Yesterday my mind was drawn to an educational evening I spent a few years ago on the other side of my mountain.
The speaker in Gaoth Dobhair was my friend and comrade Danny Morrison.
For the uninitiated, he is a veteran Republican and a highly distinguished writer here in Ireland.
I think he fused both those realities when he said to the audience that he was fascinated with the concept of betrayal.
In the Republican subculture to betray usually had deadly consequences all round.
My Mayo grandmother, a veteran of Cumann na mBan, taught her little grandson of the indelible sin of being “an informer”.
Over forty years after the fact she had a very clear memory of those had betrayed the cause and given information.
Of course, it has a wider resonance within the wider culture.
To call someone a “Judas” has only one meaning and it isn’t a good one.
Football fans everywhere are prone to hyperbole and the Parkhead faithful are not immune from the disorder.
In 1989 Celtic fans re-named a former hero with that traitorous label from the New Testament.
For the avoidance of doubt, I do not think that this re-branding exercise overly troubles Maurice John Giblin Johnston.
Yesterday the Celtic Family were once more re-calibrating their view of someone they had venerated only 24 hours earlier.
In the globalised world of professional football, highly prized practitioners are constantly being lured away for better personal terms.
The Hoops faithful cared about this yesterday because they thought that Brendan cared as well.
When Celtic won the Scottish Cup in May 2017 to seal the Invincible Treble Rodgers was interviewed on the Hampden turf by Chris McLaughlin of the BBC.
When the reporter put it to the Celtic manager that he had fallen in love with the club the Antrim man corrected him.
“I was born into Celtic and it’s a huge privilege to manage this club”.
The Celtic end roared their approval.
He was one of their own.
Clearly now, that was an act and a performance as polished as Rodger’s tactical approach to a match.
His exit under cover of darkness removed most of the Celtic backroom team.
The loss of Chris Davies is a particular blow to the Parkhead cause.
Leicester City FC has acquired a very fine manager.
However, their fans should take his declaration of fealty with industrial quantities of salt.
Rodgers is there for the salarium.
Tonight at Tynecastle Neil Lennon will not shirk his responsibilities.
File photo dated 11/05/11 of Celtic manager Neil Lennon being attacked by John Wilson during the Clydesdale Bank Scottish Premier League at Tynecastle Stadium, Edinburgh. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Wednesday September 14, 2011. A football fan cleared of a pitchside assault on Celtic manager Neil Lennon was jailed today for eight months for a breach of the peace at the match and handed a five-year football banning order. John Wilson, 26, was accused of a sectarian attack on the football boss as his side played Hearts in a crucial Clydesdale Bank Premier League game at Edinburgh’s Tynecastle stadium on May 11. See PA story COURTS Lennon. Photo credit should read: Lynne Cameron/PA WireIt is a time for character and not betrayal.
So, you have this fabulous partner, who tells you every day that they love you and care for you. They always remember your birthday, bring you marvellous presents and make you feel great about yourself. Then one night you come home to find a note telling you they’ve taken you as far as they could and they’re leaving for another lover for whom they would give their life. What are you going to remember them for? The gifts and the fine words?
Wonderfully put.
Brendan Fraudgers
Well done Lenny and the boys…3 massive points….onwards and upwards.
If people are being honest, BR got a bigger budget than anyone since Martin O’Neil and he signed many poor players. His huge budget assured him of success although anyone can get knocked out of cups so he deserves some credit. This season is the first season he has faced a real challenge and what did he do – left for money. He has brought on players but in the last season we have been pretty poor with the ball goiing from side to side and no penetration in the attacking third. Also too much messing about at the back resulting in errors as shown today. Brendan did well in the previous 2 season but there seemed to be issues with the dressing room so I am happy he has gone – not sure Lenny is the one to take us forward but a good manager to steady things for now.
I now join the countless thousands of Celtic supporters who want to comment on the BR situation.
I’ve held off in case any more light would be shed on the subject…but alas we are getting the mushroom treatment again. ( Kept in the dark and fed shite.)
Anyway…my appreciation for everything BR has done for us…is tempered by how he has handled this…and he has handled it very badly…imo.
The speed of his leaving was obscene…the timing was unforgivable….and his comments since are nauseating.
What really disturbs me ‘though…is… I have always looked upon him as being…decent…honest…likeable…and committed to our cause….but I’m afraid that he has now blown all that out of the water.
