Football Diary
by Patrick O'Connor
INTERESTING comments to come from Celtic last week after their Glasgow neighbours and arch-rivals Rangers went into administration.
The club launched an attack on Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond after he reportedly claimed Celtic needed Rangers to prosper.
Speaking about the possibility of Rangers going bust, Celtic's chief executive Peter Lawell told the BBC that this "would have no material effect on Celtic".
He said: “We look after ourselves. We don't rely on any other club. We are in a decent position, we're very strong.”
Can''t agree with him I'm afraid. Scottish football is in a poor state, mainly because it is totally dominated by the two Glasgow giants. Year after year it is a boring two horse race, interest will further decline if it becomes an even more boring one-horse race.
It appears that artificial pitches could return to the Football League. They were banned in the late 1980s but advances in technology, combined with the possible financial and community benefits have prompted a re-think.
The Football League is now carrying out public consultation to seek the views of clubs and their supporters.
Being a traditionalist I don't like them. Football was meant to be played on grass – end of!
Football clubs go against the wishes of their fans at their peril. Premier League Newcastle United announced in November that they were changing the name of their St James' Park ground to the Sports Direct Arena.
The club said the change was a temporary measure to “showcase” the sponsorship opportunity to “interested parties.” They said stadium rebranding could generate up to £10m a year.
The decision sparked anger from fans with many claiming they would continue to call the ground St James' Park.
Signs bearing the former name were removed last week but within hours 'St James' graffiti was daubed in white paint on one of the walls at the stadium.
Newcastle have some of the most passionate supporters in the land and St James Park has always been heralded as an exciting and atmospheric venue.
Potential sponsors may find supporter resistance to name change a problem.
A comment from the newly appointed administrator at Portsmouth sums up the crazy world of football.
Portsmouth have just had 10 points deducted after going into administration and dropped into the bottom three in the Championship following a 2-0 defeat at Barnsley.
Trevor Birch has revealed that an unnamed player at Portsmouth is currently earning in excess of £30,000 a week.
“For a Championship club, that's just crazy,” said Birch. “Expenditure has exceeded income.”
Back in November 2008, referee Stuart Attwell took charge of a Championship game between the team I support, Derby County and their local rivals Nottingham Forest,
He disallowed two late Derby goals, booked eight players and sent off a Forest player in a stormy game which ended 1-1.
The then Derby manager Paul Jewell accused Attwell of “losing control” and “robbing” Derby of a win.
This was one of many controversial moments involving Attwell although it didn't stop him being promoted to the elite list of referees taking charge of Premier League games.
But has now lost his place on the elite list and will return to Football League duty.
In a statement Professional Game Match Officials Limited general manager Mike Riley backed Attwell to improve as a referee and return to the top level.
“He has shown many of the attributes of a top flight official but the Premier League is an exacting standard with huge demands. It is imperative that PGMOL deliver the best officiating possible to the English game at all levels.
“This is not the end for Stuart. There are several match officials who have returned to the National List and benefited from it.”
So that means that Attwell will be refereeing more games at Championship level which includes Derby.
Thanks a bunch!