Good Evening.
When considering any type of protracted negotiation or discussion that seems to be going on too long, there is a story that is always worth remembering– whether it is actually a true story or not as the case may be.
It is said, that heads of state all met at a congress in what is now modern Germany sometime after the Franco Prussian war of 1870-1871.The entire congress was being run almost singlehandedly by the then Prussian Chancellor Otto von Bismark and he was keen to get all the necessary signatures on paper to seal some deal or other.
However, others at the congress were not too keen to sign up to certain elements of the proposed deal and so they hithered and dithered and in the eyes of Bismark they simply waisted time by concentrating on the minutiae- the little matters, with a view to ensuring their own interests were best served in these small areas– and did not focus on the big issue.
Having tried to talk these others round and educate them in his own beliefs and point of view on the bigger picture without any success, Bismark grew weary of the continuing delay and the posturing of his colleagues. All attempts at reason and diplomacy had failed in his eyes and so he decided to take a different tack.
Accordingly, it is said that whilst others were still inside debating endlessly on this matter or that, Bismark left the building and began simply shooting the windows in with the aid of a riffle which he just happened to have handy.
Those inside were naturally alarmed at this turn of events. They soon forgot about the minutiae under debate, they abandoned the previously expressed self interest and simply signed up so that they could get away from the mad chancellor and his house.
Job done so to speak.
Whilst I do not in anyway condone the behaviour of Otto von Bismark in this instance, and have no doubt that he was an autocrat, what I will say is that he believed that there was too much time being spent on the unimportant stuff and not enough time recognising what really needed doing– from his point of view of course.
Today– and it seems every day for months— we have endless debate about the future of Scottish Football. League reconstruction and the redistribution of footballing wealth has become a marathon– even before it has started.
Yet I believe that at the moment all parties concerned are not focusing on the radical reform that is fundamentally needed which is the creation of one, strong, properly structured and constituted body which is capable of the proper and ethical governance of Scottish Football and the business that surrounds football.
No matter what system you try, or distribution you agree, without proper sensible strong governance you are wasting your time.
Further, whatever body is set up, and whoever is chosen to be its CEO (or whatever the head honcho is going to be called), they must tackle the issue of corporate and fiscal compliance and the proper administration of any body corporate which actively takes part in Scottish Football– and that includes any such body or person who is involved in the running of a member club.
In addition, in so dealing with any corporate malfeasance or chicanery or whatever, the rules have to be applied with a rod of iron by an iron body.
As we can now clearly see, Football clubs and football in general is not, and never will be, immune from the effects of bad corporate governance and on occasion downright manipulation of facts, figures and contracts.
Whilst great play has been made of the fact that Gavin Masterton has handed over his shares in Dunfermline FC ( or its holding company ) the fact of the matter is that this in no way solves the problem faced by the football club. Whoever gains control of that club will still have to rent the ground from Mr Masterton’s company– and it is a rent that the club may just not be able to afford.
Ever!
It is only my opinion of course, but I am of the view that Mr Masterton has sealed a loan deal with his bankers which is of a type and duration which could not normally be achieved by other borrowers. The Loan has a lengthy period during which no repayments are necessary and interest can continue to accrue.
All very good you may say, but the level of debt concerned is not one that appears to be sustainable by Dunfermline FC and so whoever buys the club as a going concern ( if anyone buys it at all ) will have to pay an agreed rental to Gavin Masterton– and if the rental is not sufficient to repay Mr Masterton’s lenders, then I suspect that the end game here will be a search to find a buyer for the ground at some point over the next twenty years or so, with the hope that as part of the deal a space will be found somewhere for a new ground like New St Mirren park– the difference being that in that instance St Mirren were in charge of their future whereas Dunfermline are not.
The Governance of that club and the financial arrangements behind the club should have been looked at and examined by the SFA long before now– and the Dunfermline fans warned about the dangers of any such arrangements. Effectively those finance arrangements, should they continue, will probably mean that the club will have no option but to move from its established home!
