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……………”
Charlotte Fakeovers @CharlotteFakes 11m
Let’s start at the beginning for RIFC. Management Accounts for December 2012.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/164045799/RIFC-Management-Accounts-December-2012 …
I’ve still to catch up on today’s discussions but have a few thoughts on the benefit or otherwise of Celtic’s fantastic success.
And I’ve got my tin hat and flack jacket on before I start, but bear with me please.
I think that Celtic’s (or in fact any other team should they manage it) success will further reduce the competitiveness in the SPL. In that respect its not really a positive thing for the rest of the clubs. That’s simply down to the widening of the financial gap that will occur.
We can’t ignore the fact that the financial rewards are huge compared to the income of all the other clubs and its folly to think they can just get their act together and compete by trying harder.
BUT before I’m strung up I’m not moaning or complaining about Celtic’s success. (I’m delighted, particularly for Lennon who I’ve really warmed to as a Manager the last few years). It’s not Celtic’s fault UEFA created these competitions and its no reason whatsoever for the rest of us to fail to congratulate them on a great achievement. I listened to the game avidly last night and really felt myself pulling for Celtic to get the result I think they fully deserved. I didn’t think in terms of how it might be bad news for my own team, I just enjoy the game and new exactly who I wanted to win.
But the problem still remains that the Champions League has become not so much an elite competition but more like a elitist club.
We can all see that the design of this competition is unfair on our champions, forcing them to play umpteen qualifiers while runners up from other league go direct into the league stage. The way the co-efficient pander to clubs in the bigger nations is nonsense, again designed to keep the “elite” clubs at the top and make it hard for anyone else to crash the party.
So surely then we can also recognise that by throwing so much money at the teams that qualify and offering such paltry reward for teams in the Europa League the cards are stacked against the teams who may finish 2nd or 3rd in Scotland (or any other smaller league)?
Surely we can also recognise that allowing CL teams that fail to slip into the Europa while forcing Europa qualifiers to play the same sort of harsh qualifiers is tilting things further against say a Motherwell or a St Johnstone from making a small breakthrough?
There are lots of other barriers to smaller clubs making that breakthrough now and in my opinion its sucking the real soul out of the game. I refuse to watch the CL mostly (I’d probably make an exception to watch any Scottish Club) but in principle i’m just not that interested in watching the same 10-12 teams play each other every year, splitting all the cash between themselves as they go.
Looking beyond the impact of the huge CL riches there are other problems facing smaller teams.
If we look at the recent Scotland U-21 squad for example. 5 of the players picked in that squad are products of the Aberdeen Youth Set up, but you might not know it. Thats because 3 of them have already left Aberdeen. In fact they hardly played any games for Aberdeen at all before they left. What reward did Aberdeen get for this? A pathetic few hundred thousand for each player. The compensation system is just plain wrong and it offers no protection to smaller clubs.
Some posters have mentioned how the smaller clubs need to really get themselves together, that they can compete by producing good young Scottish players. Well I’d argue that is almost impossible. Any player even half way promising will be snatched away in their teens by a Wigan or a Fulham. £400k is nothing to those clubs.
One more gripe before I put a large sock in it.
I have a real problem with transfer windows system. IMO these simply weaken smaller teams and resutlt in the creation of huge squads at bigger, richer clubs – much to the detriment of competitive leagues and also many of the players who just don’t develop stuck in reserve teams.
Whats that got to do with transfer windows? Well before we had transfer windows big clubs had good players just as they do now, but they also had fairly modestly sized squads. They could buy a player at any point in the season should they need to cover for injuries or whatever. And in fact thats one of the reasons given for the window – to prevent big clubs buying up the players of their competitors mid-season as a means to secure a league title. But in fact it works in the opposite way . Big clubs just buy all those players and many they’ll never use before the window shuts – so the other clubs don’t even get the benefit of these players for part of the season as they might have in the past. Its a pointless rule.
So with all that said and off my chest now… let me say well done Celtic and Neil Lennon.
I’ve just seen the draw and I think such top class teams should be seen as a fine reward for what has been achieved, hopefully they can win some pride for themselves again this year.
broganrogantrevinoandhogan says:
August 29, 2013 at 10:05 am
==================================
The comments on Neil Lennon following the Guardian article pretty much remind me of those of a colleague who is a Rugby fan with no interest in football whatsoever. No interest that is other than that of a concerned taxpayer and how the liquidation of Rangers somehow avoided the scenario of assets being auctioned to the highest bidder. On Lennon he commented that the media always seem to go out their way to portray him as a snarling, nasty individual, while Lennon is actually the one who has had several crimes committed against HIM!
Re RIFC management accounts :
A £17M boost from revaluing assets
A second £17M boost from a net Goodwill credit
So £34M added to ‘profits’ and the year end result is a forecast profit of just £7.3M.
Am I correct in deducing then that RIFC actually lost £26.7M in the year? (Or that was the expectation in December)
Scottish football needs a strong analytical bent….
Carntyne says:
August 29, 2013 at 9:03 pm
If the person who wrote that really believes it then they have serious issues.
Paranoia, denial and blaming others for the actions of the club he used to support are among the more obvious.
Though to be honest I very much doubt it is an actual Rangers supporter who wrote it.
torrejohnbhoy(@johnbhoy1958) says:
August 29, 2013 at 9:05 pm
13 1 Rate This
Charlotte Fakeovers @CharlotteFakes 11m
Let’s start at the beginning for RIFC. Management Accounts for December 2012.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/164045799/RIFC-Management-Accounts-December-2012 …
——————————–
ave ST price – £212
Ave ticket price £11 (for walk up)
ave attendance @ 36k
hmmmmm lot lower than we had been assuming.
News from the Queen of the South website:
All Directors and Former Directors Loans Donated to the Club
The Board of Directors are happy to be able to confirm the following recent developments as part of the continuing restructuring of the club.
