Good Morning,
In the last week, we have seen a number of strange occurrences in Scottish Football, which if taken together might just point to a very different land than the one we were lead to believe we live in just two short years ago.
First of all there was the report from a firm of well known accountants which pronounced that a significant number of Scottish Football Clubs had, in fact, sold more season tickets for this coming season than they had in the course of the last several years.
Then we had the spectacle of the National team travelling to Wembley and playing very well AND being cheered on by a very large travelling support who appear to have been full of fun and who acquitted themselves well in the big smoke.
This morning I read that today’s match at Pittodrie is a sell out — with the old stadium being packed to the rafters for the visit of Celtic. This is the first time that Aberdeen have been able to sell out the fixture for some 6 years!
Not only that, various Celtic supporting websites have lead with articles saying that the return of a strong Aberdeen and Dundee United are to be welcomed– in fact not only welcomed but positively wished for.
In contrast, stories abound about the in fighting on the Ibrox Board. There are surreptitious share dealings and all sorts of company jockeying being deployed by the rival factions who are trying to gain control of The Rangers. Further, there is the suggestion from some well informed parties that not only will Ibrox and the Albion be sold and leased back to the club to generate much needed immediate cash, but that Murray Park has been sold off completely and will no longer be available to The Rangers for any purpose whatsoever!
Clearly, there are big troubles at the club which will not assist in the stated intention of rising to the very top in Scottish Football.
In between all of this, the debate goes on about Campbell Ogilvie, Press manipulation, the correspondence between Media House and the SFA, and between The SFA and Ibrox re the relationship between Charlie Green and Craig Whyte and so on.
Standing with my business hat on, I looked at all of this and wondered what it all meant, and pretty quickly reached the conclusion that we are now in a time of supreme opportunity for some of the clubs in Scottish Football—- particularly Aberdeen FC.
There is a view abroad, that in the absence of the “Strong Rangers” that Celtic Football Club will win the SPFL title for almost evermore — or at least until they are toppled from the top spot by the rise of a strong Rangers club somewhere towards the end of this decade or early in the next– because we are assured that they will be back– in one form or another– in a rather Arnold Schwarzenegger like fashion.
That return or initial rise if you like– its timing and its manner— is dependent on a number of things– not least the exit strategy of Charlie Green and his cohorts.
If it is true that The Rangers are going to part company with Ibrox and the Albion, that they have taken on a loan of funds which attract a rate of interest that amounts to 15% per annum, and that there are set figures for buying the old ( and decaying ) stadium back any time soon, and that they have yet again hawked the season ticket money, then the already flawed Ibrox business plan is burdened even more by interest and rent payments of an additional £3M per annum and rising!
It should also be noted that the accounts for old co from the mid naughties onwards boasted that season ticket sales, merchandising, corporate hospitality and so on had reached unprecedented levels—- but—- the club still did not make an operating profit without strange internals transactions such as the repurchase of media rights which added £15M on to the P&L’s AND the sale of Jean Alain Boomsong!
Accordingly, the current position will not make for good financial reading.
So– let’s presume that in the current climate Celtic are out of sight and will always be champions for ever and a day. What do the rest of the clubs say in the absence of the Ibrox club without whom they have been told they will perish?
Well, If I were in charge of Aberdeen FC I would look out across a city with an inherent population of some 220,000 souls sitting in a county which takes the population up by another 40,000 or so. I would note that the compact city also houses two universities and a number of colleges — all of which attract visitors to the city— and that its position as the oil capital of Europe also draws in a substantial number of itinerant workers.
Further, personal knowledge shows that many who studied at Aberdeen University or Robert Gordon’s in the 80’s left the city as Aberdeen FC fans and no matter where they have ended up in life they still make the journey back to Pittodrie when they can– especially in good times!
Alas, however, Aberdeen has not enjoyed ” Good Times” of late— in fact not really since ……….. the arrival of David Murray at Ibrox!
If you cast your mind back to the pre Murray era, Aberdeen were a force not only in Scotland but Europe as the recent nostalgia re Gothenburg has reminded us.
The city has an economic micro climate which suggests that it can ride economic hardship better than most and so all things considered this current period provides a great opportunity for the Dons.
Unlike Dundee United, Hearts, and Hibs, Aberdeen FC sits in a large one team conurbation and should be on the doorstep of a populace which can fill Pittodrie every single week …… IF that fan base can be motivated.
And there lies the rub– how do you get a notoriously fickle fan base out of the armchair and into the stadium?
The late Bob Crampsey once described Pittodrie by saying ” And there are the masses of Aberdeen fans, masquerading as rows and rows of Empty seats!” yet in their heydey an Aberdeen crowd on a visit to Glasgow were among the noisiest– and to this football fans eyes — the scariest ( in a good sense ) supports to be seen.
Well, at this juncture, Derek McInnes and team need only look at every other football club in the land ( bar Celtic ) and determine that come next May those others will be below them in the league. If Aberdeen maintain a strong league run keeping everyone behind them then there is the possibility of a huge revenue swing in favour of the Dons– such a swing that would put them in an even stronger position for the following year.
Further, Aberdeen are a European name. Perhaps a European name from yesteryear and not the recent past, but the pedigree is there and as such there will be those who remember the heady European Nights both home and away. Reviving those memories and that reputation– at least to an extent– is not beyond the club, and with no disrespect to Motherwell and St Johnstone both of whom are liable to lose key players or even a manager between seasons, Aberdeen may just be of a size to consolidate each year rather than scramble to maintain the momentum of one good season which comes along every now and then.
Financial management and football rewards can go hand in hand when combined properly, and of all the clubs in Scotland who can benefit from a level playing field in terms of proper football governance, Aberdeen FC are uniquely placed in my opinion.
That is not so say that The Arabs, or the Hibees or anyone else cannot benefit– on the contrary— but the Dons are the most obvious candidates in terms of potential structure to really motor forward and regain a by gone status.
Such a situation, and the recognition of that potential, should be borne in mind by all at Celtic Football Club, as last year they struggled for a period in the league while they concentrated on their European exploits. If Celtic want to go further and further in Europe ( and why shouldn’t they ) they will have to be wary of any club which is capable of reigniting its fortunes from a lowly position or a position of having to look back at glory and potential glory rather than looking forward.
Further, with the way things are being organised at Ibrox, there is absolutely no guarantee ( some would say likelihood ) that an eventual challenge to a perceived dominance by Celtic will come from that quarter, and life in the top flight for any returning Rangers could prove very difficult if the likes of Aberdeen get their act together and start to produce the type of home grown team of old.
For now, I sense a degree of optimism about the Dons– not just on the playing front either. They have a fan base, they have a business model and a good young manager, and any comparative business exercise must conclude that they have every chance of rising above most of their rivals in the league, in terms of revenue, in terms of brand development and business expansion.
If I were an Aberdeen fan I would like to think positive and be ambitious in this climate, whilst at the same time casting an eye back to the days when they were top of the tree.
As one Aberdeen supporting ( but now Edinburgh based ) friend put it to me:
” Ah, those were the days my friend, those were the days……………”
bad capt madman says:
August 27, 2013 at 1:21 pm
Scunner! Out!
Scunner! Out!
