PETER LAWWELL: THE UNSPOKEN NAME THAT EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT
- BY LIAM CARRIGAN
- Sep 13
- 4 min read
Sometimes it’s not what a person says, but what they don’t say that draws more interest.
As we continue to dissect yesterday’s explosive Brendan Rodgers press conference, with all manner of inferences being made, and assumptions being written, one thing that stood out for me was really interesting: The complete lack of any mention of Peter Lawwell,
Fans Want Peter Lawwell Gone, Perhaps the Manager Does Too?
Now, one thing I want to make clear here. Many folks online and elsewhere are making the assumption that the “cowardly” individual Brendan Rodgers spoke of (The S*n’s Celtic Insider) is, indeed, our former chief executive and current non-executive chairman.
I am not saying that, and I don’t know who the person within Celtic Park is that provided the ammunition for that particular tabloid hit-piece.
However, it is interesting that Brendan Rodgers made no mention of the Chairman, despite making a point of articulating his “great relationship” with Celtic CEO Michael Nicholson and our biggest shareholder, Dermot Desmond.
Rodgers also said he “wasn’t surprised” by the news that someone was briefing against him. He said it happened before when he was manager and after the end of his first stint at Celtic.
Again, I am not saying that Mr Lawwell is the Celtic insider quoted in The S*n. However, he is one of a very small group of people at Celtic privy to information of the level that was shared in The S*n’s hit piece. He is also one of a very small group of people who has been a constant presence in the Celtic Boardroom during both of Brendan Rodgers’ tenures as manager.
The two are rarely if ever seen together. Especially since Rodgers publicly criticized Celtic’s inadequate transfer window activity in early 2024, which Mark Lawwell, son of Peter Lawwell was a part of, but resigned soon afterwards.
Regardless of who the leak at Celtic is, fans have already demanded the removal of Lawwell Snr, along with CEO Michael Nicholson and Chief Financial Officer Chris McKay.
Whatever you think of Peter Lawwell, and I have no personal axe to grind with the man, I’ve never met him, questions have to be asked about his competence and his ability to continue in the role.
I noticed an interesting, solitary comment on Celtic’s YouTube video of Brendan Rodgers press conference yesterday, which was, somewhat dubiously, released online much later than usual.
One commenter simply said: “Lawwell must go!”
The first reply, was what caught my eye. It asked: “What’s your problem with Peter Lawwell? When have you ever thanked him for all he’s done for Celtic?”
There is a perception among fans, not just with regards to Peter Lawwell but the current Celtic Board in general, that our club’s executives have a “We know what’s best for you” attitude when their decisions are questioned or critiqued by fans. They seem to believe they are above question, above reproach.
I know and you know, that’s not the case.
It seems the individual who posted that reply doesn’t share my view, or that of the majority of the Celtic support.
But let’s play along for a minute. What should we thank Peter Lawwell for?
All the trophies? No, that’s on our players and our managers. Managers are sacked and players are sold when Celtic fall short, yet Peter Lawwell has remained a near constant presence, regardless of the club’s form.
You don’t get to claim credit, if you refuse to accept criticism in equal measure.
Some say that Peter Lawwell has been great for Celtic, that his leadership and corporate savvy has kept us on top.
Pardon my language, but that’s total b*llocks.
Our only real challengers, Rangers (Requiescat in Pace) destroyed themselves financially, thanks to years of cheating and tax dodging. From about 2008 onwards, the writing was on the wall for them. They haven’t been a genuine financial competitor to Celtic financially since then.
It's easy to come across as a financial genius, when your closest competition is the economic equivalent of a raging bin fire.
Celtic have habitually underperformed annually in Europe more often than not since the late 2000s. Yes, there are outliers like our wins over Man Utd and Barcelona and our reaching the play-off round of the Champions League last season, but by and large we have underachieved.
Again, the only constant component in the day to day running of Celtic, throughout all of this, has been Peter Lawwell.
It's debatable how good Peter Lawwell has been for Celtic, but we can say for certain that Celtic has been very good to him.
Over the course of his career with Celtic, Lawwell has banked somewhere in the region of 30 million pounds in bonuses, salaries and dividends.
I don’t believe any of us need to thank Peter Lawwell. After all, when are the rest of us ever thanked simply for doing the job we are paid to do? And he, it seems, is paid a lot more than most.
However, I think Peter Lawwell owes us a huge measure of thanks, a sincere apology and then, hopefully, a resignation letter.
Some might think I'm being cruel, even vindictive, with this level of criticism for someone that Celtic have employed for decades. But then again, the fact that he and others have stayed on the Celtic Board far longer than most senior executives stay in their posts is a big part of the problem.
Maybe though, perhaps it would be good for Mr. Lawwell to read this article, and gain at least a semblance of empathy for what the anonymous "Celtic Insider" put our manager through last week.
Though, judging by his total lack of interaction with regular fans over the past several years, I would say that empathy probably isn't his strong suit.