All the individuals who previously provided loan finance to the club over the last two decades have now agreed to waive their balances and donate them back to the club. Former Chairmen, Norman Blount and David Rae together with current incumbent Billy Hewitson and his fellow director Craig Paterson have all written off their loans. In addition, former director Mark Robertson and Mrs Joan Houliston, widow of former director Keith Houliston, have done likewise.
This outstanding news for the future welfare of the club means that we will move forward without any debt in the balance sheet, something which has concerned shareholders for a number of years.
The present Board of Directors would like to place on record their sincere thanks to all parties for their willingness to help secure the long term future of the club. In recognition of the particular size of their gestures, Norman Blount and David Rae have been appointed as Honorary Directors with immediate effect.
Tif Finn says:
August 29, 2013 at 10:31 pm
Carntyne says:
August 29, 2013 at 9:03 pm
If the person who wrote that really believes it then they have serious issues.
Paranoia, denial and blaming others for the actions of the club he used to support are among the more obvious.
Though to be honest I very much doubt it is an actual Rangers supporter who wrote it.
———————————————————————————————————————————
Of course not. They’re far too intelligent… 🙄
redlichtie says:
August 29, 2013 at 10:11 pm
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Re RIFC management accounts :
A £17M boost from revaluing assets
A second £17M boost from a net Goodwill credit
So £34M added to ‘profits’ and the year end result is a forecast profit of just £7.3M.
Am I correct in deducing then that RIFC actually lost £26.7M in the year? (Or that was the expectation in December)
Scottish football needs a strong analytical bent….
———————————-
I spotted that too and thought “Oh aye. That will pay the wages.
I see that IPO income less costs is nearer £1m lower than I’ve been using and overall wages about £1m higher but there might be lower costs or higher income elsewhere to offset.
Quite a lot to read sideways.
Chancer67
The information from Celtic plc accounts is completely correct. I’m slightly disappointed that many contributors who are very well qualified in this area chose to gloss over it. The fact is that Celtic have a bank debt of over 21 million, but it’s agreed and being repaid. The issue will arise in 2019 when the 16 million falls due, will the bank feel disposed towards extending that over another 10 years?
torrejohnbhoy(@johnbhoy1958) says:
August 29, 2013 at 9:05 pm
14 1 Rate This
Charlotte Fakeovers @CharlotteFakes 11m
Let’s start at the beginning for RIFC. Management Accounts for December 2012.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/164045799/RIFC-Management-Accounts-December-2012 …
_________________
the morons on FF are more interested in hunting the leaker than what is in the paperwork
they really do deserve everything that is coming there way 😈
Matty Roth says:
August 29, 2013 at 9:20 pm
Check my solution from earlier today.
I know there’s a lot of expectation of what will show up when the much anticipated audited accounts are published.
I’m still confused why the Annual Return for ‘THE RANGERS FOOTBALL CLUB LIMITED’ is 2 months overdue.
The AR01 form seems like it would take a couple of hours work to fill in –
names of current directors (should be fairly simple to compile)
names of shareholders (it’s 100% owned by RIFC PLC, isn’t it?)
maybe section G3, “**past** and present shareholders” is causing some problems?
http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/forms/generalForms/AR01_annual_return.pdf
torrejohnbhoy(@johnbhoy1958) says:
August 29, 2013 at 9:05 pm
Charlotte Fakeovers @CharlotteFakes 11m
Let’s start at the beginning for RIFC. Management Accounts for December 2012.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/164045799/RIFC-Management-Accounts-December-2012 …
=====================================
Just had a very quick scan through some of the pages ;
– couldn’t find any ‘Management Charges’ , [unless I missed it / under another category ?].
– The presentation of the TRFC reporting is like their football: unimaginative, unengaging and sleep inducing, [although top marks for creativity re: revaluation & goodwill 😉 ]
anoidWellFan says:
August 29, 2013 at 10:54 pm
Chancer67
The information from Celtic plc accounts is completely correct. I’m slightly disappointed that many contributors who are very well qualified in this area chose to gloss over it. The fact is that Celtic have a bank debt of over 21 million, but it’s agreed and being repaid. The issue will arise in 2019 when the 16 million falls due, will the bank feel disposed towards extending that over another 10 years?
——————————
I’d be pretty sure that Celtic would be spolied for banking choice given their record of prudence and probity, something you can take to any bank.
ParanoidWellFan says:
August 29, 2013 at 10:54 pm
2 0 Rate This
Chancer67
The information from Celtic plc accounts is completely correct. I’m slightly disappointed that many contributors who are very well qualified in this area chose to gloss over it. The fact is that Celtic have a bank debt of over 21 million, but it’s agreed and being repaid. The issue will arise in 2019 when the 16 million falls due, will the bank feel disposed towards extending that over another 10 years?
+++++++++++++
Since the bank involved is the Coop Bank, I think it is very unlikely to be renewed, given the difficulties that bank is currently facing. However I don’t see any problem in replacing that facility for a company which is profitable to the tune of over £10m per year. Debt of £16m is only a problem for a company making losses, and unable to service the debt. So long as CFC are run at a profit, there isn’t a problem. I believe the Board are competent enough to cut costs in future should income fall.
I just fail to see what the issue is here. The level of debt is entirely normal for a profitable company with CFC’s level of turnover. Everything is in publicly available accounts and out in the open. What exactly is perceived to be the problem?
neepheid says:
August 29, 2013 at 11:18 pm
What exactly is perceived to be the problem?
————————————————————————
Jealousy, paranoia, mischief making, bitterness, desperation…
All through hearing and seeing shoite!!!!
From twitter
Again the SFA make moves to benefit one club to the detriment of the other 41 club
http://t.co/dpO8J0R8zs
Why can we not know exactly what was in the 5 way agreement??
