Much has been written on this blog, and previously on RangersTaxCase.com regarding the assets and liabilities of the former Rangers football club – however little has been done to look at the rest of the SPL and Scottish Football as a whole. Was it just Rangers making ridiculous ‘asset’ valuations or is there other clubs in real danger of following RFC to the grave?
Before we get started a quick explanation on the figures. They were all taken from the latest accounts as appearing on Duedil.com, so some are from 2010’s figures. I have also ‘tidied’ them up a little so that they are easily understandable, removing things such as minor stock holdings.
The big story in the Rangers case was how over valued their ‘assets’ were, and especially the freehold property. To remind you Rangers Balance sheet in 2010 was as below:
While on paper the net assets look very healthy, we all now know that the 130m of Fixed assets was in fact worth just 5.5m in the real world. If we change that 130m to the real life figure their balance sheet would have looked like this…
So, how do the rest of the SPL compare? This is a list of ‘fixed assets’ for each club as noted in their last accounts.
Predictably, Celtic lead the way, but a quick scout through the notes reveals the freehold properties are valued at 45m. Dundee prop up the table, but with no freehold properties to their name, this is not so surprising. One thing to note is the difference in value of the assets held by Aberdeen and Kilmarnock compared to clubs like Dundee Utd and St.Johnstone – this is important when we look at their balance sheets.
As you can see above, I have broken the balance sheet down into a few categories. We have the fixed assets we just discussed, followed by the cash in bank. Next is the debtors (money owed to the club within the next year) and then the creditors (money the club owes to others within the next year). A crude calculation gives us the Net Current assets or liabilities. A red number means that club owes more money in the next 12 months than they have in the bank, or are owed.
We then move on to long term creditors (money that is owed but not immediately – more than 1 year away) which will constitute loans from banks, or from shareholders. In the case of Hearts, who have the highest amount of long term debt in the SPL, 98% of this debt is owed to the parent company UAB, controlled by Romanov. This debt attracts a further 4.5% interest a year, while UAB also hold a floating charge over the clubs assets.
The final column gives us the Net assets or liabilities, taking into account the fixed assets of the company. As we saw earlier, Rangers had posted Net assets of 70m, only achieved by their ridiculous freehold property valuation. Are Hearts and Aberdeen doing the same? In the case of Hearts they include in their fixed assets 159,000 worth of ‘Memorabilia’… in addition to 15m of freehold property, while Aberdeen state in their accounts that the valuation of Pittodrie is a ‘rebuild’ value rather than a likely realistic sale price.
By declaring such high values on their balance sheets though, it produces a net asset figure, rather than a large liability that, in reality, is the case. Kilmarnock and Hibs to a lesser extent would also see their figures turn red with asset valuations downgraded.
What is heartening to see though, is two clubs with net current assets, in St.Johnstone and Motherwell. Saints were rescued from near bankruptcy in the 80’s by Geoff Brown and have lived within their means ever since. Motherwell likewise have been in financial trouble in recent times, but the club appears to have stabilized and is now living within their means on and off the park.
If another insolvency event hits an SPL club, the MSM will blame it on the demise of Rangers. What can be clearly seen here though is the damage was done years ago to clubs like Hearts, Dundee Utd and Aberdeen – it will be a battle to get back to the kind of financial position that clubs such as St.Johnstone currently enjoy. However, the message that Saints are currently sending out is that its possible to have a competitive team without breaking the bank, as long as others aren’t artificially inflating wage demands.
The accounts I used to get the above figures are downloadable here: I was unable to find for Inverness – if anyone can find please let me know and I can add them to the table. When time permits I will extend this to include SFL clubs as well.
Aberdeen | Celtic | Dundee Utd | Hearts | Hibs | Kilmarnock | Ross County | St.Mirren | St.Johnstone
Re SSB tonight
There is an accusation that this is all about Celtic Support obsession with oldco/newco. As this is a west of scotland programme the majority of fans are celtic or rangers. What GS and panel have failed to acknowledge is that it’s not just Celtic supporters that love to highlight this it is in the main supporters of others teams in Scotland as shown on this blog.
briggsbhoy says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:14
2 0 i Rate This
Re SSB tonight
There is an accusation that this is all about Celtic Support obsession with oldco/newco. As this is a west of scotland programme the majority of fans are celtic or rangers. What GS and panel have failed to acknowledge is that it’s not just Celtic supporters that love to highlight this it is in the main supporters of others teams in Scotland as shown on this blog.
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I’ll second that, briggsbhoy.
SSB. Chap called Roderick, there’s a rangers fan who has his head screwed on
May I third and fourth and fifth that?
angus1983 says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 14:31
arabest1 says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 14:09
Some Bears want to take this fight (excuse the language;) ) to Thommo…..
http://thedailyranger.wordpress.com/
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Hmmm. They might just have a point with regard to the Ofcom rules regarding declaring an interest, given that Downfall was featured quite prominently.
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For the record I have not TD’d you but don’t necessarily agree. AT’s only ‘interest’ in Phil Mac’s book is that he wrote a foreword. The dailyranger blog is implying that he has a pecuniary interest which he does not, so I don’t think he would have any issues regrading Ofcom rules
Referring to allyj’s post there
twopanda says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:10
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Danish Pastry says: at 17:13
neepheid says: at 16:19
twopanda says:at 15:56
LH and that and all that
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Interesting.
Dumb question again: Would HMRC, LH, and whoever (Thin Blue Line?), have a channel of communication open on a case like this? It would seem counterproductive to have people working in watertight compartments when the goal is the same.
Danish Pastry says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:24
twopanda says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:10
1 0 Rate This
Danish Pastry says: at 17:13
neepheid says: at 16:19
twopanda says:at 15:56
LH and that and all that
——-
Interesting.
Dumb question again: Would HMRC, LH, and whoever (Thin Blue Line?), have a channel of communication open on a case like this? It would seem counterproductive to have people working in watertight compartments when the goal is the same.
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That all becomes really complicated.
Lord Hodge is a Judge and as such must be independent. HMRC are a reserved body and report to the Westminster Government, though they are a non-ministerial Department so don’t answer to it in relation to specific cases, but do carry out it’s policies. The Police are directly controlled by the Lord Advocate, so are instructed by COPFS.
For HMRC and the Police, it really depends what they want to talk about and on what basis. Though there is legislation which allows them to share intelligence. They can do this directly without anyone else being involved.
I suspect that HMRC’s interest in Rangers really started via that intelligence sharing. i.e. The Police knew things and passed that on, HMRC then acted on that intelligence. That is just my assessment though.
Danish Pastry says: at 19:24
Dumb question again: Would HMRC, LH, and whoever (Thin Blue Line?), have a channel of communication open on a case like this? It would seem counterproductive to have people working in watertight compartments when the goal is the same.
