Your fathers, their fathers, and their fathers before them, have walked away from football grounds thinking the game in Scotland was skewed in favour of another team. As a club founded by immigrants, with our historical support drawn largely from some of the poorest sections of society, for decades Celtic-friendly people were underrepresented in the professional classes, the very classes those who administered and refereed our game were, and still are, drawn from.
No one believes more than me that times have changed. That immigrant community gained equal access to all professions years ago – yes, including referees. The prejudices which, perhaps not surprisingly, developed in Scotland when an incessant flood of around 800,000 immigrants poured into the country over a few short decades, have moved on. Our society is not without prejudice, but it’s others who are now targeted most.
Football decisions made by referees are difficult to prove to be deliberately unfair. I have no doubt that Celtic suffered unfairly in this regard for decades, but I see little evidence of it now, and even if there was, it is impossible to tell the difference between incompetence and bias.
Conclusive evidence of what we were up against was established in 1999 when an independent SFA Commission heard a complaint from Celtic that Jim Farry, the Association’s chief executive, deliberately delayed the registration of Jorge Cadete, meaning the player was unable to play for Celtic in a cup game against Rangers. The Commission upheld Celtic’s complaint and Farry was sacked for gross misconduct – even back then holding a torch for due process.
That incident came at the end of a difficult period to be a Celtic fan. Rangers had violated one of our cherished records, Nine-in-a-row, was matched, not by wonderful athletic achievement, as Celtic did, but by the might of the cheque book. Fergus built a stadium, left us a little over £2m in debt and taught the SFA a valuable lesson. In short, he put Celtic on a level playing field with everyone else in the country.
In August 2000 an almighty game of football reset all the dials. Celtic scored six against then champions Rangers. We won the league by 21 points, won the Scottish and League cups, our first treble in 32 years. On and off the park, we were better than a team who only a few years earlier seemed light-years ahead of a sorry looking Celtic.
Rangers responded by flooding more cash into their football squad, this time using Employee Benefit Trusts. In February last year Celtic Quick News was first to raise the question that these EBT payment might not have been registered with the SFA and SPL. Within three weeks the SPL commenced an investigation into the question, which found Rangers had a case to answer. The league set up the Commission which will report at noon today.
This is the most important decision in Scottish football history with implications for past and current directors of the organisations which run our game; people who were legally obliged to ensure rules were applied fairly, thoroughly and evenly.
It has implications for the Rangers group of clubs and for the international reputation of Scottish football, but none of this matters to you and me. We want to know if we were watching a level playing field for 11 years, or if the game was rigged. I can’t think of a more important decision in the history of British sport. There has never been and will never again be a decision which casts a shadow on 14 trophies, ‘won’ allegedly by a team playing by different rules to the rest.
The First Tier Tribunal decision last year and forthcoming Upper Tier Tribunal are sideshows. This is the main event, second only to Lisbon in importance to Scottish football. I am confident the decision will go against the group of clubs. If it doesn’t, we should not demean ourselves by slipping into paranoia. This is an independent commission, anyone who tells you otherwise is deluded.
My only concern is that the scale of punishments which would be appropriate for a guilty verdict are, frankly, so enormous, I expect every available opportunity to mitigate the sanctions to be exploited. This is a black cap verdict, but despite their impartiality, I don’t expect the Commission to dress sombrely when signing the decision.
A bottle of expensive fizzy stuff is in the fridge, in case we need to toast all those generations who, unlike us today, never had the opportunity to nail the truth.
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Looks like the BBC are reporting on the basis of an embargoed copy of the judgement.
And if the report is accurate the game is dead in Scotland.
According to the STV report the old co in liquidation are to be fined £250k. So there really is no penalty. They get off scot free, what a disgrace. The bears will be jumping with joy.
I have a strong urge to watch Buster Keaton
FreudianCFC
Me, I’m still waiting for fishal result.
Auldheid
“Best hope is to use a guilty verdict as a bargaining chip to either get out of Scottish football or replace the SFA with something fit for purpose.”
Hinestly who gives a monkeys about how pragmatic the board are going to be or if thay can use it to make the board and shareholders richer.
I paid a lot of money to go watch rigged competitions and I expect someone to demand my loss is recognised.
If they are not stripped then it is the boards duty to make those demands on my behalf, if they do not then I can only surmise they are complicit in cheating me out of many thousands of pounds I will consider legal recourse.