There are 42 clubs in Scotland why an agreement involving a selected few people to the benefit of one now deceased club that has an effect on all other clubs. Why?
Lets just say no one is interested in the Celtic accounts. After yesterday their as sound as a pound. So end of boring. Their loaded.
More interestingly in the CF leak a wee last para about 2 Million owed to brokers to be tidied up. Come on!!
Sorry its still 2 million owed but re the tuped players. Not owed to brokers but likely the players.
How do you just ignore this in the accounts.?
Essex? JC?
My purely conjecturally guess is. If the “institutional investors” of which the papers and CG wer so fond of advertising caught site of this number they would have caveated their money downside of this figure hence the non 22mil cash.
Wouldn’t you?
Caught a quick glance this morning. It appears the Herald has a positive article about Craig Mather. Hasn’t taken Jack Irvine too long to get down to business.
ianagain says:
August 29, 2013 at 11:31 pm
17 2 Rate This
Lets just say no one is interested in the Celtic accounts. After yesterday their as sound as a
pound. So end of boring. Their loaded.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
That sort of complacency amongst supporters is one of the reasons why Rangers died and why other clubs get into trouble. Every football club’s accounts should be dissected and scrutinised. Question everything.
The reason i posted the info on Celtis’s accounts was to show the desparation in the Sevco ranks for bad newsfrom the east end of Glasgow.
They so want Celtic to fail and can’t comprehend that the business model followed by Celtic can be sustained and so they think there is hidden debt, and some are going as far as beleiving that Celtic will follow them to oblivion.
The guy who wrote the piece is a disciple of McMurdo and is also in the process of trying to prove that GCC and Celtic are involved in corruption involving the sale of land around Celtic Park, classic whataboutery I know, but the Sevconians don’t know what it feels like to be second best and they are hurting.
chancer67 says:
August 30, 2013 at 7:50 am
………. the Sevconians don’t know what it feels like to be second best and they are hurting.
==========
Have to correct you there: the new side in Govan are a far way off ‘second best’. 😉
This is a first time post, from an English football fan. Great work, a very informative website. This doesn’t even concern my football club, but as I believe in sporting integrity, I am following the ins and outs of Scottish football.
I thought this story might be of interest to you given recent alleged happenings:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/23883676
borussiabeefburg says:
August 30, 2013 at 8:15 am
0 0 Rate This
chancer67 says:
August 30, 2013 at 7:50 am
………. the Sevconians don’t know what it feels like to be second best and they are hurting.
==========
Have to correct you there: the new side in Govan are a far way off ‘second best’.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And Rangers definitely knew what it was like. SDM drove the club into the ground trying to match Celtic.
redlichtie says:
August 29, 2013 at 10:11 pm
Re RIFC management accounts :
A £17M boost from revaluing assets
A second £17M boost from a net Goodwill credit
So £34M added to ‘profits’ and the year end result is a forecast profit of just £7.3M.
Am I correct in deducing then that RIFC actually lost £26.7M in the year? (Or that was the expectation in December)
Scottish football needs a strong analytical bent….
=============================================================================
…and all perfectly permissable under current UK accounting methods!
Just make sure you look at the “small print”…a pastime we “internet bampots” appear to excel at!
Given the League One rules on trialists are so flexible and club friendly. And given so many scottish players are keen to play at Ibrox regardless of what club its actually for.
One question springs to mind…
Why haven’t all the League One clubs found themselves some “SPL Quality” unattached players who might like to appear as trialists when these clubs play at Ibrox.
I’m sure there would be plenty of takers for that sort of exposure and reckon many players would play in those games for nothing.
Would be quite interesting to see TRFC’s thought on trialists if every time they player at home their opposition had 2 perfectly legal ringers, sorry trialists added to the match day squad.
All within the letter of the law of course, just as TRFC’s cynical use of triaists has been.
I see the old
Look at the debt Celtic are hiding story is getting spread .
Is this a hidden debt that is published in their annual accounts every year ,Then again you cannot expect Sevco fans old ragers fans to understand audited accounts as the old club hadn’t published any since 2010 and Sevco have never published any .
If Celtic have debts to pay then I for one am happy to see it ,as it means there STILL is a Celtic ,if sevco fans keep telling everyone they are the same club ,then Ragers have tens of millions of pounds of debt waiting to be paid back .
You really couldn’t give these clowns a red neck with a blow torch .
If you ask me ,the Sevconions are about to be told how bad their situation really is and this celtic debt kite is a poor attempt to soften the blow .
IMO the club are soon going to be renting their assets from the company and the Celtic debt story is to help the hordes swallow the bitter pill
Keep up the good work Jack
chancer67 says:
August 30, 2013 at 7:50 am
…. the Sevconians don’t know what it feels like to be second best and they are hurting.
=========================
They have competed in 6 competitions in Scottish senior football.
So far they have won the third division and have been knocked out the the League Cup (twice), the Scottish Cup (once) and the Ramsden’s cup (once).
They are currently still competing in this years Ramsden’s Cup.
I suppose you are right in saying they are not used to being second best, as that would mean being runners up in one of the competitions. However they are more than used to not being top.
I was under the impression that the revaluing assets and adjustment of the good will were the same £17m, is that not the case. Is there an adjustment for £17m in relation to Ibrox and £17m in relation to good will. So £34m of meaningless adjustments to show a “profit” for the year.
No wonder Charles was going to compare balance sheets. He was just making the numbers up as they went along.
valentinesclown says:
August 29, 2013 at 11:28 pm
35 0 Rate This
From twitter
Again the SFA make moves to benefit one club to the detriment of the other 41 club
http://t.co/dpO8J0R8zs
_____________________________________________________________________
Am I missing something here?