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No idea mate – not my world. Could only guess that LH is clever enough to avoid any mishap in a high profile case – and contact everyone involved to get the whole story. Senseless taking silly risks without need to – aren’t they all in Edinburgh anyway? – probably share canteens and water-holes for all I know.
jonnyod says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 18:36
Listening to FW on radio saying ,great thanks has to go to the ragers players for taking wage cuts that saved jobs ,That would be the club that kept everyone in a job and recorded a 4m loss during their tenure .
As admins go Duff n duffer are truly original and I would guess always will be for this one admin
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Jonnyod, you make some good and valid points but, for me at least, you always diminish your argument by refusing to include the ‘N’ in Rangers. Maybe as an East coaster I will never understand the Old Firm thing but it just seems somehow pointless. Please don’t take offence at this; none is meant. I just think your points would carry more weight without that undertone. Sorry to be OT
enoughx2 says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 15:45
By the time they next meet an English team, I expect the Bobby on the the beat to have been replaced by RoboCop.
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I can tell you that when they met Berwick Rangers FC (based in Englandshire – but only just) in August, I have never seen so many rozzers around a football match and I include Newcastle-Sunderland and Manchester derby matches in that…
twopanda says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:10
In fact I believe it quite possible that LH – just as with the COI – may require a detailed report from the admins on the `sale` to CG – in tandem with appointing BDO? – Possible maybe but all needs to be within the legal framework LH works to and to his discretionary powers .
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Well if LH allows RFC into the hands of the liquidators tomorrow, then someone surely has to explain to me, in terms a simpleton can understand, why RFC wasn’t in liquidation in June? Why couldn’t BDO have been appointed in June, with, of course, a requirement for D&P to explain the COI points, before they got any fees? I asked this very question on RTC in June. Nobody could refer me to a precedent, and apparently nobody can explain this delay in any terms that I can understand. I’ve asked often enough.
The only purpose I can identify, that has been served by this delay in liquidation, is the transfer of RFC’s SFA membership to Sevco. The delay has quite simply served to allow the continuation of a team called Rangers playing at Ibrox in Scottish senior football.
Perhaps tomorrow will prove me wrong, then I can shut up and move on. However while Lord Hodge does his bit of business tomorrow morning, who would be surprised if the tribunal decision was released, so deflecting any attention away from murky and obscure decisions made that same day in closed court? If that is the case, then believe me, it won’t work with this old bampot. I will gnaw away at this like a dog with a bone until I’m booted off the forum, then I’ll just go somewhere else and keep on gnawing.
You see, to me this is the very heart of the problem that we face in Scotland. How was that membership transferred? Hands up the SFA and SPL with their 5 party agreement, an agreement so grubby and shameful that the final version will never see the light of day if the 5 conspirators can help it. But that seedy, corrupt and secret agreement could only have been hatched because the RFC membership still existed to be transferred. Why did that membership still exist in July? Because Lord Hodge blocked the liquidation of Oldco. And I’m pretty sure that HMRC, like everyone else, expected liquidation within days of their CVA rejection. They wanted BDO in right away.
Funny handshakes? Establishment bias? Personal friendships? I don’t know and I don’t care- but I know it just makes me sick at heart. Poor, poor Scotland.
jonnyod says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 18:36
4 0 i
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Listening to FW on radio saying ,great thanks has to go to the ragers players for taking wage cuts that saved jobs ,That would be the club that kept everyone in a job and recorded a 4m loss during their tenure .
As admins go Duff n duffer are truly original and I would guess always will be for this one admin
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Who does FW think these ‘great thanks’ should come from? Himself? The whole of Scottish football? If he is speaking on behalf of himself, is that in his position with the SPFA, or as a Rangers supporter? I’d think it is only Rangers and their supporters who have any reason to give these players their thanks, great or otherwise. The rest of us might feel the individual players are due some credit, but thanks? No. They only helped perpetuate the scam and the screwing of creditors, albeit unwittingly!
The players being thanked also got sell on clauses added to their contracts.
A lot of them were in a far better position after having “sacrificed” their wages. They knew they could move on, getting lucrative contracts elsewhere.
When the business actually failed they became even better off and walked away.
scottc says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:40
Yes, I have to agree. I am also an east coaster and the constant bickering and points scoring wears a bit thin. I have been in pubs with Hearts and Hibs fans where friendly banter with flow all night. The (former?) Old Firm banter always seem as best just a step away from boiling over. I now live in Glasgow and think it is just a step away from being a fantastic city. If everyone would just take a step back, happy days.
Einstein defined insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”. Do you really think you will ever win the arguement? While both clubs exist, in whatever form, the partizan views will remain.
Danish Pastry says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 16:22
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Danish. don’t tell me you’ve never heard of Robbie the Pict?
Scottc/beatipacificiscotia
I accept your opinion regards my use of the word ragers when talking about Rangers ,I have no trouble at all in using the term Rangers .My term comes from my own personal view of the club that awaits liquidation ,of which I will not go into .
That said I would be more than happy to see a new club rise that I could again give their proper title .
Allyjambo
I am with you regards this whole debacle being a scam from the off the sooner the culprits are brought to justice the sooner we can ALL get on with the business of supporting football
A helluva lot is riding on LH’s judgement here. To date his actions have been somewhere from questionable to incompetent as regards his handling of this.
The delay stinks frankly – appears a purposeful one to allow SEVCO to enter the league and continue feeding D and P parasites. there is more than enough to nail D and P on – not cutting costs, not securing income streams, not raising revenues, trading at a loss, removing assets from creditors at below their market value and with Whytey’s revelations a conflict of interest explains why they have acted to the detriment of creditors and probably illegally in trading at a loss.
If LH allows this to go through then it reveals that Scotland has no justice system and it is run solely for the interests of special groupings. Nothing less than the integrity of Scottish Justice is at stake. D and P are bang to rights.
The judge must deliver according to the evidence. To date this judge has singularly failed to protect the interests of creditors and has allowed this fiasco to drag on for month after month. I would like to think that he will do what musy be done. His past record gives me little cause for optimism.
neepheid says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:50
Whoa there – as far as I and many others were concerned when the CVA failed – the first precept failed and it should have gone to liquidation on June 14 there and then. As you say none of us knew at the time why not – there was this `sale`afterwards that was odd – To your point though it seems HMRC was calling the shots on the COI and LH needed to clear that as it affected the Courts appointment of Officers. That would be a procedure instigated by LH after representation by HMRC.
That was mid June – and as I remember it the Cardigan + various knights were waiting in the wings expecting just that and hoping for a liquidation then in reality so they could pick up the pieces for a couple of million or less. If that happened the Cardigan with chums like CO and GS and all the rest of those types would have had time to swing a SFA membership in any event in their version of collusion.
Now –what you say NH
“You see, to me this is the very heart of the problem that we face in Scotland. How was that membership transferred? Hands up the SFA and SPL with their 5 party agreement, an agreement so grubby and shameful that the final version will never see the light of day if the 5 conspirators can help it.”