Scunner, Scunner, Scunner!
Out! Out! Out!
That’s the extent of my biting wit and piercing analysis for today.
Coincidently, it’ll be as much use as anything else, as the totality of club representatives in the country seem quite content that the Scunner is in (but probably won’t see you).
I’m reminded of Catch 22 when the only time anyone got in to Major Major’s office to see him was when he was out, but if he was in, you couldn’t go in to see him. Just how far sighted was the author
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Even more far sighted was Yossarian who, after working out Major Major was a serial deflector and avoider, asked to see Major and then went round and waited outside the window of Majors office as he climbed out to avoid a meeting with Yossarian.
The moral of this tale is that deflectors and cheats always get caught. Everything unravels in the end because people talk.
I like Marty Roth’s idea of mounting a scunner out campaign.
taxman cometh says: August 26, 2013 at 11:24 pm
“Just I consider journalism investigative or otherwise to deal in facts not to be a “journalistic” John Edward
Good God, John Edward? Communicate, Appreciate, Fabricate? My ex-wife was into all that BS… I’d almost managed to wipe it from my memory…
There is a long and award-studded history of investigative journalism being served by anonymous informants. I hesitate to equate anyone related to the mismanagement of Scottish football with Watergate, but if Charlotte Fakeover had been Deep Throat (ahem), Tricky Dicky would have swept back into the White House, such has been the wall of silence offered by the press.
paulsatim says:
August 27, 2013 at 12:14 am
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The interesting thing about the RFC letterhead in 1999 was that it state the club was founded in 1873.
Yet for the past 2 years they have been claiming 1872 as their birthday – as CW and co tried to cash in on a non-existent 140th birthday and fleece the people one final time
I suppose it only really matters for the purposes of the death certificate
53 to 0
On CO
CO should go not because he is proven to be conflicted but because he is perceived to be conflicted. That alone should be enough in public office. Abhorrent shame on the 41 clubs who ignored this point.
Auldheid says:
August 27, 2013 at 12:25 pm
It was a recurrent theme on RTC and even with the benefit of hindsight re the FTT result and with massive respect to the work done on here by eco and others to go through the LNS review bit by bit it was and remains a very simplistic but no less relevant view that to win the FTT was to lose LNS. Common sense even now tells me no different.
The Campbell Ogilvie situation today is causing much despair.
Frankly, I think we should be blaming the people who fund the SFA, after all you have to follow the money.
Who pays the SFA?
We do.
We give millions of pounds each year of our taxes directly and in-directly to the SFA.
They get direct funding from the Scottish Government, they get indirect funding from the Scottish Government Cashback for Communities scheme, they get indirect funding from Scottish Government funds via SportScotland, they get indirect funding from the Scottish Government in public-health advertising at Hampden.
Direct or indirect it is all taxpayers money. Your money.
Here is a small example: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Justice/public-safety/17141/cashback/funding funding for SFA coaches, funding to sponsor the League Cup just a small sample of millions of taxpayers money sent to Mr Ogilvie to disburse.
Another example of £3m from Scottish Government handed over to Mr Regan: http://www.scottishfa.co.uk/scottish_fa_news.cfm?page=1986&newsCategoryID=38&newsID=12018
(which is of course deeply ironic that taxpayers fund the SFA given Campbell’s love of tax avoidance measures!)
Of course the Tartan Army ticket sales for matches also help the SFA, but as we know the ‘famous’ Tartan Army have been ‘infamously’ silent on matters at SFA HQ/Ibrox so don’t expect them to speak out.
So when you get your pay-packet this month have a look at the column marked ‘tax’ – and remember where some of it goes……………
HibeeHibernian says:
August 27, 2013 at 2:09 pm
Emailed SFA last week asking for details of gov funding since 2011, not had courtesy of even an acknowledgement, so, FOI request typed and off to Hampden
Oh dear, seems like the wheels might be loose on this particular bus. Wonder how much they lost on this little venture across the water.
==========================================
McGill’s set to close Dumbarton depot
Published: 27 Aug 2013 11:05
MCGILL’S Buses has confirmed it will close its Dumbarton depot as of November , the Reporter can exclusively reveal
Share this image
MCGILL’S Buses has confirmed it will close its Dumbarton depot as of November , the Reporter can exclusively reveal.
A spokeswoman for the company spoke to the Reporter yesterday (Monday). She said: “Regrettably, McGill’s has decided to close its Dumbarton depot. The last day of operation for all commercial services operating from our Dumbarton depot will be Sunday, November 3. SPT contracted services 184, 305/306 and 309 will continue to operate from our Inchinnan depot.
“Staff were advised of the company’s intentions on Friday afternoon (August 23) by a senior member of management. Further meetings are scheduled for this week.
“We have offered employment at other depots to all drivers currently operating from our Dumbarton depot. Similarly, engineering and ancillary staff will be offered the opportunity to relocate to other depots, where possible.”
– See more at: http://www.dumbartonreporter.co.uk/news/dumbarton/articles/2013/08/27/469347–mcgills-set-to-close-dumbarton-depot/#sthash.g8zgKqGQ.dpuf
Possible sacrifice of a sheep, Mr Traynor will be salivating as we speak.
From Kenny MacDonald in The Sun :
” [ the ibrox side ] are unable to play any of their summer signings tonight because of a rule barring trialists after the first round. McCoist said, ‘ It’s not an ideal scenario in terms of who I can pick but there’s nothing I can do’. ”
They have made no signings. Your scenario, Ally, is the same as every football team in the world : take your pick from the players you have signed and registered.
I reckon the ‘spirit and intent’ of the rule on trialists was to encourage youth development in more mature, professional environments. Not to provide a convenient loophole to circumvent a signing embargo.
( ” Ian Little bemoans the fact that he can’t play Lionel Messi in his Berwick Rangers team tonight because he hasn’t signed him “).
Quick thank you to those who responded to my comments regarding what I consider to be an attempt to derail things last night. I believe Brenda, in particular, has been on the receiving end of similar stuff.
I know yez can all handle yerselves well enough but thanks anyway. 😉
Delbhoy says:
August 27, 2013 at 2:50 pm
From Kenny MacDonald in The Sun :
” [ the ibrox side ] are unable to play any of their summer signings tonight because of a rule barring trialists after the first round. McCoist said, ‘ It’s not an ideal scenario in terms of who I can pick but there’s nothing I can do’. ”
They have made no signings. Your scenario, Ally, is the same as every football team in the world : take your pick from the players you have signed and registered.
I reckon the ‘spirit and intent’ of the rule on trialists was to encourage youth development in more mature, professional environments. Not to provide a convenient loophole to circumvent a signing embargo.
( ” Ian Little bemoans the fact that he can’t play Lionel Messi in his Berwick Rangers team tonight because he hasn’t signed him “).
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Are the SFA listening? A££y clearly calls these players ‘signings’ not ‘trialists’.
He and TRFC are taking the p*ss. SFA – dae sumthin’! Disnae have tae be ane o’ they Holy tricks.
Applying the intent of the rules and the applicable penalty currently in place would suffice.
Scottish football needs a strong Arbroath.
