HISTORY OF THE JUNGLE BHOYS
The initiative to tackle the lack of atmosphere at home matches first came from the Celtic Supporters Association who continually raised the problem at the Working Party Meetings between Supporters groups and the club throughout season 2004/05. This provided the impetus to seriously tackle the problem and a Committee was set up at the end of the that season which would become the Jungle Bhoys.
The first Meeting was set up in an Irish pub in Glasgow with invitations sent to all the major Celtic websites and Forums to be represented and soon an eight person Committee was formed. Two card displays were set up at the end of that season to announce our arrival and a Fundraiser was also held at the Champions Bar. The first ever display was the 10,000 green and white cards in a hooped design covering the Jock Stein Stand in the 2-0 victory over Aberdeen in May 2005. Weeks later a tricolour card display was set up in the North Stand to welcome the Irish national side to Celtic Park for the Jackie McNamara Testimonial match. The first display in particular was a fantastic success whilst the second one was a victim of the stormy weather that Cup Final weekend where the display in the lower tier was washed away!
For the newly formed group it was a promising start and much work was being done behind the scenes to make an impact on season 2005/06…….
JUNGLE BHOYS REVIEW OF SEASON 2005/06
It’s been a very busy first year for the Jungle Bhoys with card displays, streamers and some of the biggest and best banners in world football making an appearance at Celtic Park this season along with the setting up of a Singing Section in an effort to tackle the lack of atmosphere at home matches.
Still in our embryonic stages we can now look back on a season that has brought many highs as well as lows, take stock and plan ahead during the close season in an effort to convince more like minded Celtic supporters that they too should play their part in making their voices heard at Celtic Park.
For too long now too many have got used to sitting in silence at our own ground then clogging up the exits with fifteen minutes to go as they can’t get out the place quick enough. Is that what supporting Celtic is really all about? The Jungle Bhoys, a group born out of the Working Party Meetings between Supporters Groups and the club, have taken the bull by the horns this season in an effort to tackle this major problem and thankfully the response has been significant enough to look back on a decent first season knowing that with lessons learned we will get stronger.
We’ve heard all the excuses about all seater stadiums and the standard of opposition but it doesn’t seem to stop us getting behind the team at away matches! It’s said also that friends and family are split up and dotted all around Celtic Park and folk no longer feel comfortable getting behind the team vocally as they are often looked at as if they have two heads! Why not then relocate to an area of the ground specially set up where if you are NOT backing the team vocally you are looked at as if you have two heads? Friends and families are all welcome and can all sit together subject to availability enjoying the camaraderie rather than sitting in silence. After a slow start we now have a permanent home and are located in Section 445 of the North West Upper Curve between the North Stand and the Jock Stein Stand.
No one ever thought we would overturn 10 years of apathy in 90 minutes and our long-term aims and objectives remain the exact same now as they did at the start of the season. We aim to reignite the passion of the Celtic support and get us back to the days when we were the 12th man supporting the team for 90 minutes, win, lose or draw. To do this we need the support of the club and in this regard we have put a lot of time and effort into building a relationship with club officials that is mutually beneficial. Quite simply no displays or banners can get permission unless we prove we are responsible and trustworthy and able to work to agreed criteria. This has been achieved and we have a decent working relationship and understanding with the club that will hold us in good stead for bigger and better displays in future. We have also tackled the thorny issue of banners being allowed into the ground after much correspondence from Supporters Clubs and we are continuing to work with the club to resolve this matter in an effort to get not just the vocals but the visuals back to Celtic Park.
As we all know any new group that emerges amongst the Celtic support have to earn the right to be accepted and after a lot of hard work we hope in our inaugural season we have done so. There have been mistakes along the way but we will learn from them. Unfortunately for us it is a case of trial and effort involved in much of what we do and there are no second chances in front of 60,000 supporters. Quite simply we are a group of working class Celtic fans simply trying to do our bit to buck the trend of apathy. As the saying goes “Don’t judge those who try and fail, better to judge those who fail to try.”