Hope you don’t expect me to disagree with any of that? – Not on my record I hope NH – but when you say;
“But that seedy, corrupt and secret agreement could only have been hatched because the RFC membership still existed to be transferred. Why did that membership still exist in July? Because Lord Hodge blocked the liquidation of Oldco.”
That is undeniably true as a statement of fact NH– no doubt. But;
[Why did that membership still exist in July?] – that`s the point
Still don`t believe LH involved at all but – There may have – well there blooming was – a grubby back door deal on SFA membership – but for the Newco and it was the newco – as the oldco was effectively operationally dead. – It wouldn’t have mattered one bit if the oldco was liquidated earlier – and certainly not as far as the Cardigan and co were concerned if their wishes had come true. .
In my view the SFA membership couldn`t be transferred as it had lapsed – with no accounts that by the rules
I`d go further – LH not to blame – or have the buck passed – because the SFA didn’t suspend or terminate their membership in March / April on 5 upheld charges. Bang to rights on 5 SFA charges! – Blimey
TallBoy Poppy (@TallBoyPoppy) says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 20:13
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Danish Pastry says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 16:22
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Danish. don’t tell me you’ve never heard of Robbie the Pict?
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There’s a lot that passes me by in this Scandinavian backwater Tallboy. That may well have been one of the stories I remember reading about with reference to judges and masonic connections.
To be honest, I’ve no idea what masonic activities involve. But I’m with the famous statesman who said that secret societies have no place in a civilized society.
‘The very word “secrecy” is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths and to secret proceedings.’
Anyway, this is a separate issue best discussed elsewhere no doubt. Hopefully, it has no bearing whatsoever on the outcome of what we are discussing here.
Danish Pastry says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 20:50
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Ditto. I believe the folk that say LH will play with a straight bat.
twopanda says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 20:43
Still don`t believe LH involved at all but – There may have – well there blooming was – a grubby back door deal on SFA membership – but for the Newco and it was the newco – as the oldco was effectively operationally dead. – It wouldn’t have mattered one bit if the oldco was liquidated earlier
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Well that’s where we differ. On RTC there was a great deal of discussion on the SFA rules, and my understanding, based on that discussion, was that the SFA had discretion within the rules on the accounts issue, but where a member went into liquidation, there was no discretion, the membership was, in effect, extinguished automatically. And therefore could not be transferred post liquidation, Sevco would have had to make an application as a new member, and quite simply didn’t meet the criteria for a new member. So it was absolutely essential, for the purposes of the great switcheroo, that Oldco did not go into liquidation in June.
I will have a look at the RTC archives tomorrow, just in case I’ve got this totally wrong. If I have, I’ll let you know. (and apologise for my rantings!)
.
scottc says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:23
For the record I have not TD’d you but don’t necessarily agree. AT’s only ‘interest’ in Phil Mac’s book is that he wrote a foreword. The dailyranger blog is implying that he has a pecuniary interest which he does not, so I don’t think he would have any issues regrading Ofcom rules
——
A good point, Scott. However, I’m not sure that the Ofcom standards state that the interest has to be monetary. It just says “personal interest”.
Meanwhile, the Dily Ranger continues in its attempted character assassination of AT by publishing a piece about wasps and daleks, completely misinterpreting a twitter conversation he had with … wait for it … a Celtic fan!
How paranoid are these peepil?
http://thedailyranger.wordpress.com/
And how obsessed? Have you seen how many times they tweeted AT trying to get him to respond to their pish? (If not, it’s all reproduced there on the above blog.)
Strange, strange people.
TallBoy Poppy (@TallBoyPoppy) says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 20:13
Danish. don’t tell me you’ve never heard of Robbie the Pict?
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There was a time when I was in a band, and we used to play in Skye quite regularly.
Robbie used to come to all our gigs, and became quite a good friend. Very clever and interesting guy, and quite willing to partake in the complimentary after-hours refreshments. Wouldn’t have put him down as a fan of noisy rock music, but there you go. 🙂
Danish Pastry says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 20:50
To be honest, I’ve no idea what masonic activities involve. But I’m with the famous statesman who said that secret societies have no place in a civilized society.
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As any “brother” will tell you, Danish – it’s not a secret society, it’s a society with secrets. And the secrets aren’t very secret, either. They’re all over the internet for a start. 🙂
Both my brothers are masons, my granda and great uncle were masters of their lodge (or whatever the title is). Just me and my Dad that could never be arsed with that sort of nonsense. 🙂
Masons up here, it has to be said, are mostly in it for the subsidised bar.
Not great crowds tonight
7,600 at Pittodrie and 14,399 at Parkhead
neepheid says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 21:20
Sevco would have had to make an application as a new member, and quite simply didn’t meet the criteria for a new member. So it was absolutely essential, for the purposes of the great switcheroo, that Oldco did not go into liquidation in June.
will have a look at the RTC archives tomorrow, just in case I’ve got this totally wrong. If I have, I’ll let you know. (and apologise for my rantings!)
____
OK NH thats fine – [have you ever noticed my rants over on RTC 😉 ] no apols needed mate
Discretion? – As you know the rules were effectively sidelined and they made it up as they went along culminating in the 5 way agreement thing – on which we will not disagree at all as a “seedy, corrupt and secret agreement” – which I personally believe will come back to haunt them – which is why they`ve kept it secret. We`ll see what BDO can do with that – there`s quite a bit of creditors money in that lot NH
I think the matter was confused by D+P `selling` the SPL and SFA membership for a quid each. I mean did CG get his quid back for the SPL for rejected goods.
But I`ll still hang on that sevco did – in the end – have to make an application as a [new member] newco with a different company –and were initially granted a conditional license after haggling to last minute thereafter upgraded to a full license. [despite not meeting the criteria – hence the 5-way agreement]
But I could well be wrong – if it was `transferred` – would be interested on your update NH
No doubt the admins kept in going to avoid liquidation – but LH maybe couldn`t act till he`d received an application or petition to end the administration – or had solid legal grounds to intervene.
Agrajag says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:36
Danish Pastry says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:24
twopanda says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:10
Danish Pastry says: at 17:13
neepheid says: at 16:19
twopanda says:at 15:56
LH and that and all that
——-
Interesting.
Dumb question again: Would HMRC, LH, and whoever (Thin Blue Line?), have a channel of communication open on a case like this? It would seem counterproductive to have people working in watertight compartments when the goal is the same.
=================================
I suspect that HMRC’s interest in Rangers really started via that intelligence sharing. i.e. The Police knew things and passed that on, HMRC then acted on that intelligence. That is just my assessment though.
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I would say HMRC’s interest was kicked off by a straight forward local office enquiry into RFC’s accounts when the Inspector identified the reference therein to the EBT. Almost every EBT scheme would have been challenged by HMRC.