All to suit one man!
Thankfully Dundee were spared a full takeover by Giovanni Di Stefano, however is it not a bit worrying that this man who has been jailed for over 14 years for various fraudulent acts, was allowed to roam around Scottish Football for a prolonged period?
Not so long ago Di Stefano did play a part at Dens, was in line to buy almost 30% of the shareholding, and was oft quoted in the papers and so on. The thing is that there were those who were prepared to give him a place at the Dundee table and in so doing invited him into Scottish Football.
Surely the SFA, had they been inclined to, could quite easily have pointed out that many of the claims of Mr Di Stefano were at least dubious if not completely incorrect? Yet nothing was being said at the time and silence prevailed.
Whilst not in the same calibre as Di Dtefano, Vladimir Romanov has now been at Hearts for a prolonged period. While I have no quibbles about the legality of Romanov’s takeover of Hearts, any money of a sizeable size which is transferred into Scotland from a foreign country will be subject to scrutiny by the Crown office to ensure that it is clean. Lithuania in particular is said to have a banking system which is governed loosely and sometimes does not meet the compliance standards expected in this country.
With his bank having gone bust, Romanov still retains the majority shareholding at Tynecastle, but there are questions still to be answered about what has happened at Hearts but life will be very different for the Edinburgh club going forward.
Again– could the SFA have done more to monitor the situation and could they have demanded clarity and detail from the Hearts owner as to his business dealings and the detailed arrangements with his bank?
At Ibrox, well things just go from the weird and inexplicable to downright astonishing– and all through a tremendous amount of smoke and mirrors.
It is clear that the SFA have no idea what to believe from Charles Green or for that matter Craig Whyte. On the face of it, there are clear links between Whyte and Green with the former paying over a six figure sum in return for absolutely nothing it would appear– with similar transactions going between Whyte’s colleague, Aiden Early, and Charles Green.
What is clear is that Green gave a clear undertaking to the SFA that he had nothing whatsoever to do with Whyte and would have nothing to do with Whyte going forward. Now, at the very least he is admitting that he met Whyte on several occasions, and whilst he may have made representations to Craig Whyte— these were all lies designed only to get Whyte to where Green wanted him.
This is hardly the act of someone who has been bona fides in his business dealings either with Whyte or with the SFA as the licensing body.
It is against this background that the Scottish Football Agencies need to wake up before they find the fans of the game ( at least those who want to stay interested in the game ) doing a Bismarck and panning in the windows of this whole house of cards.
Football Clubs, football fans, and indeed football itself needs protected from the financial and corporate shenanigans, and the governing body must be much more active and permanently vigilant in watching out for and if necessary anticipating the people and the transactions which have and will jeopardise clubs and the game in general going forward.
It is clearly no longer acceptable to rely on self regulation or mere declarations and undertakings from the clubs themselves. The Administrators must be much more active and employ far greater professional expertise in carrying out an almost constant analytical and reporting function in relation to club finance and corporate regulation.
All and any changes in funding, boardroom changes, investor changes and anything else major should be the subject of immediate and proper scrutiny by the SFA and there should be fair, immediate and stiff sanctions for non compliance, and any type of dilatory behaviour on the part of club officials who would seek to conceal the truth or who fail to properly disclose vital matters which should be out in the open.
Further, the funding detail– such as the never ending loan re Dunfermline should be a matter of public record in all its detail so that fans and investors can make information based value judgements when dealing with any club.
Such stiffer regulation should not develop into anything like a corporate witch hunt or any kind of draconian big brother syndrome, however the need for change given all of the current troubles is obvious to one and all.
Further, the attempted fudge surrounding Rangers league status last summer and the ongoing disquiet surrounding the position of Campbell Ogilvie does nothing to boost faith in and the reputation of Football Administration in Scotland.
Things are far from clear and there appears to be continual dithering and fudging. No one has any idea where the Nimmo Smith Report has gone nor what import it is to have— if any. Why is that?
