Feeling foolish Mr Platini?

Anti Sectarian
Ógra Shinn Féin

A week has passed since Fulham and Celtic squared up to each other at Craven Cottage in London. What was supposed to be a fun family day out, descended into shame after David Healy made the score 3-1 to Fulham.

Some spectators who considered themselves to be fans of Glasgow Celtic began chanting ‘Where were you on the 12th?’, questioning where Healy was on the day his fellow ‘norn iron’ brethren were celebrating their bigoted sectarian festival.


Healy’s response brought cold memories back to a similar bigoted incident from Paul Gascoigne, when he celebrated a goal by mimicking an Orange flute player. I attended the game with my young sisters. I am outraged that this kind of bigotry was exposed to my family, who know that sectarianism is completely unacceptable.

First of all, to those supposed fans I say this. Glasgow Celtic Football Club was founded in 1888, as a charity to help impoverished people in Glasgow, many of whom had left Ireland during or after the famine.

These people became the victims of sectarian attacks and discrimination. The main aim of Glasgow Celtic is to continue on the proud traditions of the anti sectarian charity it was founded as. Take your sectarianism elsewhere, it will not be welcomed by genuine Celtic fans as myself or my 8 year old sister you exposed it to!

Dear Mr Healy, of all people you should be most remorseful of the events. A person such as you,
who had been awarded from one of the greats of the game Michele Platini for achieving the remarkable feat of scoring as many goals as you did in ‘Norn Iron’s’ qualifying campaign, you should know that in the north of Ireland, children from all walks of life look up to you as a role model.

What kind of role model would portray an Orange bigot in front of 20,000 plus soccer fans, and to English people who do not know the curse sectarianism has had on our country.

An apology goes some way to repairing the hurt caused, but much more needs to be done.

I call on David Healy to publicly renounce sectarianism in all its forms, and to meet with cross community groups to offer a SINCERE apology for your actions, and to figure out a way that you might make amends for your disgraceful behaviour.

The time is soon coming to a united soccer team for all of this island, and I for one will not cheer for you, regardless of your immense talents, if you do not make severe steps to combat sectarianism.

I also call on UEFA president Michele Platini to publicly denounce Healy’s actions, and to make serious policies of combating sectarianism, racism and any other form of bigotry in European soccer.

By commissioning a prize for David Healy, you rightly celebrated the talents of a gifted soccer player.

Now show your commitment to combating bigotry by implementing a REAL plan to extinguish this scourge from soccer.