Safety first as Celtic agree Old Firm date

CELTIC and the Bank of Scotland Premier League have agreed on the need for calm despite their squabble over the date of the final Old Firm game of the season.

Parkhead chief executive Ian McLeod originally expressed fears the April 27 date would spark crowd trouble as he complained the game was less than three days after the UEFA Cup semi-final second leg at Boavista.

The club had hoped to urge the SPL board into a new vote over the date at a board meeting at Hampden Park today. But, after a meeting with Strathclyde Police, Celtic have withdrawn their request for an appeal against the date of the game on safety grounds.

The SPL have tried to ensure any potential championship decider would be avoided and the April 27 date was the only opportunity where, mathematically, the title race would still be live after the game.

There was crowd violence at Parkhead on May 2, 1999 when Rangers beat Celtic 3-0 to clinch the title while referee Hugh Dallas was also struck by a coin.

That match kicked off at 6.05pm and subsequently future Old Firm games were changed to earlier starts in a bid to avoid similar scenes.

Now the club have ceded to the police concerns over public safety and dropped their appeal for a switch.

A club statement said: “Celtic is satisfied that each of the key parties has now been presented with all of the information necessary to ensure that a properly informed decision can be made.

“The club has always accepted that, because of the unfortunate incidents surrounding the Celtic v Rangers fixture on May 2 1999, public safety considerations must take precedence over sporting fairness in this case.

“It is the decision of Strathclyde Police that, from a public safety perspective, Sunday April 27 is the more appropriate of the two dates offered by the SPL, the other being Saturday, May 3.

“Celtic respects the authority of Strathclyde Police and accepts their decision on this matter. On this basis, the club has now withdrawn its request for a re-vote amongst the SPL Board members on the question of the date for the match.

“Clearly, this outcome will disappoint Celtic supporters because the sporting inequality resulting from playing the match on April 27 remains.

“Nevertheless, the club strongly urges all of its supporters to respect the decision that has been taken to play the match on April 27 and, regardless of the final score, to refrain from any behaviour that would bring the good name of Celtic Football Club and its supporters into disrepute.”

SPL chairman Lex Gold said: “Everyone involved, from players to fans, has an excellent opportunity to ensure the game is a fantastic advertisement for Scottish football.”