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It is well known that there is very strong rivalry between Celtic and Rangers, and the city is largely split along sectarian lines. Many of the sectarian problems in the city date back to the large influx of Irish Catholic people that arrived in the 1800's and the response to them from the indigeonous Protestant Scots there. As is well known, nothing brings this out more than the Old Firm football matches between Celtic and Rangers. For those who don't know Celtic was a team founded by an Irish Catholic settler (I think he was a Priest) and Rangers was founded by some posh locals in the city. One is a Catholic team and the other a Protestant team.

We saw on the TV this week a near fight between the two coaches Ally McCoist and Sean Lennon, and often after these matches there are problems in Glasgow and in towns and cities in Northern Ireland. What freaked me out though was what a senior Police Officer in Glasgow said on the radio today following the scuffle between the two coaches. He said that on Wednesday evening in Glasgow cases of domestic violence increased by 70% around the city and he said that it would be a good idea if some of these matches were not televised in future. What do people think, would not screening them be a good thing?

"What freaked me out though was what a senior Police Officer in Glasgow said on the radio today following the scuffle between the two coaches. He said that on Wednesday evening in Glasgow cases of domestic violence increased by 70% around the city and he said that it would be a good idea if some of these matches were not televised in future".

Yeah, I feel very violent every time I listen to a Lib Dem cabinet member talking on the tele. !rant!

I don't think it would make much difference to the domestic violence to stop having the game on television. I suspect the violence is all about the defeat rather than the scuffle between the two coaches. If it is a scuffle between two coaches that causes a bloke to batter his wife, best to ban Clint Eastwood films from the box as well.

Violence or at the very least, the threat of violence is still endemic related to football. The only difference is that the police have made major advances with regard to keeping the lid on violence within the ground. You only have to listen to some of the chants that go on at grounds and the faces contorted with hate to realise that it wouldn't take much for violence to kick off.

Cheers
D

Would love to know where all this trouble happens in NI after old firm matches? In 20+yrs living there, I've never seen anything more than a few shouts across the streets i.e. no different than that seen in any of the English leagues

Part of the problem is many Celtic fans strangely regard themselves as Oirish even though they are 7th generation Scottish and called Hamish McSporran, eat porridge and were weaned on Irn Bru. I work with 2 Glasgow born jocks who both support Eire at football and rugby and call other Scots a bunch of orifices. Weird...then again religion is involved.

I hope one day the Prods and the Mick's will get along in Glasgow, the sectarianism there is often referred to as "Scotlands hidden shame" and I've heard that things have improved a bit in recent times. For example that song the Rangers fans always sing to wind up the Celtic fans "Your famine is over why don't you go home" has now been officially banned. Rangers FC get fined if their fans sing it. However, as you can see from this clip, there are still problems between the indigeonous Scots and the people with an Irish background in western Scotland:

Thinking in terms of 'Prods' and 'Micks' isn't solution focussed Max.

I'm from Scotland....and i was born and raised a Catholic, though i am very different in that i support Rangers.

There is a huge sectarian problem in Scotland and one of the main reasons as has already been pointed out is that a lot of Celtic fans consider themselves to be Irish. Even though they have been born and raised in Scotland. They wave the Irish 'Tricolour'. They support Ireland and don't support the Scottish National team. Another part of the problem is that Celtic Football Club claim that they are victims of a Huge Conspiracy that dates back for years. In which members of the SFA & Scottish Referees are against their football club. Which is absolutely ludicrous. But they have kicked up a huge stink recently about it and now other teams feel like Celtic are being awarded decisions that they shouldn't be, to keep the club appeased.

They will never change things up here as most of it is bred into kids as they are raised. You see kids up here wearing Rangers and Celtic strips at 6 months old. And they are taught a whole load of songs and not to have a fued with the other side, but to genuinely hate them. I don't see that changing. The town where i am from actually celebrates St Patrick's Day. And has a Big St.Patricks Day Parade, with festivals, and bands and Irish Dancing. With people get dressed up and dying their hair green. And everybody that attends is Scottish. And they do nothing here for St. Andrews Day who is the Patron Saint of Scotland. Madness. Until they sort that out it will never change. Like i said i come from a whole family of Catholics and i am Catholic, yet support Rangers. But i made that decision when i was young. And my parents just let me do what i want. But i have friends who are Celtic supporters and this is absolutely no exageration but if when they were younger went to their Dads and said dad i am a Rangers supporter can i get a Rangers strip, not only would they not have been allowed they would have been beating up. And i swear to you this is true.

But it's not only just Celtic. Rangers supporters can be every bit just as bad. And there are still some Rangers supporters who have never been back at the club since Graeme Souness signed a Catholic in Maurice Johnston in 1989!!!! I mean get a grip.

And yes we have been hearing for years up here how domestic violence rises after every Old Firm game. And there are always more arrests after every one etc. But i seriously doubt they will ever change that. And they will never play the match behind closed doors or will it ever not be shown on TV. As that is what the broadcasters want. That is the only reason we have a bloody TV deal up here.

The main reason for the recent tension is that we have had 3 'Old Firm' games in a relatively small space of time and we have another one in 15 days! And the tension has been cranked up by Celtic's complaints to the SFA about their so called 'victimisation' and 'conspiracy theories' and the fact that Rangers signed El Hadji Diouf, whom whilst playing for Liverpool against Celtic in the UEFA Cup some years back spat on a Celtic Fan in the crowd. They have never forgiven him about that. And he has had a terrible press up here since he has arrived and it's caused tension between both sets of fans.

P.S. Max Tranmere, the Celtic manager is called Neil Lennon not Sean Lennon.

Rangers have had further Catholic players such as Gattuso, Negri and others and a Catholic manager in Le Guen. Do people in Glasgow consider the Catholicism of French and Italians as being of a completely different variety to that found in the British Isles.

Is it true a football match broke out at one point? Disgaceful!!!

"Ally McCoist and Sean Lennon"

Is that Sean Lennon the son of John Lennon? Or is it meant to be the Celtic manager Neil Lennon?