wee red hens

yep well deserved vinny congrats to all those who go and support their team

i take yous are all just back from the game then lol

thats rich coming from the bigots of the year after the bbc it will be the tory party then the care homes and then guess what it will be yous savco and about time too

It was never just a football club. It was a vehicle for the Catholic Church from the outset, and many would argue that it still is today. It started well until it was put in its place by Rangers, and then it lagged behind Glasgow's biggest club for decades. Founded by a priest, Andrew Kerins, Celtic quickly became a vital tool for Glasgow's Catholic community, and 125 years later, not much has changed. Its sectarian origin, frequently ignored by history, is a subject that contemporary Scottish scribes are reluctant to investigate. The way was clear then for the club to be reinvented by sympathetic apologists who portrayed 19th century Celtic as some kind of Glaswegian Mother Theresa: only better. Interestingly, Marist Brother, Kerins, wanted Celtic to field an all-Catholic team, and as recently as 2005 he was was commemorated by the club in statue form outside the Celtic Park front door. Unsurprisingly, his sectarian ambition for Celtic has been painted over, nailed down, covered up and locked away. A 19th century truth can be an unwelcome stranger in the 21st century. If Celtic is about inclusivity, why immortalise a man who stood for the exact opposite? If sectarianism is wrong, why honour a man who had a sectarian motivation for founding Celtic? If truth is important, why hide it? This is Celtic: a club with contradictions, inconsistencies - and clout. Unlike its rival across the city, Celtic was political from the first whistle. While Rangers mostly enjoyed superiority on the field, Celtic always had a greater appetite for being active off the park. Even today, with the Commonwealth Games coming to Glasgow shortly, it is no surprise that Celtic Park is hosting the opening ceremony while Ibrox is effectively an afterthought in the proceedings. Celtic has many friends in politics, especially in the Glasgow Labour Party, and it uses them well. Rangers, as it discovered to its cost recently, has no friends at all. When Celtic Park was upgraded, it benefited from having neighbouring land 'sold' to it for a token amount, and yet the politicians who made the decision were nearly all Celtic shareholders or season ticketholders. This translates into onfield advantage, but the Scottish press looked the other way: conveniently. Celtic has become a very influential club in society. Scotland's premier politician, Alex Salmond, a man the English fear, is reluctant to cross Celtic. He won't risk it - he needs the Catholic vote, and yes, there is a Catholic vote in Scotland. Salmond knows that this vote could become a veto on his nationalist ambitions. Politically then, Celtic have all bases covered. They have been married to Labour for years, but they can have flings with the SNP and call the shots as and when the need arises. More than a club? Absolutely. Celtic has engineered a situation where the media and political class only ever say nice things about it. Contrast this with Rangers, a fallen aristocrat down among the dead men, and getting a good kicking while it is weakened. It has taken a while, but the 'Old Firm' tag, loathed by both sides, is now a historical relic. Never again will Glasgow's two leading clubs be on the same page. The future then, is uncertain. The Scottish game is in freefall, distrust abounds and a virulent hatred is growing. Celtic exerts more influence at the SFA than the rest of the nation's clubs put together, and Rangers has effectively been swept away in an unprecedented coup. This period in Scottish football awaits a judgement from history. Supporters are so close to the situation that they can hardly make a call on it. So much depends now on Rangers under new management. If it is as powerful as it needs to be - off the park as well as on it - it could be a rebirth for Rangers. If, however, it is as inept and incompetent as previous regimes, Celtic will be Scottish football's new king: unchallenged, and maybe for years to come. The lesson is this: for Rangers FC to be as influential as it needs to be to survive and flourish, it has to be a political as well as a sporting club. Finally, after 140 years of naivety, it has to grow up. Size doesn't matter if there is no intelligence to exploit the advantage. Rangers now has to be what Celtic always was - politically active, influential, relentless in pursuit of ambition, and willing to engage with its enemies head on. If it does this, the Rangers support will back the club to the hilt. If it doesn't, this episode in Scottish football will likely be written up as the end of Rangers as a true giant in the game: just like Queens Park all those years ago. I hope Charles Green knows what he has got himself into. With each passing day, I suspect that he does. It's time to play hardball, Charlie. Don't take any prisoners.

I GOT MINE REPORTED TONITE RICKY FROM HEATHROW AIRPORT LOL MUST AV BEEN LOOKIN FOR A LIFT HAME

totally agree but it was also a masterclass from scholes superb

rather die with our history than live with yours ^_^ :001:

a think up til now yous have won sweet fack all yet lol

brill we man a canny wait to give yous 10 of a start and still gub yous next season that will be heaven lol

just heard that ticketus will reduce what rangers owe them to ten million paid over the next nine years interest free if the blue knights get control danny any truth in that danny cheers

think u will find celtic changed there name did they not danny boy

NEVER BEEN AN OLD FORM GAME WON EASY AS WAS SHOWN TODAY BIG JAMIE NEVER OVER TIL ITS OVER

BRILLIANT JUST IN NEVER BEEN TO A GAME WAE THAT KIND OF ATMOSPHERE AMAZING

well said that man a think neil lennon must have been at a different game when he got interviewed mind you he will be a wee bit peeved lol

you gotta it in one lol and whit are ye doin stalking me are ye awright in the heid man

dont worry a will as for gettin it up me a think thats more like something you would like ^_^ ^_^

P*** P*** P*** just like what we watched the day that must be them all gettin back fae the game noo or were they all watchin it on the telly some supporters eh :cry-blow: :cry-blow:

same old same old wae celtic always let there fans down and then blame everybody else lennon was a disgrace on the telly there unbelievable :emoticon-0138-thinking:

we will need to play better than that shiete lol

yep sammy good to see good strong refereeing am just gon out tae watch them comin home wae the said jelly and ice cream :lol: :lol:

su10 an 2458 found under the peregines nest in kilmarnock at st marnocks parish church just to let owner know what became of it cheers

not worth the grief tooshy im the only one near it and it gets constant attention from the local twitchers cheers

i never said anything about flying east or west danny i think you are getting me mixed up with someone else lol anyway is there no churches down the east mate

nope andy 5 the other 4 were mine lol

hi there this ring was found by the church warden at st marnocks parish in kilmarnock beneath the resident peregines houwf its number is su09m5251 just to let you know what happened to it cheers