@ DelBhoy – are you from up in the Northern Isles? Knew a DelBhoy up there on a different website…
scapaflow says:
August 27, 2013 at 2:26 pm
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scapa, good to see some action from a concerned tax payer, however I’m not certain that the SFA needs to comply with FOI requests – it may be better to ask the Scottish Government directly. Messrs Salmond and MacAskill were included in the publicity for the latest Cashback award:
First Minister: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/msps/currentmsps/Alex-Salmond-MSP.aspx
The Cabinet Secretary for Justice: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/msps/currentmsps/Kenny-MacAskill-MSP.aspx
The local MSP for Catchart is James Dornan and links for him and Regional MSPs can be found here: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/msps/con-gcar.aspx
Phil Mac Giolla Bhain’s latest on the SFA
http://www.philmacgiollabhain.ie/a-baffling-silence/
Its like the Moody Blues song Questions.
scapaflow says:
August 27, 2013 at 2:26 pm
27 1 i
Rate This
HibeeHibernian says:
August 27, 2013 at 2:09 pm
Emailed SFA last week asking for details of gov funding since 2011, not had courtesy of even an acknowledgement, so, FOI request typed and off to Hampden
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Good luck with that mate.
The SFA/SPL don’t reply or even acknowledge receipt of letters or e-mails in my experience. It is an absolute disgrace that a part public funded body refuses to communicate with tax payers.
Sorry to be thick Phil. Cracking effort by the way good luck with it. Why were the mysteriously silent CFC “the main victim in this”? Genuine question, no trolling. Had they (RFC) not been issued the licence the coefficient would presumably have dropped further so I don’t see the significance of tomorrow’s game (and good uck with that too btw).
Finally, you did of course miss a question.
Why was the open and transparent Mr Regan so keen to tweetiepie up to summer 2012 then suddenly stopped again?
Couple of things qworth noting. If anyone want to obtain information from a public body in Scotland it is probably best to request it under the FOI(S) Act. We have our own Act and our own commissioner.
This website will help you http://www.itspublicknowledge.info/home/ScottishInformationCommissioner.aspx
I’m pretty certain the SFA are not covered by it. The Scottish Parliament is.
http://www.itspublicknowledge.info/ScottishPublicAuthorities/Authorities/FindYourAuthority.aspx
You can contact them here
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament
Edinburgh
EH99 1SP
Fax: 0131 348 6834
FOI Email: foi.officer@scottish.parliament.uk
Website: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk
Auldheid says:
August 27, 2013 at 3:56 pm
Great piece by Phil. Best comment after it was from Googan who compared this farce to the plot in ‘The Truman Show’.
TSFM says:
August 25, 2013 at 11:46 am
“We are still very open to ideas for regular content. I like the weekly summary put together by CoT.
More ideas?”
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I’m still reading myself back in having had a week long blog sabbatical but feel obliged to air some thoughts concerning the above.
I did two Sunday posts with the first getting more TU’s than the second so wasn’t encouraged I was on the right track. However I did have a thought that I might be foreshadowing a blog podcast.
What strikes me and I suspect others is that there is an underlying mantra interspersed with moments of poignant wit and insight. I tried extracting these elements of poignancy to get a concentrate of events but a certain amount of fluidity was lost in the process. I tried to avoid editorialising as it wasn’t supposed to be my views but I think there needs to be some context in which quotes are set. I was getting an image of the BBC programme ‘Point of View’, hosted by Barry Took, where he would build a narrative around viewer’s letters.
Breaking the blog commentary down into subjects provides some manageable structure. I think it also allows a record to be made that might be searchable later on. The story is so complex that the interweaving threads can be mesmerising. Having a jumping off point for researching topics later may provide an academic foundation for the podcast. The main ‘news’ in any particular thread could be highlighted to allow potential researchers to home in on a particular week if they wish to delve deeper into the logic.
The business angle is the trickiest I suspect. It is the most complex and multifaceted and cannot be understood except in retrospect. For a subject matter like this to be made entertaining I think an injection of humour would be necessary. It is potentially a very important element of the story and maintaining a searchable record of this might prove very useful for future doctorate theses. 😉
Been having a think about the possible identity of Charlotte.
At first it seemed straightforward that she was a child of the CW camp, the early outputs seemed to be plausibly sourced from the Whyte camp and the revelations seemed to be to the Monaco based ‘businessman’s’ advantage.
However as time passed the more recent tweets have seen a wider range of targets and required a more complex and varied set of sources…still probably Whyte but with an Ibrox insider as a key source with whistleblower tendencies.
More recently still Charlotte seems as often to grasp the public’s mood and area of interest before satisfying/teasing it, as steering by her earlier course and agenda.
In parallel to this I have been following (with many others) the Edward Snowden/NSA case and in particular his assertion (in the Guardian) that the British govrnment was leaking to the Independent but proporting to be from Snowden himself. This, in order to magnify his security leaks and also to give the case for action against him and his cause to be more current and relevant.
Now using the ancient and very useful approach ‘who benefits?’, which person or group is likely to benefit from the knowledge of the questionable behaviour at Rangers becoming known and then (possibly) those responsible for this behaviour being held responsible?
Well Whyte may have benefited from the Sevco Scotland switcheroo becoming known, Celtic may eventually have some benefit in terms of retbribution (re UCL licensing) but any financial recompense is surely impossible now and this theory would require a level of patience and ability to play the long game at the Parkheadclub absolutely stoic in its resolve.
There may be a personal wrong being righted which is long held and invisible to all. Also an individual journalist or administrator in the SMSM or SFA may be disgusted by the history at Ibrox and sees no other transparent means of informing and interested public.
All of the above are possible with the Whyte theory still favourite.
But who else might benefit then?
Well. as Charlotte’s increasingly interesting brush strokes paint a picture of collusion across many elements of Scottish Society…the establishment club, the governing body of the sport, the great banks…many targets emerge. What if Charlotte’s canvas broadens again to encompass the political establishment (not entirely unfeasible given what we have seen to date) and the vista in Scottish matters was of a corrupt, incompetent and self serving elite establishment who supressed the truth, protected their friends and set the table to shape and silence criticism?
Now what if this same establishment had a big moment arising in 2014, a question perhaps put to the public to determine its future and theirs? A question to shape the direction of Scotland itself. A question of trust.
If this outlandish theory had any merit at all the beneficiary would have to have a way of collecting information dubiously, experienced in the translation and publication of data by esoteric means, a vested interest in the governance of Scotland (within Scotland) being undermined significantly within an important timeframe and the streetcraft to use the Rangers debacle to further their agenda.
Just a thought on the identity of Charlotte, just a bit of fun.
blu says:
August 27, 2013 at 3:52 pm
Kicking those gentle people as well…… there was a petition before Holyrood, couple of years back, looking at under 16 contracts and SFA accountability for public spend. First bit was dealt with, second part got lost in the morass, funny how that sort of thing happens!
Tif Finn says:
August 27, 2013 at 1:18 pm
If the Rangers manager (or anyone else) has a list of players who he know placed bets on football, in contravention of the rules, then I would like to think the relevant authorities have contacted him and instructed that he pass those details on to them.
Any other course of action is simply unacceptable, as is him refusing to hand the details over. The game will never be cleaned up if people are simply allowed to ignore rule breaking when it suits them. Or more accurately use it when it suits a “whatabout” defence without actually providing the proof to the relevant authorities.