The initial enquiry would probably have been opened under Code of Practice 11 into one or more “Aspects” of the accounts rather than being a full blown enquiry.
jonnyod says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 18:40
GS has just been pinned down by a caller to admit that Sevco are indeed a NEW CLUB the dam is bursting ,could it be anything to do with the FTT findings
Hmmmmmmmmmm
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Unfortunately, he also deemed it necessary to apologise for saying so.
Hmmmmmmmmmm again.
On a completely different topic. Just watched the Reading vs Arsenal game.
WOW! Won’t mention anything else as some may plan to watch highlights later…..just WOW!
Bears Den responding to Thomson and Speirs articles on the Sevco underclass. This post –
http://forum.rangersmedia.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=241507 – is by one of their senior posters, olegkuznetzov, who trades on being the vanguard intellectual of the klan site. Trust me, he’s not. He’s a mere blowhard with a frightening lack of perspective. The nub of his call to arms is that all this accusatory stuff about intimidation of journalists is to ‘ratchet up the title-stripping propaganda’. Maybe just a frightening perspective.
btw, Speirs’ piece was, to me, quite stunning and is due recognition.
Billy Dodds says we ( St Mirren ) should look forward to getting to semi of league cup after beating Aberdeen and how we were disappointed after losing to 9 man Rangers couple of years ago in final ( he just doesn’t get it )….I don’t even get angry any more, just shake my head in disbelief.
Also, after that final and we had clapped our team and left, a good number of Rangers fans left too ; more interested in taunting us than watching their team pick up a ‘diddy’ trophy.
Looking forward to this week/next week. 🙂
Gym Trainer says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 19:49
I can tell you that when they met Berwick Rangers FC (based in Englandshire – but only just) in August, I have never seen so many rozzers around a football match and I include Newcastle-Sunderland and Manchester derby matches in that…
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Does that mean Berwick will get a large police bill?
midcalderan says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 22:23
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How long had they been mentioned in the accounts, presumably Rangers had been mentioning them in each year they had been making the payments.
MickeyMince above /
The gentlemen you refer to at Rangersmedia is suggesting that “if (the SPL) rewrite the history, they can refund the ticket money. After all we payed (sic) up to see the De Boers, Numans and Cannigias. If the SPL mis-registered them, then the SPL are responsible and we should all sue the SPL”
Yes that’s right suing the SPL for the ticket money. Because the SPL mis-registered them…!
It’s difficult to know where to start, but it sounds like a non-starter to me.
http://www.monbiot.com
George Monbiot is a frequent columnist in The Guardian.
The Skye bridge Club
George Monbiot
For several years the people of Skye have had the sense that they were being treated unjustly. In 1989, the government decided that the bridge between their island and the mainland would be funded not publicly but privately. The developers would reclaim their costs with a road toll. The toll turned out to be the highest per mile of road in the world. The private consortium invested just £500,000, from which it is due to reap some £88m from the people of Skye. Many of the islanders refused to pay. They argued that the paperwork legalising the road tolls had never been published. Scotland’s foremost legal expert, Professor Robert Black, described the government’s demand that the tolls be paid as “fatally flawed”. The fatal flaw, however, did not stop the prosecution of 496 of the islanders. Some of them appealed, but their arguments were dismissed by Scotland’s law lords. Many observers, including some very eminent lawyers, criticised the law lords’ decisions. Some of the islanders began to question the impartiality of the courts.
Now, research by the tireless campaigner Robbie the Pict, published here for the first time, reveals that many of the key decision-makers, in and out of the courts, belong to a society which keeps its membership secret. The Speculative Society, which is housed in the University of Edinburgh, appears to have arisen from a masonic guild in the 18th century. Three hundred years ago, the “operative” masons from the building trade began to admit “speculative” members, who were people of high standing from outside the trade. The Edinburgh Speculative Society later split from the operative masons, to concentrate on cementing the bonds between powerful people. Unlike freemasons, the “knights” of the society, who are all male and all white, do not swear an oath of loyalty to each other.
Their meetings appear to concentrate on dining and debate. The group describes itself as a “sodality”, or brotherhood, and its motto urges the “brethren… in unity to dwell”. That is about the limit of what non-members can discover. Even the University of Edinburgh, whose principal is an honorary member, claims never to have heard of it. But the secret membership lists obtained by the Pict show that many of the most powerful people in Scotland have received either “extraordinary privileges” or “honorary privileges” from the society. Among them are the Duke of Edinburgh (membership number 1662), Lord Mackay of Clashfern, the former British lord chancellor (no 1676), many of Scotland’s leading company directors, several top surgeons, journalists and academics, plenty of sheriffs and QCs and at least 18 Scottish law lords. The Pict alleges that the law lords’ membership of the society throws the impartiality of many of the key Skye bridge cases into serious doubt. Over the past six years, Scottish law lords have presided over 14 hearings involving the bridge protesters. In every case they have ruled against the protesters and in favour of the crown and the toll collectors.
In 12 of these hearings, one or more of the law lords presiding over them and the government officials or company directors whose arguments they have assessed have, the secret lists reveal, been members of the Speculative Society. In Anderson v Hingston 1996, for example, Lords Morison and Weir, who are listed as enjoying the “extraordinary privileges” of the secret brotherhood, sat in judgment on a case concerning the legality of a decision made by the Minister of Transport, Lord James Douglas-Hamilton. Lord Douglas-Hamilton is also a member of the society (no 1772). Appeals by the protesters concerning Lord Douglas-Hamilton’s decisions were later examined by Lords Cowie, Coulsfield, Marnoch, MacLean, Johnston, Drummond Young, Nimmo Smith, Cameron of Lochbroom and the lord justice-general Lord Cullen (no 1702), all of whom belong to the Speculative Society. In Robbie the Pict v Miller Civil Engineering and the Secretary of State, 1998, the government was represented by a QC called Duncan Menzies (now Lord Menzies), another knight of the Speculative Society. The case was heard by his fellow knights Lords Cameron and Johnston. In January this year, Lord Drummond Young prevented an appeal brought by Robbie the Pict against a judgment of Lord Johnston’s. In May, Lord MacLean helped to judge Robbie the Pict’s petition against a decision made by Lord Cullen. All four law lords are members of the brotherhood. The 496 Skye defendants were all refused legal aid. There may have been good grounds for refusal, but if so these were not explained. Standing counsel to the legal aid board from 1991-98 was Colin McEachran QC, also a member of the society.
The body with overall responsibility for making the Skye bridge project happen was the Scottish Office’s development department. One of its senior officials was Niall Campbell, another knight of the society. He went on to run the Scottish Office’s justice department. The tolls on the bridge are collected by the Skye Bridge Company. Its chairman was Sir Iain Noble. He too belongs to the society. Since July 1999, Scottish law has been, in principle, legally compliant with the European convention on human rights. Article six of the convention determines that “everyone is entitled to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal”. “Independent and impartial” means, in this case, above any reasonable public suspicion of influence or special interest. Robbie the Pict suggests that the law lords’ adjudication of cases involving other members of the Speculative Society appears to offend both the letter and the spirit of the law. Interestingly, an essay published in 1968 in the official history of the Speculative Society by Sir Derrick Dunlop (a former president of the society) observes that “we all know… that the judicature is icy in its impartiality, which is one of the chief glories of this country, but perhaps this impartiality would be strained to breaking point where the Speculative is concerned”.
