SENTINELCELTS

Morning,all.

The good news from Wednesday was obviously that we qualified for the next stage of the tournament. The better news may be that we saw a resurgence in form of both Idah and Hatate, two players who had been having an underwhelming season so far. The bad news was that the mechanics of the play-off system means that we will play either Real Madrid or Bayern Munich-two sides who would have expected to be finishing in the top eight of the table before a ball was kicked, thus avoiding the next stage completely. 

The even worse news is that we have probably triggered the outstanding suspended sentence on away fans attending. Which, in turn, means that further offences will be punished on a sliding scale, and could even lead to partial or full closure of Celtic Park for a future European match or matches. 

It seems we never learn, doesn’t it? UEFA have made clear their opposition to flares and smoke bombs over the years, yet elements of our support seem to think that rules don’t apply to them, or that rules are there for breaking. Here’s the thing though-if you disagree with the rules, your only course of action is to get them changed. Flouting those rules, especially in the face of an ultimate authority which is absolutely determined to enforce them, only leads to tears. This is a lesson with countless precedents through the ages, with countless martyrs to show for it. Sometimes they had right on their side, other times they were simply rebels without a clue. 

Pyrotechnics of any sort are illegal when used in crowd situations like inside a football ground. This isn’t just a football regulation, something dreamed up by a faceless killjoy bureaucrat somewhere; it is the law of the land, and applies in many other jurisdictions other than in Scotland. Regardless, when we play in UEFA competitions, we do so under their jurisdiction and under their rules. 

I’m not going to point blame at any particular fan grouping for this, not even to suggest that the pyro in question was likely to be the work of the same groups who practice their “art” so regularly, and with impunity, in Scotland. That would be unfair. It is not though unfair to point out that the guilty parties over the years have cost the club and the fans a well-earned and hard-earned spotless reputation in the game by their antics, as well as a considerable sum of money. Now, it looks likely that they will have cost our travelling support the opportunity to see our favourites in one or other of the game’s great cathedrals. And they probably won’t even GAF either. Next chance they get, out the pyro will come. As though nothing ever happened, as though nothing they ever do has consequences. 

So how do we deal with this going forward? One answer is our traditional method of self-policing, but that probably isn’t likely in these days of coked-up mindless thuggery and worse. Besides, while a boot in the baws would probably work just as well as it ever has, you can bet your bottom dollar that the police, stewards and CCTV operators would finally do their bloody job when it came to that particular offence. But doing nothing and carrying on as before is obviously not an option. 

For years now, large sections of our support have complained that it is well-nigh impossible to get tickets for away games in Scotland, never mind in Europe. That they are always allocated to the same people, time after time. This is because the club allocates these tickets to those with a track record of attendance at away matches. Which, of course, means that if you cannot get an away ticket, you cannot get an away ticket in the future either. 

Yes, it is a reward for loyalty. But it is unfair on everyone else. Certainly it is easier for the club to allocate a ticket to someone who is almost certain to accept it, than to allocate them in a lucky dip only to have the lucky winner decline the opportunity. But the fact remains that it is not fair, and it has caused resentment now for many years. 

Equally, if the club keep racking up fines because of misbehaviour by away fans, is it even sensible to continue to allocate tickets to the same faces every time? Is this an area that the club should be looking at? Obviously we can’t ban every fan allocated a ticket for the Villa game, as that would be stupid. But the club must have a good idea who is most likely to cause this type of problem at games, and they should be proactive in dealing with it. Whether that means sending in our own employees with these groups as a means of keeping an eye on them-any volunteers for that thankless task?-or simply denying them the tickets because it is the club’s right to do so and they don’t need to give a reason, I don’t know. 

I don’t know the answers. But I’m not paid to know them, nor to provide them. But I do know that the club has tolerated this for far too long, and it has to stop. The good name of the club has been damaged time and again. We have been hit in the pocket repeatedly. Now, the rest of the fanbase will have to suffer too.

In addition to which, our team is going to one of the most famous venues in the sport, in any sport. We face an uphill task, let there be no doubt about that. And thanks to the actions of a small bunch of selfish attention-seekers, we will have to do so without any support whatsoever. 

Thanks a f….g bunch. 

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Above article by BMCUWP