'Individual agendas, can't see for pillars': Steven Naismith opens up on Hearts-Celtic ticket saga and Scottish football solution
Celtic have taken umbrage at only being given 576 briefs for Sunday’s match against Hearts at Tynecastle, while there is a feud between them and Rangers over letting away supports attend Old Firm derbies, with Celtic turning down a small number of tickets for August’s match at Ibrox due to safety concerns. Naismith believes the Jambos are right to look after their own fans in such a situation and while he admits healthy visiting supports are good for the spectacle, the former Rangers and Scotland striker says there would need to be a change in the fabric of Scottish football politics to find a sensible solution.
“We will firstly look at our fans,” Naismith said on Celtic being given only a small portion of the Roseburn Stand. “If we have built a following that is continuing to grow, we need to give them the opportunity to watch hopefully a successful Hearts team. The question is not individually to each club, it's about the collective: are you willing to make a change to better Scottish football?
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Hide Ad"We could learn a lot from other leagues but we tend not to. It tends to be individual agendas. When I was at Rangers, there was congestion of fixtures when we got to the UEFA Cup final. This season, every team struggled through the start with Europe but the league don't help you. That's not the league's fault, it's everybody in Scottish football's fault. Whether it's been what happened at Covid, how you just stop leagues and teams are just relegated. In every aspect, there are areas we could do better. Do we want to or do we not?”
Asked whether a rule change to enforce a certain percentage of a stadia given to away fans was the answer, Naismith continued: “The back and forth between fans when a goal is scored, the elation and the anger among the fans, it does bring something. At this moment in time, with the structure as it is, it isn't going to change. That's why we, as a club, need to look after Hearts. Whatever the solution may be, everybody needs to be willing to make that sacrifice to get it better. Over 20 years I've been involved, it doesn't seem to happen.”
The only club Hearts give the full Roseburn Stand to is Hibs – they get a full away end in return at Easter Road – and Naismith argued: “There is an understanding there that it does create a much better atmosphere and the intensity is there. The spectacle is a better thing. Nobody can say that just having home fans is good for the game. It's not. But until everybody accepts that and comes to a collective, it won't change.”
Naismith doesn’t think players benefit from a smaller away support. “I don't think the difference in numbers helps overly,” he added. “The derbies are a prime example. That gives it an unbelievable atmosphere. But then, there will be more said about the viewing platform for away fans at a lot of ground. Being papped in corners, can't see for pillars and stuff like that. There is a bigger argument.”