Neil Lennon Attacked By Hearts Fan

Celtic manager Neil Lennon hit by fan

Celtic manager Neil Lennon has been hit by a spectator during a Scottish Premier League game against Hearts at Tynecastle in Edinburgh.

The incident occurred after Celtic's Gary Hooper had put the visitors two goals ahead.

Before the game could restart a fan clambered from the Hearts section of the main stand and made for the Celtic boss who was on the touchline.

He connected with the Celtic boss before being bundled to the ground.

After a brief fracas, police and stewards handcuffed the fan and took him away.

Scottish Football Association chief executive Stewart Regan issued a statement, saying: "Clearly this kind of behaviour from supporters is wholly unacceptable.

"The safety of players, club officials and match officials is paramount on or around the field of play, and this clear breach of security is a matter I will be discussing with SPL chief executive Neil Doncaster tomorrow."

Celtic won the game 3-0 to ensure the SPL title race goes to the final day.

The incident occurred after their second goal in the 49th minute.

The Celtic manager looked stunned after the attack but was uninjured.

Former Northern Ireland boss Lennon has been in the headlines regularly this season.

In January a package addressed to him containing bullets was intercepted at a sorting office in Country Antrim.

In March, the club confirmed Lennon was under 24-hour security surveillance after a suspicious package was intercepted at a Royal Mail sorting office in Saltcoats, Ayrshire.

On 19 April it emerged that Royal Mail intercepted a total of two "viable" parcel bombs addressed to Lennon.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-13368945

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fC9NZHHGW2Y&feature=player_embedded

or

http://yfrog.com/0gs0zz

 

What a farce Scottish football is.

Worse than the Polish league for sh*t off the pitch taking the attention off the sh*t on it.

This is a disgrace. Scottish football need to completely change the way it works. I don't blame Lennon for walking, the way he's been allowed to be teated is a disgrace.

Just a disgrace, minority of idiots up there spoiling it for the rest.

F***ing Coward hitting him from behind too, hope he gets a hefty jail sentence.

Celtic fans on their messageboards wanting in on English football.  Yeah, like that would ever happen - what with all Celtic's good anti-English songbook.

Read this comment on one of their forums and wet my pants.  Apparently this is the reason that they won't be allowed in.

The problem is that we are too big. What team in the EPL is going to want another team with 60k + stadium capacity to compete against? We would be massive, we'd have the funds to take the EPL after a couple of seasons, making it much harder for their top 4 to compete for European money.

Rangers probably could be considered for entry to an English league, but Celtic have got no chance - especially not with all the IRA stuff.

Back to Neil Lennon though - his attacker needs a jail sentence.

Can't see Lennon lasting much longer - this kind of pressure will ultimately affect his ability to do the job.

Can't see Lennon lasting much longer - this kind of pressure will ultimately affect his ability to do the job.

I think he'll quit at the end of the season JD, he'll probably get himself a job in the premier league or championship, You can not work under them circumstances and no doubt that will have shook him to the core, all it would have took is for that idiot to have a knife and it could have been game over.

This is getting seriously dangerous.

I was at work when it happened and there were texts doing the rounds immediately and both sets of fans exchanged some heated 'banter' already.

Quite honestly I'm f**king sick of the pair of them, you should have heard the Celtic fans at the weekend. Every second song was about the IRA, I used to not mind Celtic but they are just as indefensible nowadays.

Lennon should 'stand down' and they should learn the lessons of this season, the city has been quite tense at times recently. It has been getting pretty ridiculous and I'm sick of it.

Edit: another thing. The way both sets of fans justify it and use terms like 'fenian' and 'proddy' as if they are nothing doesn't help. I'm not for banning words and such draconian legislation but something needs to be done to stop the next generation doing this.

The majority of adults will never be able to see the damage it is doing but there has to be something down about all this to stop in going on and on, generation after generation.

It was 400 years ago for F**k sake!