Or is this simply another example of Mr McCoist being allowed to say anything he wants, make any accusations he wants, with no action being taken. Is the man really not subject to the same rules as everyone else.
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He most certainly isn’t subject to the same rules as John Brown. John of course lost his ‘safety net’ when he tried to expose what was happening at Ibrox so he is now fair game for the SFA.
McCoist’s list was compiled by speaking to his mates who said – “yeah yeah, X definitely likes a bet and so does Y” – it means the square root of dick. That is the reason that he won’t release it – he’d knows he would open himself to libel without any proof and also that’s the reason why the authorities are paying it the attention it deserves (the square root of dick).
True, but the allegations made by the ex footballer turned reporter are in a different league, literally and figuratively, but no comment that I can see from the SFA?
Looking back the exact quote from McCoist was “I obviously will not and would never, ever disclose the names there. But that’s over 100 in 10 minutes the boys have got me.”
I believe when he was challenged whether this was a list of people who had bet on their own club, to lose, he may done what Private Eye calls “the reverse ferret”. I hope it was in his troosers at the time 😆
ecobhoy says:
August 27, 2013 at 5:28 pm
Funny enough I was going to mention John Brown, but didn’t because it smacked of whataboutery, however your point is well made.
Auldheid says:
August 27, 2013 at 12:25 pm
What I find interesting is the apparent lack of reference to the DOS based scheme in the LNS decision.
What I have not done (but Im hoping ecobhoy will be able to help), is to confirm if the terms of reference for LNS investigation made any mention of the DOS scheme. I could not see any but am reluctant to state as fact.
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It seems to me that LNS was unaware of the difference of the DOS and EBT schemes – he knew there were two but treated them as the same, continuing scheme presumably through lack of any evidence presented to his tribunal by the SPL who were responsible for providing the evidence.
I noted previously that in the evidence provided to the FTTT by David Murray – courtesy of the transcript provided by CF – that no mention is made of there being two schemes and he apparently talks to the EBT one. I assume HMRC would have been aware of the DOS scheme but perhaps not or perhaps there was a legal ‘bar’ to introducing it as evidence.
However the relevant part of the LNS Decision is:
The Employee Benefit Trust (EBT) Scheme
Definition in the Notice of Commission
[34] Issues 1 to 3 (except for Issue 3(c)) allege, in essence, that the Rules of the SPL and SFA relating to disclosure were breached by non-disclosure of “EBT Payments and Arrangements”.
This expression is given the following definition: (This definition relates to the EBT and not the DSO)
Outline of the Scheme
[35] As we have said, a controlling interest in Oldco was held by David Murray through the medium of Murray MHL Limited, part of the Murray Group of companies. Murray Group Management Limited (MGM) provided management services to the companies of the Murray Group. By deed dated 20 April 2001 MGM set up the Murray Group Management Remuneration Trust (the MGMRT). (We note that the MGMRT was preceded by the Rangers Employee Benefit Trust, but we are not aware that they were different trusts. We shall treat them as a continuous trust, which we shall refer to throughout as the MGMRT.)
Cerdan says:
August 27, 2013 at 5:17 pm
9 4 Rate This
Been having a think about the possible identity of Charlotte.
…
What if Charlotte doesn’t spread out into the political arena? What if it spreads to the other side of THAT debate? It’s supposition and mischief making and doesn’t merit discussing unless it happens
TallBoy Poppy says:August 27, 2013 at 1:26 am
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Thanks for that TallBoy …. nope had not seen the link previously (in full) and very useful – gives good background to the Murray funding of £20m …… traunches of £20m for different investments seeking 8% growth.
Gives good understanding of his MO …
Unfortunately the dates precede the property deal i am lookng for ……
I am unwinding the Enterprise House Devekopment property purchased in 2011 ….. I have most info, just lacking a solid tie (rather than circumstantial)
Ecobhoy
Thanks for checking out LNS for me and confirming what my memory was telling me.
As I said I put the failure to distinguish a non disputed illegal scheme from a disputed scheme that may or not be legal, to a failure on the part of SPL/SFA to understand any distinction existed.
But now we know CO knew the difference and was housed in the same building as the SPL I find it impossible to accept that this distinction was not only understood but so too were its implications.
So who benefitted from the obsfuscation writ large in Regan’s twitter when he conflated the two issues?
Well clearly Rangers did as the conflation offered the same degree of protection to the DOS case as it did the EBT and so gave Rangers a bite at the UEFA cake.
Then there was the benefit to Rangers of not being called cheats by using a tax scheme in such a way that there can be no question that they won trophies using illegal tax methods from 2000 to 2003. Forget whether side letters were kept hidden (although that only makes wrongful intent clearer) no other club could legally have used DOS to recruit players. So the charge of cheating was avoided by not making the distinction between DOS and EBTs.
Then, now thanks to CF, we can see that CO benefitted from the failure to distinguish one from the other in that there has been no line of questionning that would have revealed his part in an illegal tax evasion scheme.
If HMRC are happy to have a man in charge of Scottish football who has presided over millions in tax losses to UK taxpayers then they are not meeting their responsibilities to the tax payer.
Football might not want to clean up its act but government cannot stand aloof in austere times.
Now whats the address of The Treasury?
scottc says:
August 27, 2013 at 6:16 pm
Cerdan says:
August 27, 2013 at 5:17 pm
9 4 Rate This
Been having a think about the possible identity of Charlotte.
…
What if Charlotte doesn’t spread out into the political arena? What if it spreads to the other side of THAT debate? It’s supposition and mischief making and doesn’t merit discussing unless it happens
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Quite right scottc….absolute mischief making, no place for airing such wild theories here. Complete mischief without foundation. Mischief. My mistake. Not here.
Any suggestion that our own elected representatives, and their state servants, might be capable of nefarious theft of information, surreptitious leaking, character defamation and strategic subversion of rival states are mischief. Pure mischief. Groundless.
#hillsborough #leveson #hornet #nsa #saville #mischief
1. scapaflow says:
August 27, 2013 at 2:26 pm
HibeeHibernian says:
August 27, 2013 at 2:09 pm
Emailed SFA last week asking for details of gov funding since 2011, not had courtesy of even an acknowledgement, so, FOI request typed and off to Hampden
Sorry Scapa – the SFA is not a Scottish public authority for the purposes of FOISA so is under no obligation to respond. As pointed out however, the Scottish Government is covered, so any recorded information held by them is potentially releasable.
slimshady61 says:
August 27, 2013 at 1:41 pm
They claim 1872 on the basis that that was when the founders thought of the idea to form a club, so in 1872 four people decided to start a football club, and in 1873 football club formed (officially), so on this basis I am now going to claim my birthday as the day my parents first decided to have sex, 😳
DR article on the founders :
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/revealed-the-curse-of-the-rangers-pioneers-1030948
of the four – one was institutionalised and died there over business worries, one died in a poorhouse, one had to apply for poor law charity and the final one died on a sinking ship. So setting the principles by which the club still follow. ❗
Bayview Gold says:
August 27, 2013 at 8:16 pm
5 0 Rate This
slimshady61 says:
August 27, 2013 at 1:41 pm
They claim 1872 on the basis that that was when the founders thought of the idea to form a club, so in 1872 four people decided to start a football club, and in 1873 football club formed (officially), so on this basis I am now going to claim my birthday as the day my parents first decided to have sex, 😳
DR article on the founders :
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/revealed-the-curse-of-the-rangers-pioneers-1030948
of the four – one was institutionalised and died there over business worries, one died in a poorhouse, one had to apply for poor law charity and the final one died on a sinking ship. So setting the principles by which the club still follow. ❗
=================================================================================
Sorry guys, I gave up after the greyed header.
