Rland ‘showpiece’ weekend or just another PR disaster?
or terrorist sympathisers; boisterous but harmless and create a magnificent atmosphere wherever they go.
Hats off too to the police officers further down the chain of command who did an excellent job on Saturday in the face of the strange decision by their superiors.
But for SAFC it was the latest in a long list of thumping PR disasters. How does the club feel that their “showpiece” weekend went? What was the attendance anyway? Was it all worth it, bearing in mind how few home supporters turned up?
This is before we even consider the footballing feast that the players served up. It wasn’t quite the confidence booster that was hoped for.
The club is not responsible for the behaviour of every loony to disgrace themselves in Sunderland four days ago, but it could be said every event from Saturdaycould be directly or indirectly attributable to the nonsensical decision to arrange that game.
As the unpleasantness was always going to happen, to the point of being blindingly obvious, any abrogation of responsibility from SAFC would be, to say the least, unconvincing.
A minor positive from the whole shambles is that it dispels the myth that it’s desperately important to have home friendlies; because it was the worst possible preparation for when the real football begins on Friday.
And for THIS did your city dispense with a hard-won international reputation as a major concert venue. What was the thinking – if any?
Some damage limitation could be scavenged by resuming concerts; even if it’s just one in 2018. This place needs such things. Justin Bieber, Coldplay, Harry Belafonte, Showaddywaddy ... anyone.
But it will take more than that to restore good will. The Celtic debacle has now been lobbed upon the towering pile of SAFC cock-ups
Greatest hits include the unexplained and tactlessly handled redundancies, the trip to New York, Jermain Defoe leaving for nix, the absent relegation clause in Jack Rodwell’s contract, Yann M’Vila, Ricky Álvarez, Margaret Byrne’s compensation for God knows what...
All this could be ignored if it coincided with scintillating footy, but as you may have noticed...
What now off the field? My suggestion, other than the return of concerts and the non-return of either Celtic or Rangers, is to put public relations wizard Darron Gibson in charge of media relations.
He wouldn’t worsen matters and at least it would be a laugh.