Happy clappers, collective punishment and Celtic fan media

On Sunday a Celtic podcaster account on social media had a dig of sorts at Martin O’Neill and Shaun Maloney during the match at Rugby Park with Celtic 2-0 down at the time. Emotions running high, it was the kind of thing you’d hear someone say at the game, on a supporters bus or in the pub and maybe cause you to shake your head.

Martin O’Neill and Shaun Maloney, Auchinleck Talbot v Celtic, Scottish Cup 4th Round, Rugby Park. Sunday 18 January 2026. Photo Vagelis Georgariou ( The Celtic Star)

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This tweet however was used by several board friendly happy clappers accounts to condemn the entire fan media and to discredit the Celtic Fans Collective for campaigning the ban on the affected Celtic fan media to be lifted.

At least this was the first time there has been any sort of justification for the unjustifiable ban on participating Celtic fan media outlets by the club that amounts to nothing more than censorship.

To be clear this fan media ban only applies only to a small number of sites – from the news sites this includes The Celtic Star and Celts are Here but not the likes of 67HH, The Celtic Blog, Video Celts or even the board friendly CQN. So from these only The Celtic Star and Celts Are Here received a red card from the club for no apparent reason. All the club said was that they were reviewing the access.

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Kieran Tierney during the Celtic fan media conference at Celtic Park on Friday 18 July 2025. Photo Conor Spence (The Celtic Star)

In the podcasts ACSOM and The Celtic Exchange were banned because they were on the rota working with the club and the club set out when each outlet was due to appear at the media conferences. All outlets on the rota would be invited to fan media conferences with new signings and things seemed to be working fine until the ban was imposed.

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So many, indeed most of the fan media outlets are NOT on the rota so these outlets have not been NOT banned. Some left of their own accord, others got banned for things said or written, others never joined in the first place and one has our former Chairman’s number on speed dial so never bothered.

Kieran Tierney during the Celtic fan media conference at Celtic Park on Friday 18 July 2025. Photo Conor Spence (The Celtic Star)

The Celtic Star should be judged by supporters and by the club only on what we say, do and write, not on a random angry tweet that has zero to do with us. All other outlets should be treated similarly. Collective punishment by the board is bad enough but widening beyond the group of sites actually involved and therefore affected by the ban, to include non participating outlets to attack the banned sites is well out of order, like the ban itself.

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But their ignorance and motivation is there for all to see.

Our Dear Green Place tifo by the Green Brigade, September 2024. Photo IMAGO

For us the ban on the Green Brigade has always been the most important matter that needs to be resolved. With the Green Brigade there has been concerns that the club has gone into in great detail via their lengthy statements on the official website.

Tellingly you will note that the club has had nothing to say to justify the fan media ban. Because there is no justification. None whatsoever. And that says more about the current Celtic custodians than it does about The Celtic Star and the other banned outlets.

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Hopefully today The Celtic Fans Collective representatives meeting Brian Wilson and the club’s Executive Directors will ask them to explain their reasoning behind the ban. Their answer to that would be interesting.

Victor Wanyama trudges off the field of play after being red carded and is consoled by Neil Lennon Dunfermline manager Ayr United v Dunfermline, Scottish Championship, Football, Somerset Park, Ayr, – 29 March 2025 Photo Garry McHarg Shutterstock

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Happy clapper Siamese Bhoy should know that the red card affects the individual deemed to have committed the offence. Not his teammates or those not even in the team. We have no control over any other outlet in what they say, write or tweet and their actions – good, bad or indifferent – so that should have no bearing on our relationship with the club operating under the format they themselves created.

Celtic in the Thirties by Matt Corr. Click on image to order

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