Had the SFA changed the transfer deadline date to 2nd September would that not have given The Rangers two days to sign anyone they wished?
valentinesclown says:
August 29, 2013 at 11:28 pm
35 0 Rate This
From twitter
Again the SFA make moves to benefit one club to the detriment of the other 41 club
http://t.co/dpO8J0R8zs
_____________________________________________________________________
Am I missing something here?
Had the SFA changed the transfer deadline date to 2nd September would that not have given The Rangers two days to sign anyone they wished?
Eco,
Great spot on the Cousin contract. I wonder if that form has changed at all over the years. It is interesting that is explicitly states it refers to the ‘captains bonus’ so would still, by my inference, not contain any loans extended. (I am aware that the loophole was closed by then and that the heat was on somewhat).
Fifa imposes worldwide bans in cases of match-fixing
________________________________________________________________________________________
If match fixing was all that had to be investigated in Scottish Football,
we would already be living in Utopia.
I apologise if this has been asked and answered previously. UEFA require new clubs to have produced three years of audited accounts before they are eligible to compete in their competitions. Does the delay in RIFC producing their first set of accounts prolong the new club’s exclusion from playing in Europe?
Quite a few glaring attempts at reinforcing the fable that Rangers the club have not changed in status in Barry Ferguson’s piece in the Daily Record today, it is worth a read just to understand the concerted efforts that are obviously in play somewhere in the background.
But even though I am becoming immune to the stupidity displayed by some people when talking about the Rangers situation, is this piece the work of a PR specialist or does Barry truly believe that Rangers will have a team capable of winning the top division in Scotland at the first attempt?
What I should have said was the fans of RFC(IL),who now follow the new creation, and had success handed to them, albeit by being able to outspend every other team in the country.
They have tuped over their sense of entitlement and the thought of Celtic out performing them in every department on and off the field, frightens the living daylights oyt of them.
The sheer stupidity of their claims to be the same club should be challenged and a forensic examination of the governing body’s role in the whole fiasco needs to take place, until then we will be bombarded by their pr stormtroopers until the next calmity descends on Ibrox.
neepheid says:
August 29, 2013 at 11:18 pm
I just fail to see what the issue is here. The level of debt is entirely normal for a profitable company with CFC’s level of turnover. Everything is in publicly available accounts and out in the open. What exactly is perceived to be the problem?
==============================================================
I think what might have brought this to a head in terms of the frenzy being applied after previously bubbling away low-key is a PR advantage was spotted after the initial away defeat to FC Shakhter and a gamble that Celtic would be defeated at home and lose out on the CL income boost.
That would have given the rumour more traction it might be thought to help insulate Bears from what could be horrendous financial news coming out of Ibrox and a bonus would be a consequential sowing of doubt and discontent among Celtic fans.
Don’t forget the remit that Media House has operated to in the past for Rangers, as revealed by CF, and that was sowing negative stories in SMSM about other clubs and especially Celtic.
Of course on Wednesday night NL and his bhoys didn’t just win victory on the football field but derailed any attempted black-arts coup by those who attempt to slip and slither through the PR slime and fail to hide the trails they leave behind.
I had a slight smile at the suggestion that Celtic could be in trouble if the Co-op didn’t renew its arrangement because of its recent problems caused by making bad loans. Firstly I believe the Co-op will want to retain good business and if not there will be plenty of other banks prepared to step-in as, strangely enough, banks make a lot of their money through interest and charges on money they lend. That’s the business they are in.
And what would happen if Celtic didn’t get an arrangement? That would open-up a number of alternative solutions that do not appear to be available to Rangers. We have players that could be sold to raise large amounts of cash; we actually have real Celtic men who would ensure that we continue on course financially; and we have a support who would support a share issue and raise the required capital from it.
Rangers have failed in all three of those departments recently and, of course, I haven’t even touched on European money as I have no wish to be cruel 😆
It also seems that Rangers has been unable to establish a similar banking agreement to the Celtic one and have decided to rely on paying cash. That is a truly noble sentiment but in a business notorious for the cyclical nature of its income streams it become a problem when the cash runs out. All that is left then with no banking facilities is Wonga and Ticketus. We all know what happened the last time Rangers went down that route of course.
Still I suppose there is always the last-ditch possibility of going to your friendly local loan-shark who might already be cruising for business in the murky sea of brown brogue sewage surrounding Ibrox.
At the end of the day Celtic publish its audited accounts every year and the information being peddled as a dark secret is all contained in those accounts. Posters on here know the difference between Celtic and Rangers when it comes to publishing financial details and even the Rangers support are well aware of the deficiencies of their current regime in that regard and had to force a meeting to try and extract some answers which in the end created more questions about how the club is being run-down financially.
Madbhoy24941 says:
August 30, 2013 at 10:10 am
Does Barry truly believe that Rangers will have a team capable of winning the top division in Scotland at the first attempt?
===========================================================
I would think that for he who would be king, or even The Rangers manager, it would be a prerequisite to rally the people with such a statement and the more ludicrous the better seems to be the Rangers Way as typified by Green.
We will see but of course there is still the slight problem of their financial survival to overcome.
essexbeancounter says:
August 30, 2013 at 8:24 am
…and all perfectly permissable under current UK accounting methods!
redlichtie says:
August 29, 2013 at 10:11 pm
A £17M boost from revaluing assets
A second £17M boost from a net Goodwill credit
So £34M added to ‘profits’ and the year end result is a forecast profit of just £7.3M.
Am I correct in deducing then that RIFC actually lost £26.7M in the year? (Or that was the expectation in December)
================================
Whilst I agree this is all perfectly acceptable under UK financial rules these are meant to be Management Accounts, for Directors etc eyes only. I’ve never seen such entries in Management Accounts before. Such manipulations are usually reserved for the published Financial Accounts in order to to try to deceive the gullible. The Directors are meant to be told the truth, the whole truth…….
So whom on the Board of Directors were they trying to dupe?
