Andy’s Sting In the Tale (08/11/2024 “Time to Remember, For Sure”

(Photo:@Homesoffootball)

And Time for Football to Remember What We Used to Know But Have Forgotten

A huge hole caused by bit-by-bit erosion, a shocking lack of interest from and at the top and the shameful lack of any plan or commitment to fill the gaps that now gape wide and obvious.

Football should be free for all kids because it is good in every way for the nation and the game.

Why did we let what we had lapse to the token effort we have today?

And I’m not off-piste, so just to bring the story back to Remembrance Weekend.
The full name of the ‘Boys Club’ that provided so much to so many youngsters like me in Inverness was, ‘The Queens Own Cameron Highlanders War Memorial Boys Club’.

It was a post wars, visionary gift and thank you to the youth and future youth of Inverness.
A huge statement of belief in the future and a small thank you and memorial to those ‘boys’ from the north who had made the ultimate sacrifice in both wars.

I didn’t used to even know much about or bother about November 11th but do remember reading and being amazed by a double paged strip in either The Victor or the Hotspur, (must reads to 10 year old boys back then), about what Hearts and Raith players did on the 25th of November 1914.

War had been declared in August and for some reason the Westminster Government had decided  football as ‘public entertainment’ should be granted ‘immunity’ to professional players so they could hide behind the convenient government screen.
Hearts were top of the league but disagreed with the protective blanket football was mostly hiding behind.
So, 16 Hearts players were joined by 7 from Raith Rovers and others, in good time, from Falkirk, Dunfermline, Hibs, St Bernards and East Fife and together enlisted for what became ‘McRae’s Battalion’. (Look it up)

Sadly 7 of the Hearts contingent including captain Tom Gracie never returned and each year what the team did, and the statement they made is celebrated solemnly and with hope and no triumphalism on the nearest Sunday to the 11th at the Haymarket War Memorial.

Andy’s Sting in the Tale

1. 20 Notes of Interest for ICT and Dilemmas to Come for the Beancounters
2. How ‘The Donald’ Aided by Andy Would Solve the Pyros Nonsense in a Day
3. Ex Hamilton Star Featured in Big Netflix Production
4. Angry Fans Against Media Bias
5. Saudi World Cup ‘Shoe-in’ Plan in Place
6. Meatloaf Song About Uefa Results
7. In Debt to the Government

1. No ‘Pre Pack’ is Concerning

Uefa don’t tolerate Pyros so they don’t really happen in Uefa matches. Somehow the SPFL seems to avoid ‘Strict Liability’.
Why?
I’d say 2 or 3 clubs don’t want it and have effective total voting control as long as they stick together. My pal in Florida, ‘The Donald’ now a very, very, very powerful man would jump in with his size 14s and say ‘Pyros lead to match forfeiture’.
Next!

I don’t agree much with this man but that would stop it overnight.
So Andy agrees with ‘The Donald’.
If you think flares are colourful and add atmosphere, then they do and they are, but that doesn’t make them acceptable or safe.
Here is an insight from two emails we received from an Aberdeen supporting SFSA member and a Celtic fan/ season book holder after witnessing a coordinated display that held last week’s flagship game up by 15 minutes.

“I was at the Aberdeen v Rangers match with my 8 year old son and the scenes make me question if I want to ever attend another.
Foul language, standing on seats aside, flairs ignited so close we could feel the heat, it was terrifying, for us and especially our son. My club, Aberdeen, bow to these idiots and do nothing and I’ve contacted them but they couldn’t care less.”

“I can’t be the only Celtic fan thoroughly fed up with the indulgence of these wee fannies. It’s particularly bad at away games”.
Guess who he was talking about?

The Donald’s Plan (as imagined but supported by Andy)
Strike 1 (home or away) A substantial fine and up a level to Strike 2 if repeated
Strike 2 A real and hurtful fine and up a level to Strike 3 next time.
Strike 3 Next game behind closed doors.
Strike 4 Game Forfeiture.
All fines paid into grass roots clubs/kids football development and no appeals.

4.  Fans Angry on All Sides

That’s what happens when real politics gets caught up in the media opportunities that football provides on a silver platter for both sides.

Maccabi fans ripping down ‘Free Palestinian’ banners maybe/probably don’t know how angry much of the outside world is about constant settlement grabs in Palestinian land and over 40,000 civilian deaths.

And finally as a predictable counterweight the Israeli FA shout at Fifa that Palestine FA boss Jabril Rajoub is using sports to promote terrorism and violence and I guess the usual anti semitism too.

And where are Fifa and Uefa with their declared rules and responsibilities?

I’d say too busy doing wee deals and feathering their own nests.
But what do I know

5. Fifa Not Fit for Purpose in Awarding World Cups

6. Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad  

Two great results for our biggest two clubs in Europe.
A long way to go but a banner result for Celtic against a top Bundesliga side with significantly more resource and better teams to play against each week, and another fine result for the seemingly unwanted and unloved Belgian and his blue team.
One of my pals, a lifelong and particularly well-informed bluenose said if the club were on a better financial footing he’d have been handed his jotters last week!
Not my club, so this is from a distance: Sometimes thoughtful perspective and football fans don’t mix well.
And sometimes maybe you need to ask more fundamental questions about why history seems to repeat itself.

And finally, at Tynie, a defeat but a strong and reassuring performance by Hearts who if they had put away earlier chances would have taken something from the game. Against a good team from a much more competitive and richer league.
Gorgie fans can be quick to get on the backs of the management the team and even the pigeons in the Wheatfield Stand if they are unhappy, but the fans standing ovation at the end was humbling and positive.

Well done guys.

7. The Money Was Never Free

11 of the top Scottish teams gratefully accepted covid loans during the pandemic.
Celtic were the only team to say ‘thanks but no thanks’.
The total loaned was £25.2 and the current tab is now just over £23.1M
The loans were on an interest free basis with quite generous repayment terms stretching to 2042.
The ’Divvy-Up’  was not our game’s finest day and in reality a bit of a self-interest buggers-muddle of a divvy-up if ever there was one which saw League 2 sides getting £100k, League 1 £150K and Championship sides £500K.
I wrote at the time that none of the divvying had anything to do with the actual business liabilities they were meant to support and Arbroath were said at the time to be huge winners while Thistle were huge losers.
Anyway the biggest current debt is Rangers still owing £2.88M and the smallest is Ross County at £1.04M.

I could have written about a dozen other stories, there is so much going on that never gets reported in the press.

That’s it for another week.

Visage: Visage

I first encountered Midge Ure when he joined Salvation a really fine Glasgow based covers band in the early 70s.
They used to play regularly ever three or so months at the Queens Own Cameron Highlander’s War Memorial Boys Club, mentioned above in the intro, and the gigs always sold out.
The nights were live ‘dance to the music and mix’ events rather than concerts.
Many good times were enjoyed in the same wee hall that years before as kids we just wanted to play 5 a side football in.
There was indeed a lot of girl meets boy each time they played and Salvation were bloody good.
10 years later I was gifted the eponymous ‘Visage’ album, the first after Midge had joined up with Steve Strange.
I guess it was a post punk statement which wasn’t quite sure where it was headed but it is so ‘80s and so Newish Romantic that I’m loving the whole album and not just the 5 star ‘Fade to Grey’ track.
I haven’t played this album for a long time and it’s really nice to rediscover it.