Dithering and bumbling over detail is no longer an option. Strong clear governance is required to protect the game from being hijacked by those who have their own corporate and financial agendas.
Such people cannot be allowed to determine the way Scottish Football runs or to conduct themselves in a fashion that leaves football and everyone involved in limbo.
It is time for Scottish Football to find its own Iron Chancellor! There is a need for someone who will, if necessary, come along and shoot the lights out of any club or Company Director who wishes to play fast and loose with the game of football.
torrejohnbhoy says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 10:21
I note that ……
“Scott Reid is a regulatory economist by training and Director in an Asset Management and Economics consulting business. Originally from Glasgow he now lives in the Midlands. More importantly he is a Rangers season ticket holder.”
Seems to me he is a perfect candidate for the decent Rangers fan who can be asked the main question.
‘Are we F***ed’
“Sorry…but the SFA astonishly have recently stated they have no issue with Mr. King taking over in principal…”
paulmac2 – I must have missed that. Did the SFA explicitly state this? King has had a billion dollar cloud hanging over him for years. Serious unresolved charges of tax evasion. Surely the SFA wouldn’t welcome such a chancer back into the game….
duplesis says:
Thursday, May 2, 2013 at 22:52
According to the excerpt from the court documents posted by Duplesis, the contract date for the Season Ticket Agreement (STA) and the Agency Agreement between “Rangers” and Ticketus are both dated 09-May-2011. Whyte completed his purchase on 06-May-2011. We know that the proof of funds to purchase the LBG debt (18m GBP) were “confirmed” to the seller by Collier Bristow, I would assume also on 06-May-2011.
As the money from the STA/Agency Agreement for the season tickets would not be released until the contract had been signed on 09-May-2011 – sp who provided the funds to transfer the debt on 06-May? Maybe I’m just over-tired or missing a simple logical step here but is this just another example of other peoples’ money being used to pay an unrelated debt based on those loaned-funds being replenished from another source (Ticketus) some days later? In which case, which “other peoples’ money” were used to actually pay off LBG? As a say, I could just be havering…
as an aside, if anyone has the time, the Blinded by the Whyte article on the RTC website is still rather prescient on what PR is all about: http://rangerstaxcase.wordpress.com/2011/05/
torrejohnbhoy says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 10:21
————————–
An interesting piece from TRS, not a mention of Celtic, The SFA, SPL or any others to blame for the current situation. Just a common sense approach on how to move forward, I welcome this development.
Re Dave King:
In that event the director or shadow director of the liquidated company cannot be involved in or connected with a company going by a restricted name fir a period of five years. The court can over-ride this restriction where justified.
To use the present example, none of the following gentlemen would be allowed, I submit, to have involvement in a company called “Rangers” “Rangers Football Club” or “Rangers FC” for the next five years from the date of liquidation – Dave King, Craig Whyte, Andrew Ellis, Phil Betts, John Greig, John McClelland and Donald McIntyre.
The latter three would have, I think, very good grounds for a court approving their involvement, the first four less so.
http://scotslawthoughts.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/can-rangers-play-as-rangers-whats-in-a-name/
So in principal the SFA may have no objection but if King did attempt to assume control it would open up a whole new can of worms.
bailemeanach says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 10:37
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“Sorry…but the SFA astonishly have recently stated they have no issue with Mr. King taking over in principal…”
paulmac2 – I must have missed that. Did the SFA explicitly state this? King has had a billion dollar cloud hanging over him for years. Serious unresolved charges of tax evasion. Surely the SFA wouldn’t welcome such a chancer back into the game….
=========================
Of course he’d be welcome. Campbell and him could discuss the merits of tax evasion schemes, both being old hands at it 😀
Long Time Lurker says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 10:16
I get the sense that the house of cards is about to come crashing down – the game now is who can escape from the wreckage with the least amount of damage and/or finger pointing at them.
——
Last game of the season coming up, complete with Crossbar Challenge. Fixtures fulfilled.
