Robbie Keane, A Celtic Fan?

[little curly alan ball]

Wasn't he declaring his eternal love for Liverpool when he signed for them? :huh:

Oh yeah , and his second love for Tottenham upon being Shanghai'd back there quicksmart - as the Antip's like to say - .
Still , he is Irish . They're all Celtic - and Liverpool . And Tottenham , and Man Utd , and Arsenal - , ..... fans , eh ???

 

[little curly alan ball]

Quality , btw .

 

[davek]

This. The vast majority of people support Celtic in addition to supporting their premier league team.

For example, my school organises a yearly trip to Celtic Park to see a home game and train with the coaches as it's the one football club that won't divide anybody.

Not to mention that Robbie Keane is from Tallaght, a working class area (was in his day, still is but to a lesser extent) in Dublin, as evidenced by his thick Dublin accent. Working class Irish people are also much more likely to support Celtic fervently.

Never been a Celtic fan myself, however. Always seen it as a sign of 'plastic' republicanism/nationalism on the part of southerners.

Always wanted to do a study on the positive and negative effects Celtic and Rangers have had on Irish (and Northern Irish) life over the past few decades.

An interesting thing to note is if you youtube the Love Ulster riots in Dublin a year or two back you'll see a number of the "nationalist youths" are wearing Celtic jerseys.

I've often said if you can solve the Celtic/Rangers rivalry you'll have peace in the North!

This might be a stupid question, but do Rangers have followers in ROI?

 

[Grarghsies]

This might be a stupid question, but do Rangers have followers in ROI?

Of course. The border counties in Ulster (Donegal, Monaghan and Cavan) have some notable and substantial Protestant towns and also have a large Protestant minority population in the wider community. Some communities (namely the Orange Order lodges in the south) are a lot more political than their protestant brethren. Those types of people would support Rangers pretty fervently.

However, Protestants are much more apolitical in the south. Religion as a whole is not as big an issue. Celtic support is seen as more of a national obligation than one born out of sectarian divides.

But if you're asking if I would see a Rangers replica shirt out and about, then no. Any rangers support would be very very very low key in Dublin.

You wouldn't really get the 'type' of person who supports Rangers living in any sort of substantial numbers in the urban areas of the south. Our southern Unionists during the War of Independence were very much the upper classes. The peers of the upper classes moved for the most part to London, whereas their rich, upper-middle class friends discovered they could be just as successful in the new Irish Free State under the moderate pro-Treaty Cumann na nGaedhael (Who went out of their way to appoint 15 leading southern Unionists to the first Senate of the Free State as a gesture of reconciliation)

The point I'm trying to make there is that the majority of Protestants living south of the border areas would see themselves as Irish. They wouldn't support Celtic by any means, but they wouldn't stand for the anti-Irishness of the Rangers fans.

I have a couple of friends who both come from southern protestant families who both support Hibernian. From what I hear that's pretty typical.


Sorry for that spiel lol

 

[Neiler]

Its a dual thing, we are all brought up to support Celtic, all young Irish footballers and football fans have a team in England and support Celtic in Scotland. I have had season tickets for Parkhead and Goodison in the same season.

Celtic is more then a football team its an expression of ethnicity and a link to once same but now shared heritage built out of discrimination of the early part of the 19th century! Granted the nutters today try and use it to sectarian ends, but these days it is far more sectarian in Glasgow then in Ireland.

Ireland and Celtic always have shared a culture. Celtic without question is the most popular club in Ireland, North and South. The majority of the Celtic fans i know born in Galsgow were raised to see themselves as Irish rather then Scottish which is why you see players like McGeady and McCarthey born in Scotland choose to play for Ireland over Scotland. Dermot Desmond the clubs largest shareholder is Irish as are most of the other shareholders.

For any Irish footballer its an aspiration to one day play for Celtic, Roy Keane turned down many clubs to sign for them from Utd, Robbie i heard today turned down West Ham and Sunderland to go there. Over the years we have had so many players who have played for Celtic.

To put it into perspective an Irish player playing for Celtic would be like Shearar playing for Newcastle and certainly is warmly received in Ireland.

Every Irish kid has three kits an EPL one, a Celtic one and an Irish national team one.

 

[NeoNaoNeo]

He's Irish, they usually like their local team, their fave Scottish out of the two Glaswegians depending on their preference, and an English team.