And never put any money into the gamer in Scotland again.
Seems like cheating might be worth it after all.
One pick me up is that Oldco would still be alive and even in the SPhelL if our Hero Craig Whyte hadn’t made sure they were going down the pan.
They feel like they’ve won the BTC and it seems that, they might just walk free after a decade (at least) of cheating to a £250k fine. Gsus they received more than that for just “winning” one of their tainted titles. As they’ve been shouting, they’re Debt Free.
Most sickening is that their cheerleaders will now go into overdrive, with “punished enough” and “Same Club” rubbish. No Tatoo removals required.
Carry on Timmy, Nothing to see here.
Mucker
Well looks like the BBC are already reporting that no titles will be stripped. Independent tribunal my arse.
If this turns out to be true it will be interesting to see what their punishment will be. I will say this if it is anything short of them getting kicked out the game I am done with Scottish football.
I hate to say it but I won’t be watching the only thing that keeps me sane and that’s watching Celtic. Until there is a change at the SFA and the SPL.
I will take the money that I spend watching Celtic and go and watch something else and that looks like the EPL.
I worried about them getting a slap on the wrists but this doesn’t even amount to that. Let’s be clear about this:
1. They paid players significant sums of money outwith their SFA registered contracts. This made all of those players ineligible for the matches they played in.
2. 5 of those players had contractual arrangements that were in breach of tax law. Surely no footballing authority can sanction tax evasion as a means of winning trophies.
Title-stripping was the only meaningful punishment. Liquidation has made any financial penalty completely pointless. It appears that title-stripping has been side-stepped and a “fine” applied to Oldco.
I say a fine – I meant a £250,000 pocket money docking.
THAT IS EXACTLY HALF OF THE AMOUNT WE WERE ORDERED TO PAY FOR TAPPING-UP TOMMY BURNS – IN 1994!!!!!!!!
I can honestly say that I have never been this disillusioned with Scottish football.
Craiginho
Neil canamalar Lennon hunskelper extrordinaire
Nail on head.
McLeod’s contract was not dated correctly, leading to the expulsion
10 November 2011 Last updated at 12:13
Share this page ShareFacebookTwitter.print..Contract error costs Spartans Scottish Cup place
Spartans have been thrown out of the Scottish Cup for fielding an ineligible player in their 2-0 win over Culter.
Striker Keith McLeod signed a new contract in the summer but it was dated only once and the Scottish Football Association want it to be signed twice.
Spartans chairman Craig Graham said the club were “disappointed” by the ruling, adding: “We wish Culter well against Partick Thistle [in round three].”
Spartans have also received a £4,000 fine suspended for 12 months.
“I apologise to our players, coaching staff and supporters for what has happened”
Spartans chairman Craig Graham
The club had their case heard at Hampden by the judicial panel set by the SFA on Thursday, having been reported by the compliance officer for fielding an ineligible player during the second-round 2-0 win at Culter .
Scottish Cup rules now state that any club that plays a player who is ineligible will be thrown out of the competition.
The rules also state that neither the judicial panel or anyone at the SFA has the authority to change this rule.
Play mediaHighlights – Culter 0-2 Spartans
“It’s always tricky for a club like ours with volunteers in all the key positions however we have made a number of changes to help ensure a mistake doesn’t occur again in the future,” said Graham.
“I apologise to our players, coaching staff and supporters for what has happened.
“However, I know we will bounce back. We have far too many great things happening at Spartans with fantastic people involved to allow this to be anything more than a minor setback.”
Scottish Division Three side East Stirlingshire were expelled from the competition last season for fielding an ineligible player in their fourth-round win over Buckie Thistle.
Goalkeeper Michael Andrews featured despite the SFA not having received registration documents for the extension of his loan from Falkirk
A £250,000 fine on a club that does not exist any more for 10 years of cheating and playing illegally registered players.
Lord Nimmo Smith should hang his head in shame.
Honestly, what is the point in sport now?
If LNS has found them guilty what, short of the stripping of titles, WOULD then be an appropriate punishment ?
We have a tribute club who can – when it suits them – legitimately claim the sins of the old cannot be visited on the new.
The dead club is nailed to the perch, kicking up the daisies; it is bereft of life. It is an Ex-Club.
How can anyone suggest that any financial penalty, never mind one commensurate with the seriousness of the crime, would be appropriate in these circumstances??