Auldheid says:
August 29, 2013 at 10:49 pm
Quite a lot to read sideways.
——————–
In Acrobat: Control + Shift + Plus will rotate clockwise
.
In the accounts – Rangers Retail revenue – £940k YTD yet forecasting £12m for the year. Is this based on the Sports Direct / Puma paying up front and if so what is known about the deals – didn’t they happen later or were structured differently. The airport shop didn’t open until 26 June – so that’s only 5 days of sales revenue from there.
chancer67 says:
August 30, 2013 at 10:32 am
What I should have said was the fans of RFC(IL),who now follow the new creation, and had success handed to them, albeit by being able to outspend every other team in the country.
==========================================
Again, what would you consider success.
Winning the third division (fourth tier) of Scottish football with the second highest wage budget in the country and being knocked out of every other tournament before the advanced stages is not really success in my view.
At the very least Rangers should have been winning the Ramsdens cup and getting to the semi final of something like the CIS. With their resources not even managing that is in my view failure.
Charles Green was right about that, Rangers this season should be looking to win their league and one cup.
chancer67 says:
August 29, 2013 at 8:17 pm
“The following is a post by a Sevco fan on McMurdo’s blog can any of our esteemed financial people on this blog look at it and tell me is he right?”
————————–
I had a peruse of the Celtic accounts posted by blu yesterday and though it is far from my sphere of expertise, it didn’t seem to portray a business that was in distress. It was noticeable that the season ticket uptake had dropped off over the last three years (a timescale which commences before Rangers current absence from the top flight) and that this has impacted on profitability. Given the club’s success in obtaining CL revenue I suspect they can negotiate this situation in the medium term.
Scottish football has been suffering from an all round lack of competitiveness over the last few years. The absence of a strong rival to Celtic currently may accentuate this lack of competitiveness but it might have other unforeseen consequences. As others have noted, there is an opportunity for any one of half a dozen clubs to secure second place in the league title. This might require them to have a go at Celtic since any points gained in this fixture will be seen as a bonus and might give them the edge over their rivals.
Page 30 of Celtics accounts provides an easy to read summary. The top line (Revenue) shows a decline since 2010:
http://www.celticfc.net/downloads/Annual%20Report%202012.pdf
It may be that Rangers unfortunate demise will renew interest in the competition at a time when it was on the wane. Economic circumstances have been difficult over the last few years but this depression will not last indefinitely. It might be speculated that by serendipitous coincidence conditions have been created for a recasting of the footballing model.
On the few occasions I have attended Celtic Park recently (league games) I felt that there was more the atmosphere of church rather than theatre; massed supporters in attendance at the ordination of a victory. Without the Old Firm rivalry Celtic may indeed find it difficult to fill its capacity. If they appreciate the new landscape and can carry their supporters and fans with them then they can embark on a new footballing reality. The costs of maintaining such a large organisation may even become burdensome thus allowing the smaller clubs to undermine their superiority.
I think the threat of Armageddon is in part a guarantor that it will not happen; it stirs one to action. Being blinded to the truth is the real danger which requires constant vigilance if it is to be avoided.
The CF Dam has been fatally cracked and will now invevitably crumble following the Mather interview in the Glasgow Herald where he announces an investigation into the content of an email leaked by CF apparently involving Media House in which Ibrox legend John Greig was insulted.
I have copied and pasted the relevant section but all of the Mather interview is worth a read:
http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/exclusive-interview-mather-and-commander-has-firm-hand-on-the-ibrox-tiller.22009270
Who pushed for Media House and did you support that?
There is slight misconception regarding Media House. Media House were here anyway. Media House had a contract here that came to an end in August and we renewed that. All we have done is carry on that contract. It is not a case of we never dealt with Media House and now they are back.
Are you aware of some fans’ antipathy to this contract given perceived links with Craig Whyte?
I am well aware and the board is well aware. There was a discussion that took place at board level regarding do we give Media House another contract or do we terminate the contract? In the media there was a lot of negativity towards Rangers, a lot of negativity in various media, and we felt that having access to as many advisers as possible in the current climate would be advisable for the club.
The fans have been very vocal about the way that certain media have portrayed Rangers, be they written or verbal. We felt we had a duty of care to the fans to ensure we could give them the best defence against those people who want to do Rangers down.
What about a Media House executive allegedly denigrating John Greig in an email?
John Greig is a legend. I have tried on numerous occasions, through numerous people to see if he would come back to the club. At this stage, that has not happened but I would love to see him back here. I do not know anything about that [email] but I have asked people to go digging on that and come back with a mini-report so I can judge that accordingly. But as that stands, I do not have enough information to comment further.
Chris McLaughlin @BBCchrismclaug 10m
Sandy Easdale agrees deal to take control of Charles Green’s shareholding at #Rangers. Green says it means he now has no ties with the club
Peter A Smith @PeterAdamSmith 13m
Sandy Easdale: “Between my family holdings & through other supporting investors I now have largest shareholding in Rangers Football Club.”
I see in the last days some posters raising the old issue of the photos some newspapers use to accompany a story, it has been obvious to me over that last years that this trait is actually getting worse and more calculated.
And just as I was thinking about this I received an email with the latest STV report that shows a very positive story about how the rest of Scottish football will also benefit (1.5m) from Celtic’s progression to The Champions League, the picture attached to this is Anthony Stokes looking angry and shouting at Chris Commons.
I am not even going to ask why anymore, I think I know the answer so I will just continue to ridicule them at every opportunity.
ecobhoy says:
August 30, 2013 at 11:16 am
“I have copied and pasted the relevant section but all of the Mather interview is worth a read:”
———————-
If the article reflects the reality then Rangers are a going concern, at least in the short term. However I think it is worth looking at underlying messages.
The headline “Maither and Commander” portrays a situation which is under firm control and is accompanied by a confident picture of the hero with a knowing smile upon his unshaven face.