What we have to remember is that the SFA and CO like precise language. When asked about EBTs CO will have given answers in good faith and will have couched them in the terms of the questions asked. The problem, much like the politicians, is that those asking the questions very rarely ask the ones the man on the street wants answered. I think plenty on here can come up with a new list for someone like Tom English to ask!!
Bayview Gold says:
August 27, 2013 at 8:16 pm
Thanks for that, Bayview, clears that up nicely. I was a bit concerned earlier when I noticed the ‘founded’ date on the letterhead and feared an ‘outing’ of CF as a result. I’m a little bit concerned, though, about the last paragraph of your post and hope it doesn’t refer to your parents mentioned earlier. Four parents, hmm, you poor mixed up kid 😕
Am I suffering from paranoia still when I question the result of any investigation, inquiry or the level of any punishment against the team from Govan when all these accusations and dealings with this team all take place in Scotland under the watch of our SFA. The reason I ask is that as far as I am concerned we will never have a balanced SFA when the head of it is so heavily conflicted with his actions or inaction’s at one of his previous clubs.
My paranoid fear stems from results like the FTT (I know it is being appealed) but the evidence seemed so damning yet Rangers won their appeal. LNS inquiry and verdict was again unbelievable and depended on one individual’s evidence (Mr Bryson from the SFA). They have an internal investigation concerning the links between Mr Green and Mr Whyte (when every man and his dog have listened to CF tapes). According to Rangers nothing to see here. SFA accepting this internal inquiry?? So far they have done nothing.
I would have more faith and less paranoia if these investigations and inquiries into Rangers were dealt with outwith Scotland.
In fact they have never even been challenged really on the claim that they are the same club.
If this was ANY other club we know that the rules would have been applied without fear or favour.
Bayview Gold, after all the talk on here over the last few days about jokes made on SSB about special schools etc., I don’t really think its a good idea to be cracking jokes about people being institutionalised, dying in poverty and drowning.
RyanGosling says:
August 27, 2013 at 8:58 pm
True – if i was making fun of them as opposed to restating the DR piece and comparing it to the state of the follow on (no pun intended) club/company.
for anyone who did take offense, I see no shame or humour in individuals under pressing circumstances, I have been closely and personally involved in all of those situations bar the ship. (so far)
however TRFC are suffering business worries, financial difficulties (allegedly), required charity (if not 100% legally) and seem to be to a large proportion here sinking. Hence my comment about the company.
wottpi says:
August 27, 2013 at 8:44 pm
When asked about EBTs CO will have given answers in good faith and will have couched them in the terms of the questions asked. The problem, much like the politicians, is that those asking the questions very rarely ask the ones the man on the street wants answered. I think plenty on here can come up with a new list for someone like Tom English to ask!!
————————————————–
Surely Graham Spiers is the go-to man for interviewing CO. Perhaps it is time for him to try for a follow-up interview and take a rather more inquisitive line of questioning than his recent piece, given the information now being aired.
Auldheid says:
August 27, 2013 at 7:18 pm
I think when I previously posted, a while ago, on the Upper Tribunal Decision on the Aberdeen Asset Management (AAM) discounted options scheme that I misunderstood the basis of the UT Appeal.
I made the assumption that AAM had appealed the FTTT decision, issued on 29 October 2010 – that the DOS scheme was liable for income tax and hadn’t successfully avoided it – to the Upper Tribunal. But that is incorrect because AAM didn’t appeal the FTTT Decision but asked the Upper Tribunal to determine whether AAM or the scheme employees should pay the income tax which the FTTT ruled was payable. After the FTTT decision AAM accepted it was liable to pay the NI involved and prior to the UT Appeal had also accepted that income tax was also payable but believed that this should be paid by the employee.
The Upper Tribunal rejected the AAM Appeal and their decision was issued on 1 February 2012 which found that AAM was liable to pay income tax on the payments to DOS members and not the members.
Upper Tribunal Appeal decision at: http://tinyurl.com/7czchgq and original FTTT decision at: http://www.financeandtaxtribunals.gov.uk/judgmentfiles/j5148/TC00779.doc
From memory changes in tax legislation made the the Discounted Options Scheme useless for avoiding tax from 2003 and in general they weren’t used beyond that date.
However I think we have to remember that CO could argue that say up to 2003 he had no reason to believe that there was anything illegal in operating a DSO. Legislation catch-up shut the loopholes by 2003 and the 2010 FTTT in the AAM case decided that their DOS was illegal under tax legislation from the beginning.
However I have no idea of the similarities or otherwise of the Rangers and AAM discounted option schemes and need to rely on Auldheid for his definitive take on the matter. But timing is all here as to when it can be proven that CO knew the Rangers DOS was illegal. Certainly the CF material is very important for timing and his involvement with the Rangers DOS and particularly whether it broke SFA rules.
However it is obvious that by October 2010 HMRC had the AAM Decision and obviously thanks to CF we have visibility on the pressures on Rangers over the Small Tax Case. With everything that I have watched unfold in the swamp surrounding the SFA’s easy ride on Rangers I feel in my gut that I was wrong that the major problem was the woeful preparation of the SPL case to put before LNS.
It is much darker than that because it is obvious that the Rangers DSO couldn’t be identified and compared to the AAM DOS before LNS. If it had been it seems highly likely that illegal payments under SPL rules would have been declared involving what was it 3 players and the Bryson ‘Defence’ wouldn’t have saved them because I would like to believe that LNS would have found this was a fundamental rule breach that didn’t allow the continual registration ‘get out of jail card’ to operate.
Bayview Gold says:
August 27, 2013 at 9:10 pm
I have been closely and personally involved in all of those situations bar the ship. (so far)
==============================================================
I feel sure a one-way ticket could easily be arranged on HMS Dignity as it attempts to navigate the increasingly turbulent Blue Seas of Ibrox 😀
valentinesclown says:
August 27, 2013 at 8:57 pm
===============================================
Apologies if the fruity language offends, but your post brung this to mind and not just for the red, white and blue reference in the last few minutes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5dBZDSSky0
16,000 at poundland, where are the people.
Chick ho ho ho saying Miller coming back to sevco
ecobhoy says:
August 27, 2013 at 9:35 pm
————————————
The DOS schemes of AAM and RFC both originated with S@FI – Solutions @ Fiscal Innovation, an arm of HLB Kidsons Impey. In most respects they were identical.
Kidsons effectively went under in the early part of the century – most of the partners jumped ship to Baker Tilly. The main director and instigator of S@FI schemes went on to Premier Strategies Limited – another tax avoidance scheme provider set up by RSM Tenon.