I suspect things may get interesting from next week onwards.
timtim @10:50
thanks for that – just had a quick look again at section 216 insolvency act, and you are quite right, he can’t get involved for 5 years.
Does the season end with the last league game or after the play offs or the Scottish Cup Final?
What do the SFA/SFL rules say?
For example – Can Hearts/RFC go into admin after THEIR last game of the season – or would they have to hold on until the end of the seasons fixtures as a whole?
duplesis says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 08:27
===============================
Duplessis, enjoying your posts and exchanges with HP. You haven’t moved over here since IamRangers was made redundant have you?
theoldshed says:
Wednesday, May 1, 2013 at 19:38
On the subject of an independent Scotland I’m now strongly of the opinion that there would be no ongoing appeal in the EBT case under a Scottish replacement for HMRC. Not a chance.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
theoldshed,
Well wasn’t it the present UK HMRC that said?:
“Liquidation will enable a sale of the football assets to be made to a new company, thereby ensuring that football will continue at Ibrox. It also means that the new company will be free from claims or litigation in a way which would not be achievable with a CVA. Rangers can make a fresh start.”
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/news/rangers.htm
Maybe a “replacement HMRC” would look at things differently. #freshstartmyarse
Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 11:36
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Does the season end with the last league game or after the play offs or the Scottish Cup Final?
What do the SFA/SFL rules say?
For example – Can Hearts/RFC go into admin after THEIR last game of the season – or would they have to hold on until the end of the seasons fixtures as a whole?
——————————————————
the rules will cover all teams – with the exception of “rangers”, “the rangers”, “rangers fc”, “the rangers fc”, “the rangers international fc”, “the rangers fc group” “the rangers fc ltd”, “rangers fc ltd”, “glasgow rangers” “glasgow rangers fc”, “glasgow rangers fc ltd”, “rangers fc glasgow”, “rangers fc glasgow ltd”, “rangers fc plc”, “glasgow rangers fc plc”
[the rules are still being reviewed by the SFA, and the list of possible and future “rangers”, is still being compiled by the SFA, incase they need to find more rules that do not include a team with “rangers” in the title and who play in blue and are based at ibrokes]
duplesis says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 08:27
Indeed, we can be quite clear that there is no floating charge (new or old) over the assets of the new company as if there were one it would have to be declared at Companies House to be valid, and there’s nothing there.
——————————————————————————————————————
IIRC, there were some documents not declared to companies house and have only recently been submitted so how can you be sure of the statement above?
@blu at 11:44
Haha – I wish I had that alleged poster’s money!
duplesis says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 11:54
@blu at 11:44
Haha – I wish I had that alleged poster’s money!
—————————————————————————–
Are you his mum then? 🙂
@iamacant @11:51
As per my post at 9:21 , the floating charge has to be registered to be effective – if not it is void against the claims of other creditors, and in administration or liquidation.
There is a period allowed for registration of the charge – either 21 or 28 days after creation of the charge, I can’t remember – but if its not registered within that time frame then its more nor less of no effect (the debt supposedly secured remains of course, but the creditor holding the charge effectively becomes an unsecured creditor.)
Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 11:36
Does the season end with the last league game or after the play offs or the Scottish Cup Final?
What do the SFA/SFL rules say?
For example – Can Hearts/RFC go into admin after THEIR last game of the season – or would they have to hold on until the end of the seasons fixtures as a whole?
———————
NTHM,
The rules are created around an individual team being able to fulfill their fixture card so as long as they have played their last game; they have met their side of the contract.
All leagues, divisions and cups are separate and in no affect the events going on in another competition.
There seems to be a bit of ‘oh look, a squirrel’ type stories coming out of ra Big Hoose this morning ‘Ally confirms interest in so and so’. Hopefully, these distractions are a harbinger of doom.