 

[davek]

Of course. The border counties in Ulster (Donegal, Monaghan and Cavan) have some notable and substantial Protestant towns and also have a large Protestant minority population in the wider community. Some communities (namely the Orange Order lodges in the south) are a lot more political than their protestant brethren. Those types of people would support Rangers pretty fervently.

However, Protestants are much more apolitical in the south. Religion as a whole is not as big an issue. Celtic support is seen as more of a national obligation than one born out of sectarian divides.

But if you're asking if I would see a Rangers replica shirt out and about, then no. Any rangers support would be very very very low key in Dublin.

You wouldn't really get the 'type' of person who supports Rangers living in any sort of substantial numbers in the urban areas of the south. Our southern Unionists during the War of Independence were very much the upper classes. The peers of the upper classes moved for the most part to London, whereas their rich, upper-middle class friends discovered they could be just as successful in the new Irish Free State under the moderate pro-Treaty Cumann na nGaedhael (Who went out of their way to appoint 15 leading southern Unionists to the first Senate of the Free State as a gesture of reconciliation)

The point I'm trying to make there is that the majority of Protestants living south of the border areas would see themselves as Irish. They wouldn't support Celtic by any means, but they wouldn't stand for the anti-Irishness of the Rangers fans.

I have a couple of friends who both come from southern protestant families who both support Hibernian. From what I here that's pretty typical.


Sorry for that spiel lol

Thanks for that. On a related point and Irish football clubs, I suppose with many of the Irish League sides being formed in the period prior to independence they'd have had their origins in British founders (or at least Irish Unionists), it being the Garrison Game back then? Do any of them have the reputation now as being 'west Brit' or whatever the pejorative is these days? I think I remember reading somewhere that Finn Harps had that repuation, although I'm probably way out there.

 

[davek]

Its a dual thing, we are all brought up to support Celtic, all young Irish footballers and football fans have a team in England and support Celtic in Scotland. I have had season tickets for Parkhead and Goodison in the same season.

Celtic is more then a football team its an expression of ethnicity and a link to once same but now shared heritage built out of discrimination of the early part of the 19th century! Granted the nutters today try and use it to sectarian ends, but these days it is far more sectarian in Glasgow then in Ireland.

Ireland and Celtic always have shared a culture. Celtic without question is the most popular club in Ireland, North and South. The majority of the Celtic fans i know born in Galsgow were raised to see themselves as Irish rather then Scottish which is why you see players like McGeady and McCarthey born in Scotland choose to play for Ireland over Scotland. Dermot Desmond the clubs largest shareholder is Irish as are most of the other shareholders.

For any Irish footballer its an aspiration to one day play for Celtic, Roy Keane turned down many clubs to sign for them from Utd, Robbie i heard today turned down West Ham and Sunderland to go there. Over the years we have had so many players who have played for Celtic.

To put it into perspective an Irish player playing for Celtic would be like Shearar playing for Newcastle and certainly is warmly received in Ireland.

Every Irish kid has three kits an EPL one, a Celtic one and an Irish national team one.

I always find it strange that Hibs were the club actually named after the Irish and have about as much following in Ireland as your average English Premier team. Maye they're not fashionable enough for the Nationalists who follow Celtic.

 

[Grarghsies]

Thanks for that. On a related point and Irish football clubs, I suppose with many of the Irish League sides being formed in the period prior to independence they'd have had their origins in British founders (or at least Irish Unionists), it being the Garrison Game back then? Do any of them have the reputation now as being 'west Brit' or whatever the pejorative is these days? I think I remember reading somewhere that Finn Harps had that repuation, although I'm probably way out there.

I'm not entirely sure on that one tbh. I don't think you could honestly call at least the Dublin clubs West Brits without being stabbed. I'm not sure about the other LoI clubs, maybe some boggers might come on and share their country tales

I will say, in Dublin's case, and trying to keep this as snobless as possible, that LoI football is not exactly a middle-class thing. I'm not calling LoI fans scumbags or anything like that, but there's definitely a correlation between (lack of) affluence and anti-Britishness.

I will however, in my local club; Sporting Fingal's case, state absolutely definitively that the vast majority of their fans are complete and total scumbags.