Worrying times for our club in terms of how the rank and file react
Any celtic led response will be viewed by MSM as Timmy sour grapes but this can’t be ignored
£250,000 or five titles stripped. I’m afraid the sceptics called it right
£50,000 a title fine, probably about £10,000 fine per match for those five seasons
The tax avoidance per match was probably more than the fine they paid for it
Incompetence or bias, make your own mind up
Stephen D @stephend_1
@HarryBradyCU If LNS has said NewCo is not OldCo he has managed to strip all the titles
That’s about all we can hold onto now.
Guys, calm down. Once the real verdict is announced we can assess and react based on fact. If it’s true this was issued to the club at 10am, then what we are seeing just now is the result of Jim Traynors frantic message management and no more. Like many on here I will be immensely disappointed if the sanction is a small fine and a failure to apply the rules i.e. amending the score of a match if a player is improperly registered, but I want to see the facts first.
the sfa and spl have already fined rfc (il) and these fines remain unpaid to date
so what is the point in the sanction of another fine when it will not be paid
rip scottish football
total set up for 1 club above all others
i for sure will not put another penny in to the sfa of spl run fix
jam67
Harry Brady @HarryBradyCU
So RFC found guilty. Current President of administered the illegal process, keeps his job and a liquidated club is fined. #farce
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Snake Plissken 11.20
That would be something at least.
I am filled with a deep sadness: for the lack of proper justice, for the total lack of consistency, for the rigging of the rules to suit, etc. etc.
I will await more details, but the chances of me renewing my ST next year are desperately flimsy
I just can’t say any more right now. I am sick of it…
“Football disorder is not like the 1980s but it’s still there. The new laws have made convictions easier.”
Wow…
If the decision makes clear that the old Rangers still has 54 titles and new club The Rangers has zero, would we be happy??
FACT scottish football is Rangers(in what ever shape form or name)Rangers are scottish football.We really need to get to Feck out of this bigoted wee shithole of a country.
Lads,
Wait until we’ve seen the judgement.
I’m Neil Lennon (tamrabam)
Don’t forget all the cup competitions
the power base at celtic needs to be very very careful here.
if they underestimate the feeling of their fans they could be about to lose many thousands of supporters in an already challenged time….the period of ‘fixed’ or ‘rigged’ titles needs to be officially recognised.it might be history now but it sure hurts celtic fans to know they where cheated for years…the scottish media want to brush this under the carpet and ‘move on’.they will put pressure on celtics drectors to keep silent and also ‘move on’….however i am one celtic fan who suspects there will be thousands like me who is awaiting my clubs reaction and response to all this before i spend another PENNY on my beloved club…..if celtic fc accept this cover up and dont ‘fight it’ i am finished FULL STOP
Paul McConville@Paulmcc12
Nimmo Smith Commission Report is embargoed till noon. However it’s clear that findings, esp on p46, “devastating”.
lazydynamite
you don’t think this affects them just as much as you?
Paul67,
So that’ll be an;
Aye we were cheated, but told to move along.
Slabhoy
I hear you.
Gordon J
It would be something at least.
Richie
Those are SFA and SFL competitions – I think that would be another hearing.
I predicted that they’d get cups taken off them but now I’m not so sure.
Gordon_J@11:22
An interesting point. If he confirms that RFC 2012 are a new club then that could be a game changer.
Gordon J.
Yes.
They need to make it clear that history cannot be bought.
Gordon_J backing Neil Lennon
i wouldnt be. cheating needs to be punished and be seen to be punished, otherwise they’ll do it again, and the integrity of the game in scotland will be shattered
I think the stripping of titles of a defunct club is moot. Whatever totals they achieved will be surpassed by Celtic eventually. Even if nothing is stripped.
I am more concerned with the tacit acceptance that they continue as rankers with history intact. This one has still to be put to bed.
Hopefully none of the above will matter when the phoenix sinks into the mire.
Gordon J
does it say that on page 46?
kayal33
11:24 on
28 February, 2013
Paul McConville@Paulmcc12
Nimmo Smith Commission Report is embargoed till noon. However it’s clear that findings, esp on p46, “devastating”
A glimmer of hope!
Snake
…of course :-)
It’s becoming totally obvious that Ogilvie and co will kill the game rather than face the consequences of Rangers cheating…
And they say that Peter Lawell runs Scottish fitba. Somehow I just can’t see it…