What it means to you to be a Celtic fan

I don't know. I am interested in a lot of things about Celtic and not just the football. I have said it before that I expect better of "us" than I would anyone else.

Genuinely I think there is something to the Celtic Family thing. It makes me feel a little daft at times in saying ut, but what thr ****.

More than most we have nurtured and protected our own stories and legends. It is such a brilliant story. Every club thinks they are 'special' but genuinely I think inly about 10 clubs in the world can back that up. We are one of them.

 

There is a need or desire within humans to belong to a group or sect. We see it manifest itself all over the place with various people actually defining their whole character around their group; British, Irish, Nationalist, Socialist, Tory, Catholic, Muslim, Goth, Black Panther, Hell's Angel, Orange Man, Mason etc etc.

I guess if I have to give in to my own human nature and let myself belong to a cultist collective then being a football fan is surely one of the most harmless (you'd imagine...) ways to fill the void. I do quite often consider how silly a situation it may be to put so much of my life into following a group of young men kicking a ball around a park, but I would have to concede that for whatever obscure reason it's fun - and it also fills the primitive need to go pillage your neighbourly tribe and at least try to return home in glory.

So Celtic for me was never really considered, my first memories of Celtic Park were on my dad's shoulders and I can't remember ever really having a choice in the matter on which team I would go on to follow. But the chance was a happy one and if I had to find a football club then a Goldilocks one the size of Celtic (not too big, not too small) is probably about right - and the lefty liberal nature or ethos of the club's support falls comfortably within my own (considering Celtic was not a choice, it begs the question of how much liberal lefty politics were a choice?).

There is also the massive bonus of having a considerable diaspora. When I turned up in Malta at 21 years old, without a friend on the island, I wasn't slow in seeking the local CSC and actually making myself some friends for life - that awkward social situation when you are trying to make friends becomes a lot less awkward when you can murmur to the stranger beside you "I still haven't forgave that **** Strachan for Bratislava" - easy social lubrication. Apart from Malta I've turned up in Bramalea CSC outside Toronto where the Bhoys barely let me buy a drink all night (and a few years later on my return got me free box tickets for Celtic vs Man United in Toronto), when on a short trip to Dubai I've turned up to the local CSC to find a bastion of drunken friendliness among a horribly dry (in the alcoholic sense) city. On a flight back from Asia last year I ended up having to wait in Gatwick for 8 hours, so I jumped on the 15 minute train to East Croydon CSC - where the Bhoys of Croydon welcomed me as their own during the Scottish Cup Final. Once I even decided to travel to Villarreal on my own to watch the game, knowing that I would easily make friends when I got there - I ended up meeting a Glaswegian fella in Malta Airport on my way who would go on to cohabit in my Maltese home for six months (and actually got a flight from Malaysia to attend my wedding a few months back).

So yes, it fills the need to belong, it's fun, it's extremely good social lubrication for like minded individuals and most importantly it gives me an excuse to **** off with the lads to test the local beverages in some weird and wonderful European location every now and again (next stop Lisbon ).

 

Amen my brother

 

You'd think so, but there are so many facets to being a Celtic supporter (some of which you have outlined) that renders that almost impossible.

I have been criticised by some for using Celtic as a vehicle to push my agenda. I think that agenda was part of what attracted me to Celtic in the first place. Left leaning sons of the diaspora. Perfect fit for me. As a kid Celtic were as remote as my local clubs as nobody in my family liked football. It made sense.