When someone writes the Celtic Story on our 200th anniversary there will be a page about when The Thai Tims came to Glasgow. It’s a part of the Celtic Story which reaches from 1888 to the present day, and, if we do our job as Celtic fans well, will ensure the character of the club retains a distinct and generous flavour.
The Thai Tims, formally the Good Child Foundation, arrive from Thailand next month and will perform at the Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, on Thursday 10 May, tickets are £12 and £6 for kids. If you have enjoyed them on YouTube, and I know you have…. buy a couple of tickets here or call 08444 77 1000 and get along before they’ve sold out.
You can also support the Good Child Foundation by contributing to the fundraising exercise via their Everyclick page.
Sorry I didn’t get back to you yesterday on the question about whether not registering players correctly was cheating. Busy, busy. Will get to it as soon as I can – no answering this question early, that’s cheating.
Issue 7 of CQN Magazine is out now! Go to the dedicated magazine site here to read it properly (which you’ll not be able to do below).
Thanks to everyone who has bought a hard copies of the magazine, it looks like the sold out sign will go up again. Order your copy for delivery by clicking on the link below for news and views from Celtic supporters.
Pay by card or Paypal.
You can support the online edition by making a discretionary donation here.
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Chairboy
As the say, seemed like a good idea at the time
A timely STV piece regarding Celtic’s thoughts on SPL re-configuration has just appeared on the ticker:
Celtic are not opposed to reconstruction of the Scottish Premier League and would be open to an expansion to a 14-team top division.
SPL clubs failed to reach agreement on league restructure last year after a series of meetings saw a proposal for a 10-team top flight and 12-team “SPL 2” rejected.
Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell has said that the club would favour an increase to 14 teams, which would see the top clubs play two fewer games per season than under the current set-up.
“If we were asked our opinion on whether we want a 10, 12 or 14 [team league], we could see ourselves voting for a 14 as long as it’s a six and an eight. If that again helps the clubs that have great concerns about relegation,” Lawwell said.
The chief executive explained that during the extensive talks between clubs last year, the club had been persuaded to change their mind from an initial stance of wanting a cut in the number of clubs.
“We actually started at the strategic group with a ten [team plan].,” he said. “We felt it was right.
“It was 36 games and that gave us the appropriate time for Europe and season start possibly a winter break”
“We were actually then convinced for a 14, Martin [Bain] and I, through this group because the top six would play 36 games. We would go with 14 and a top six.”
A league of 14 teams would work with a split midway through the season. Each team would play the others twice in the first half before the top six and bottom eight broke into separate leagues.
Having already played 26 games in the first half of the season, the top six would play each other twice in the second half, making 36 games in total. The bottom eight would do the same, giving them a total of 40 games.
Lawwell said that Celtic were of the opinion that the plan would serve the interests of clubs at both ends of the table with more scope for rest balanced with extra matches for the clubs at the lower end.
“That gives you preparation time it gives you winter break time and then in the bottom teams would have 44 games. More money,” he said.
“ We support play-offs, we support the pyramid system below that and support the parachute payments.
“We were persuaded to go back to the ten for the greater good because the majority around the table wanted the ten. We said 10, 12 or 14, it doesn’t really matter, other than the number of games you play.”
With Celtic regularly playing in European competition, the club also wants consideration of the demands involved in playing in more than one competition.
“We prefer a later start than others,” he revealed. “We want a winter break and we like preparation and flexibility for playing in Europe, so you’re not playing Rangers at 12pm on a Saturday after coming back from Kazakhstan.
“We were on ten, persuaded to 14, then back to ten. Within that document there were things we liked, things we didn’t like. But we said ‘don’t throw out the best in search of the perfect, let’s go for it’.”
Lawwell also said that the actions of the 10 non-Glasgow clubs who had met to discuss change without speaking to Celtic and Rangers were “divisive” and denied that the club was only acting in its own interests.
“We see it as potentially divisive and concerning for every Scottish football supporter at this very difficult time for the game in Scotland,” he said, referring to reports that other clubs were pushing for wide-reaching reform in the SPL.
“We could all do without it.”
“We are not against protecting the lower clubs. We were part of the strategic group that committed to transforming the funding of the First Division.
“We were disappointed and we feel it disrespectful that what Celtic and Rangers bring to the game that we were excluded, having spent nearly two years and a lot of time helping to develop a strategy.
