Irish Footballer Refuses To Wear Poppy

[mushroom25]

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/nov/07/wigan-james-mcclean-poppy-bolton

does he have a point? has the poppy come to mean - for the irish - the blood on the hands of those that perpetrated bloody sunday?

[ummmm]

The Poppy and Bloody Sunday.

[ChillDoubt]

Ah, was wondering if there was some veiled reference to my post that mentioned Association Football, hence my question.
Thanks for the clarification.

[Zacs-Master]

So THAT'S why it's called that! ;-)

[jno]

I believe he's been criticised for doing the same thing in the past; so he's entitled to put his case.

[anneasquith]

yes. if it's point of view.

[Gromit]

First off, a footballer is obliged to wear the teams kit and nothing else. It should not be compulsary for him to have yo wear a poppy. On foreign players, the gesture is pretty pointless anyway.

Saying that, I do not accept his reason for not wearing it. Northern Ireland is in the UK, and many of his countrymen died in the wars. It is disrespect to those people.

The British Army may not have had a good day on Bloody Sunday, but that was over 40 years ago. This footballer was born long after that day, and was born into a hard fought peace. I don't think his explanation holds up, and it saddens me that it has been made.

[sandyRoe]

I bought a poppy at the doors of a shop yesterday but I won't be wearing it. I know the money raised by their sale now goes to help many disabled ex-servicemen and their families. Nobody could disagree with that.
But here in NI the poppy badge, along with the Union Jack, have been hijacked and are flaunted as badges of allegiance.
Maybe this footballer knows that, too. He didn't need to make such a fuss about not wearing it.

[New Judge]

In the same way that people do not have to explain their reasons for wearing a poppy, Mr McLean should not feel it necessary to explain his reasons for not wearing one. Although he may feel the need to explain his reasons to his manager, it seems he has chosen to do so publicly. However, leaving that aside, among his comments (about Bloody Sunday) he said:

“Please understand, Mr Whelan, that when you come from Creggan like myself or the Bogside, Brandywell or the majority of places in [which he calls] Derry, every person still lives in the shadow of one of the darkest days in Ireland’s history – even if like me you were born nearly 20 years after the event. It is just a part of who we are, ingrained into us from birth."

And thereby hangs the tale. As part of the Good Friday Agreement numerous murderers, torturers and other sundry criminals were given "Get out of Jail Free" cards. Some of them went on to hold high political office and all this was done in the expectation that the people of the whole of Ireland - North and South - would move on after a very turbulent time in their history. It's clear from Mr McClean's remarks that they haven't and many of them probably never wil.

[Zacs-Master]

Thanks Sandy. Always good to have a bit of inside info.

[jno]

sandyRoe, as I understand it, he didn't wear it a couple of years ago either and got a (metaphorical) kicking for it; so there's a fuss already. He has responded to his critics courteously.

[ChillDoubt]

Hear, hear Gromit, excellent post.

As an ex Serviceman who completed 3 tours of NI I didn't want to be seen to appear prejudiced, which is why I said I would neither condemn nor condone, but the young man appears a little misguided and as I said, in his line of work it may come back to haunt him.

[ummmm]

The article says he's from ROI but goes on to say he's from Derry.

[whiskeryron]

I will wear a poppy to remember ALL who died including innocent Irish people who died remember defending their own freedom.

[ichkeria]

I also agree with Gromit, but I appreciate what sandy is saying too.

[jno]

this is what happened in 2012

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/sunderland/9670534/Sunderland-confirm-James-McClean-made-decision-not-to-wear-a-poppy-on-his-shirt-during-defeat-to-Everton.html

[mushroom25]

//The article says he's from ROI but goes on to say he's from Derry.//

he was born in the north, but plays for the south.

[ummmm]

Okay...Thanks...I'm not really into football.

[Prudie]

However nicely he explains it it's obvious that the poppy represents the British Army to him and not a symbol of remembrance. He's every right not to wear it although I'm not sure why we have to know his reasons, presumably he was asked.

[Gromit]

He was born in Northern aIrelandnd and represented Northern Ireland at under 21 level. I would imagine that would more disrespectful to Irish Republicans, than wearing a poppy.

He flipped counteies playing International football, and now play for the ROI presumeably on the Grandfather rule.

[ummmm]

Isn't it either grandparent?