The Jungle Bhoys in our first year have had various levels of success having set up a HAIL HAIL card display in the first game of the season, a LENNON 18 card display to welcome back our captain after suspension and the most successful to date KEANE tricolour which covered the whole Lisbon Lions Stand to welcome the highest profile player ever to Paradise. We have experimented with a streamer display against Aberdeen when 2000 streamers were launched from the Jock Stein upper and we have also concentrated on building up an impressive stock of banners which includes the digitally printed Jimmy Johnstone Tribute banner, which at 60 foot by 60 foot is without doubt a fitting tribute to the Greatest Ever Celt.
Our stock also includes large murals of Jock Stein, Neil Lennon, Jinky and Henrik Larsson. Indeed one of our proudest moments this season was the Day Of Celebration of Jock Stein’s life to mark his 20th anniversary which was suggested to the club by the Jungle Bhoys which included a minute of applause instead of the traditional silence and we take great pride in this now becoming the norm. We have also built up a stock of almost one hundred 2 stick banners and also the large telescopic flags, which are flown before each home game in front of the Jock Stein Stand.
Other highs included the Keane tricolour display which had almost 100% participation from the Lisbon Lions stand that day, the magnificent way in which the Celtic Family rallied to donate a sum large enough to pay for the huge Jinky Tribute banner in less than a week, Neil Lennon turning up at one of our Fundraisers to support the Jungle Bhoys and in general the incredible devotion of the volunteers who have played their part including those who put in a fantastic ten hour shift the night before the CIS Cup Final to produce 60 Jinky 2 stick flags to honour our hero. The tremendous camaraderie in the Singing Section was another highlight of the season and something that we can build on if there are enough supporters willing to relocate.
Lows included the lack of participation in some displays after it took up to 70 volunteers anywhere up to 5 hours to set up only to see some supporters not bothered to hold them up for a minute or two. The lowest point however was the misinformation in one tabloid regarding our Jungle Bhoys Against Sectarianism and Racism banner, which had us in bed with everyone bar John Prescott! It can be a very steep learning curve at times.
Future plans for the coming season include ensuring that more of our Legends are honoured and depending on the support of our members we would like to produce massive banners to honour Brother Walfrid, Willie Maley, Jimmy McGrory, John Thompson and Johnny Doyle. We are working on a Constitution that will see us start the new season as a properly constituted body of supporters rather than a steering Committee continually pleading for assistance. We are currently building a website which can be visited at www.thejunglebhoys.net which will take the pressure off our Forum http://thecelticjungle.proboards44.com and we now also have a PO Box set up at PO Box 8742, Bellshill ML4 3WX. Alternatively we can be contacted at thecelticjungle.bhoys@ntlworld.com If you have any comment to make either positive or negative please get in touch as feedback for us is essential.
What we have achieved this season is through the hard graft and dedication of a few hundred supporters, in fact less than 1% of season ticket holders have become active in a campaign 99% agree with. Imagine what we could achieve with the active support of more who agree but have yet to get in touch? In particular we need organised Supporters Clubs to contact us, to sit together in Section 445 and pull our numbers together. In short the Jungle Bhoys have been punching above our weight to quote a Celtic legend and it is time to step up to the next level.
The Jungle Bhoys are keen in particular to make our mark on the Champions League in the coming season with more huge banners at home and abroad and also bigger and better displays. This can only happen with full audience participation and the backing of the fans. Until the sad death of Jimmy Johnstone we were in a position to cover the entire Jock Stein stand in 10,000 green and white polyurethane flags for a Flag Day in the final Old Firm match of the season however our funds had to be diverted. This is the standard of displays that we are aspiring to and it all depends on your support. We are also planning to run a Supporters bus to selected away matches where we will be setting up displays throughout next season depending on demand and tickets.
In a major recruitment drive our flyers have been sent out to all 53,000 Celtic season ticket holders. We urge those who want to rise to the challenge, join the Jungle Bhoys and relocate to the Singing Section in Section 445 of the North West Curve.
Our work is nowhere near done in fact it has only just begun. For apathy to exist good men only have to remain silent so whatever you do, don’t do nothing.
Join the Jungle Bhoys now and Let The People Sing. |
