Celtic dealt with four of their miscreant fans last weekend in a manner that some people would like to see introduced in Ireland, north and south of the Border.

The one-minute silence observed at Parkhead as a mark of respect for the victims of the Omagh bombings was interrupted by a few Celtic supporters who, for some reason, insisted on shouting pro-IRA slogans throughout. But the Parkhead justice system moved quickly into action and after the group were identified by other supporters the police and stewards moved in and threw them out. Two of the offenders, who were season ticket holders, were banned from Celtic plc for life. Every week at Irish League matches, players put up with worse while officials and police seem only to turn their backs. Mark Rutherford from Shelbourne, Cork City's Jason Kabia and St Patrick's Athletic's Leon Braithwaite are just a few players who have been subjected to racist abuse. A few Celtic-styled `snatch squads' ? Now that would be progress.