The Parkhead official said that he feared that without the correct approach to the future of the league, the game as a whole in Scotland would suffer.
“[The worry is] that the quality of Scottish football is further weakened or lessened. The quality of the overall game reduces to the point you don’t have any European context at all.”
That’s an interesting idea, had never heard of that format before.
But let’s say DU have a not untypical poor start to the season and are 7th after 26 games?
And for the bottom 8 teams to spend the second half of the season only playing amongst themselves seems more of a punishment than an increase in competition.
Don’t see how the crowds would be flocking back for that…?
Great to read about some fresh thinking though.
some quick fixes for the SPL :
games refereed to European standard, ie if it’s a foul in the CL then it’s a foul in the SPL
artificial pitches, they’re not perfect but they are better value for money and provide a better surface than most current SPL pitches
allow terracing
The “split” is all right.
Hugely reduces the “meaningless games” syndrome.
Introduces incentive and interest mid-table.
How many times since it was introduced were were we the only country in Europe with a meaningful last day?
TootingTim
Timely indeed – kicks Gordon Waddell’s drivel into touch. As usual, why put the truth ahead of a good (fictional) story?
Estadio
You should take a camera out every day and post the pics. Brilliant stuff.
Declan
you’re bonkres :-)
Being told about a cure for dyslexia is music to my arse.
some quick fixes for the SPL
Bring back Bevy,Macaroon bars ,spearmint chewing gum, cheese and ham rolls with no butter and large badges and songs about DJ
It is a start
An incentive for the winner of the “bottom half”?
They just don’t get on RM, do they?
I suppose the clue is in the poster’s name.
sillybilly
“Manchester memories what’s your favourite ?”
Mine’s the bit where a particularly ugly Hun is seen attached to an Alsatian by his calf.
On another note, the Green Brigade guys acquitted – “not proven”.
skyisalandfill
LOL at that one. Brilliant!
A year’ supply of………….Macaroon bars, spearmint chewing gum, cheese and ham rolls with no butter and large badges and songs (CDs) about DJ?
Celtic allowed a team in Div 3…….No promotion above Div 1.
Monaghan1900 on 22 March, 2012 at 15:59 said:
On another note, the Green Brigade guys acquitted – “not proven”.
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The money spent on that case could have been donated to Rangers* Fighting Fund. It could have been wasted there just as easily.
Tooting Tim
Peter been reading the blog again! Actually that is neveralone’s idea from last year. I just do not see the logic. Let us take the present twelve plus two, say Ross County and Falkirk. What about say Dundee (two derbies there) and Partick Thistle, Glasgow team. Sixteen and then possibly eighteen teams, with more European games on a Saturday afternoon or even evening, that is my idea!
Bobby Evans Superstar on 22 March, 2012 at 16:04 said:
Monaghan1900 on 22 March, 2012 at 15:59 said:
On another note, the Green Brigade guys acquitted – “not proven”.
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The money spent on that case could have been donated to Rangers* Fighting Fund. It could have been wasted there just as easily.
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Does that mean we can safely call them HUNS?
Monaghan1900 on 22 March, 2012 at 15:59 said:
On another note, the Green Brigade guys acquitted – “not proven”.
Not another not proven verdict. Edinburgh jury by any chance? Not guilty was the correct call.
Monaghan 1900
Great news.for GB Bhoys.
“Manchester memories whats your favourite” Mines is the baw hittin the back of the net for the russians 2nd goal.
HAIL HAIL
Excellent news on GB trial. A farrago of charges.
A prize for top of the bottom half might work, but what?
The Spirit of Arthur Lee on 22 March, 2012 at 15:58 said:
some quick fixes for the SPL
Bring back Bevy,Macaroon bars ,spearmint chewing gum, cheese and ham rolls with no butter and large badges and songs about DJ
It is a start
TSOAL
I think they tried that at the Rangers end in last years LCF. It certainly sounded as if it was the 1970’s.
Bobby Evans Superstar
Or as wee Bertie once said, Not Provan!
emusanorphan
It must work then as that has been the winning side two years in a row
Love
Looks like Pistol Pete has outmanoeuvred the wasters in charge at Killie & Dunfermline again.