Yes we should be thankful we had him….but maybe now…based on his actions…we should be grateful he has gone.
Do I wish him well in his new job….?…Well ..no I don’t.
He has shafted us…and I won’t ever forget that.
Now I can only hope that the players will take to Lenny …and give him the commitment they gave to BR.
Tonight’s game would have been an awkward one anyway….but this makes it even more so….so good luck to all the guys….do us proud.
Onwards and upwards Celtic.
.
New boss?
Will be plenty of interest but please, please anyone but Davy Moyes who would go down like a lead balloon with the support.
Totally agree…..
Don’t know ANYONE who wants him.
It’s all about moving on with Lenny and the players he’s inherited.
Fate would have it that in the course of 4 days he’s back in Edinburgh twice.
I’m sure the players will be shell shocked at the speed and manner of Rodgers departure.
How they start the game tonight will be indicative of the mood in the camp.
Two wins will wind the blue facing media and the Ibrox fan base in.
Lets do it Lenny.
Everyone is of course allowed their own opinion and emotions regarding this but the Celtic supporters who seem content with the BR ‘stitch-up’ are way off kilter compared to the vast majority of Celtic fans…
Leaving for a ‘hmmn’ club like Leicester is one thing…
But to do it at a critical stage of the season…
Without warning when it was clearly well in progress…
To try and take the entire coaching staff as well….
To basically do it as a midnight ‘flit’ so he was off the scene and away from any backlash….
To send his board released insincere thanks to the club and fans..
To pretend all along that he was a Celtic fan when he’d never even been to a match there prior to being manager.
To not even tell the players properly…
Did I say… Leicester ???? Jeez
He ‘could’ have ended up with a statue outside Celtic Park , now he will hopefully just be a footnote in the 10 if it is done.
Every Celtic fan. I know right now would rather his name was wiped from the records and I don’t think it’s just the ‘grief / anger’ stages setting in…
It’s more the realisation that we’ve all been had.
Ronnie Deila will have more of a deserved place in recent Celtic history for me now.
An ‘honest’ man who worked with a much limited budget without any ego getting in the way. He saw out his contract and would have won a treble (4/6 trophies in total) had the usual MIB actions not swindled us out of a Scottish cup. He left the club with dignity even though he knew he was being ‘upgraded’.
I hope Rodgers is not too busy to soak in some of the real feelings about him right now…. we don’t buy his insincere statements and fake love for Celtic.,
The board might say that he’s welcome back but the fans certainly won’t be having that!
I can just picture him being rolled out at half time in a big game..
He’d probably better think twice about taking up any punditry offers for Celtic games as well .. or stick to the studio if he does.
Probably a good thing for him that Leicester are highly unlikely to be in any European competition for a long time …
The reception he would get if his new club were ever to play Celtic would be phenomenal…
Mind you …., with the ego he clearly has I wouldn’t rule out him trying to arrange a pre-season friendly while he taps up LT and CalMac…
Utterly fuming….
Oh and the EPL !!!
No racism, bigotry etc,.,.!?!?!
Chelsea , Spurs, Leicester all have issues either towards or from them.
Better stop as my language has gone ‘dockyard’ in the last 24 hours.
Pretty sure my neighbour now thinks I have Tourette’s.
6 million in the biscuit tin , Lenny here for the 10 in a row .we don’t always have managers that are in it for the love of club look at Dr josef 5-1 game legend
Celtic is bigger than one man , it was born that way HH
Well said ,I feel your anger and pain ,I Must obviously have been in a minority because I was not duped by saint Brendan , I started to really question his integrity when I saw the documentary that was made whilst he was at Liverpool, the segment showing him in his house was cringeworthy ,here look at my Ferrari ,my swimming pool etc etc,and at the same time trying to pretend he was humble and so down to earth , this guy to me was clearly an ego maniac full of himself ,the type of guy who in a workplace you wouldn’t trust as far as you could throw him. To use the Glasgow vernacular a total ‘fanny merchant’
Fast forward to his reign at celtic I never ever bought into ‘saint Brendan’ and in ‘Brendan we trust’ I had him sussed from the word go but despite my protestations the rest of my mates wouldn’t have it , I was just being disagreeable for the sake of it etc etc , ive been consistent all along re this man first chance he gets with an offer to go back to the epl hes off and celtic will not even be a blott in the landscape , and so it proved , suddenly my opinions on rogers are valid with my mates ! Rogers was and is a fine coach, a good tactician but most of all a sublime political animal.Not one original thought or statement from ‘the heart’ all contrived to buy over the fans and any one else prepared to listen or more to the point believe in it.