Premier ceased trading in 2012 when the government finally turned up the heat on the tax avoidance industry and went into administration last week, as did its parent, RSM Tenon Group plc., the trading business of which is being bought by……Baker Tilly.
S@FI and Premier Strategies helped companies and individuals avoid more than £1BN in taxes over the past 14 years and have left behind a trail of misery and broken businesses as they played on people’s greed and gullibility, whilst pocketing exorbitant fees.
54 (tax avoidance schemes) to 0
http://www.onfieldsofgreen.com/things-fall-apart/
The Future is Pain ..
Bayview Gold
From Jim Craig’s excellent Scottish Football History blog;
http://cairney2.wordpress.com/2013/08/21/part-2-scotlands-first/
Ecobhoy
Thanks for that further clarification. I was taking the UTT as you did – an appeal against the FTT as opposed to who should pay. The only significance is that it was the AAM FTT decision that set the precedent for HMRC successfully pursuing Rangers for the tax due from their use of the DOS.
You are correct that in 1999 CO could not have known have known that the DOS would become illegal but I think it stretches our credibility to breaking point thatv in 2011 the genesis of the wee tax bill was not understood within the SFA.
Even if it was not known the SFA could have clarified the position with HMRC at any time from March to September under the three UEFA FFP articles covering UEFA licensing at end of March, June and September.
But instead of separating the two issues the SFA followed Rangers strategy of tryng to lump them together and use the EBT case as cover for both.
HMRC rejected this strategy as soon as Rangers new owners ran it by them in May 2011 and were determined not to let the matter drift.
The SFA had a duty as overseers of fair play to ask questions and the power to do so under a declaration clubs were required to sign up to under Article 43 of UEFA FFP.
CO obviously had knowledge of the DOS scheme and one would imagine his input was sought by the Licensing Committee on an issue that would have serious ramifications for Ranger’s future if a licence were not granted.
Did the SFA simply accept what Rangers told them without further enquiry? If so should they have sought clarification since the club has to prove the item in question is not an overdue payable?
Then there is the failure to direct LNS. CO would surely have known at that point of commissioning that on the DOS registrations it was a slam dunk ie side letters used, existence concealed from HMRC and DOS payments were illegal.
Yet this all got buried either in spite of the great administrator having experience in the DOS area or because of it?
The SFA stonewalled Phil on all questions even the one on did Rangers sign up to Article 43 which had they given an answer would have shown how both Rangers and the SFA saw Rangers status before liquidation. The SFA have made being opaque into an art form in spite of their stated transparency aims.
Either we have lost the place ( a thought that often crosses my mind) or there are darker deeds at play I would have dismissed as nonsense 2 years ago.
Auldheid says:
August 27, 2013 at 10:37 pm
__________________________________________________
It is curious why the SFA won’t say one way or the other about TRFC’s status as either new club or continuity RFC. What are they afraid of?
It does highlight a lack of decisiveness and leadership amongst those who, er, lead Scottish football.
Practically it is a failure of their fundamental role of governance, and points to the only real incidence of chaos and Armageddon in the Scottish game – at Hampden.
Pejoratively, it is just pathetic and sad that they hide under the table in silence like a crowd of terrified depression-era women when the rent man comes to the door.
When announcing the attempt to bring back Miller on radio Scotland …. Did they really say that mccoist also said that players will also be leaving but he ‘mccoist’ couldn’t say any more because the players didn’t know yet !
Nick Sutton @suttonnick 55m
Wednesday’s Sun front page – “Footie union chief’s £100,000 bets debt” #tomorrowspaperstoday #bbcpapers pic.twitter.com/asRvu1Kdox
Without bothering to research the article:
1/ Classic whataboutery
2/ Footie Union Bosses don’t tend to be able to affect the games that they’re betting on, unless they turn up with ten mins to go shouting all out brothers.
Unwittinglymine @unwittinglymine 14m
@Pmacgiollabhain I tweeted the SFA every other day for over 1 year asking what was happening with the license investigation. Out the blue(1)
Unwittinglymine @unwittinglymine 14m
@Pmacgiollabhain they answered one day with “Uefa have banned them for 3 years now anyway” or words to that effect! (2)
Smugas says:
August 27, 2013 at 11:22 pm
When seen the tweet, was sure it was going to be Wishart!!
slimshady61 says:
August 27, 2013 at 10:03 pm
… an arm of HLB Kidsons Impey….
Kidsons effectively went under in the early part of the century – most of the partners jumped ship to Baker Tilly…
Premier ceased trading in 2012 when the government finally turned up the heat on the tax avoidance industry and went into administration last week, as did its parent, RSM Tenon Group plc., the trading business of which is being bought by……Baker Tilly.
S@FI and Premier Strategies helped companies and individuals avoid more than £1BN in taxes over the past 14 years and have left behind a trail of misery and broken businesses as they played on people’s greed and gullibility, whilst pocketing exorbitant fees.
54 (tax avoidance schemes) to 0
=====================================================================
Slim…many thanks for the precise re-cap on this veritable disgrace of a tax avoidance industry.
Firstly, the name Kidsons, emanating from Kidson Jackson McBain (go Google AG McBain!) , predecessor Glasgow firm to former auditor of RFC(IL), Grant Thornton.
Secondly, Baker Tilley have just acquired RSM Tenon (Thieves, rogues and bar stewards!) via a prepack from our old friends Deloittes, the main exponent of international tax avoidance schemes and proud owner of the less than proud firm formerly known as Arthur Andersen. This manoeuvre coming just after a late withdrawal from negotiations to acquire said RSM Tenon….!
This is the standard of so called professionalism at the top of the accountancy profession, what chance the standards at the SFA, with the “heavily conflicted”/”greatest administrator”..still in podt after all that has been exposed about him?
essexbeancounter says:
August 27, 2013 at 11:30 pm
—————————————-
EBC, exactly. Sic a parcel o rogues….blackening the reputation of beancounters in Essex and other fine counties of these islands. More of the Ed McBain than AG McBain about them…..
To paraphrase redlichtie, “accountancy needs a strong FCA……” but I fear there is more chance of CO resigning than that happening
BroguesRoguesAndILikeThePogues says:
August 27, 2013 at 8:34 pm
You know I had to go back and see what you were on about, did not even notice that 🙄
Rabo Karabekian says:
August 27, 2013 at 10:34 pm
RB , thanks, there is an important point highlighted with this confusion in that the behaviour of TRFC doesn’t seem to be new, for years it was listed as RFC 1873 based on the formal forming of a club . then because it was discovered that some of the founders had an idea and kickabout it becomes 1872? surely club foundation dates are tied to the formal incorporation or admittance to an association or some such, EFFC formed in 1903, does this mean that if a couple of the founders had been discussing football over a beer for a few years and arranged for a game of shootie-in we could claim an earlier date? it seems that deception and half truths are endemic with RFC/TRFC if they can't even seem to agree on their formation date. After all did they not celebrate their centenary in 1973?
Auldheid says:
August 27, 2013 at 10:37 pm
‘..Either we have lost the place ( a thought that often crosses my mind..).’
—-
Steady, the Buffs!
We are getting there, and the ‘there’ is to the very essence and scale of the rottenness at the heart of Scottish Football.