When in the newsagent this morning I noticed a picture of Neil Lennon on a tabloid front cover, looking discomfited as usual with a headline about some sort of dilemma.
Now I understand that Rangers are due to release some financial information that many will consider interesting reading.
I also understand that Celtic have just gained access to the top table of European football.
So using simple logic, someone looking annoyed means that everything is okay. Therefore someone looking as if everything is okay must mean trouble at mill.
Thank goodness we have the facility of the fourth estate to bring clarity to our thought processes. How else are we to avoid Armageddon.
The Herald PR puff piece on Craig Mather, written by their chief sports writer Hugh Macdonald, is a classic example of why sports hacks shouldn’t be allowed near such an important and complex business story where football is of no more relevance to many of the main players than a tin of beans.
Q Macdonald: ‘Did you have a relationship with Charles pre-dating Rangers?’
A Mather: ‘No, I didn’t know any of them.’
Some posters might wish to read my previous post: http://www.sfmonitor.org/2013/08/mr-green-and-opportunity-knocks-for-aberdeen/comment-page-7/#comment-61029
It began: ‘Absolute shocker of an error in Richard Wilson’s Herald piece this morning at: http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/green-staring-at-exit-for-the-second-time-in-four-months.21922560 in which he states: ‘ Mather has no prior links to Green’.
‘Not only is is factually nonsense but comes at a very sensitive time on a day when huge decisions will be made on the future of Rangers.’
I pointed out this glaring error to The Herald and it was removed from the on-line edition on 20 August and here we are 10 days later with The Herald asking Mather: ‘Did you have a relationship with Charles pre-dating Rangers?’ and the CEO stating: ‘No, I didn’t know any of them.’
As Cameron would say this is a judgement call. Is Macdonald a lazy journo, is he just a poor one who doesn’t do any checking of facts and, indeed, has he displayed that he is a member of the succulent-lamb brigade whose capacity for swallowing PR manure and turning it into candy-floss is legendary.
Unlike Cameron I will provide my evidence 🙄
I stated in my previous post: ‘We all make mistakes and perhaps a PR or anonymous source gave the information which sadly doesn’t appear to have been subjected to the simplest scrutiny to check its veracity.
Perhaps he should read Chris McLaughlin’s piece http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18893159 dated 18 July 2012 yes that’s right more than a year ago ❗
In it Mather states: “I met Charles Green a while ago and we have a few common contacts,” said Mather. “He put the idea to me, and I’ve always been a lover of football. I’ve been to a number of the Old Firm clashes and I remember going there as a younger boy and having goosebumps listening to the roar, and I couldn’t imagine that it would never happen again.
“That was how it started. I had various meeting with Charles and the team and had a look at the facilities at Murray Park – and it went from there.”
If Richard has the time he might even research a crossover point with Green through their shared love of racing horses and Middle East business interests. But as I have already said Mather was brought to Rangers as an investor by Green and handed a title by Green of Director at Murray Park or somesuch and a specific remit to be involved in the youth side.
I have previously done a piece on Mather and some of his business interests at: http://scotslawthoughts.wordpress.com/2013/04/22/craig-mather-froths-over-rangers-job-guest-post-by-ecojon/
re Chris McLaughlin’s Tweets.
I was always of the opinion that CG was very visible in his role. As a rule you don’t completely turn over a set of fans (who lets face it don’t have the best reputation in this regard) then ride off into the sunset with your ill gotten gains and hope they don’t notice. He seems to have jumped early, or at least earlier than when the realisation of the end position sinks in. Good luck to him on that, he’s played a blinder.
We now have naughty rangers men, as opposed to proper white collar law abiding ones 😆 , apparently in control of the RIFC shares and thus in control of the potentially actionable floating charge against the club and the assets therein. Any guesses where we go from here?
Oh, and eco, I’m loving your assumption that the feed to Richard and Hugh were two separate pieces of work! A lie repeated often enough…
Through all the PR fluff being spouted this week has any one noticed the share price and its small recovery, as i write this, 50 pence. Where is there confidence in spivco that would encourage any one to buy shares at an increasing price?
Is this just traders playing “games”?
vDonaldo @AllanDonaldson 2h
A #celtic fan walks into a bar in #Barcelona,
“I’ll have the usual please”.
Retweeted by Phil MacGiollaBhain
The Herald needs a striker!
The Mather interview reads like a match report where the striker has missed a chance or five.
It reads like it was scripted and rehearsed, maybe even over a nice glass of SDM’s red wine.
There were more than just a few easy chances to pounce on which Hugh Macdonald, Chief Sports Writer, failed to convert.
Just think what any competent journo or internet blogger could have got from that meeting?
Just think of the service he could have done to fans of the club?
But on second thoughts I’d say I’m wrong.
The Herald doesn’t need a new striker and Hugh Macdonald, Chief Sports Writer, did his job.
Did his job well.
Hugh Macdonald, Chief Sports Writer, did what his editor told him to do – thats how he will keep his job as Chief Sports Writer for a wee while longer anyway.
The same Herald which ruthlessly despatched a bunch of its journos a couple of weeks ago doesn’t care about anything other than managing its decline while hoping for a miracle that won’t come.
And it is too stupid to realise that by filling its pages with bull like this that it is exacerbating its trading situation and accelerating its own demise.
Soon The Herald will need no sports writers at all, not even Chief ones.
Only had a quick scan at the Rangers accounts posted by CF.
Seems a bit over the top with every area of expenditure apprently identified, so I can see how Stockbridge may have managed to confuse himself into admiting to fans he did know what money went where and how some of it has apparently gone 😉
While joy is often expressed at T’Rangers share price falling, it looks like it is rallying up to around the 50p mark as some horse trading occurs before the EGM/AGM
Madbhoy24941 says:
August 30, 2013 at 11:43 am
I see in the last days some posters raising the old issue of the photos some newspapers use to accompany a story, it has been obvious to me over that last years that this trait is actually getting worse and more calculated.
