Which City?

In the United Kingdom do you suppose this photo comes from?

Emotional Day

The third division championship flag was raised yesterday by Gordon Lennon’s family.

The Lennon family raised the flag

It was a highly charged day and some of the players and officials were clearly still in an emotional state as the game v Alloa Athletic kicked off.

Players and officials pay tribute to Gordon Lennon as the flag is raised

As it turned out Alloa won 3-1 but that doesn’t tell the full story of the game. Sons dominated for long spells and it really was a series of defensive blunders that cost us dearly.

Upwards and onwards!

Just Another Saturday

How does one explain an Orange walk to someone from outwith Ireland or Scotland?. Here goes with a brief synopsis:

On July 1st 1690 at the River Boyne near Drogheda in what is now the Irish Republic, Prince William of Orange and his army (William the third of England and second of Scotland) defeated his father and law and uncle (same person) James II’s supporters, mainly raw recruits, assuring protestant ascendancy in Ireland and indeed in the United Kingdom. This event has been celebrated every year since by various groups, chief amongst them the Orange Order. Due to the subsequent adoption of the Gregorian calendar the date celebrated is now July 12th. Marches take place in July and August and are accompanied by marching bands made up of flutes accordions and drums. In Scotland, as well as in the former shipbuilding areas of Glasgow, the Order has traditionally had strong support in the former mining communities of Lanarkshire and Ayrshire. There was often resentment in these areas of immigrant Irish labourers and owners exploited this to the full by using Irish labour to strike break in the early days of trade unionism.

An organisation known as the Royal Black Chapter this week in the town’s Sheriff Court appealed a previous decision not to allow them to hold an Orange Parade in Dumbarton. The basis of the appeal was that not allowing them to march infringed their human rights enshrined by the European Court of that name.

The Royal Black Chapter have an annual march in Scotland and it is acknowledged as the second biggest of its kind here. I shut my shop for the duration on police advice and took some photos. Click on any one to enlarge:

There was a police helicopter, there were police boats, there were mounted police and police in riot vans. There had been considerable concern that those opposed to the march (there is a large Celtic supporters club in the High Street) would try to disrupt it. In the end those protesters were confined to one area and the parade progressed relatively free from incident.

This clip is from a 1975 BBC Play for Today, Just Another Saturday

The event cost thousands to police and severely disrupted the life of a small struggling town on its main shopping day.

All down to a battle victory from 319 years ago and some industrial unrest in the nineteenth century.

Oh aye, and religion.