Whitaboot Yon Joey Barton?

IT HAS been a constant in Scottish football debate for over 120-years, and, it shows no sign of lessening; I refer to the endless “whitabootery” betwixt the fans of the Old Firm. For most of the length of its existence, Whitabootery was fought-out at “piece-time” in the workplace, or in pubs and clubs. The more-fervent believers to either school of belief might have had recourse to the letters columns of our newspapers, but, they were few and far between.

Today, with that interweb thingy, everyone is a potential commentator – no need to even engage brain before dashing off your words of wisdom and pressing send – result, the comments or btl (below the line) or cif (comment is free) sections of newspaper websites or fans' forums are awash with the opinions of the great unwashed. The only people or organisations which do not wish to know what the ordinary fans think are the two clubs and the Scottish football authorities.

To them, fans are not allowed an opinion or stance, they merely have to turn-up to the games, buy the merchandise and cheer. Fitba is, in the eyes of the “blazers” far too important to have any input from the people who fund it – that would never do.

It is all pish, perhaps best summed-up by a spot of banter, reported in the ever-excellent Ken Smith's Diary in the Herald this morning. Mr Smith chronicles an exchange between rival workmates, on either side of the Old Firm divide. The Celtic fan, buoyed-up by the appearance of some 10,000 members of the Celtic Family to welcome new manager Brendan Rodgers to the club, contrasted this with the more-meagre turn-out to welcome new signing Joey Barton to Rangers.

“Where wis youse lot”? The Celtic fan asked.

“At our work”, was the response. One-nil Rangers I would say.

 JOEY BARTON – pictured with David Weir is a player to consider.

A GLANCE at his Wikipedia entry, or at his personal website soon makes one aware – Joey Barton is not your normal footballer. He has travelled a long way from the streets of Huyton, on Merseyside to where he stands today. He has played football in England, in France and soon, in Scotland. He is albeit by a mere 12 minutes, an England internationalist; he is a published author; he has appeared on the BBC's Question Time as a panelist; he has some two million Twitter followers .

Something of an amateur philosopher, he has strong opinions, which he is not afraid to air. Joey has said: “I have probably offended the whole world at some point”.

Joey is definitely different. What his lasting effect on the small, somewhat insular world of Scottish football is uncertain, but, I think we can look forward to an exciting journey.

To begin with, it would appear, Joey has certain issues, which do not see to sit comfortably within the world of Rangers and their fans. For a start, he was raised by his Roman Catholic grand-mother and, apparently he had a Catholic schooling. So, to some of the wilder elements in the Rangers congregation: “He wan o' them”.

He has been widely-quoted as being anti-Monarchy, another black mark on the extremes of Rangersism. He, when asked to name a favourite between Rangers and Celtic, came down on the hooped side, and was even pictured in a Celtic strip he had obtained for his son Cassius.

Clearly, he has bridges to build between himself and the Wee Arra Peepul, but, as he has shown in the past, when he pulls on a new strip for a new club – that club never gets less than 100%. The first time he lands Scott Brown on his backside. And their first mano a ano confrontation is being anticipated with all the relish there was for any of the Ali v Frazier fights, might well be one of those cataclysmic Old Firm moments.

 Scott Brown - Joe Frazier to Joey Barton's Ali?

Barton v Brown, would you not just love to be one of the odds-makers in the betting firms who sets the odds for in-play betting? Just think of the permutations:

Who gets booked first – Barton or Brown. Time of first booking. Time of first yellow card. Time of first red card. Who is first to be carded, JB or SB? Who “wins” the fight? These are probably some of the options which the odds-makers are considering.

BUT, this is all flim-flam; the main consideration for Messrs Warburton and Weir and indeed everyone at Ibrox is – will he bring the experience and maturity to the midfield which they hope he will, and, will his presence improve the team? I think he will – however, I do not think buying Joey Barton should have been Warburton's first rebuilding more – after Saturday, is there anyone left who does not believe – Rangers immediate and most-pressing priority is a centre-half around whom they can build the 21^st century version of the club's legendary “Iron Curtain”?

Neither of their goalkeepers is “Rangers Class”; the full-backs are better going forward than they are at defending, while, when it comes to the centre of defence – the cry was No Defenders – Willie Woodburn and George Young must be burlin' in their graves, and what Messrs McKinnon, Greig, Butcher and Gough must be thinking, well, I wouldn't like to ask them. Davie Weir was a good defender, surely he ought to be able to sort out the mess.

I AM glad this week, I was never invited to join the Lap-Top Loyal, that small but influential corps of Scottish fitba writers whose reason d'etre is to glorify the Famous Glasgow Rangers and to ensure, nothing too-bad about the club ever appears in print or online in Scottish newspapers.

Theirs is a hard furrow to plough this week. Their long and unyielding campaign to get Rangers captain Lee Wallace back into the Scotland squad finally paid off, when WGS named him in his squad to face Italy and France in those end of season games. Then, Wallace withdrew.

 Lee Wallace - for me, he has blown his chance of Scotland redemption

As one who would, at 70, crawl over broken glass, all the way to Hampden, if WGS lost his marbles entirely and called me into a Scotland squad – I cannot get my head round this. This was Lee's big chance to show his commitment to the cause and get back into Scotland contention – and, he blew it.

I accept, he will be down after Saturday's cup final loss. I further accept, there are good grounds for believing, those Hibs half-wits with whom he interacted on the park on Saturday, were unlikely to be approaching a former Hearts hero to say: “Jolly tough luck, well-played old chap”. I accept there are ground for believing he was, at least jostled, at worst punched. I accept he has had a long and hard season.

But, FFS, his nations called him up. OK, he figuratively fell off his horse on Saturday; WGS was offering him a leg-up, a chance to re-mount, and he spurned it. For me – taxi for Wallace, goodbye Scotland career.