Neil lennon might not be as accomplished a coach/tactitian as rogers but he is twice the ‘man’ and pray god he can get us over the line this season ,then we can start to repair the dishevelment of the rogers reign.
Re his achievements at celtic he will deserve acknowledgement for what he delivered the last two seasons no more no less,he won two titles in a row two trebles ,but perspective is required during this period there was no rangers juggernaut or really strong hibs/hearts /Aberdeen challenge to beat, this has to be considered when assessing his rating.
In a way leaving the way he has, has done celtic historians a favour they will now not need to worry about where to place him in the pantheon of celtic managers ,he,ll be near the bottom of the pile and that’s were he deserves to be.
Don’t be so down on Lenny as a coach or tactician. He achieved more in Europe than BR ever has. He beat Barcelona at home and was within seconds of getting a draw away.
BR brought in a keeper who lost more goals in a single game, against the same club, than ANY keeper in our history.
Brendan Rodgers has ticked a box, let’s just move on to even more success. HH
Thanks Brendan for all the fantastic memories that will stay with me forever. Between summer 2016 and February 2019, that was easily the best time I’ve ever experienced since my earliest memory of Celtic in 1975
Phil, while I’m not surprised that Brendan would leave Celtic for the EPL, I am disappointed with his timing. It sucks.
I’m also puzzled as to why he would walk away from the prospect of a 3rd consecutive domestic Treble and immortality for the mid-table mediocrity of the gig at Leicester.
The blame lies with Peter Lawwell and the board in their failure to share Brendan’s vision for success in Europe by spending accordingly. I fear that the days of the “Celtic biscuit tin” have returned.
While it’s better to see the season out with Neil Lennon at the helm, his appointment is nothing short of a face-saving exercise by the current board. It’s that transparent.
Hail and Hail again !
We have a wage bill that is unsubstainable.
Invest for success in Europe?
No chance when the clubs in the principle European league get hundreds of millions from TV money.
Valencia have a £30 m plus player on their books and another half dozen they have bought for £10m plus.
They are mid table in La Liga and will pobably get knocked out in the next round of the Europa despite the millions spent.
Why? Because there are bigger fish who can trump their £30m with £50/60m plus purchases.
Sorry,but I’m in no way happy with BRs ‘sudden’ departure,but I won’t join in the rage at him for doing so.Celtic FC will always come first and rightly so,BR took us to two trebles,seven trophies in less than three years.Whatever way you spin that it is an incredible feat and We should All never forget exactly who brought Us that success.
A football managers career is limited in the very same way a players is,so they should grab any new improving opportunity with both hands.Supporters readily forget this,but ask those same supporters,IF they were given the chance of promotion with better wages and working conditions,would they refuse it?
And if anyone says they wouldn’t grab that opportunity with both hands,well,they’re lying to you and,worse still,themselves.So who among you is above that search for betterment and financial gain? Not many is my guess.The betrayal is sore yes,but We cannot condemn him for seeking self improvement,that would be a nonstarter.
Or,indeed go nitpicking through his quotes and condemning him for wanting to improve.Lets face it,Scotland,fitba-wise,does have a glass ceiling,CFC🍀 rules the roost.
He has gone to a mid table,minor miracle workers,winners of the epl on their return to the premiership.There’ll be no bigots,racism,sectarianism or indeed all the other ‘benefits’ that come with managing CFC🍀,or indeed sevco.That fact alone would’ve been enough for me to be heading for the door.Being in the hot seat at CP isn’t an easy job by no stretch of the imagination,but leaving that position must be a relief in so many ways.
I dearly love Celtic FC🍀 but the pressure in the hot seat must be immense and a true weight on the shoulders of lesser men.Lest We Forget…..
BR brought Us COMPLETE SUCCESS……
Think about that before slagging the man that brought Us that COMPLETE SUCCESS.
HH💚🍀✅
Poppycock. Rodgers had a chance to make history and still move to Leicester in the summer.
You don’t leave your bride at the altar to run off with her sister.