Whether this demonstrates partiality or not is impossible to say. Not every judge in the Skye bridge cases is a member of the society. There is no evidence that anyone has exploited his links with other members of the society. But when Lord Hoffman’s membership of Amnesty International was revealed, soon after he and his fellow law lords decided that General Augusto Pinochet should be extradited to Spain, the original judgment had to be scrapped and a retrial ordered. Amnesty International had no direct connection with the prosecution. In this case there is a direct connection between the law lords and the people whose decisions they were assessing. Their undeclared membership of the society surely necessitates a retrial of all the cases involving Skye bridge. But that is not the end of the matter. These law lords have, between them, presided over thousands of other hearings. The Pict’s findings raise questions about the entire system of Scottish law, and should also cause those of us living south of the border to take a closer look at our own system. Public confidence in the law requires that the judiciary be above suspicion. This story suggests that we cannot be assured that this is so.
thespecialswon says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 23:00
=========================
They paid to see a football match.
They saw a football match.
So who exactly are they suing, and for what.
It would be nice if one could buy a season ticket to see one’s team win the league. Then sue the league if they didn’t do it. I’m sure there would be more season tickets sold on that basis.
monsieurbunny says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 22:52
Does that mean Berwick will get a large police bill?
_____________________________________________
Northumbria Police aren’t well-known for being charitable – I think they invoice for time spent at traffic collisions (and were amongst the first to do so)
Two brief observations:
First, the Rolls of Court show Lord Hodge’s scheduled business tomorrow as below
‘LORD HODGE
PETITION DEPARTMENT
UNSTARRED MOTIONS
1
P1091/12 Pet: Horizon (Lochend) LLP (in admin) for rectification
Dundas & Wilson CS LLP
2
P1084/12 Pet: JKM Property Services Ltd to ext admin
BBM Solicitors ”
—–
And that’s it! I’ve just checked ( buggered if I’m going in to the Court of Session for no reason!)
So, either the message that D&P business was going to be on is incorrect,
or , if it is on, it will be in private.
( Feck it, I’ll go in anyway and see what’s what)
Second observation,
The SFA have made such an arse of things in their panic that even they cannot now say what it was they were trying to do, apart from keep RFC(IA) in the SFA and SPL.
Their reasoning powers seem to have deserted them, so afraid were they of the loss of Rangers’ income.
Their granting of ‘provisional’ membership to a new club on the specious grounds that it was a transfer of membership was just an absolute piece of nonsense.
Which they then compounded by on the one hand ‘doing ‘ the new club for a part of the old club’s liabilities, but stopping short of formally declaring that it is a new club, unentitled to the history and ‘honours’ claims of the old.
That is why I argue that the present board must be swept away and replaced by men not only of principle, but of common sense.
Agrajag says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 22:56
midcalderan says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 22:23
=============================
How long had they been mentioned in the accounts, presumably Rangers had been mentioning them in each year they had been making the payments.
——————————————
Don’t know the answer to that Agrajag. You’ve got to bear in mind that only a small proportion of the accounts/returns that are filed with HMRC can be scrutinised. Most accounts are not looked at although some will be identified as high risk and looked at annually.
As soon as the EBTs were identified, an enquiry would have been made.
You can’t blame HMRC for not examining every account. It’s self-assessment so it’s impossible to write to every taxpayer asking;” are you sure your accounts are correct.”
It’s like the long running RFC argument we’ve had to listen to from every RFC talking head; “it’s the SFA’s fault, the EBTs were shown in the accounts, they should have asked us about them.”
It’s not the duty of HMRC or SFA to enquire into every set of accounts. It’s the duty of the person filing the accounts to ensure they’re correct
Can I just highlight that after scanning through the post quickly tonight I do not see much reference to the facts & figures produced by stevensanph. Can we get away from Rangers for the moment and comment on the points that Stevensanph has raised about the finacial state of teams within the league and where this could lead us, especially if the Hearts thing doesn’t resolve itself pretty soon. After we have done that we can of course go back to taking every word that comes oot Chuckies mooth tae pieces. 🙂
Parson St. Bhoy says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 23:10
==========================================
current membership list of the Speculative Society of Edinburgh
http://www.firstfoot.com/scotchmyth/ssoe.htm
Sorry, a bit OT, but informative nonetheless.
midcalderan says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 23:33
Don’t get me wrong, I am far from blaming HMRC for this, I put the blame squarely at the feet of those who systematically and deliberately used a tax avoidance scheme which was so clearly inappropriate for professional footballers it was insulting even to try it. Mr Baxendale -Walker has as much as said that on TV.
Your position is that this was picked up through normal HMRC checks, and what happened next followed on from that. I have suggested, hopefully in a manner which made it clear I had no special knowledge or information regarding the issue, that it may have resulted from the sharing of intelligence post enquiries made by the Police.
For the avoidance of doubt I am referring to the time City of London Police (from memory) executed warrants at Ibrox Stadium and presumably seized books and records (possibly computers), which may have provided more details with regard the EBTs than the rather bland entry in the accounts. “Oh and we also paid some money to employment benefit trusts”. It would not be outlandish to suggest that they got their own accountants to look at that particular issue. It is also possible that the “side letters” came to the fore during these investigations.
If HMRC and the SPL didn’t pick that up as an issue regarding players I can fully appreciate their position. As you suggest it would be onerous to investigate every entry in every businesses’ audited (and that’s important) accounts. Certain things will be taken on trust, and it is only when more thorough enquiries are carried out that the truth will, as they say, out.
I am of course perfectly willing to accept that the discrepancies were discovered and further investigated as a result of HMRC’s normal enquiries.
Mr Baxendale -Walker has stated, when accepted as a member of the Masons, that he would refuse to join any club that would accept him as a member.
Fingers crossed!!
Was the origin of the tax case not intel received from the City of London Police as part of the transfer of certain players including Boumsong?
HMRC may have followed this up with a general enquiry but already armed with the evidence.
bhoyant says:
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 at 01:04
Agrajag says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 23:56
=========================================================================
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/RANGERS+FURY+AT+pounds+150k+BUNG+SLUR%3B+EXCLUSIVE+Bain+house+deal…-a0147029965
I have the translation of the original L’Equipe article but it’s very long, so I’ll not put it up unless it becomes material to events.
I agree with the premise that it was the COLP raid that lit the fuse.
On SSB tonight, Spiers doesn’t believe Green will “cream” money off from the share issue for himself and his investors, because it would badly expose Green and he would be in big trouble!!
