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union jack at Perth game


Joe DiMaggio

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What an embarrassment. Is this from the same guys who spent the whole game against celtic a couple of years ago singing about fenians, Bobby sands etc and telling anyone who had a go at them that they were 'supporting' their team. Leave it at home or head along to ibrox if you want some like minded fans

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I was also very offended by the players who made a point of turning up in the strip of Inverness - very offensive to St Johnstone fans, who are profoundly anti-Inverness, especially when they play against Invernessian teams.  Why o why can't we all just play in the neutral strip of the United Nations, where each player gets a ball and every touch counts as a goal.  Anything else just creates animosity.

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It has certain connotations in Scottish football with it predominantly being associated with one team in particular. I have had a couple of St Johnstone fans I know already mention our plastic hun support and going by the previous bigoted chants of these guys they are pretty bang on aabout them. We are a Highland Scottish team playing in a Scottish league and let's not have our fans being associated with the most hated team in Scottish football! There is a Highland identity to embrace instead of looking like tag along huns

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Totally agree with Joe. We spent long enough being the plastic Huns when it was Rangers and now it is the same with Sevco. Don't give me the rubbish that the guy took it as it was our team colours. It is taken knowing it will offend and we don't need our club being associated with the negative connotations. There are sadly racist bigots that follow our club and follow EVERY club in Scotland. We don't need you and Scottish football doesn't need you!

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I think we all know which way Joey will be voting next Sept....

 I don't think you can make any assumptions like that.  My guess is that the vast majority of ICT fans who will be voting "No" in September would agree with JDM's post.

 

The point here is that we are a football club and not a political organisation.  If we were playing in Europe then it would be fine to have flags which made it clear to others that we were Scottish / British fans but in a domestic competition you have to ask what the point is of flying a national flag.  What message is it giving to those that see it?  One thing is for sure, it does not give any message about the club.  OK, so someone might write Inverness across it but that is not what people see.  They see the flag.  IMO there is no reason to have a flag other than an ICT flag. 

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What does a British club having a UJ signify about the club? As DoofersDad says, nothing. What does being offended by a UJ signify? Small mindedness. Im married to an Arab African woman who is very proud of her adopted country and its history. If you think a Union Jack means being racist, get your head out of the Seventies.

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As one of the males having the heated discussion (the younger one for the avoidance of doubt) perhaps I should shed some clarity on the matter.

The other clearly aggrieved gentleman had removed a flag without request and when asked what he was doing had stormed off like a petulant child up into the stand. I followed him and asked why he had stolen an item of property that did not belong to him.

He refused to return the flag proclaiming that it was a symbol of rangers, right wing politics, racism, orangeism (sic) and nothing to do with his football team and that it was offensive to everyone there supporting Inverness.

I asked if he would like to move to the side of the stand and have a reasonable conversation out of the way of those around us which he refused to do.

I then asked to have our property returned as he had no right to take something belonging to another person, which he refused to do.

He then proceeded to rant about how offensive the 'union jack' is in Scotland and that I was displaying the same symbol as people that were attending an SDL rally in Dundee and associating our club with such people.

As a British Soldier born and bred in Inverness I have served all over the world proudly displaying the colours of and spreading the message about ICTFC. His proclamation that the union flag which I wear on my uniform every single day and have seen friends and colleagues coffins wrapped in is a symbol of racism is disgraceful and offensive.

I work in England, live in Scotland, have a welsh neighbour on one side, an Irish one on the other and identify myself as British, as far as I am aware we are all still one United Kingdom the idea that you can refuse someone's personal identity because of your bigoted preconceptions is bordering on Facism.

I was not taken away by stewards, I left having kept calm though out the incident despite great provocation and the stewards were asking if I would like to report the incident to the police which I refused.

As to it's relevance to ICT it's red white and blue, had Inverness written across it and our team is currently managed by an Emglishman, has a Northern Ireland international up front, a largely English squad, and captained by an Irishman. We are have a multi national, multi faceted team as we do a fan base, there are scores of fans who have fallen in love with ICT having holidayed in the highlands from England or Wales so to state that we are just a highlands club or just a Scottish club or a northern club is simply wrong.

Edited by phileephilop
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The thing is as well, as time goes on, the Saltire is starting to pick-up some "political" connotations as well.  In fact, I saw a small child in the St Johnstone end carrying one and I was massively offended!  Not for myself of course, but for other people, whom I don't know, who might vote no in the referendum!  I nearly informed a steward of this child's sickening antics!

 

In all seriousness though, the only problem I have with taking the Union Flag (it's only called the Union Jack at sea don't you know!), is the Rangers-connotations.  Any calls that it is racist, bigoted or anything else is just nonsense, but it's sadly some unsurprising classic behaviour from the chip-on-the-shoulder ultra-independence brigade. 

Edited by Renegade
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