Just remember that it was we fans who paid his salary and who were conned by the ‘dream job’ spiel.
I suspect that he did not get the support from the Board because they had the measure of the man. I wouldn’t invest in a man who would leave at the drop of a hat. Ratus Duplicitus.
So long, Brendan. And thanks for all the fish.
Football history in Scotland carries little credibility internationally. Big fish in a small pond.
Very good point. And logically you are correct but , let’s be honest, it is an emotional game and it is still very raw. I’m sure in time that most celtic supporters will be rational about Brendan, but not today
“I’m sure in time that most celtic supporters will be rational about Brendan…”
Aww bless. 🙂
Got to agree, its just how BR did it that annoys me. Still a great manager for us. 🍀
His achievements are noted – but when assessing a person’s contribution to success in whatever field you have to look at the complete picture .
BR did NOT have to ingratiate himself with exaggerated pronouncements that he ”was living the dream ” – then bail at a crucial week in the search for an historic Treble Treble .
He claims to have taken Celtic as far as he can – but not to the history making 9 trophies in a row ?
Why the rush to leave ? For the ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ position at Leicester – where he is the 6th manager in 4 years ? Hardly one-in-a-lifetime !
Had he stayed and created history with Treble Trebles , there would have been ample opportunity to seek pastures new – is no other EPL club going to ditch their manager again ?
There are many clubs on the continent who would have been available to a successful manager – or does success in Scotland not count ?
Sorry , but as a manager BR brought success – but his leaving has soured so much of what he achieved .
Its the manner and timing of the move that has angered the fans.
We are at the sharp end of the season with an interim manager in place and only hours to prepare for two games that will seriously impact our season.
Rodgers has brought this upon himself and I, for one, hope he struggles at his mid table new love, and suffers the same fate as Puel and Ranieri.
Hero to zetro in 24 hours.
It was probably quicker than that Joe,his betrayal is the hardest part to get past,as We All thought he was one of Us,’Here For The TEN’.
After tonight’s late winner at Tynecastle We were treated to Lenny tearing up the wing after Eddys well placed clincher.A taste of things to come?
Admittedly,the circumstances of BRs exit will rage long in the memory,for me,well,maybe it’s an age thing,I’ll try and remember the joy he brought to All @CFC🍀
HH💚🍀✅
Yes Joe it seems when people remarked that br was a ‘class act’ little did they know that’s exactly what it was ‘an act’.
HH🍀 onward and upward
I would disagree Rogers brought us continued success. He could have claimed complete success if he had saw out the season and left on a high instead of leaving the club high and dry. In my opinion he has tarnished his reputation. Where will he go when the superstars of Leicester turn against him he and he is sacked like the last three managers? He is in the past now and even the good memories are tainted.
Early on in my career, I was approached about taking on a role similar to the one I was already doing BUT for quite a bit more money. 60% more! I can’t say I wasn’t tempted but it wasn’t the no-brainer it appeared to be and I was torn between following the money or staying put in a position where I felt valued, respected and was making real progress. I also had a great boss, a load of lovely colleagues and the ear of the chairman – if I asked for something or made a recommendation then it was acted on with hitherto unknown haste. My boss noticed I was distracted so I told her what was on my mind and after a LONG chat – one in which she said she’d be very sorry to see me go, I’d be a HUGE loss but she doubted very much they could match the money I’d been offered – and pretty much decided I was going to stay. After our chat she was straight on the phone to the chairman; following day he travelled up from London to ask me not to leave. So I stayed.
I got a pay rise, received a sizeable bonus and I was authorised to recruit more staff which I did and trained them up to a decent level fairly quickly. Then my boss announced she was going off on maternity leave that she never came back from, the chairmen lost his wife and all interest in the company and I found I was surplus to requirements. Things can change that fast.
Ten years later I was still in the same line of work, slightly different sector and some way down the managerial ladder. And the money wasn’t so good either. I was head-hunted by another company who were diversifying into the area I’d been specialising in all these years. When they made me an offer I couldn’t refuse I didn’t have a moment’s hesitation in accepting it. Word soon got out I was moving and a number of people I dealt with – clients, suppliers and engineers alike – all I asked “Are you sure about that?” Turned out my prospective employer had a terrible reputation and a high turnover of staff. However, before I could even take up my new position I was head-hunted by another company. Similar scenario to the role I’d been in ten years earlier, interesting package, described as ‘a job for life’ and, best of all, an opportunity to escape life in London! What wasn’t there to like?