We- you and I and every football supporter like us- now see that for at least a generation we have been played like mugs by our Footballing Authorities.
It is among them that the rottenness arose in their far too cosy a relationship with one particular, now dead, club.
A relationship that actually helped bring about that death!
A relationship that, even now , paradoxically, by continuing to allow the new bastard club ( for which they disgracefully acted as midwives) a false legitimacy, is assisting the suicide of the new club .
The old club might have been prevented from dying if our footballing authorities had been conscientious and honest in carrying out their duties, instead of acting as its pimps.
Might even have been rehabilitated and set on a decent and virtuous path.Who knows?
The new club is a dead man, having been well and truly shafted by its ‘carers’, on its way to extinction.
Like the present boards of the SFA and SPFL should be.
Speed the day!
dumb question, but has CO letter been mentioned by anyone in the Scottish press? has the SFA commented about betting or match fixing? or about AMcC outburst and lists? seems to be plenty room in the papers for sheep and Kenny Miller.
Broadswordcallingdannybhoy
Very apt. George Carlin RIP.Not to everyone’s taste,but a one off.
essexbeancounter says:
August 27, 2013 at 11:30 pm
20 0 Rate This
slimshady61 says:
August 27, 2013 at 10:03 pm
… an arm of HLB Kidsons Impey….
Kidsons effectively went under in the early part of the century – most of the partners jumped ship to Baker Tilly…
Premier ceased trading in 2012 when the government finally turned up the heat on the tax avoidance industry and went into administration last week, as did its parent, RSM Tenon Group plc., the trading business of which is being bought by……Baker Tilly.
S@FI and Premier Strategies helped companies and individuals avoid more than £1BN in taxes over the past 14 years and have left behind a trail of misery and broken businesses as they played on people’s greed and gullibility, whilst pocketing exorbitant fees.
54 (tax avoidance schemes) to 0
=====================================================================
Slim…many thanks for the precise re-cap on this veritable disgrace of a tax avoidance industry.
Firstly, the name Kidsons, emanating from Kidson Jackson McBain (go Google AG McBain!) , predecessor Glasgow firm to former auditor of RFC(IL), Grant Thornton.
Secondly, Baker Tilley have just acquired RSM Tenon (Thieves, rogues and bar stewards!) via a prepack from our old friends Deloittes, the main exponent of international tax avoidance schemes and proud owner of the less than proud firm formerly known as Arthur Andersen. This manoeuvre coming just after a late withdrawal from negotiations to acquire said RSM Tenon….!
This is the standard of so called professionalism at the top of the accountancy profession, what chance the standards at the SFA, with the “heavily conflicted”/”greatest administrator”..still in podt after all that has been exposed about him?
———————————————————————————————————————————————-
Gentlemen,
I was informed yesterday re the Administration of Tenon and the business being acquired by Baker Tilly, who as you say swallowed up Kidsons either in the late ’90’s or early naughties.
Tenon were only too willing to promote a variety of aggressive tax avoidance schemes in the early naughties.
Despite the more or less immediate business transfer to Baker Tilly by the administrators, I understand that the majority of the former Tenon partners based in Scotland immediately resigned from any Baker Tilly operation with the result that either collectively or separately they will be paddling their own canoe from here on in!
Significant?
@JaneLewisSport
In a statement to stock exchange #Rangers board are seeking clarity regarding number of shares held by some of the challengers to the board
9:15am – 28 Aug 13
Danish – the notice to the Stock Exchange below. It would seem the RIFC Board is keen to avoid an EGM.
Wed, 28th Aug 2013 07:00
RNS Number : 5902M
Rangers International Football Club plc
(“Rangers”, the “Company” or “Club”)
Further to the announcement on 22 August 2013, the Company confirms that the Board’s discussions have continued with representatives of the group who requisitioned (together the “Requisitioners”) a general meeting to consider the proposed resolutions (“Requisition”) detailed in the announcement on 2 August 2013 (“General Meeting”).
Progress has been made to agree a basis upon which the business of the General Meeting would be included in the Annual General Meeting. The Board wishes to reach agreement for the withdrawal of the Requisition without delay but is waiting for certain Requisitioners to authenticate details of their holdings pursuant to the Companies Act 2006 before being able to finalise the agreement.
The Board, which is determined not to incur unnecessary cost for the Club, has therefore secured an extension to the written commitment from the Requisitioners to withdraw potentially the Requisition pending agreement as stated above. If no agreement is reached by the close of business on 30 August 2013, the Board will be required to send notice to shareholders to convene the General Meeting by no later than 5 September 2013.
Further announcements will be made as appropriate.
For further information please contact:
Rangers International Football Club plc
Tel: 0141 580 8647
Craig Mather, CEO
Brian Stockbridge, FD
Strand Hanson Limited (Nominated Adviser)
Tel: 020 7409 3494
Stuart Faulkner / Rory Murphy / Richard Tulloch
Daniel Stewart & Company plc (Broker)
Tel: 020 7776 6550
Paul Shackleton
Newgate Threadneedle (Financial PR)
Tel: 020 7148 6143
Graham Herring / John Coles / Fiona Conroy
Media House International Ltd
Tel: 020 7710 0020
Jack Irvine
What is it with the Bears and simple arithmetic? Time was when they knew how many ounces of porridge should be in a average size bowl (as well as a daddy bowl and a baby bowl)
Nowadays they worry about whether they are 140 or 141 years old when in fact they’ve only just passed their first birthday.
And this morning comes the news that the present Company Secretary can’t count how many shares each shareholder possesses. Would that Campbell Ogilvie was still there, he certainly knows how to count up to big numbers.
54 (shares but don’t ask me to show you the certificate) to 0 (chance of avoiding an EGM)
Notice that Media House are given as a contact in the announcement, but no mention of Traynor
Looks like he could be clearing his desk in the very near future
Auldheid says:
August 27, 2013 at 10:37 pm
Either we have lost the place ( a thought that often crosses my mind) or there are darker deeds at play I would have dismissed as nonsense 2 years ago.
=======================================================================
I think we did lose sight of the goal for a long time thanks to the cowardice of the SMSM in failing to tackle SFA corruption and the malevolent participation and underhand tactics of the PR creatures who are still dripping poison and misinformation at every turn.
However I believe we are getting there and it is fact and evidence based – if it wasn’t the SMSM would do their Master’s bidding and rip us apart. But they can’t because we speak the truth while they hide from it.
What a pathetic bunch of cowards and as for the editors words fail me – obviously their dark ‘little’ secrets as bruited by Media House must be big enough to keep them in line. And I see the tactic has been used again in an attempt to derail the McColl initiative. However, I don’t think it will work this time 😆
Danish Pastry says:
August 28, 2013 at 8:24 am
Significant?
@JaneLewisSport
In a statement to stock exchange #Rangers board are seeking clarity regarding number of shares held by some of the challengers to the board
9:15am – 28 Aug 13
======
ecobhoy says:
August 28, 2013 at 8:52 am
What a pathetic bunch of cowards and as for the editors words fail me
======
Echoing ecobhoy, it’s interesting that a sports hack, and she’s not the only one when it suits, puts on a business hat from time to time. Yet, again if convenient, they excuse themselves from commenting on commercial chicanery by claiming not to be financial experts: it’s not their ‘field’, comes the cry.
blu says:
August 28, 2013 at 8:46 am
Danish – the notice to the Stock Exchange below. It would seem the RIFC Board is keen to avoid an EGM.