Have we found anyone for the crossbar challenge yet?
verselijkfc says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 10:38
=======================================================
Thanks for the reminder of RTC’s take on Whyte. I seem to remember some glee and strong opinions that RTC was a diddy when the FTT findings were announced. Messrs Murray (M), Smith, Dingwall, Graham et al should be tweeting apologies to RTC and begging for his/her help to unravel this sorry mess as it gets worse and worse.
Have we found anyone for the crossbar challenge yet?
Dark Mingwall? He’s sure to fail.
duplesis says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 12:00
You presume £1 for `club` & 18-21m for the BoS Charge is one package. Two could suit the timeline?.
duplesis says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 11:54
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@blu at 11:44
Haha – I wish I had that alleged poster’s money!
======================================================================
Have you and he ever been seen in the same room at the same time and can this be verified by men of good character? I’ll accept either Mr Green or Mr Whyte’s word on this – both would be better.
03 May 2013 09:44:30
Inside info from a partner in a big Glasgow legal firm – there is going to be “revelations ” about ownerships of Rangers property. They can`t say more at the moment as they are under ” close scrutiny ”
(10) (6)
Don’t tell my pal or brother in law is a senior partner wait till we hear from the QC involved in the enquiry before we start rumours
——————————————————————————–
Are you being ironic here? Have a look at the name of the web site. There is a clue as to what it`s all about!
——————————————————————————–
← Back To Rangers Rumours
We take no responsibility for the accuracy or otherwise of published rangers rumours
@twopanda at 12:25
I may be misunderstanding what you’re saying, but it’s the charge which has to be registered against the company, not the debt. Whyte’s floating charge was already registered against oldco (it was originally the BoS charge and dated from 2001, from memory), so there was no
need to re-register the charge at the point of the Ticketus deal if Whyte did indeed acquire a debt against the oldco as part of the deal.
The point I was making on registration requirements was in response to ecobhoy and others’ thoughts that we couldn’t rely on any charge being registered at companies houseagainst newco since we were dealing with untrustworthy individuals
blu says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 12:25
duplesis says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 11:54
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@blu at 11:44
Haha – I wish I had that alleged poster’s money!
======================================================================
Have you and he ever been seen in the same room at the same time and can this be verified by men of good character? I’ll accept either Mr Green or Mr Whyte’s word on this – both would be better.
——————————————————————————————————
Does it have to be signed? Or dated?
Scottish football needs a strong Arbroath.
I Didnt start it.
If that statement from RS is anything to go by, then it would indeed be good news for The Rangers, not to mention the rest of Scottish football, and not in the way that Mark Hateley envisages.
I’ve always wondered why they were so rudderless. For the amount of money the fans put into a holding company, they could have bought the assets themselves, and run their own club. It just seemed the old ‘There’s too many people with too much money’ attitude that saw their original club goto the wall in the first place was still prevalent – they expected someone else to do it for them. (a sweeping generalisation, I know, but hey, I paint with a wide brush!)
The reason that it would be good for scottish football is that it means a stable club at Ibrox, at least in the short term, and therefore we wouldn’t have to witness the sort of gerrymandering and subversion of the rules that we’ve seen throughout the last 18 months or so to keep them afloat. It’s THIS that has critically damaged Scottish football, not the fact that Rangers aren’t a feature of the SPL anymore.
Also, was surprised to see Ally showing a bit of common sense this morning, with his intention to pursue Clark from QoS (assuming the story isn’t a squirrel, obviously). I mean, it could be that the lack of a warchest has seen his sights set a bit lower, but it would make sense to buy a young, talented striker with sell on value, instead of blowing money on the bloated wages of Nove, Miller, Boyd etc when they have absolutely no sell on value.
myohmy1 says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 09:05
=============================
They really must think we have the memory of goldfish. Both these clubs’ troubles have been well know for some years – years in which Old’gers were in the SPL and splashing the cash. Both clubs problems involved dodgy bank dealings (Masterton, Yorkston with BoS and Romanov’s bank) which came to a head with the international banking crisis.
