After a bit of time away, I am hoping to get back to writing more regularly on this site – if Joe continues to publish my ramblings …
A few funerals in quick succession, broken ribs, being on holiday and a new job are pretty much the reasons for my recent lack of writing. After the Green Brigades display at Parkhead v Inverness, I feel it’s quite appropriate to come back with a piece on them.
To begin, I have to make it clear that I am a massive fan of the Green Brigade. I have been lucky enough to have gone to a few grounds over Europe, the two that stand out are PSG and Real Madrid. They have an equivalent group of what I would describe as hard core fans who live and breath the club and who do what that they can to create an atmosphere inside the stadium.
Not being a part of the Green Brigade, I do not know what goes on behind the scenes with them and what sort of dialogue occurs between them, safety folk and club officials, it’s perhaps worth keeping that in mind when reading this piece.
When it was time for this seasons ticket renewals, there was a bit of a thread on some discussions forums to say that Celtic would not allow the green brigade to renew as a number of fans are unwilling to sit down during the match. Personally, I don’t have a problem standing during the game as long as the people behind me can still see.
The issue here is not anything that the club have decided. Glasgow City Council issue a safety certificate to allow Celtic to use the stadium. In the past the health and safety people (who in my opinion should all be shot – we could always replace them with common sense but that’s not a football related issue so I wont waffle on about it here) have told the club that they will not allow the stadium to be used if all fans are not seated.
How is that issue resolved, do the fans show an act of defiance and fight that decision? If so, how do they fight such a decision? Do they do it by official channels? Perhaps a mass petition to the department that says they should say seated? Instead of going to away games, do you protest outside the buildings of the health and safety people who are trying to enforce this rule?
Or do you just stick up two fingers to the police and stewards who are under instruction to enforce this rule and remain stood up anyway?
Next up, how do the club act on it? The club can’t risk not being able to use the stadium but they also want to keep the most colourful and noisy group of fans happy.
From that point, I guess it must be a tough thing for the club to deal with but I think if it came down to it, they would have to go with the health and safety side of things and enforce the ‘no standing up’ rule.
At the end of the day, the Green Brigade are a minority. Granted a very noisy and colourful minority but a minority none the less.
The next thing that I will touch on is the banner at the match which referred to the alleged sectarian singing. The Irish folk / political songs that we often hear are not illegal but for me, political songs should be kept for outside the football ground.
I have virtually no interest or knowledge of politics in Scotland so the same applies to any other country. We live in a society with freedom of speech and freedom of thought so if someone wants to exercise that right it would be hypocritical or me or anyone else to tell them otherwise.
My own view is sing political songs if you like but why do it in the football ground? Is parliament not supposed to be the place for people to air their opposing political views?
One of the great things about supporting Celtic is the variation of people who support the club. People come from all different walks of life, cultures etc. It stands to reason that with such a variety of people will come a a variety of views on everything including politics.
I feel that singing Irish political songs actually goes against what the club stands for. It is a club that is opened to all, regardless of who you are. Singing about Irish politics will make some fans who have no interest or opposing views feel isolated. That’s not the point of Celtic.
As for no lateral movement, what idiot decided that? You can move whilst seated, is that the health and safety people who came up with that rule? The fact I am asking what ‘idiot’ came up with that idea shows ignorance on my part as I have no ideas why such a decision has been arrived at.
Can the club arrange for members of the Green Brigade and other supporters groups to meet with these health and safety folk in a controlled environment to find out why so many rules and irritations are in place and try and come up with alternative ways of supporting the team without breaching these rules?
The club is nothing without the fans so I feel that, if it’s something that supporters groups wanted, the club have a duty to work with both groups to come to a viable solution.
As I said at the start of this piece, I am a big fan of the Green Brigade, others may not be. What cannot be argued is that they do go a long way to creating an atmosphere within the ground. The first half of the game when they had their silent protest was certainly noticed within the ground. Generally, the atmosphere isn’t great for a league game but without them, is it going to get worse?
I fear that we may end up losing this group or have them broken up to different parts of the stadium. If that were to happen, would it just be the same as losing a star player? That no group / individual is bigger than the club and eventually some other group will fill the gap that they have left? I sure hope it doesn’t come to that but I do feel it’s time for the issues highlighted to be addressed.
I suspect that the crowd will be in a much more boisterous manner for the Udinese game – I certainly will be as it’s my birthday so here’s hoping for a double celebration which will, no doubt, be lead by the Green Brigade.
CLICK HERE for Neil Lennon and players praise the Green Brigade
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Your thoughts/musings/ramblings are very welcome Steven.
I wish the health and safety fanatics would show the same interest in public transport- is standing at a football match more dangerous than standing on one of the many buses that head in and out of Glasgow city centre during rush hour, what about the trains?
Why don’t the council insist on the same safety standards at the Pavillion and Kings as they do at football stadiums?
The Green Brigade are not a problem for Celtic, they are the future, without them we’d be in the hands of the pie munchers and naysayers who would have celtic park like a morgue.