Can't see Lennon lasting much longer - this kind of pressure will ultimately affect his ability to do the job.

To be honest he has always had it like this, he had his head kicked in once in the West End in the nicest place to go for a drink in all of Glasgow. Was a few blokes just laid into him for being Neil Lennon, no really provocation.

 I saw him in one pub a few times back in August once he had changed 'locals'  after the previous incident and he can't even go there now because of abuse he received at 7pm on a Thursday before even a few games, its not like he was out on a Saturday after a game even!

Its people like that idiot who attacked him that ruin the game :/.

That's pretty disturbing.  I don't know how he puts up with the hatred.

To be honest he has always had it like this, he had his head kicked in once in the West End in the nicest place to go for a drink in all of Glasgow. Was a few blokes just laid into him for being Neil Lennon, no really provocation.

 I saw him in one pub a few times back in August once he had changed 'locals'  after the previous incident and he can't even go there now because of abuse he received at 7pm on a Thursday before even a few games, its not like he was out on a Saturday after a game even!

I wiki'd Neil Lennon and apparently the ones that attacked him got 2 year sentences for it.  This lout should also spend some time at one of HM facilities, F***ing dangerous, nasty idiot.

I think this is disgraceful and would never condone it. However, i think Neil Lennon almost encourages this distaste towards him. As an Irish man, i think its important for me to state that i have no links with either Celtic or Rangers. In fact, I dislike both. However, when he retired from international football, admittedly after death threats, he made such a big deal with it, even though they were silly isolated threats. Now, as the trouble with him and opposition fans has started to increase, he never seems to tire about talking about it, thus, bringing it to the attention of everyone, almost advertising it. I don't like the man but what i will say is this incident was a disgrace.

Can someone please explain why he is such a hated figure?

It's not acceptable for this to happen on a number of levels. Security being the main one.

I live just outside Glasgow, 5 doors away from Walter Smith and spoke to him about it this morning. He said that Scottish football will get worse with the sectarianism and said he would of walked away from Rangers If this happdened to him.

The job becomes irrelevant when your safety is at risk.

Lennon doesn't help himself though because he winds up other supporters.

Can someone please explain why he is such a hated figure?

Same old sh*t Shabs, religious extremism being used as an excuse for violence.

Same old sh*t Shabs, religious extremism being used as an excuse for violence.

I got the jist of the sectarian isssue but what has lennon done to deserve this kind of treatment?

I got the jist of the sectarian isssue but what has lennon done to deserve this kind of treatment?

Celtic and Rangers are focal points in the same city, making both managers a target, whilst the furore is bad at the moment, I've known of worse incidents. Lennon being a Catholic from Northern Ireland muddies things up as well.

Stupid people, acting out of ignorance, sums it up neatly.

Stupid people, acting out of ignorance, sums it up neatly.

Just like in the bin laden thread then.

Just like in the bin laden thread then.

Yes, because anyone who has made up their mind, without definitive proof either way is stupid eh,  Shabs.

Yes, because anyone who has made up their mind, without definitive proof either way is stupid eh,  Shabs.

So whats the proof of lennon being the instigator and inviting attacks on himself?

So whats the proof of lennon being the instigator and inviting attacks on himself?

Never said he was an instigator Shabs.....

Can someone please explain why he is such a hated figure?

Because... well... because this is the West of Scotland where religious intolerance and sectarianism is embedded in the culture to the point where there is a massive 'chicken and egg' competition to try and blame the other side for being the bad guys.

I honestly think you have to live here before you realise just how ingrained and serious everyone takes this all.

Because... well... because this is the West of Scotland where religious intolerance and sectarianism is embedded in the culture to the point where there is a massive 'chicken and egg' competition to try and blame the other side for being the bad guys.

I honestly think you have to live here before you realise just how ingrained and serious everyone takes this all.

I understand all that, but what has lennon done that warrants such behaviour towards him?