Celtic Rangers Old Firm bigotry in Canada
Tuesday, 4 January 2011 A scene of sectarian hatred between Celtic and Rangers fans emerged in Canada prior to the New Year’s Day Old Firm clash in Glasgow.
Members of the Glasgow Rangers Supporters Club arrived at their Toronto clubhouse on Saturday morning to find the front window shattered by a brick.
Across a sign bearing their club’s name, the IRA slogan Tiocfiadh ar la — Irish for ‘Our day will come’ — was scrawled in black marker.
Underneath that there was another message reading ‘Dirty Orange B******s’.
Given the graffiti’s political undertones, police are to question members of the nearby Toronto Celtic Supporters Club, just a 10-minute drive from the Rangers clubhouse.
“There’s no evidence right now to link them, only a suspicion from Rangers’ club owners,” said Mounties Staff Sgt Kevin Murrell, adding that police have yet to determine whether the incident qualifies as a hate crime.
Jim Maxwell, president of the Rangers club, said he suspected someone from the Celtic club is responsible, though he chalked it up to New Year’s Eve debauchery.
He said the tensions that run between fans in Northern Ireland don’t really exist in Canada, stressing that the local clubhouses are particularly friendly.
A Celtic club executive member, who gave his name as Brian, said: “We deplore any action like that against the Rangers club, or any other club for that matter.”