Odds and ends from the trip to Seville. Some from fans some from newspapers, but hopefully they give the flavour of that wonderful party.
Hugh McIIvanney's article, in the Sunday
Times, The Voice of Sport, August 31,
2003.
Celtic get reward for Seville
miracle
Sometimes even football
administrators have to be complimented and the
tributes are undoubtedly due to
Uefa for showing the imagination to rise
above tradition by bestowing their
fair-play award for last season not on
a club but on a mass of paying customers, the amazing worldwide army of
Celtic fans. That the Celtic
support is a phenomenon totally unique in the
whole of sport became undeniable
when an estimated 70,000 of the faithful
converged on Seville for the Uefa
Cup Final in late May, and appropriated
that beautiful city for a gigantic
street party whose bonhomie remained
magnificently undiluted after their
team were beaten by Porto. The
hoariest veteran observers of the scene (All right, I'm talking personally here)
had to admit that they had never witnessed anything comparable.
It must be said immediately, of
course, that the Glasgow club's following
contains plenty of questionable
elements. Bigotry and a willingness to be
violently contentious are not hard
to find in their rank. But when they
congregate from across the globe in
a vast concentration of allegiance,
the warm, sentimental mixture of memories and hopes that binds them together
invariably swamps the less
attractive tendencies. Like Scotland's tartan
army, who have also
consistently earned admiration in distant countries,
they police themselves. The hardest
men among them embrace the wholesome
principle that there is nothing
more macho than civility and respect for
their hosts. Those who step out of
line are liable to be reminded
forcefully of their
responsibilities.
The Celtic supporters thoroughly
deserve the award for the small miracle
of Seville. They can hardly be optimistic about their club's prospects of
going far in this year's Champions
League. But winning friends is never a
negligible consolation.
Football 365 have
picked their highlights of season 2002/03. Here is what they had to say about
us.
You'll Never Walk Alone: May 25
Celtic's end of season was heartbreaking by anyone's standards. A first European
final in 36 years ended in a 3-2 defeat to Porto in Seville, then a final-day
goal difference race for the Scottish title with their bitter rivals Rangers saw
them briefly in possession only to fall two goals behind, miss a penalty and
then hear that the Gers had scored a spot-kick of their own to move out of
sight.
And how did the fans respond? With a chorus of their anthem, perhaps more widely
popularised by Liverpool but one that the Celts claim they sang first. Not with
recriminations or silence, but words of support. The essence of being a football
supporter, as opposed to a mere fan.
UEFA Fair Play Award: Celtic FC supporters
An estimated figure of over 80,000 Celtic supporters from all over the world
travelled to Seville to support their team in the UEFA Cup final. Embracing the
Porto fans who crossed their paths, they converted the city into one huge fiesta
and, whether they saw the dramatic final from the stands at the Estadio Olímpico
or not, created an atmosphere that the locals will never forget. On behalf of
them and the game of football, UEFA can only invite everybody to take
their hats off and salute the 'Bhoys' from Glasgow.
And then FIFA
Celtic picked up Fifa's Fair Play Award on behalf
of the fans that
travelled to last season's Uefa Cup final.
Around 80,000 travelled to Seville to see their team lose 3-2 to Porto
and the honour is for the supporters' "exemplary fair and cordial
conduct".
Executive director Peter Lawwell said: "Celtic is a unique club with
many thousands of fantastic supporters.
"This award is a tribute to all of them, as they showed last year, they
are the best fans in the world."
The Fifa prize follows the award in August of Uefa's equivalent
accolade.
Eddie Toner, general secretary of the Celtic Supporters Association said
last week: "I am sure all supporters will be delighted with this
tremendous honour.
"The supporters were a credit to Celtic Football Club and we all hope
that we will be fortunate enough to enjoy similar occasions in European
football this season."
Celtic manager Martin O'Neill added: "We have been delighted with the
backing the team has received from supporters in all the competitions we
have been involved in, both home and abroad. They all richly deserve
this recognition from Fifa."