CELTIC’S match against Aberdeen on Saturday, November 6, 2010, should have been a joyous occasion for everyone associated with the Parkhead club.
Tony Mowbray’s men, with their legendary former striker Henrik Larsson looking on from the stands, thrashed Mark McGhee’s hapless charges by a record 9-0 scoreline and moved two points above their city rivals Rangers at the top of the Premier League table as a result.
But the Glasgow outfit’s mortified hierarchy was forced to issue a public apology and launch an investigation in the aftermath of the game due to the actions of a small section of their support.
The fans in the safe-standing area of their ground unveiled seven banners which together read: “Your deeds would shame all the devils in hell. Ireland, Iraq, Afghanistan. No bloodstained poppy on our Hoops.”
That was a response to the news that Celtic players would wear, following a United Kingdom-wide campaign, shirts with poppies embroidered on them the following weekend to recognise Remembrance Sunday.
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SPL chief executive Neil Doncaster called the display “regrettable” and instigated a separate probe by the governing body. The Poppy Scotland charity described it as “disrespectful”. A club spokesman said, “It is our intention to ban those responsible.”
The Green Brigade, the ultras group which had arranged the banners, issued a statement which referenced Bloody Sunday, the Iraq War and the sinking of the General Belgrano warship in the Falklands conflict.
East Londonderry DUP MP Gregory Campbell even pitched in to the row. He said, “They must be appalled, embarrassed and humiliated by this. Celtic must lance this boil once and for all.”
But, as was evident at Rugby Park on Sunday when the minute’s silence before the Premiership match between Kilmarnock and Celtic was cut short after just nine seconds due to booing and singing from the away end, it is a contentious issue, a political minefield in fact, which has not been addressed.
By 1921, the buying and wearing of decorative remembrance poppies to raise funds for veterans’ groups and programmes in the weeks leading up to Armistice Day had become a common practice. Their sale continues to generate millions of pounds every year more than a century on.
The Royal British Legion states their purpose is "to commemorate the sacrifices of our armed forces and to show support to those still serving today".
For decades, wearing a poppy was an optional act. It has, however, almost become compulsory in the 21st century with the rise of what has been branded "poppy fascism". Many members of the Celtic support, and the wider population, have had serious problems complying in modern times.
The Troubles in Northern Ireland as well as the morally dubious, if not illegal, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have led some to question whether they should support what they, rightly or wrongly, perceive to be a show of respect for the British army.
The Parkhead club stopped displaying the poppy on their strips after 2010. By all accounts, it was felt at boardroom level that the gesture gave groups outwith Celtic the opportunity to aim potshots at them. They have, though, continued to make generous donations to the Poppy Scotland appeal every year since.
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Remembrance Sunday frequently falls during an international break. But when it takes place during the league calendar it has frequently resulted in unfortunate scenes like those which were witnessed in Ayrshire at the weekend whenever Celtic have played.
There was a perfectly observed minute’s silence by all of those in a vastly-reduced attendance of around 40,000 at their home league match against St Johnstone on November 11, 2012.
When Ronny Deila’s men took on Aberdeen at Pittodrie in 2014, however, there were large groups of travelling supporters who remained outside the ground until the silence was over.
The following year, though, the meeting with Ross County in Dingwall saw some fans boo the silence before kick-off. Celtic issued a statement expressing their disappointment and embarrassment at what had occurred. It ended: “These individuals are not welcome at Celtic.”
The visitors’ players wore black armbands and romped to an emphatic 4-1 win that afternoon. But manager Deila said: “It is disappointing. I come from Norway and I don't know too much about these things, but it is something the club has to deal with."
That unrest prompted Celtic to urge their followers to show respect to those “who have fallen across all conflicts” when they travelled to play St Johnstone at McDiarmid Park in 2016 and Livingston at Almondvale in 2018. Their appeals were heeded on both occasions.
The safe-standing section which houses the Green Brigade was largely empty during a respected minute’s silence before the Premiership encounter with Motherwell at Parkhead in 2019 and Covid pandemic meant there were no supporters inside the ground at all in 2020.
But in 2021 the minute’s silence before the Dundee match at Dens Park had to be cut short due to a group of fans singing through it. Once the action got underway, they threw tennis balls onto the park in protest at the plan to appoint assistant chief constable Bernard Higgins to a senior security role.
Ange Postecoglou, the then Celtic manager, was far from impressed. “You would have to ask the individuals why they felt the need to do that,” he said. “My view again is pretty simple - that we treat these things with respect and dignity. And that’s what we try to do. We certainly did and I think the majority of the fans did because that’s the kind of football club we are.”
Two years ago, both Bhoys Celtic and the Green Brigade stayed inside the concourses when the minute’s silence was held before the 2-1 win over Ross County at Parkhead. Last year, the latter group were banned for a number of misdemeanours when Aberdeen visited the East End of Glasgow.
The stadium announcer stressed the silence was being held as a solemn reflection on those who had been lost in all conflicts, including the one which was raging in Gaza, as much as those who had died wearing a British uniform. Some of those in the safe standing section, though, sang and waved Palestinian flags.
The protests at Rugby Park were crass in the extreme, angered many among the Celtic support who hold a differing viewpoint and drew widespread condemnation, including from the hosts’ manager Derek McInnes, from the football world and wider society. But they should have come as no great surprise. And there appears to be no chance of those responsible changing their behaviour in future.