Yes Graham, but considering Green has already been exposed for months now, tells me Charlie Green couldn’t give a kack what anyone thinks as long as he gets his grubby hands on the cash.
Woops! dunno what went wrong there…..article:
Byline: By James Traynor
RANGERS chief executive Martin Bain Martin Bain is the chief executive of Scottish Premier League football club Rangers.
He was appointed chief executive by Sir David Murray in February 2005, having been at Rangers since 1996.
….. Click the link for more information. plans to sue over claims he took pounds 150,000 in bungs during player transfers.
He was accused of pocketing the cash two years ago by a French newspaper yesterday.
Gers were involved with agent Ranko Stojic at the time in deals to bring Jean-Alain Boumsong Jean-Alain Boumsong (born December 14, 1979, in Douala, Cameroon) is a professional football defender who currently plays for Juventus and the French national team. Biography
He started his career with French team Le Havre before joining AJ Auxerre and Dado Prso to Glasgow from French clubs.
Bain and Stojic were involved in a transaction over a property deal at the same time. French authorities are investigating the allegations. But Rangers owner David Murray David Murray
said: “At no time has he acted illegally or improperly.”
Agents from the French police’s national division of financial investigations have visited Ibrox.
Furious Bain last night pledged to take legal action over the allegations in L’Equipe. The report claimed he had received payments amounting to pounds 150,000 from Serbian Stojic.
L’Equipe also suggested that Bain could find himself under investigation by French police.
French authorities have been probing deals involving Paris Saint Germain and Stojic.
Officers are said to have uncovered papers relating to relating to relate prep → concernant
relating to relate prep → bezüglich +gen, mit Bezug auf +acc two payments made by Stojic to Bain on August 20, 2004, through Stojic’s account with the Rothschild Bank in Monaco.
L’Equipe also state a decision on whether or not to investigate these new findings had not yet been made.
As part of their investigation, French police also went to St James’ Park in Newscastle – where Boumsong moved after Rangers.
The Record understands Bain has confirmed to Murray that he was involved in a transaction with Stojic – to help him buy a house in France from a player on the agent’s books.
Bain said the deal helped him buy a property owned by former Chelsea and Manchester City player Laurent Charvet Laurent Charvet (born 8 May 1973 in Beziers) is a former French football player.
Charvet played in the right back position. He began his career at Cannes in 1994. Between then and 1997 he appeared 99 times for the club and scored 19 goals. – but he repaid the agent.
He has produced his bank statements which satisfied Murray as proof Stojic’s money was paid back in full.
But the timing of the transaction – during the period which saw Stojic clients Boumsong and Prso sign for Rangers – raised suspicions among the French revenue investigators, which led them to focus on Bain.
In a statement, Murray said: “An article appeared in L’Equipe today concerning a financial transaction between Rangers chief executive Martin Bain and Ranko Stojic.
“For the avoidance of doubt, I was made aware of this transaction in advance of it proceeding.
“It related to the purchase of a house in France by Martin Bain which belonged to a player, Laurent Charvet, represented by Mr Stojic.
“I am satisfied that all matters were carried out in the correct manner.
“This was a personal matter entirely unrelated to Martin’s responsibilities to the club and at no time has he acted illegally or improperly.”
Bain’s lawyers, Levy & McRae, warned other papers not to repeat the allegations, pointing out “they are completely without foundation”.
Bain joined Rangers’ commercial staff in 1996 and was appointed director of football business in 2002.
The 38-year-old is only Rangers’ fourth chief executive.
French magistrates have been clamping down on corruption in their game. They are scrutinising 19 deals and are worried about the sport being used for money laundering The process of taking the proceeds of criminal activity and making them appear legal.
Laundering allows criminals to transform illegally obtained gain into seemingly legitimate funds.
I’m satisfied matters were carried out in the correct manner’
John McGlynn thinks the League would be better off without Celtic.
I would suggest he takes a look at himself and asks himself why he is not aspiring to reach a higher level and instead wants to “dumb down” the League.
Not the attribute of a man I would want at my Club.
RM
Ozblue
Jorg Albertz
True Blue
7,199 posts
Gender:Male
Location:Blue Mountains Australia
Posted Yesterday, 09:46 PM
Some of the things that Bomber utters is complete and utterly embarrassing to Rangers and himself. He would be far better taking those sour grapes from his mouth and getting behind our club, no matter his bad feelings towards the men who put money in when the rest were penny pinching and trying to get us for peanuts… (Charles Green and his pals got us for fucking peanuts anyway,but more peanuts than any other consortium would come up with)
More and Bigger peanuts I reckon 😉
Parson St. Bhoy says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 23:10
24 3 Rate This
http://www.monbiot.com
George Monbiot is a frequent columnist in The Guardian.
The Skye bridge Club
George Monbiot
—————-
Thanks for that. Quite an eye-opener. I suppose if the general public is clueless about the existence of organisations like this, then they are – for all intents and purposes – secret societies. The whole principle seems archaic and raises serious doubts about the impartiality of those involved. I think we need more whistleblowers.
Anyway, it’s Halla-een. Might be a bit of high-level guisin’ going on today.
From the BBC website: A court will be asked later to approve moves for the former Rangers Football Club to be handed to liquidators.
Duff and Phelps took over running of the club when it entered administration on 14 February over unpaid tax bills.
Earlier this month, the administrators said the club’s creditors had approved an end to the administration.
Duff and Phelps is seeking formal approval at the Court of Session in Edinburgh, paving the way for the appointment of BDO as liquidators.
The petition is due to be heard before Lord Hodge on Wednesday morning.
The old club, which was formed in 1872, was forced into administration by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) in February, over non-payment of tax totalling about £14m.
Sacre Bleu ,mon ami ,I think the dam is about to burst, there will be a few more monsieurs accused of wrongdoings after today.
ordinaryfan says:
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 at 01:56
John McGlynn thinks the League would be better off without Celtic.
I would suggest he takes a look at himself and asks himself why he is not aspiring to reach a higher level and instead wants to “dumb down” the League.
Not the attribute of a man I would want at my Club.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
Sorry Ordinary Fan but I agree with John.
If resources were more equally shared we would have a more competitive and enjoyable league.
Right now we have an economic giant who are a shoehorn-in for the title and a bunch of also-rans whose role is to allow them to complete their fixture card in the procession to the award of the league flags.
That is not a criticism of Celtic or Celtic fans just a comment on a situation that is not sustainable and part of the intrinsic malaise in our game.
It is a situation that is driving fans towards football elsewhere to the further detriment of our game.
In other news, a Hamilton Accies fan of some 25 years standing has been banned from NDP for daring to criticise stadium manager Walter Hamilton’s past involvement with the BNP. He is a loyal supporter who never swears at games due to his religious beliefs and takes his 6 year old boy, who loves supporting his dad’s team. It is causing quite a bit of outrage on the Accies forum and I thought the story should reach as wide an audience as possible. My own disillusionment with Hamilton Accies has just increased but I haven’t been back since we voted for Sevco to jump into the First. Many others are staying away (Crowd v Raith in third league game last season 1,982. Crowd v Raith in fifth league game this season 1,079). Accies are turning into a horrible little club.
