Tom English: 'No reasonable fan can think the media has one rule for Rangers'

Published on Saturday 7 February 2009 18:58

OUR GOOD friends on Follow Follow and other inhabitants of the cyber world of Glasgow Rangers are an industrious lot when it comes to defending their club's reputation on the issue of sectarianism. Letters, e-mails, phone calls, indignation of all kinds with the occasional threat of violence thrown in for good measure.

Their constant refrain goes something like this: we in the media are all eyes and ears when it comes to bigotry involving Rangers fans but we're mute when similar bile comes spewing from the mouths of the Celtic support. Well, let's see about that.

Last Monday, a Celtic fan by the name of Paul Sloan was fined 400 and banned from every ground in Scotland for a year for shouting sectarian abuse during Terry Butcher's debut as manager of Caley Thistle this day last week, a game that ended in goalless draw with Sloan's beloved but badly misfiring Hoops. The 28-year-old from Wishaw was arrested after police heard him shouting "f****** Orange bastards", a bawled-out rant that his lawyer later claimed was not meant to cause offence to anyone.

Sloan, said Eilidh MacDonald, had got "caught up in the spirit of the game". Meaning what exactly? The air was thick with hate? The players were charging about uttering obscenities at one another? Gordon Strachan and Butcher were squaring up on the touchline? The Caley Thistle fans were giving it laldy with the Billy Boys? Caught up in the spirit of the game! Is that not the euphemism to beat all euphemisms? Is that not the most risible defence of a moron you've heard in quite some time?

Once you've recovered your jaw from the floor we can move on. Take a minute.

Ready?

Let's go.

If the conspiracy theorists in the Rangers corners of the world wide web are to believed, then Sloan's shame would have gone largely unreported. Actually, it didn't. "Celtic Yob in Bigot Disgrace" was the unambiguous and unmissable reaction of the Sun. Over at the Record it was "Shame Of Sectarian Slur Fan". At the Express? "Sectarian Shame Of Banned Celtic Fan". Other papers carried the story, some did opinion pieces on it. And let us make our own contribution here: Sloan is a thundering halfwit. No reasonable Rangers fan could look at the coverage of his disgusting behaviour and still hold the view that the media has one rule for Rangers and another rule for Celtic. It's just not a tenable argument.

Especially if these Rangers fans are aware of the case of the Rangers supporter who got himself into a bit of bother at Edinburgh Waverley train station not too long ago. There is a parallel with this particular chap and Sloan. Late last month Stuart Burgess, 45, was fined 375 for sectarian chanting on board the Glasgow to Edinburgh train. Burgess had been shouting, swearing and singing the kind of songs that his fellow passengers took exception to. Most Rangers supporters are probably unaware of him because from what we can see only one newspaper, the Edinburgh Evening News, reported this incident. Oh, and he wasn't banned from Scotland's football stadiums either.

So next time the Follow Follow brigade get all resentful about the raw deal they supposedly get in the media they might want to consider the coverage of that nice Mr Sloan before they unveil their grand conspiracies. And with that, let the blue backlash begin…

Lucky for Gus, Harte's not in it

I CAN'T help feeling that Gus MacPherson dodged a bullet when Ian Harte reneged on an agreement to join St Mirren on loan. For a start, you can forget about all the caps that Harte won, all 64 of them, because that player ceased to be an awfully long time ago. Harte's best days are many years behind him. Since leaving Leeds United in July 2004, the former Republic of Ireland full-back has started just 31 games in more than four and a half years. Most recently he fetched-up on a free at Blackpool – and was released after five games.

Harte's U-turn on Friday came as no surprise to those who have followed his career from the beginning. Putting it mildly, you could say that Harte is unpopular with the football media in Ireland – a thoroughly decent crew it has to be said – and there are observers in the Republic who can quote many an example of why Harte was, and I quote, "a disagreeable bastard". The favourite comes from a mixed zone after an international game. Harte stormed through without stopping, answering the request for a quick word with the immortal reply: "Not talking. Just been stitched up by Shoot!"

Gus, you can do better.

Will Hadden's gambles pay off?

YOU'VE got to hand it to Frank Hadden because he hasn't half put his neck on the line with his team selection today. After just two wins in the last 10 championship matches, Hadden, we must assume, is fighting to save his job in the coming weeks. So what does he do? He comes up with a really quirky line-up, full of surprise choices and interesting gambles. He's brave, we'll give him that much. On at least three counts he's made huge, possibly game-defining, judgment calls.

Ally Hogg has been parachuted on to blindside flank despite not having played there for Scotland for five years and despite there being plenty of other options , most notably the impressive Alasdair Strokosch, the player of the month for December in the Guinness Premiership and one of the key elements of a Gloucester pack that has dragged the club to the top of the league in England. That Strokosch doesn't even get a place on Hadden's bench is a curiosity.

Next, Jason White in instead of Al Kellock. White has played less than an hour of rugby this year having broken his finger at the tail end of 2008. More than that, he hasn't played in the second row at this level for an age. You'd back him to adapt quickly, if only he was match sharp, which he surely cannot be. The in-form Kellock doesn't make the bench either. So should anything happen to White his replacement at lock will be Simon Taylor, a No 8. All very risky.

Finally, the decision to ignore the claims of Thom Evans on the wing. Evans is the form wing in Scotland. He has scored nine tries in his 14 games this season, including a Heineken Cup hat-trick at Bath. Like Strokosch and Kellock, Evans is not in the 22 today. Hadden has gone for Sean Lamont and Simon Webster with Chris Paterson offering back-up from the bench. They're all fine players, it's just that, as finishers, none of them is as hot as Evans is right now

Lamont has scored five tries in 16 games for Northampton, only one of them coming in his last eight games. He has one try in his last 11 Tests for Scotland. Webster has scored two tries in his last 11 games for Edinburgh and one try in his last 15 Tests for Scotland. Paterson has one try in his last 10 for Edinburgh and has one in his last 18 for Scotland, against Romania.

For the life of me, I don't know why Evans is not figuring this afternoon but it's Hadden's call. He's the boss. He gets paid to make these decisions. You hope he's got them right.