I don’t exactly see how the few thousand (if that) fans that Rangers could have provided would have helped much against debts of £10m+ (in Hearts case very much plus) – not to mention the sheer effrontery of them claiming this when their own collapse was related to dodgy bank (and tax) dealings.
Lifted off RM:
—
According to Leggo this morning!!!!!
Friday, 3 May 2013
RANGERS SET TO FREEZE SEASON TICKET PRICES
RANGERS are set to reward their fans by announcing that season ticket prices will be pegged for next term.
I can reveal that there have been talks inside the Blue Room as to how best sort out the season ticket situation ahead of an early summer sales drive.
For Rangers do not want a repeat of last year and the club knows it needs supporters to rally to the colours again to keep the Rangers recovery on track and help stay in tune with the spirit of the New Gallant Pioneers on the long trek back to the top.
My information is that there will soon be an announcement and that the news will be good news for supporters.
—
Araminta Moonbeam QC says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 12:08
There seems to be a bit of ‘oh look, a squirrel’ type stories coming out of ra Big Hoose this morning ‘Ally confirms interest in so and so’. Hopefully, these distractions are a harbinger of doom.
Have we found anyone for the crossbar challenge yet?
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Re the squirell distraction. I was watching an episode of the Simpsons yesterday and there is a scene in it where Homer and Mel Gibson are talking to some Movie executives who won’t give them the tape to their movie. Gibson looks out the window and says ” oh look someone is towing away a Range Rover”. The movie execs scramble over to the window. In the confusion Gibson grabs the tape and they run off – of course Homer makes silly childish noises as they escape.
angus1983 says:
My information is that there will soon be an announcement and that the news will be good news for supporters.
——————————————-
I guess it is good news if the reason for the freeze is that they have enough money in the bank or have cut overheads enough to mean they don’t need a price increase.
Otherwise, lack of income/price increase could actually be quite bad news
Angus, do you think costs have been brought under control? Can the club survive on about £8M in ticket income (after VAT is paid)
Leggo: “the New Gallant Pioneers”
Who talks like that? They are running a football club, nothing more, nothing less!
Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:11
Season Ticket income circa £8m
Current squad wages circa £7m
Coach and his two pals circa £1.5m
As the yank Bill Miller would have said when he looked at the figures.
You do the Math!!
Tomo is blogging:
“In the psychotic world that has been Rangers in recent years, I was last year invited to a “press conference” at Ibrox where questions were banned. Yes, really. And nobody thought that odd.”
Actually he’s making a serious point about several clubs…
http://blogs.channel4.com/alex-thomsons-view/banning-journalists-time-football-clubs-grow/4798
Excellent blog from Alex Thomson on clubs who ban journos and yes, Celtic get some deserved criticism too. If its wrong for Newcastle its wrong for everyone
http://blogs.channel4.com/alex-thomsons-view/banning-journalists-time-football-clubs-grow/4798
wottpi says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:16
Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:11
Season Ticket income circa £8m
Current squad wages circa £7m
Coach and his two pals circa £1.5m
As the yank Bill Miller would have said when he looked at the figures.
You do the Math!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yeah, but you have forgotten to factor in the pies.
Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:11
“I guess it is good news if the reason for the freeze is that they have enough money in the bank or have cut overheads enough to mean they don’t need a price increase.
Otherwise, lack of income/price increase could actually be quite bad news
Angus, do you think costs have been brought under control? Can the club survive on about £8M in ticket income (after VAT is paid)”
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Costs have clearly not been brought down significantly. Paying off Green and his little friend will not have been cheap, Sandanza will need to be paid off very soon (in my opinion), the internal enquiry must be heading rapidly towards a million pounds.
On my calculations, there is about £7.5m in the bank right now, before the pay-offs and legal fees. Normal expenditure is running at £2.4m per month. A £10m season ticket sale might see them through to Christmas- and that’s optimistic. Either an off the radar billionaire, or a mad axeman, required urgently. Preferably both.
I still don’t see how you can legally sell season tickets without a credible business plan to see you through the season. There are no indications right now that such a plan exists.