Within weeks of taking the position, my job description was changed. Not minor tweaks but a radical departure from anything and everything I’d ever done, nor something I had EVER wanted to do. Then it changed again… and again,,,and again. And then, less than a week after completing my relocation, the company went into administration, taking my job for life with it!
My career had nothing to do with football – unless you can count having Arsenal as an occasional customer! – but my experience shows there are very few ‘jobs for life anymore’, contracts and promises mean NOTHING. I’ll never know where I might have ended up had I accepted the offer first time I was head-hunted. I do know had I accepted the second one then I would have been made redundant within a few months as that company went bust. Had I remained in London chances are I’d have still ended up redundant – they ‘merged’ with another company who systematically got rid of most of my former colleagues. So far, neither sticking nor twisting has worked out particularly well for me.
I did think BR would hang around for TIAR but some of the noises this season suggested that wasn’t going to happen. Still surprised at the timing, did think he’d at least secure the Treble Treble before moving on. And I did think it would be to a bigger club than Leicester, thought the man had a wee bit more about him than money.
Thanks for this man.
It was the manner of his leaving, not the fact he left, that constitutes the betrayal. I would have thought this was obvious from this article, and the wider media comment on him leaving. No one disputes the success he brought us, but to then leave us up s..t creak without a paddle at the sharp end of the season, is the betrayal, especially after his professed love for our club.
Nonsense of the highest order. Yes he coasted us to domestic success but his track record in Europe was atrocious to the point of embarrassment. Complete success? Aye right!
Yes COMPLETE EMBARASSMENT In europe
Its all about opinions….and all I’ll say is…
The COMPLETE SUCCESS he gave us…has been tarnished by his subsequent actions.
He couldn’t have handled it any worse…if he tried.
No one questions his ability or achievements although that is what he was being well payed for.
No one grudges him more money.
However, the “sleekit” way he left the club casts a giant shadow on him as a man. He also cheated on the players who have given their all. I would be astounded if any of them followed him except for Boyata and we’ve already seen his colours.
I only hope that soon his name will never again appear on the Celtic sites.
I agree with everything you have said. Unfortunately for us, he was a big fish in a small pond. He left when his stock was at it’s highest. Dissapointed in the manner he left, but on reflection if he had confronted the fans and told them he was off mid season it would probably not have ended too well either. Good luck to the guy. I wish him only the best. We have a fantastic board at Celtic who have seen us through to this stage, going for 8 ina row. Thank god wee Neil was avalable and the board had the common sense to go after him. Exciting times ahead.
Sorry,but I’m in no way happy with BRs ‘sudden’ departure,but I won’t join in the rage at him for doing so.Celtic FC will always come first and rightly so,BR took us to two trebles,seven trophies in less than three years.Whatever way you spin that it is an incredible feat and We should All never forget exactly who brought Us that success.
A football managers career is limited in the very same way a players is,so they should grab any new improving opportunity with both hands.Supporters readily forget this,but ask those same supporters,IF they were given the chance of promotion with better wages and working conditions,would they refuse it?
And if anyone says they wouldn’t grab that opportunity with both hands,well,they’re lying to you and,worse still,themselves.So who among you is above that search for betterment and financial gain? Not many is my guess.The betrayal is sore yes,but We cannot condemn him for seeking self improvement,that would be a nonstarter.
Or,indeed go nitpicking through his quotes and condemning him for wanting to improve.Lets face it,Scotland,fitba-wise,does have a glass ceiling,CFC🍀 rules the roost.
He has gone to a mid table,minor miracle workers,winners of the epl on their return to the premiership.There’ll be no bigots,racism,sectarianism or indeed all the other ‘benefits’ that come with managing CFC🍀,or indeed sevco.That fact alone would’ve been enough for me to be heading for the door.Being in the hot seat at CP isn’t an easy job by no stretch of the imagination,but leaving that position must be a relief in so many ways.
I dearly love Celtic FC🍀 but the pressure in the hot seat must be immense and a true weight on the shoulders of lesser men.Lest We Forget…..
BR brought Us COMPLETE SUCCESS……
Think about that before slagging the man that brought Us that COMPLETE SUCCESS.
HH💚🍀✅