We’re Not Brazil, We’re Northern Ireland

“My players are national heroes and have achieve immortality in Northern Ireland folklore …” – Lawrie Sanchez, NI manager. Sanchez was manager from January 2004 to April 2007, when he left to take over Fulham. Under his direction, the team scored notable victories over Spain in a Euro 2008 qualifier and a one-nil victory over England in a World Cup qualifier at Windsor Park. The goals from these games are included in this youtube video of the song We’re Not Brazil; We’re Northern Ireland.

With sponsorship from the East Belfast Historical And Cultural Society.

Montrose Street South, Belfast

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Copyright © 2007 Peter Moloney
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The Ibrox Bar

Ibrox Stadium is the home ground of Scottish club Glasgow Rangers, which has a large following among Protestants in Northern Ireland. The bar was formerly the Bunch Of Grapes (owned by the UDA’s Jim Gray). It’s initial attempt to rebrand itself using Rangers’ logo and the name “Ibrox” drew threat from the club (Irish Independent), and it changed its livery to the Eye-brox bar shown above.

Beersbridge Road, east Belfast

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Copyright © 2006 Peter Moloney
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PUP East Belfast Branch

The Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) is a left-leaning unionist party founded in 1979 by Hugh Smyth, who served as Lord Mayor of Belfast in 1994. His successor as leader of the party (in 2002) was former UVF member David Ervine, who had been elected to the NI Assembly in 1998 but would die in January 2007.

Newtownards Road, Belfast

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Copyright © 2006 Peter Moloney
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British Ulster Alliance

The British Ulster Alliance is a flute band with a ‘British nationalist’ ideology that occasionally travelled to Northern Ireland to attend marches, such as one in the White City (north of Belfast) in 2006 (Mirror). There was a Rathcoole mural to the band in 2001 (see J0823).

The Union Flag is a composite of the St George’s Cross (England), St Andrew’s Saltire (Scotland), and the Order of St Patrick/St Patrick’s Saltire (Ireland). No Welsh flag is included in the Union Flag. The Northern Irish flag (Ulster Banner) is based on the flag of Ulster.

Fountain Street, Londonderry

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Copyright © 2006 Peter Moloney
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