy, as yesterday.
Hearts allow breaches of their own Ground Regulations – from their own fans.
The stewards, under the stadium management, do not take any action to discourage home fans from acting any way they want towards opposition players.
The Police should be investigating the assault of Scott Sinclair and submit a report to the PF/Crown, but they won’t.
Based on the Bowen Report, the SFA are moving towards the further criminalization of football fans to address a problem. That problem is almost entirely down to their poor governance, lack of accountability & transparency and especially to the uneven application of existing rules.
The SFA lurch towards equivalencies (word of the week?) when it suits them, and then refuse to apply rules evenly, because each case is considered on its merits.
The Bowen Report is another SFA cop out. They ran that cup final, and they were responsible for what occurred. They seek to apportion blame to others, which only ever means “the fans”.
Double Standards CSC
NATKNOW on 8TH AUGUST 2016 3:29 PM
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS on 8TH AUGUST 2016 3:15 PM
Why do you think I moved here, bud?! LOL! :-)
…certainly wasn’t to meet up in Malone’s for the Legia game….. like MON, i bear grudges!!
SunnyJim
I think you raise valid points about supporters proximity to the pitch at Tynecastle. I don’t think it is acceptable. There is much crap spouted in the media about how it is a great atmosphere because of the “tightness” of the ground but I think it is dangerous. I happen to be one of them boring folk that thinks that players shouldn’t go into the crowd…I know that passionate, high stakes situations lead to people getting carried away but just expect a booking at the end of it. As you rightly point out, this has to applied consistently to everyone – that remains an annoyance.
Well done the Hoops yesterday, despite Cheating Beaton, the ref who infamously denied Albion Rovers victory at the Scrapyard when Moshnie assaulted the Rovers’ keeper and he gave the goal!