Celtic Taxcase @CelticTaxcase Close
@Pioneer___ @frank_bear together we can gather hard evidence quicker. I have leeds but legally they need to be water tight before publishing
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Does Ken Bates still have a say in Leeds? izzat whos dain this blog?
jimbo @ 15:32,
Yeah we didn’t do too well from memory, one of the boys I went with went on to play for R@ngers, like many of the locals looked forward to the match with relish.
Celtic Mac @ 15:34,
Well I understand your sentiments and you have a point, but I don’tthink we’ll ever get league where the away support – and you could say the diehard fan – will be prioritised.
One things for sure the quality has to improve I don’t know how we do that but believ variety can’t be a bad thing. For the PLC what is the difference if we play ICT away twice or Ross County once and Thistle once.
It could be good for away support insofar as, currently Thistle fans might make one trip a season to Celtic Park but not two, however if Teams like Ross County only play us once at Celtic Park their fans could turn up in higher numbers and Partick Thistle definitely would.
As was posted earlier familiarity breeds contempt, who wants to play R@ngers 7 times in a season again?!?
So if Celtic PLC really want a 10 man league they will be giving their clients a stale product but the fact is I still think they have to be represented, Celtic have done too much for Scottish Football to be shunned in this current fashion by men that have not shown acumen our Board has.
Jusy had a look at the CelticTaxCase blog, clearly a tim at the wind up. Have to say the only thing funnier than it is the response on FF….
Good news on the trumped up charges- another waste of tax payers money
Perhaps we are being a bit hard on CTC, or Smeato, the guy who looks into things and gets back to you.
He is the only orc who advocates relegation, reversal of results and title stripping, if found guilty of EBTs and “second contracts”.
Of course, he is referring to the Juninho kite flying exercise.
voguepunter on 22 March, 2012 at 16:06 said:
Does that mean we can safely call them HUNS?
We can indeed, but we were going to anyway.
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The Honest Mistake loves being first on 22 March, 2012 at 16:07 said:
No jury on this one – summary trial with a sheriff alone, which sheriff knows as much about criminal law as I do about growing leeks in Tibet.
Not guilty should have been the call – not proven means I can’t convict you but I don’t like you.
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leftclicktic on 22 March, 2012 at 16:07 said:
Yes, if pushed I’d have to say the second goal!
HH
Intereresting reading Peter Lawwell and others comments re league restructuring. Sorry but it all seems as though it’s trying to find a shortcut to some sort of football-ing nirvana where Scotland has a league which regularly had three or even four teams playing in Europe post-New Year and every team in the top English League boasts three Scots in their regular starting XIs.
Tinkering with league set ups for the last forty years has led to a drop in standards, even less competition than before and a frequently dismal product.
These diddies who sit on the boards of just about all Scottish clubs and in the offices of the governing body- do we need three?- dreaming up schemes do not seriously address the real problems. Our clubs are lazy , preferring to sign mediocre foreign players rather than blood youngsters, have inadequate coaching and scouting systems which sees youngsters signed who lack basic skills and the SFA et all have been talking for at least 20 years about competely overhauling youth and schoolboy football without ever truly changing the way things have always been done.
Do these intellectual pigmies really think that a ten team or a 14 or an 18 team league in which there is no change in the basic approach to the way the game is played and in which the team which comes eighth gets the same tv money as the winners is suddenly ( or ever) going to produce the next Lisbon Lions or Aberdeen 83?
Sorry for ranting on but there is no panacea which will make Scottish football good. An end to the kind of complacent and corrupt cronyism that has disfigured our game for decades would help.
H x 2
Stairheedrammy on 22 March, 2012 at 16:17
If Rangers* paid their taxes, it would compensate for the court case expenditure
I would be delighted if GB bhoys got the right verdict. An absolute desperate prosecution, which plumbed new depths by bringing the Bradford fire into it to try and get a conviction.
These type of cases are the future under the SNP.
ASonOfDan
Nothing to do with SNP – a misguided police officer brought the charge to court. He should be sacked for wasting time & money.
jimbo
aye fair point. until we accept and then teach our children that football is a game of skill and not brawn (with the threat of violence always there) we’re stuffed.
The celtictaxcase, I swear it is Declan that is writing it.
An absolute p1ss take if ever I have seen one.
No wonder they want their children in our schools, going by the bares responses to it…
The Bradford Fire comment is contemptible.
Got to go. Been an interesting day on CQN.
KTF