And just as I was thinking about this I received an email with the latest STV report that shows a very positive story about how the rest of Scottish football will also benefit (1.5m) from Celtic’s progression to The Champions League, the picture attached to this is Anthony Stokes looking angry and shouting at Chris Commons.
I am not even going to ask why anymore, I think I know the answer so I will just continue to ridicule them at every opportunity.
====================================================================
In the case you highlight I too have no problem in understanding what STV are up to and it’s been obvious for quite some time. In view of their recent successful applications for the ‘community’ TV territory franchises for most of Central Scotland, including Glasgow and Edinburgh, it is a bit of a worry and steps may need to be taken to deal with the bias.
However there is another aspect to the use of photographs which isn’t really apparent outwith the media and it boils down to the financial meltdown in the media industry. Such is the absolutely swingeing cuts on budgets that photographic archives have been gutted to remove pictures which a publication doesn’t hold copyright on or isn’t a PR freebee.
This means there is no copyright fee to be paid to freelances for each reproduction of the picture. So basically they only use free material unless really really stuck and that actually can lead to totally unsuitable pics being used to illustrate a story . There is often an agenda which has nothing to do with photographic merit but sometimes it is based solely on cost grounds and as most of us are aware sometimes on other things.
I have always believed that every pic should be dated and if altered then that should also be displayed on the pic. Would stop all the abuses but would draw a clear distinction that the pic used had nothing to do with the actual story. Might get some more work for freelance fotogs and better quality pics but, in reality, we are watching the inevitable death of print media as we currently know it.
PS
I note Sandy Easdale is still claiming to be the largest shareholder but still no Regulatory News about any large holdings over 3% or about James Easdale increasing his very small shareholding.
So once again is he spreading things around his friends and family at 2.99% or is he taking over the running of existing investors. Who are the supporting investors and can he really trust them?
When will Charlies shares actually transfer?
Until we see the colourt of his money how muich of this is spin on behalf of the Spivs?
Johnny Nash still continues to sing.
So as expected, with the change in advisor, Mr Green’s handcuffs were of the pink fluffy variety, be interesting to see how much he cashed out for. I am not a great fan of Messers lawell and Riley’s performances vis a vis their SFA and SPL roles, but, their performance at the club has been outstanding.
David Low @Heavidor 17m
Andrew Ellis resigns from The Rangers FC Group Ltd (formerly Wavetower Ltd). pic.twitter.com/TMvQEkFzuy
4. torrejohnbhoy(@johnbhoy1958) says:
August 30, 2013 at 11:33 am
Who could have seen that coming. Charles Green has walked away, someone must have cured his Rangersitis.
Hopefully the millions he collected will soften the blow for him and his grandson.
Smugas says:
August 30, 2013 at 12:03 pm
Oh, and eco, I’m loving your assumption that the feed to Richard and Hugh were two separate pieces of work! A lie repeated often enough…
====================================================================
Ah but you have mistaken my position. I am very much in the Finloch says camp (August 30, 2013 at 12:23 pm) and know that the direction on this story, from the very beginning, was determined at the highest editorial level and that was to leave it to the sports journos and not to news/investigative reporters who might actually reveal the truth.
The media position has been formed by the Establishment requirements and all dressed-up in the fantasy that it is in the best interests of Scottish Football as decided by the SFA. The Macdonalds of the media industry have been used and in a different era may not have been as compliant.
But times have changed and the spectre of newspaper closure and redundancy on cut-price terms looms. I will not condemn weak individuals who bow to that pressure because if they are decent human beings then they will suffer enough personally-imposed angst which they have to live with.
If they are reporters of the spiv variety then they will swallow the succulent lamb fed to them by PR operations which grow fat on a contracting media industry by providing fairytales for free to fill the blank pages. Of course there is a price to be paid for this kind of churnalism and I don’t mean by the clients of PR companies.
I mean in the loss of the TRUTH and that now quaint but simple notion that bedrock journalism should be about reporting facts without fear or favour.
So I at least commend Macdonald for introducing CF revelations involving Media House and Rangers albeit obliquely. Perhaps there was a bit of acid created by what Macdonald had to swallow and a little regurgitation of putrid lamb.
Tif Finn says:
August 30, 2013 at 12:59 pm
4. torrejohnbhoy(@johnbhoy1958) says:
August 30, 2013 at 11:33 am
Who could have seen that coming. Charles Green has walked away, someone must have cured his Rangersitis. Hopefully the millions he collected will soften the blow for him and his grandson.
============================================================
That must be the grandson that he emotionally declared to Rangers fans would inherit his Rangers shares.
However look out for a House of Hearing endorsement by Green whose new aids apparently allowed him to hear the Champions League music being played on Wednesday night in Glasgow. Yet another one of his pledges to Rangers fans fulfilled. What a man ❗
And his speedy exit from Ibrox would suggest that he still holds his school sprint records
However I fear Ally’s warchest might well be empty.
wottpi says:
August 30, 2013 at 12:38 pm
Johnny Nash still continues to sing.
___________________
Folsom Prison Blues?
Possibly the old standard ” There are more questions than answers” hope this helps. 💡
I see Lineker has repeated the Bye Bye Celtic Tweet and Tom English has warned him to Beware of Incoming 😈
http://www.thedrum.com/news/2013/08/30/deja-vu-lineker-draws-fire-over-bye-bye-celtic-tweets
Apropos of nothing. 😐
http://www.sec.gov/answers/pumpdump.htm
torrejohnbhoy(@johnbhoy1958) says:
August 30, 2013 at 11:33 am
Chris McLaughlin @BBCchrismclaug 10m
Sandy Easdale agrees deal to take control of Charles Green’s shareholding at #Rangers. Green says it means he now has no ties with the club
Peter A Smith @PeterAdamSmith 13m
Sandy Easdale: “Between my family holdings & through other supporting investors I now have largest shareholding in Rangers Football Club.”