As an earlier poster said, cash flow is the key. And cash is disappearing like snaw aff a dyke on a bonny may day. It can only be a matter of time now.
A wee minder to these who believe cases like rangers with cosy wee deals only happen in poor wee corrupt Scotland….
……. our gits are rank amateurs!
http://economia.icaew.com/news/may-2013/hartnett-made-goldman-deal-to-save-embarrassment
wottpi says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:16
Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:11
Season Ticket income circa £8m
Current squad wages circa £7m
Coach and his two pals circa £1.5m
As the yank Bill Miller would have said when he looked at the figures.
You do the Math!!
==========================================================
Matchday walk-ups say £100k per game that’s circa £2m
Hospitaity,sponsorship,lets say the same that’s income of around £12m.
200 ancillary staff wages,pension conts,etc easily £5m
Utility bills,policing etc.
Another 8 figure loss on it’s way.
duplesis
At the end of the administration period, Paul Clark of Duff & Phelps released a statement in which he announced:
“As administrators, our primary statutory function was to ensure Rangers continued as a business and this was achieved.”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-19981266
http://www.heraldscotland.com/mobile/news/home-news/charles-green-denies-craig-whyte-claim-over-rangers.1350492696?_=fec6410b8df4c6b6a7865c2ce90f0008c7c77034
http://local.stv.tv/glasgow/195280-rangers-oldco-to-appoint-liquidators-bdo-to-oversee-winding-up/
I reference several sources, just in case you think he must have been misquoted.
Like me, you will probably have been somewhat surprised by Mr Clark’s apparent misunderstanding of the administrator’s “primary statutory function”.
If his statement is accurately reported (and I have not seen anything to suggest that he considers that he was misquoted), does this not, on its own, not raise significant concerns as to the entire conduct of the administration? After all, if they got something so fundamental to their profession so wrong, what other actions, statements or allegations have they made, that were also incorrect?
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. knowing what we do now, it is a really interesting journey re-reading their creditors reports and media statements.
Personally, I place very little faith in anything they have said or done.
http://www.lse.co.uk/SharePrice.asp?shareprice=RFC
Today 12:47footsie1000URGENT UPDATE56.50No Opinion
Reliable source suggesting that SFA set to revoke Rangers football club license at end of season. Won’t do it before this date as it will cause problems with other league positions.
Today 13:16footsie1000SHARE PRICE56.50No Opinion
Any serious investor should look at selling urgently. Major development forecast for Monday.
Anyone like to comment on this?
Because it say SFA action, I am sceptical.
resin_lab_dog says:
Thursday, May 2, 2013 at 19:05
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Forres Dee (@ForresDee) says:
Thursday, May 2, 2013 at 18:35
Re: The SFA suing Whyte,
Anyone else think that they might now be regretting giving him such a large boot up the *rse while he was on his way out of the door.
______________________________________________________________
Wouldn’t it be funny if it turned out they were suing him to raise money, only to end up buying him off with it? (How many C60 cassette tapes does £200K buy one, I wonder?)
And It would be somehow fitting to see the someone buying off Whyte, using his own money!
Looking at the whole, I can’t help thinking that Scottish football would probably be in a less sorry state if we put the lawyers out on the park, and sent the players into the courtrooms!
Would probably cost less anyway!
—————————————————————————————————
More likely scenario give the level of competence at the SFA bunker:
SFA win their case against Whyte but can’t get a penny out of him due to squirreling of assets.
They then have to buy him off as well.
So end up out of pocket for their legal fees AND the pay off
DOH!
Post #5031 [Tweet]
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For the Glory and the Green
[* * * * * * * * * * * * ]
Group:Senior Member Some scorchers in this article:
http://www.therangersstandard.co.uk/index.php/articles/current-affairs/252-time-for-we-are-rangers-to-take-control-at-ibrox
Time for ‘We Are Rangers’ To Take Control At Ibrox
Quote:
Time for ‘We Are Rangers’ To Take Control At Ibrox
By Scott Reid
Last weekend Rangers were playing East Stirlingshire. It followed yet another insane, mad week for us Rangers fans. Boardroom trouble and strife oozing from every media pore, a new Chief Operating Officer who might never actually take up the post if the Interim CEO gets his way and news that we appear to have our own keyboard warrior.
