SECURITY FEARS
Celtic may refuse Ibrox tickets over safety issue
PETER LAWWELL last night claimed Celtic won’t take up their reduced allocation of tickets for Ibrox if Rangers can’t guarantee the safety of their 800 fans.
Brendan Rodgers’ side travel across the city on December 29 for the second Old Firm clash of the season.
In May, Rangers announced that all visiting fans would now be housed in the corner between the Broomloan Road and Sandy Jardine stands on account of an increased demand for season tickets.
This signalled an end to the convention which had existed between the Glasgow giants for years where visiting fans would receive approximately 7,000 tickets.
Celtic subsequently retaliated two months later, issuing Rangers with 800 tickets for the game at Parkhead on September 2.
Faced with the same number being handed to them for the forthcoming festive clash, one Celtic fan raised the question of personal safety at the club’s annual general meeting yesterday.
And chief executive Lawwell (right) was adamant there remains a very real possibility of Celtic turning down the allocation if planned meetings with the Ibrox club do not provide adequate guarantees.
‘We’ve looked at the possibility of declining our allocation and that’s still a possibility,’ he said. ‘It’s
something we’ll decide in conjunction with our supporters. ‘It’s possible we would recommend to the fans that we don’t take any tickets for that match. I wouldn’t discount that. ‘Indeed, should we feel it isn’t a safe environment for our supporters we will definitely recommend that we don’t take any.’ The club are understood to be looking for guarantees from Rangers and Police Scotland that visiting fans will have a safe passage as they make their way to the corner section in between the stands. A statement later posted on the club website read: ‘The safety of Celtic supporters is always the No 1 priority for the board, something which was also stressed when crowding problems at the Celtic v Rangers game at Celtic Park back in September was raised.’ This referred to an incident when
five people were injured in a crush as they tried to get into that game, with Celtic later apologising to supporters and ordering an independent review. Pressed at the AGM on whether Celtic had considered maintaining Rangers’ allocation for games at Celtic Park, Lawwell added: ‘Initially, we did think about being above it all and providing Rangers with their full allocation for the game at Celtic Park in September. ‘However, we had to factor in the sporting advantage argument as to whether that would provide Rangers with an edge and, reluctantly — because it does detract from the spectacle — we chose to follow suit.’ Responding to a question from another supporter who claimed sectarian chanting was spoiling games for the majority of supporters, chairman Ian Bankier said: ‘No one on this platform has any time for this sort of thing; it takes us to the gutter every time. ‘We will take this and do what we can, if not to stop it then at the very least reduce it. But other fans also need to make their disapproval clear. We would like to see this discussed at our next Fans’ Forum, when the Green Brigade will be represented.’ Lawwell added: ‘This is a very sensitive subject and it’s brave of you to raise it. The club and our supporters have a great reputation worldwide and it’s a very small minority who behave like this. ‘We have been consistently sanctioned by UEFA for that behaviour, which has deteriorated recently back to the days which were unacceptable. ‘It doesn’t represent who we are and it gives our opponents, if you like — our enemies — a reason to categorise Celtic along with everyone else. ‘And we’re not like everyone else; we’re better and different.’