=======================================================================
I think they are desperate to avoind an EGM because by rolling everything into one meeting they will hope to be able to limp on to meet the timescale they are working to.
However after the highly personalised attack on the McColl camp by Jack Irvine they might find that previous goodwill has gone. Looking at various Rangers sites I doubt if McColl would get much, if any, flak for going back to separate meetings and cite the reason as the Media House attack for withdrawing co-operation.
The saving money thing by holding one meeting is out the window now that Media House has been handed back the PR contract which costs more than was saved by one meeting. Also the redundancies in non-playing employees are continuing and causing angst while McCoist wants Miller back and who knows how many others.
James Forrest says:
August 27, 2013 at 10:24 pm
31 1 Rate This
__________________________________________
Good blog post James.
It has been said many times on TSFM but has never been given any creedence by the people who should be taking it on board – TRFC Supporters.
The reason these supporters (or at least the vast majority of them) have been so gullible when it comes to the governance of their club and the ‘who will we back?’ decision is down to their morals and beliefs.
CG was the best thing since sliced bread when he was whoring himself in taverns and clubs from the West of Scotland to Northern Ireland. He told ‘The Blinkered Ones’ what they wanted to hear – Orange strips, bottomless transfer kitty, Greenbeams a plenty. He knew if he could gain the trust of ‘The Blinkered Ones’ he could be named ‘A Rangers Man’.
‘The Blinkered Ones’ constant search for ‘A Rangers Man’ at the helm has seen them slide downwards quicker than Jabba wedged in a bobsleigh on the Calgary run.
If Patrick O Toole from Kilkenny, a proven billionaire, with money to shed expressed an interest in becoming top man and major investor in TRFC there would be pandemonium.
“He’s ‘no a Rainjurs man, bin ‘im”.
IA’s latest email conversation with Jabba confirms everything you need to know about ‘The Blinkered Ones’. Tell them what they want to hear. Talk to them at their level. Once you have ‘The Rangers Man’ lapel badge then you are in.
Their constant search for ‘The Rangers Man’ has been and still is hilarious. Keep up your search ‘O Blinkered Ones’ I need a good laugh to keep me going through the winter.
slimshady61 says:
August 28, 2013 at 8:48 am
What is it with the Bears and simple arithmetic?
Nowadays they worry about whether they are 140 or 141 years old when in fact they’ve only just passed their first birthday.
And this morning comes the news that the present Company Secretary can’t count how many shares each shareholder possesses. Would that Campbell Ogilvie was still there, he certainly knows how to count up to big numbers.
54 (shares but don’t ask me to show you the certificate) to 0 (chance of avoiding an EGM)
=============================================================================
Throughout these whole corporate fiascos and omnishambles, and we have certainly had a few over the last 2-3 years, and excluding the copious amounts of entertainment presented by the “players”, there is a particular quality sadly lacking, and that is corporate intregrity/corporate regulation.
I hesitate to hark back to any concept of “golden eras” since I doubt such things existed, but exactly when did this current era of poor corporate governance begin…?
My own professional body has as its motto…”Quaere Verum”…”to seek the truth”. Where on the face of God’s good earth does one begin, bearing in mind as Slim has pointed out, they cannot even add up a share register, which is certainly computerised…!
borussiabeefburg says:
August 28, 2013 at 9:00 am
Echoing ecobhoy, it’s interesting that a sports hack, and she’s not the only one when it suits, puts on a business hat from time to time. Yet, again if convenient, they excuse themselves from commenting on commercial chicanery by claiming not to be financial experts: it’s not their ‘field’, comes the cry.
=========================================================================
I have repeatedly pointed out since this all began that there appears to have been from the beginning a concerted effort at the highest level within newspaper management to keep this affair as a ‘sports’ story. It is one of the biggest political, business, legal, accountancy and many other things that Scotland has seen. It also needs the attention and investment of the best investigative journos.
And yet we are left with sports hacks who haven’t got the ability to join the simple dots going all the way back to when Murray achieved control of Rangers. There are also serious questions over just how conflicted they are in a number of ways.
I haven’t read the piece by Jane Lewis so I might be wrong but I assume she has given no explanation as to why the count might be requested and what consequences follow from that.
Of course it’s a dangerous path because it might raise issues like the failure of Rangers to so far submit the Annual Return for TRFCL – Rangers have a long history of seriously delaying the statutory requirements regarding changes in shareholding changes and other matters covered by the Annual Report.
The information could shed light on some of the mystery overseas shareholders but would a sports journo want to go down that road. Of course not and that’s why they are the ones helping bury the facts, consciously or not, that need to be brought into the open.
And of course that thorny subsidiary of RIFC Plc – Sevco 5088 Ltd – is also late with its Annual Return. I wonder what shareholding and director details will be revealed their. Will Rangers confirm that CW and his sidekick are directors and what about the shareholding and shareholders ❓
campsiejoe says:
August 28, 2013 at 8:49 am
Notice that Media House are given as a contact in the announcement, but no mention of Traynor
Looks like he could be clearing his desk in the very near future.
=================================
Whilst I agree with your sentiment is it not possible, with respect to JI & JT, that the spivs would say:
“It’s probably better to have them both inside the tent pissing out, than outside the tent pissing in.”
(To paraphrase LBJ.)
They both probably know where quite a few bodies are buried.
slimshady61 says:
August 28, 2013 at 8:48 am
And this morning comes the news that the present Company Secretary can’t count how many shares each shareholder possesses. Would that Campbell Ogilvie was still there, he certainly knows how to count up to big numbers.
———————————–
Phil’s latest seems to have them in a tizzy, they’re only now realising that the institootinal investors haven’t bought as many shares as thought. 🙄
Hmmm, end game fast approaching.
I thought the Sevco statement on agreeing with the EGM requisitioner to have a joint AGM employed some quite antagonistic language towards the McColl faction. Certainly no need for it, could simply have stated that they were working to combine both meetings to save costs. That is all.
Sevco board are either know, 100%, that they are bullet proof and have the share numbers on their side to defeat EGM or they are deliberately antagonising neutral and Mccoll backers shareholders/fans in order to ensure they are defeated.
they can then sell up and get out of dodge – if that is there plan.
This latest nonsense – checking who owns shares and that the EGM is valid – surely that was the 1st thing they would have done before even replying to the EGM requisitioner? If they didn’t have the shares they’d have been told to “do one”
Of course, they could just be playing for more time – maybe someone claimed to have 1% of the share capital when it was really 0.999% – pedantry indeed.
If they had the backers, they would simply add the EGM motion to the AGM and defeat it then….so maybe they are not so sure.
Much like Imran and CG made very public “mistakes” in order to push them out – is this mather and stockbridges public mistakes by angering everyone
lastly, can someone please confim when TRFC ltd and RIFC plc are required to publish accounts. I doubt TRFC ltd accounts will be public – or will they? I keep hearing talk of audited accounts in september, and an AGM in october. I doubt we’ll see either, but when SHOULD we see them?