Source: FOOTYMAD
Never give up on your team
Tom Boyd will still be heading to Parkhead even if Neil Lennon sticks with the players he already has There are still good reasons to head back to Parkhead next season even if a big name signing is not forthcoming. So says former captain Tom Boyd as fans should take the good with the bad. Many fans became disaffected last season as things did not go according to the Tony Mowbray plan. It has been well documents that Neil Lennon has not been sitting waiting for the board's decision regarding the manager's job. He has been looking at new recruits for the forthcoming campaign with Sol Campbell, Jimmy Bullard, Liam Lawrence and Joe Ledley just four of the names linked with the club. Lennon is also keen to bring back Robbie Keane and Craig Bellamy, both of whom have had short loan spells with Celtic. However, Boyd is not about to stay away if players are not signed. He said: "I don't think that should be an issue to entice fans back. Certain supporters do need that bit of attraction and it helps the marketing side certainly. But for me, if you are a supporter of the club you go through thick and thin." Boyd believes 35-year-old Campbell would still have plenty to offer but is confident with Stephen McManus set to return from his loan spell at Middlesbrough, there is already enough central defenders at the club at the moment. The former Scotland skipper went on: "That (age) is not an issue. I played on until I was 37 and you look across the road to Davie Weir and he is a good bit older. Did he not get player of the year last year? It makes no difference. If Sol Campbell is a target, his vast experience at the back would certainly help, I think it would have helped last year. But Tony bought a couple of centre backs last season (Thomas Rogne and Jos Hooiveld) and unfortunately they were injured early on and didn't get the chance to bed in. You would hope that they would be fully fit for the start of the campaign and it would be like two new signings and you possibly have Stephen McManus coming back with his experience." Lennon confirmed he had been handed a one-year contract, as opposed to what had become the norm at Parkhead, the one-year rolling contract,. Boyd is confident his former team-mate will be at the club longer that 12 months. He said: "I'm sure Neil will prove that he will be worthy of a further contract. I just think that's the nature of things. The board picked Tony Mowbray and it didn't work out and previous regimes with inexperienced managers haven't worked out too well. But having played with him I certainly know his attitude and I'm sure that during the campaign that (contract situation) will change. It was a great appointment and I think it was the popular choice with most of the supporters. There will be some who won't be happy with it but what he did towards the end of last season, he certainly deserves his shot at it. I like the way he is speaking. He speaks as though he is trying to get the enthusiasm back, both within the team and within the fans. That is certainly something that has been missing I think he is trying to get that back and that will certainly help the whole club."