The harassment of the Green Brigade and Celtic supporters in general is appalling and the attempts to establish this anti celtic/ catholic/ irishness in law is something we should all be very worried about.
As composer James McMillan has recently stated, Gaddaffi would have a better chance of a fair trial in Scotland than a tim.
We need the club to support US on this and we need a united front from the broader Celtic supporters groups, the trouble is that there isn’t a united front from the fans.
Many, as we know, are only too keen to go on boards/ blogs and put down the green brigade… usually these attacks use the GB’s song sheet and the clear pro irish/ republican content.
Well, for many other tims the GB are the few glimmers of life in an otherwise dormant Celtic support and their ‘Irishness’ is to be applauded.
I can only remind the handwringers that had we gone down the Hibs path we would have been just about in the same place as them now – it’s our ‘Irish ness’ that has sustained Celtic through all the years of ups and downs – its our ‘Irish ness’ which has tapped into the global support that we pride ourselves in.
The Irish self haters amongst us would have it that we’re a Scottish club – well you ask a Cardiff or Swansea fan if they are English clubs and see what response you get!
It is time, and Saturday’s game gives us hope, that the GB are fully backed by the rest of the fans… if we allow them to be picked off by these new laws, if we stand back and watch them being harassed by our own stewards then we will regret it when they are gone.
The Green Brigade has restored some pride in being a tim ( I go back some way) some people, for many reasons, would prefer Celtic Park to return to it’s passivity – buy yr ticket, eat yr pizza and shut up (remember Arsenal fans goading us with ‘wheres yr famous atmosphere?).
Lets all get together on this and recognise the GB for what they have brought back to Celtic Park and at the same time resist these new laws being targeted at tims/ irish/ catholics.
Keep The Faith
I think it’s fair to say Celtic are a Scots-Irish club (or Irish-Scots club if you prefer!), that was made clear from day 1 by the founders, hence the name of the club being Celtic, which is obviously self explanatory, as a Tim yourself i know you are aware of these obvious facts, my point is just that we can be proud of both aspects, it’s unique and is part of what makes our club so special, if some Celtic supporters are unhappy with the Irish heritage of the club continuing to be a visible and celebrated aspect of our club then they are definitely are minority. It seems to be outside influences like the scottish media and opposition fans that have a problem with it, unsurprisingly!!
your analogy of swansea and cardiff to celtic is wrong.
they are welsh teams playing in an english league. celtic is a scottish team playing in a scottish league. if celtic were based in ireland and played in the scottish league then your analogy would be correct.
and there is a distinction between being proud of celtic’s irish heritage and support for the IRA. and thats why the green brigade are despised by many celtic supporters because they support terrorists and sing about at football games. the shamrock is not synonymous with the IRA.
re cardiff/swansea – the general point i stand by as much as the point of the mcmillan quote and broad thrust of the post which is that if tims don’t wake up soon then we’ll be criminalised for no more than being a tim and the expression of same.
you say ‘…the green brigade are despised by many celtic supporters…’ well you may or may not be right, but it seems to me that they (GB) are resented by many others because they remind people of the passion the used to have, many people shrink in the green brigades light i’m afraid.
i’m sorry your antagonism towards the green brigade would appear to overshadow the need for you to comment on the pernicious laws that may well be passed in scotland.
Celtic are a Scots-Irish club.
I wonder if the same seating rules will apply to supporters at cricket matches? The England supporters are notorious for holding each others hips whilst dancing and walking round the stand intoxicated, i know there are real concerns for fans safety in stadiums full of thousands of fans and rules are in place for a reason (incidents like the Ibrox disaster and Hillsborough can never happen again and atmosphere at grounds pales into insignificance when remembering terrible loss of life like that), i just think if it applies at football games it should apply at all stadia. A bit of common sense is required.
As for political songs, it’s a difficult subject, let’s not forget most well known Irish songs are political, Irelands turbulent and difficult past being the obvious reason.
Im an irish celtic supporter and I believe that singing songs that big up “the ra” is a disgrace, these r the cowards that try and rule their own communities with intimidation and scare tactics.
Dont get me wrong there was a time when they where fighting 4 a cause but the war is over, it has been 4 years nw all we’re left with is gansters n drug pushers who use the name as a front any songs promoting these eejits need 2b ditched asap, as 4 the the video c recording
It has to b stopped along with the stupid health n safety laws, great point about standing on buses!! let people decide wats good 4 them n wats not!!
Can anyone tell me if these daft rules, (no standing, no lateral movement) are applied at all clubs in scotland, or if decided by individual councils, all clubs in Glasgow?
I have only heard these new “rules” being spoken of in a celtic context. is there the same issue at the moment with fans over at mordor? If there is I have to admit to being absolutely clueless about it. I did read about “no lateral movement” in the national press, also “no standing” rules being trotted out, again in the national press. On both occassions though celtic were the club mentioned, no mention to my recollection of any other club having the same issues.
Are these new rules only applied at celtic park? are these rules themselves just another example of an anti-celtic/irish/catholic nature?
I would have thought if it was all clubs then I wouldnt always hear about it in connection to celtic.