Celtic Banter Archive November 20 2013

20 Nov 2013 21:16:15
Any videos of the new guy? Not exactly an exciting signing but always willing to give a new player a chance. Really hope it works out.
Henriks Tongue

Don't judge him on his sign on fee.
The Rory Bremner's haven't paid a transfer fee yet I don't think.
Lenny watched him for a week and reckons he can fight for a place already.

21 Nov 2013 17:25:31
Found it myself guys, cheers
Holmbert Aron

Looks as if he likes to get a shot away early no pussy footing about

20 Nov 2013 18:40:25
Know what I can't understand?

If you use an online "Historic Inflation Calculator" and look at Celtic's big signings under MON, calculating it "Price Then to Now" we paid:

£8.56m for Sutton, £8.2m on Lenny, £3.92m on Thommo and £8.41m on Big Bad John amongst others.

How could we afford it then, but now now?! What's changed? Why could we "not afford" to pay £5-7m for Finnbogason or another player?

Not much has changed, aye players values have increased but so has the price of living (ie ST's, club merch, match day catering, TV money, etc).

Someone care to enlighten me with their extensive knowledge?

I posted the same question over a year ago including a link to the online calculator. I asked the same question only two days ago, using Sutton as the example.
No replies!

Well I personally think the board are holding out til that new club formed in 2012 gains promotion to our division. I know its crap but I think that's how its happening
ParadiseAndy

It was your post that inspired me to look in to this a bit more mate. I'd love to hear others views on this, personally I feel like we're being take for mugs! Ed, what's your thoughts? {Ed007's Note - I'll be honest and admit it's not something I know much about but I intend to have a look at it when time allows, especially if it is producing the answers/figures you guy are saying.}

I think we were spending big to keep up with RFC and their financial advantage through their EBTs and £150m indebtedness.
We had about £26m debt but cleared it. SDM sank them. Domestically there's no need for £8m players anymore on debt. £3m players can win this title.

20 Nov 2013 20:21:46
its very easy to do some "back of cigarette packet" sums but to answer your question requires a great deal of depth and understanding of financials,
Consider these points though,
1. back then we were filling CP to capacity, now we're seeing at least 10k unsold seats per game, probably nearer 15k. That could be circa £350k down per game at £26.tix. Multiple that by 18 and there's £6M+ per season.
2.With loss of tix sales sees drop in catering, merchandise, hospitality. Losses, who knows.
3. Waiting list for ST. there were thousands on that paying from memory £25/yr
4. TV revenue - deal back then was worth substantially more than what we get now.

Everything is relative Hamiltonbhoy but you can quickly see a black hole from then to now. I also should point out the bank balance, how much were we in debt back then? Millions for sure, that's gone.
You can counter, CL monies, player sales but a lot of that is going towards the shortfall.
I'm totally in agreement regardless of above and have been vocal on here which Ed will testify to. We do need to have a serious look at signing policy, wage structure and strategy going forward.
the occasional "big money" signing to augment the first 11 is necessary.
There has, in my opinion, been many wasted millions over last few yrs on loanees, several players on low to what is now classed "high" priced signings of £2m. Add all that up with the wages and we could have easily had 2, 3 or 4 ready made players for the first team.
For me, signing a proven name regardless of nationality is a no brainer. The fee will be offset long term as he'll be sold on at profit if performing well. Its not as if we're going to throw £5M & £60k wages on a 30yr+.
Sorry for rambling on
Stevo Dundee

The credit crunch. Recession maybe.
HH joe

Celtic racked up massive debt under Martin Oniel competing with big spending dick advocat. Think it was Brian Quinn who said club had to live within its means. Wee Gordon slashed the playing squad size and brought costs right down.

21 Nov 2013 09:50:52
Surprised nobody has chipped in with this but; I thought the word on the street was MON had been given the money to build a team capable of competing in the English Premiership, for the board had hopes of switching leagues (they must have gotten the idea from somewhere)? pea

20 Nov 2013 14:18:44
I see sevco have two or three boards these days, if you believe the daily rag. Its a grand idea that responds to the criticism that old dead RFC had one board, club and company one and the same. They won't fall for that mistake twice.
Yes, these boys are smarter than the last. They can put the plc into full liquidation if they like and say it's not the club, that's a different entity, a different board.

Does the daily rag actually run sevco? Does the daily rag own blue pitch holdings and radio Snyde own margarita? Just a thought cause these entities declare something then sevco do it three days later. It's taken Ibroke three days to complain about pl. Three days after those two said a complaint was going in! At the very least I hope they're being paid as advisors.