_________________________________________________________________________
So charles Green says he has no ties with the club??? Is he still a director of Rangers Retail Ltd?
I wonder if the Sports Direct deal was with Rangers Retail Ltd and not with RIFc or TRFC. Is Charles making a buck of the back of shirt sales?
JLeeHooker says:
August 30, 2013 at 1:47 pm
So charles Green says he has no ties with the club??? Is he still a director of Rangers Retail Ltd?
=======================================================================
And of fellow RIFC Plc subsidiary companies: Sevco 5088 Ltd and Garrion Security Services Ltd. Ah the ties that bind 😆
And there were the bears thinking at least they’d be left with the shirts on their backs!
Still, they’ve still got their stars to hug so that’s OK
Joking apart the Barry Ferguson stuff is actually pretty close to the mark for once. The 11 men in blue must approach every game as “to take the title at the first time of asking” or some such. Their superiority complex, however misplaced, is pretty much all they are going to have left.
Just wish the opposition clubs would realise that sooner rather than later.
How can anyone ask for something they don’t know exists? If someone said to Craig Mather, ‘have you seen that email from Charlotte Fakes?’ I’m pretty certain he’d have replied, ‘no I haven’t, what does it say?’, and he’d have been told enough to have formed an opinion by now. Instead he avoids the question, but still wants to appear on top of things, while, as they at RIFC continually do, sending out a rallying call to the bears. What’s more, what sort of feeble mind does he have that he can’t just get a copy of the email and see for himself? Why on earth would he need a ‘mini report’?
From the Herald interview with CM:-
“I do not know anything about that [email] but I have asked people to go digging on that and come back with a mini-report so I can judge that accordingly.”
JLeeHooker says:
August 30, 2013 at 1:47 pm
I wonder if the Sports Direct deal was with Rangers Retail Ltd and not with RIFc or TRFC. Is Charles making a buck of the back of shirt sales?
=================================================================
My understanding is that Rangers Retail Ltd is a joint venture between TRFCL and a SportsDirect subsidiary whose name escapes me.
Rangers claimed in their AIM Prospectus that they have a controlling 51% of the shareholding in Rangers Retail Ltd. However, as has become the norm in the Rangers story, all is not quite as it seems.
It’s true that the SportsDirect subsidiary only has 49% of the shareholding but what wasn’t disclosed in the Rangers AIM Prospectus is that there are two classes of shares and the SportsDirect ones count as double in any vote of ‘financial’ issues whereas the Rangers ones don’t. So the actual voting on a financial issue – which IMO is basically any important decision is: SportsDirect 98 and Rangers 51. Some control 😆
What should be more disturbing to Bears is that the joint venture agreement allows SportsDirect to buy-out Rangers and keep Rangers Retail. You might remember the mention of £1.5 million ‘income’ mentioned by Mather as forming part of the £10 million kitty. This would actually appear to be the draw-down loan allowed under the joint venture by SportsDirect to Rangers. The loan is secured on property owned or leased by TRFCL.
And, no don’t ask me 😀 I don’t know what property that is 😛
Allyjambo says:
August 30, 2013 at 2:00 pm
How can anyone ask for something they don’t know exists? If someone said to Craig Mather, ‘have you seen that email from Charlotte Fakes?’ I’m pretty certain he’d have replied, ‘no I haven’t, what does it say?’, and he’d have been told enough to have formed an opinion by now. Instead he avoids the question, but still wants to appear on top of things, while, as they at RIFC continually do, sending out a rallying call to the bears. What’s more, what sort of feeble mind does he have that he can’t just get a copy of the email and see for himself? Why on earth would he need a ‘mini report’?
From the Herald interview with CM:- “I do not know anything about that [email] but I have asked people to go digging on that and come back with a mini-report so I can judge that accordingly.”
======================================================================
If you look at more or less anything Mather is involved in my ‘take’ is that he wants to be Mr Teflon and he obviously has yet to realise that just isn’t possible in the Rangers situation. The question of course is – Has he already chosen his ‘side’ and keeping it quiet?
I assume a ‘mini-report’ will accord with the new Ibrox cost-cutting culture 😐
However it becomes ludicrous that he has ordered a mini-report into ‘that’ email which might not be the one Macdonald was referring to. But we all know he has given the game away. It won’t go down well with RM who were vitriolic re CF yesterday with the majority firmly questioning his/her parentage at the nice end of their blue spectrum. Certainly CF was to be ignored and now her revelation is to be subject to a mini-report which may have serious consequences.
And of course, unless I blinked and missed it, Macdonald doesn’t ask about JT’s statement that JI doesn’t speak for Rangers or his follow-up that he doesn’t speak to and won’t be doing so either to JI.
A poor poor piece of churnalism with no attempt to disguise the PR requirements – gone are the days when readers swallowed such rubbish 😉
Posters on RM claiming McMurdo knows the identity of CF, intresting or is he flying a kite?
JLeeHooker says:
August 30, 2013 at 1:47 pm
Is Charles making a buck of the back of shirt sales?
==================================================================
I know you can’t take the breeks aff a Heilenman but am less sure whether you can flog the shirt of the back of a Yorkshireman or a deid nag fit only for the knacker’s yard.
HirsutePursuit says:
August 30, 2013 at 1:37 pm
===========================================================
Re. Apropos of nothing – 15th August SP 41.0, 30th August SP 51.0. Circa 308,000 shares traded (how many recycled?) and around 24% increase in SP. This isn’t enough to affect voting at any general meeting and surely isn’t to do with peace breaking out in the boardroom inspiring investors.