“it’s the SFA’s fault, the EBTs were shown in the accounts, they should have asked us about them.”
So let me get this right, by the same “logic” if I drive my car at 100mph through a 30mph zone, provided a policeman doesn’t see me I haven’t committed an offence?
Martin Bain being investigated by French police. David King being pursued by the South African authorities. Campbell Ogilvie, an EBT user who has been allowed to stay in his job at the SFA to finesse Sevco back through the leagues. Craig Whyte who has been called a liar by a judge. Alistair Johnston who has tried to rally ‘the brethren’ with Masonic references. Ally McCoist who turned the hounds on three members of an independent panel. Charles Green who has a list of previous as long as your arm, lies on a daily basis with consumate ease, plays to the Orange gallery and publicly slaughters the Scottish football authorities and questions the integrity of judges. David Murray who is about to be exposed as the charlatan he is. Sandy Jardine who is no stranger to a dog and a whistle. Bomber Brown’s alcohol fuelled, and often incoherent, rants.
And the friends of all of the above who have remained in the shadows but we can make an educated guess as to their honesty and integrity, given the company they keep.
These are the peepils’ people. These are the people intimately connected with Rangers and Sevco.
Can anyone tell me why this institution should be saved?
Bury them!
I was at the Aberdeen game at the weekend. Great day out topped off with a win for the Dons. The thought did cross my mind as to how I would feel if Aberdeen FC were to be liquidated. I would be gutted, devistated.
Today, Lord Hodge may move to liquidate RFC Ltd.
I feel sorry for genuine fans of RFC and football who are about to see that Club die..
While today may see the end of RFC Ltd I hope that events today bring about the realisation that no club is to big to die.
I hope that the liquidation brings about a step change – recognition that the best thing for the Scottish game is for all rules civil and sporting be applied without fear or favour.
Without fair and reasonable rules and a will to respect and recognise regulation, many of the protections of society fall away.
(S)DM threw away the future of RFC Ltd, implementing highly suspect tax avoidance and perhaps evasion scheme to make money: more likely than not because he thought he could get away with it. Charles Green appears to be turning TRFC into a ponzi scheme, presumably because he also thinks he can get away with it.
I am confident that the HMRC, the Courts and the Police will do their duty and that those who have wronged in this sorry saga will be brought to book.
I hope that the SFA get a wake up call today and recognise that without fair and consistant application of the rule, then there is no sport.
briggsbhoy says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 23:53
12 5 Rate This
Can I just highlight that after scanning through the post quickly
tonight I do not see much reference to the facts & figures
produced by stevensanph.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I suspect this is a timing issue. With the FTT(T) results about to break, stevensanph’s guest blog seems more like a trailer to a film that is ‘coming soon’, rather than the main feature that we have come to see.
I’ll leave the clever types to dissect stevensanph’s figures, but for me, the salient point is in his penultimate paragraph. He says Rangers will be blamed if another SPL club goes into administration and that the damage was done years ago. Both observations are correct. It was Rangers reckless spending under SDM (as the club tried to regain its position as the dominant force which had been lost to Celtic in the 60’s & 70’s and then to Aberdeen and Dundee Utd in the 80’s) which forced the other clubs to try to compete. And of course they couldn’t. Because no other club was cheating.
Stevensanph then suggests that competitive football is achievable if the clubs all play by the same rules (ie clubs would need to live within their means). I believe this message is understood by clubs (in Scotland at least). There are obviously clubs who picked up on this much sooner than others and it remains to be seen if any have left it too late. If any do go under, it WILL largely be the fault of Rangers. Not because Rangers fans are no longer frequenting SPL stadia, but because of the knock-on effect of Rangers decade or more of cheating.
doontheslope @ 8:00
Post of the day 🙂 If only it was that easy 🙁
ordinaryfan says:
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 at 01:56
10 7 i
Rate This
John McGlynn thinks the League would be better off without Celtic.
I would suggest he takes a look at himself and asks himself why he is not aspiring to reach a higher level and instead wants to “dumb down” the League.
Not the attribute of a man I would want at my Club.
____________________________________________________________________
Saw the article on BBC online and thought, sh*t, here we go again, another slow news day so let’s see if we can get the manager of a team in financial trouble to say something controversial about Celtic. I didn’t read it because, just like asking footballers and ex-footballers what they think about the goings on at Rangers, or even what they think about the Scotland Independence debate, it’s a waste of time (asking a footballer, that is, not the Independence debate lol). I doubt any football manager has the financial accumen to form a worthwhile opinion on what would happen without Celtic, or Rangers, or even Hearts, even if they had spent their lunch hour with paper and pencil trying to work it out.
I cannot understand why such an opinion should be offered by John McGlynn, if, in fact he did offer it, and I suspect it was his response to a question put to him; but what would be the point in asking him? I think we all know the answer to that one; it’s part of the build up to deflect from the FTTT result by either creating a rift between Celtic and the team the media are going to use as their ‘see, they’re just as bad’ excuse, or, to once again, try to make Celtic out as somehow the elephant in the room.
I just saw a fat lady there,
She had a microphone,
I wonder whats going down.
bobferris70 says:
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 at 07:50
15 0 i
Rate This
In other news, a Hamilton Accies fan of some 25 years standing has been banned from NDP for daring to criticise stadium manager Walter Hamilton’s past involvement with the BNP. He is a loyal supporter who never swears at games due to his religious beliefs and takes his 6 year old boy, who loves supporting his dad’s team. It is causing quite a bit of outrage on the Accies forum and I thought the story should reach as wide an audience as possible. My own disillusionment with Hamilton Accies has just increased but I haven’t been back since we voted for Sevco to jump into the First. Many others are staying away (Crowd v Raith in third league game last season 1,982. Crowd v Raith in fifth league game this season 1,079). Accies are turning into a horrible little club.
________________________________________________________________
Sad to hear of your disillusionment with your club, and of the disgusting treatment of another fine supporter. It always seems to me that when people are banned for controversial views, there is more than a little justification for those views and the banning just highlights this. Do you think this BNP link, and Accies support for TRFC, indicates some kind of ‘right wing’ or ‘supremacist’ element within the club’s hierarchy?
Agrajag says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 23:56
midcalderan says:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 at 23:33
Don’t get me wrong, …..
I am of course perfectly willing to accept that the discrepancies were discovered and further investigated as a result of HMRC’s normal enquiries.
—————————–
I still think my view as to how the HMRC enquiry commenced is correct. No doubt that when City of London police executed the warrant around 16 July 2007, they would have seized documents that would be useful to HMRC but I can’t see that being the trigger for the investigation in the first instance.
Despite what the public may think, information sharing between the various investigating agencies is not a common occurrence. We hear a lot about “joined up Government” but in reality, we don’t even have joined up sections and information sharing within the same government department.
