Scottish Football.. a Stramash!

Those who know me will testify to my love of the beautiful game and my avid following of Partick Thistle Nil in the second tier of Scottish Football. They will also testify to my dislike of Rangers and Celtic and all the baggage they bring to the table when we should be talking football rather than sectarian bile.

It is in bewilderment that I have followed the demise of the mighty Glasgow Rangers over the past few months. At first I thought it was quite funny, but I'm not laughing any more. I'm beginning to think I'm one of only a few who believe that Scottish Football has shot itself in the foot in the clamour to kick a club, which few admire, (apart from their "fans"),  in any shape or form, when it's down and almost out.

The reality is that Rangers found themselves in the position they are in as a result of extremely bad management, and all sorts of shennanegins have been going on that few were party to. However, many will be made to suffer! The blame rests on the shoulders of individuals rather than the club itself. However, let's kick the club, even although Scottish Football needs them, however much I hate to admit that. With Celtic at the top table and Rangers at the bottom, there are problems, financial and otherwise, that are going to kick in, and which Scottish Football may never recover from.

However much I admire the high moral ground that we have all supposedly taken, I wonder how much this has been shaped by the dislike of Rangers, and the wish that Celtic could actually follow them soon into the abyss?

I was brought up with sectarianism in Glasgow and the West of Scotland, and I understand the issues more than most as a result of that upbringing. I was taught the words of "The Sash" in Primary One by my fellow pupils. I often wondered, as I grew up, why the troubles in Northern Ireland did not spill over into Glaswegian streets and communities. I believed, as I grew older, that the reason that violence did not erupt was because of the "safety valve" of the Old Firm matches. Much of the hatred and ill-feeling was contained therein, and once the 90 minutes were over, everyone felt a little better!

Would it be wrong to suggest that Glasgow, sociologically, needs this fixture to continue, however much I hate to admit that too?

As far as the demise of Scottish Football is concerned, only time will tell. I really wouldn't be at all concerned if Rangers and Celtic both left Scottish Football and let the rest of us get on with it. It's the imbalance I fear.