Football board, business board or ironing board, still losing money and still got the BDO report out very soon. What flavour will it be this time?

@1 When is the B.D.O. report due out GJ?
Tambhoy

@Tambhoy; No one knows for sure but Friday or Monday were blowing about. Might explain the ridiculous appointment of another suit to the board, and the haste they attacked it

20 Nov 2013 11:24:19
Fans Against Criminalisation's statement re: #DamJustice via The Celtic Trust website.

It is now 13 days since Celtic played Ajax in Amsterdam. It was a trip many Celtic supporters had been looking forward to for a variety of reasons since the draw was made. It is now a journey many wished they hadn't made.


What happened between 5pm and 6pm in and around Damstraat and the National Monument in Dam Square will stay long in the memory of those who were there. Football fans are used to strong policing. They are used to being ordered around and treated as second class citizens. They are used to unjust laws applicable to only those who follow "our national game".
What we are not used to however is the police brutality which occurred in that hour and the injustice of the imprisonment, assault and continued detention of fans whose only crime was being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Ten Celtic fans still face charges. The exact nature of those charges is still unclear even 13 days later.
Those charged have been charged with throwing a bottle later changed to throwing a green can. They did neither.
They have been identified as having red hair in court, subsequently changed to spiky blonde hair. The accused in question has neither.
They have been accused of being so drunk that they were oblivious to any stimuli. The accused in question is very much aware of every second of the brutal assault that was launched on him both in Dam Square and then out of sight of any cameras in a police van. Oblivion to pain and stimuli would have been very welcome.
Two fans, Andy Vance and Padraig Mullan have been held since that night. They remain in prison both still suffering from their injuries and one who has still not been allowed to wear his own clothes. Both vehemently protest their innocence but still they are held. Another eight fans face charges, four on Thursday and another three in January.
A remarkable campaign has been launched aimed at securing their release and the freedom of their co-accused. The campaign began despite initial media reports of "Celtic Fans Rioting" and the levels of police injury. The campaign has managed to force a re-examination of the events of Dam Square both in Holland and somewhat more reluctantly in Scotland. The campaign has also managed to report the dozens of injuries suffered by Celtic fans and the levels of police brutality they faced. The fear people described by fans with, no means of escape, is chilling: men, young and old, women and children.
To date the following activities have been undertaken or are being undertaken by a variety of Celtic fans and organisations:

�� Contact made with the families to offer them support and reassurance
�� Video evidence has been collated and analysed and this continues
�� Legal and translation advice has been given
�� Complaints have been processed and passed on to Celtic FC who is employing a lawyer in Amsterdam to examine them
�� Media work in the Netherlands and to a more limited extent (for obvious reasons!) in Scotland has been done
�� Letters have been written to the Dutch Embassy, to the Mayor of Amsterdam, to the Chief of the Dutch Police
�� Protests have been held outside the Dutch Embassies in Dublin and London and one is now planned for New York
�� A Legal Defence Fund was set up and is currently being supported by supporters all over the world - this continues alongside local initiatives by CSCs and forums etc
On Thursday November 21 at 13:30, at Parnassusweg 220, Amsterdam. Celtic fans will begin the next steps to achieve justice for our supporters and to hold the police and authorities to account. We wish the full story of what happened in Dam Square to be told not just in Holland but in Scotland too. We will be asking for the immediate release of Padraig Mullan and Andy Vance and the dropping of charges against all of the accused fans.
We will then continue our campaign to ask why the Amsterdam police force unleashed a wave of brutality on our supporters as confirmed by the deluge of statements received by the #DamJustice campaign and by Celtic FC.

We ask that Celtic supporters continue to support the #DamJustice campaign with their customary magnificent backing.

If you want to help us with the bucket collection at the Aberdeen game on Saturday 23rd November please email dambhoys8@yahoo.co.uk for details. We need a lorryload of bucketeers!

As a person who studied criminology and crime science at University for five years I could talk all day long about policing. But, the Netherlands police aren't the Scottish police. Whether the people assaulted were civies, uniformed or plain clothed police, they were assaulted. Not everybody is a saint you know. Quite frankly given the numbers of people that travelled to the drug capital of Europe, the tension of the previous tie, the aggresive nature of dutch policing and the anamosity created by undertones of Ajax hoolaganism, we did quite well.