It's a very delicate subject that I'm loathe to comment on because I'll offend someone. Not to mention that when dealing with this large amount of people it's hard to not to use sweeping generalisations or appear snobby

 

[Neiler]

Thanks for that. On a related point and Irish football clubs, I suppose with many of the Irish League sides being formed in the period prior to independence they'd have had their origins in British founders (or at least Irish Unionists), it being the Garrison Game back then? Do any of them have the reputation now as being 'west Brit' or whatever the pejorative is these days? I think I remember reading somewhere that Finn Harps had that repuation, although I'm probably way out there.

Not really - Finn Harps are from Donegal. Not really any divide TBH.

Football would be up there the most popular sports in the country. We have our own Gaelic Football and Hurling in the summer months which are ethnic irish games, which are probably as, if not more popular then football in an ordinary season. Croke Park is the centre of Irish games and only recently allowed soccer and rugby in through their doors albeit untill Landsowne if finished its rebuild. I played all three games and never noticed any of the subtle undertones to be honest - they come more from people who never played, but presume.

I suppose untill the mid 90s rugby was considered the Garrison game untill the advent of the professional game and Munster and Leinster dominating Europe and Ireland Grand Slamming all over the show. I suppose an illustration of a lack of a divide is when Ulster won the first European Cup, our Rugby club was open almost all night celebrating.

No real sectarianism in Irish support these days to be fair. Last incident i remember was the national front tearing apart Lansdowne but that a good ten years ago now surely.

 

[Grarghsies]

Not really - Finn Harps are from Donegal. Not really any divide TBH.

Football would be up there the most popular sports in the country. We have our own Gaelic Football and Hurling in the summer months which are ethnic irish games, which are probably as, if not more popular then football in an ordinary season. Croke Park is the centre of Irish games and only recently allowed soccer and rugby in through their doors albeit untill Landsowne if finished its rebuild. I played all three games and never noticed any of the subtle undertones to be honest - they come more from people who never played, but presume.

I suppose untill the mid 90s rugby was considered the Garrison game untill the advent of the professional game and Munster and Leinster dominating Europe and Ireland Grand Slamming all over the show.

No real sectarianism in Irish support these days to be fair. Last incident i remember was the national front tearing apart Lansdowne but that a good ten years ago now surely.

Does depend where you are though. Football and Hurling are much less popular where I'm from in comparison to soccer and to a lesser extent rugby.

Urban/rural divide at its most visible I suppose.

 

[davek]

I'm not entirely sure on that one tbh. I don't think you could honestly call at least the Dublin clubs West Brits without being stabbed. I'm not sure about the other LoI clubs, maybe some boggers might come on and share their country tales

I will say, in Dublin's case, and trying to keep this as snobless as possible, that LoI football is not exactly a middle-class thing. I'm not calling LoI fans scumbags or anything like that, but there's definitely a correlation between (lack of) affluence and anti-Britishness.

I will however, in my local club; Sporting Fingal's case, state absolutely definitively that the vast majority of their fans are complete and total scumbags.

It's a very delicate subject that I'm loathe to comment on because I'll offend someone. Not to mention that when dealing with this large amount of people it's hard to not to use sweeping generalisations or appear snobby

Very noble of you that mate, you're too thoughtful for the interweb.

 

[Neiler]

Does depend where you are though. Football and Hurling are much less popular where I'm from in comparison to soccer and to a lesser extent rugby.

Urban/rural divide at its most visible I suppose.

True, you have to make a big effort in the City if you want to play GF. I have though so im a bit biased. Not so much Rugby these days its much easier then when i started playing, football is everywhere in the City though.

Suppose your right you dont get many Kilkenny international footballers.

In the coutry the local GF is the be all and end and end all!

 

[Grarghsies]

Very noble of you that mate, you're too thoughtful for the interweb.

I know, I'm wasted on you lot

 

[Grarghsies]

True, you have to make a big effort in the City if you want to play GF. I have though so im a bit biased. Not so much Rugby these days its much easier then when i started playing, football is everywhere in the City though.

Suppose your right you dont get many Kilkenny international footballers.

In the coutry the local GF is the be all and end and end all!

Don't forget the pub. And the church

I think it's that it's pretty impossible to just play a bit of football out on the road with your mates when you're a kid tbh.

Anyone can find a wall, and a ball and have a game of soccer. But football is pretty hard to play without a pitch. And grass is at a premium inside the Dublin postcodes.