Dermot won’t be shifted- Stephen McGowan’s Celtic AGM verdict and the message from Desmond

Stephen McGowan has a bleak message for Celtic malcontents- Dermot Desmond isn’t for budging.

It is 15 years since the Irish businessman found time in his schedule to attend an AGM, on Wednesday his son Ross turned up without saying a word, just like in 2019.

Chairman Ian Bankier was called out on a number of issues with no trophies on show and the club’s credibility in Europe nose-diving.

Two Champions League appearances in eight seasons tell the tale of a club in decline with the only real asset filling the stands and offering their 100% backing to Ange Postecoglou and his players. As Bankier introduced the board members to shareholders they were greeted with silence.

Saturday’s Daily Mail.

Bankier and Brian Wilson lost the show of hands vote in the room for re-election, fortunately they could call on the block vote through proxies from Desmond to retain their places on the gravy train. And there lies the problem for disaffected fans.

For one meeting a year, for one hour of that one meeting they can voice their displeasure but ultimately a man that barely turns up for a match is happy with the status quo as Celtic slide backwards- spectacularly so since the highs of 2016-18 when Brendan Rodgers raised the bar from the soul-destroying Ronny Deila days.