All will be revealed soon though! Let’s wait and see.
From the L’Equipe piece:
But Rangers owner David Murray said: “At no time has he acted illegally or improperly.”
——
A ringing endorsement by a thoroughly trustworthy character.
(-S)DM seems to have suddenly had plenty to say to back up his mate there. Funny how he’s been so quiet about the other wee issue he was himself involved in.
midcalderan says:
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 at 09:09
From memory Phil M’s book Downfall commented on the genesis of events. I believe that he did write that the City of London police investigation was the trigger where documentation was discovered and then HMRC were brought into play.
Lord Wobbly says:
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 at 08:08
I’ll leave the clever types to dissect stevensanph’s figures, but for me, the salient point is in his penultimate paragraph. He says Rangers will be blamed if another SPL club goes into administration and that the damage was done years ago. Both observations are correct. It was Rangers reckless spending under SDM (as the club tried to regain its position as the dominant force which had been lost to Celtic in the 60′s & 70′s and then to Aberdeen and Dundee Utd in the 80′s) which forced the other clubs to try to compete. And of course they couldn’t. Because no other club was cheating.
Stevensanph then suggests that competitive football is achievable if the clubs all play by the same rules (ie clubs would need to live within their means). I believe this message is understood by clubs (in Scotland at least). There are obviously clubs who picked up on this much sooner than others and it remains to be seen if any have left it too late. If any do go under, it WILL largely be the fault of Rangers. Not because Rangers fans are no longer frequenting SPL stadia, but because of the knock-on effect of Rangers decade or more of cheating.
_____________________________________________________
I have written before (on RTC) of the effect ‘Davisgate’ had on me personally, when the realisation that my club, Hearts, along with 10/12 of the SPL had no chance of ever winning the league, caused such disillusionment that I decided, on the spot, not to renew my ST. This produced no financial loss for Hearts, I moved south a couple of years later, but it left me with, at the time, confirmation that there was indeed a conspiracy in favour of the (then) OF. I am now, however, convinced the conspiracy was in favour of only one member, though the other benefitted as a result (by the conspiracy ensuring a two horse race). The discovery, more than a year ago now, that Rangers were not only benefitting from ridiculous decisions on the field, which were going unchecked by the game’s authorities, but were also carrying out a massive tax scam, and consequently cheating on a grand scale off the field, made me rage. It didn’t take Vladimir Romanov long to realise, too, that there was a great deal of cheating going on, but, unfortunately, he chose to spend, spend, spend to try to overcome the odds, but I doubt even he realised just how extreme the cheating was and his spending saw very little return. The financial benefits that success might have brought never materialised and Hearts are now in severe financial trouble.
I think Hearts are an extreme case of what you and Stephensanph describe, though much of it is, admittedly, Hearts’ (Vlad’s) own fault, for money was spent on some ridiculous signings, with no thought for the future. It is, I think, at least a probability, that if those teams who have overspent as a result of Rangers’ own overspeniding and cheating, had instead adopted a more frugal approach then the resulting drop in attendances would have brought about a downward spiral that would have created an unsustainable gap between the (what was) OF and the rest resulting in a genuine Armagedon. When an already powerfull competitor in any sport cheats, on such a massive scale, while already recieving huge ‘favours’ from the ruling bodies, the result can only be disasterous for the remaining competitors who have to choose between increasing insignificance or to risk financial ruin.
From @markdaly2 twitter:
My esteemed colleague @BBCDouglsFraser will be at the Court of Session today for the Rangers admin hearing. Look out for his reports
9:51am – 31 Oct 12
Re todays gathering at the Court of Session.
IMO the only logical thing that LH can order today is as follows :
1. BDO be appointed as Liquidators.
2. He declines to confirm the renumeration of Duff and Phelps.
3. Orders a full enquiry into the suggested Conflict of Interest, thanks to Craig Whytes tape last week.
4. Asks the PF to consider action against Duff and Phelps who previously gave a written report to LH concerning their COI which may proove to have been inaccurate as a result of the enquiry at 3 above.
5. In particular asks BDO to report back quickly on the sale of Ibrox, Murray Park and the Albion Ground given the figure realised and the valuation of £80 million being openly touted by Charles Green.
6. Orders a full report on Charles Greens potential involvement as a shadow director which may have resulted in yet another COI.
7. Formally requests that a copy of the FTT decision be made available to him and to the PF to consider whether any action should be taken against the parties involved.
All commments, additios , deletions corrections or TD’s welcome..
Douglas Fraser@BBCDouglsFraser
On my way to the Court of Session in Edinburgh, expecting to witness oldco #Rangers liquidated
Looks as if we can get some form of commentary from @BBCDouglsFraser
Fraser is the BBC Scotland Business Editor. He has posted at least one previous article on the decline and fall of basket-case FC on his on-line column.
allyjambo says:
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 at 09:28
the result can only be disasterous for the remaining competitors who have to choose between increasing insignificance or to risk financial ruin.
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This is getting right to the crux of the matter. Some teams decided to try and compete with Rangers and Celtic (Hearts, Aberdeen, Motherwell)… In the case of Motherwell this led to admin, while Hearts and Aberdeen (to a certain extent) are not out of the woods yet.
Other clubs, such as St.Johnstone, opted for ‘insignificance’. This led to two relegations. It led to countless ‘fans’ walking away, or never setting foot in McDiarmid. It led to poor Saints fans watching a 37 year old Rudi Vata make 15 awful appearances for us.
Now that the league is running on a ‘fair’ basis, it is clubs like St.Johnstone who are now in a position to benefit. The board is trying to address the lack of fans by letting kids in for free. How many kids will we pick up in the next 3 years who would have otherwise become Rangers fans and how much long term income will that bring as a result?
For the first time ever supporting Saints, this season I am not looking at the bottom and worrying about relegation. We are seriously looking at the European places as an achievable and realistic goal, rather than the ‘thrice in 100 years’ dream that it once was.
While the existence of clubs like Hearts hangs in the balance, (and part of that can be attributed directly to the cheating that Rangers brought to the Scottish game) and their fans have my sympathy, it shouldn’t be forgotten that while Hearts and others lived in hope of success, the clubs that opted for ‘insignificance’ suffered relegation, horrible football, and little or no hope for a decade.
If there is one thing that is learnt from this mess it should be that living within your means is the ONLY way to go.
Can I just point out, and not in a churlish way, that Hearts actually have enjoyed some success.
hearing not due to start until 10:30am, cries of “are we there yet from the back seat”…..
Long Time Lurker says:
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 at 09:44
Douglas Fraser@BBCDouglsFraser
On my way to the Court of Session in Edinburgh, expecting to witness oldco #Rangers liquidated
Looks as if we can get some form of commentary from @BBCDouglsFraser
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Wonder if we will have a minutes silence before the game tonight (copyright Tiger Tim).