The Celtic hierarchy never tried to distance the club from the O** F*** brand, that’s why the SMSM can use it as a stick to beat us with
Eric Knott 
(Photo by Craig Williamson/SNS Group via Getty Images)
So, almost a week and a half has passed since an injury ridden Celtic side visited Ibrox and “stole” a place in the Scottish Cup Semi-final.
Not only that, but Celtic won convincingly against Motherwell at the weekend, while Hearts dropped 3 points away to Kilmarnock.
Little or no attention has been paid to Celtic’s achievements over this tough period of games.
Yet huge focus was placed on what happened after the Scottish Cup game at Ibrox.
The SMSM was filled with the blame game throughout all of last week.
And as we all expected, it certainly wasn’t a balanced view.
If you were to look at all the stories throughout last week, its clear to see that the media’s agenda is to lay the majority of the blame on Celtic’s door.
After watching Brian Wilson’s waffle-fest on Thursday evening last, its clear how craven our own club is.
Its also clear how they will never stand up properly for the support of this club, or the staff of this club for that matter.
I get more wound up about Wilson’s drivel when the realisation hits me that he never spoke up to condemn the attack on fitness coach, Andy Boles.
The main reason we are continuously blamed in situations like what happened at Ibrox on the 8th is because the hierarchy at our club have failed to adequately distance us from the O** F*** brand.
The average Celtic fan knows that the O** F*** died in 2012.
Therefore, we refuse to associate ourselves with it.
Whereas the Celtic board chooses when it wants to associate with this brand, and when it doesn’t want to.
To all intents and purposes, this particular subject is a very good metaphor for the relationship between Celtic fans and the board.
The board does not actively respect the fan’s wishes when it comes to the O** F*** brand.
The fans want nothing to do with it, and accepted it ceased to exist 14 years ago.
The board’s reluctance to let go of it is purely for commercial reasons, and the cash cow that they perceive this brand to be.
It is why they tiptoe around Ibrox, and never take opportunities like last weekend to really call that club out on it’s shit.
So now, we find ourselves 10 days on from that Scottish Cup game, and nothing more has been said or done about what happened that day.
Do both clubs think that their statements last week adequately address what happened?
Clearly neither did.
And for me, it appears to be all about the continued preservation of the O** F*** brand.
The Celtic fanbase has mixed feelings on allowing away fans at Glasgow derbies.
I put it to a vote on the Read Celtic X page, and 81% voted in favour of retaining away allocations.
So it seems the fans believe it should continue.
It also looks as if there will be away fans at the next derby at Celtic Park, since the board seem to have no objection to it.
Everybody likes to say that this derby is the most intense in world football.
That isn’t far wrong, but the intensity is driven by hatred.
The hatred is built upon a brand that is now dead, but the media and both clubs seem to cling to it.
As I alluded to in my article last Sunday morning, the hatred between both clubs is probably at an all time high.
This is driven by the Ibrox belief that we had a huge part to play in the demise of the dead club.
Clinging to the O** F*** brand is to deny the old club died.
And our board is just as complicit in that as the Ibrox side are.
We know the Ibrox fans try to ram it down everyone’s throat that they’re the same club.
The Celtic board has never done anything to dispel that myth.
The board never speaks up and says the O** F*** is no longer a brand.
This is a big part of the reason the fans and the Celtic board are constantly at loggerheads.
We know the O** F*** no longer exists.
They pretend to ignore that fact.
The question is, will it ever change?
Well, the answer to that is simple.
It will change when this current Celtic board vacates Celtic Park.
And when a new board is in place that will accept, respect, and nurture the views of it’s fanbase.
The current board denies the fanbase a voice.
When you deny your biggest source of income a voice, its never going to end well.
Even if Celtic somehow manage to win this season’s title, it will not change the irreparable damage caused by this board to the relationship between them and the fans.
As long as the hierarchy at this club so much as acknowledge the O** F*** brand, the media will continue to use it as a stick to beat us with.
They will always be the purveyors of the two cheeks of the same arse theory.
Frankly, Celtic fans are tired of it.
Just as they are beyond weary of this useless board.
That will not change until they’re gone.
Key Takeaways
- Celtic’s recent victories have gone largely unreported, while the media focused on blame towards the club after the Ibrox incident.
- Fans feel the Celtic board does not respect their wishes regarding the O** F*** brand, leading to ongoing tension.
- Awareness of the O** F*** brand’s demise in 2012 contrasts with the board’s reluctance to fully acknowledge it, prioritizing commercial interests instead.
- Fans overwhelmingly support retaining away allocations at derbies, despite the hatred fueled by the old brand’s narrative.
- Real change in the club’s relationship with its fans will only occur when the current board is replaced by one that respects fan views.
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Aodhán Ó Conchobhair 
Site Staff 
Excellent post Eric, but another thing has to be remembered. Back when Livingstone drew 2-2 with Sevco. did Livingstone not play for most of that game with ten men? That has hardly been mentioned in the media since the day of the game, yet it is nearly always mentioned that when we beat Motherwell 3-1 they had only ten men.
Desmond and his cabal have created all of our current problems , and keep doing so ,all on the alter of money their heads are in the corporate greed trough right up to their necks. Stop giving them your money
What we forget as regards the O** F*** subject is Sevco ond Celtic are business partners, in 2012 Celtic had the opportunity to literally finish Sevco off, but they never , it would have cost them both money…..
Eric you are spot on with the point
“I get more wound up about Wilson’s drivel when the realisation hits me that he never spoke up to condone the attack on fitness coach, Andy Boles.”
To me it says, when our board (personally I now refer to them as the bunch of Barsturds) tell us how they love Celtic and are fans just like the rest of us blah, blah, is all a load of bollocks they care jackshit about the fans and now it seems staff members matter very little to them either.
“SACK THE BOARD”
wtf Eric? You don’t know that the SMSM is pro Huns and the huns fans want to continue with the “old firm” tag. It is a source of amusement for the Celtic fans that I know.
What is certain is the more you protest at the use of the Old Firm term the more the MSM will use it. It is fekin nothing and deserves to be laughed at as the team from Ibrox desperately tries to hold on to our coat tails.
A wee reminder Eric. A great man namely Jock Stein once said football without fans is nothing. Martin O’Neill talked about the great atmosphere at the last hun game. How could you possibly advocate to ban fans?
Old Firm who the fek cares let them have their wee bit of fun. We are heading to the Scottish Cup semi finals and hopefully much more.
Your comments says it all. You talk of bigotry, that is the religion of both sides! Good Christians would not use the terms huns and fienans. Did the ‘old firm’ die in 2012 or 1991 when Celtic football and athletic club disappeared? Or when Rangers were relegated and Celtic only had 30,000 season ticket holders as the fans were bored with no competition. Whatever way you try and look at it or separate them they will always be one and the same. Driven by hatred for each other. The songs that emanate from both sides is pathetic. I long for the day when you hear songs about the players and the team and club for that matter.