There is something rather–as my Father-in-law would say–apposite about the claim that Imran Ahmed was perhaps only the latest high-ranking insider to masquerade on a Rangers fans forum as ‘IamRangers’. There, revealed in rather comical fashion, is a very worrying truth. As a support, we have perhaps been too willing to place the stewardship of our club into the hands of the ‘IamRangers’ types. To date, we have embraced with less conviction the ‘We are Rangers’ philosophy that would underpin fan ownership at Rangers.
A very Rangers paradox
In days gone past, Bill Struth might have made a good ‘IamRangers’–a man who ruled Ibrox with iron like discipline but with intentions characteristic of a benevolent dictator. Fast forward to more recent times and we find ‘IamRangers’ reinventing himself with Doctor Who like frequency. From Murray to Whyte to Charles Green (and friends), a sequence of owners–legal or otherwise–have lorded over Ibrox. But they have often done so in ways befitting only of Gordon Gekko.
I’m sure most of us know Gekko. If not, Gekko is the Michael Douglas character in the 1987 movie Wall Street. It was said to be director Oliver Stone’s tribute to his stockbroker father, but it is synonymous with 1980s corporate excess and brutality. Gekko is the type of character who justifies wrecking companies (and lives) simply because he can.
In the hands of ‘IamRangers’ owners moulded more by Gekko greed than Struthian values, Rangers Football Club was and is vulnerable. We know it and we fear it.
Which brings me back to the game with East Stirlingshire. Twitter, in its usual immediate way, alerted me to this banner:
‘RangersFC is OUR football club. Not a commodity for businessmen to plunder. We want our club back’
No sooner was I heartened by that sentiment than I also read:
‘As a collective fan-base though we’ll do nothing to achieve it.’
Herein lies the Rangers paradox. As fans we rightly claim in our hearts and our minds ownership of OUR club, and in our hands it would never be defenceless (again). But we appear all too willing to put our faith and money into the pockets of the next high-net-worth saviour or saviours and hope this time everything will be all right.
The time for a new approach is now. With wrangles over ownership and developing rumours about takeovers, the current situation demands a more strategic push on fan ownership at Rangers.
Fan Ownership at Rangers
We already have fan ownership and a decent chunk of it. Many of us bought individually in the RIFC public share offering, somewhat fewer of us bought into the RST’s BuyRangers scheme. I am informed, if all those individual holdings are taken together, fans might already own about 11% of RIFC’s share capital. If broadly right, fans are already the largest minority shareholder-at least when considered collectively.
But the current ownership structure means all those individual voices are drowned out by the Gordon Gekkos round the table. Even after dipping into our own pockets, ordinary fans have no chance of influencing the resolution of the current Boardroom troubles. We are left praying that the next ‘IamRangers’ is one of the ‘real Rangers men’ often talked about. Ally McCoist has as much acknowledged this. With impeccable timing, we had reported by the Sky Sports website:
‘Manager Ally McCoist has urged Charles Green and Imran Ahmad to sell their Rangers shares to people who have the same vision as the fans.’
McCoist said: ‘The fans need somebody to come in that they can relate to and who can agree with their vision in taking the club forward.’
I am sure real Rangers men are out there. Even if they are ready and willing, however, I’m not convinced this is the right way forward is because it requires yet more faith. Yes we want and need professional people; stability is essential and more financing is undoubtedly required. But I’d rather see these objectives achieved with a new ‘We are Rangers’ mentality.
And ‘We are Rangers’ has to be much more than just a catchy slogan. I have written previously about how fan ownership in itself is only part of the longer term solution (http://www.therangersstandard.co.uk/index.php/articles/fan-culture/168-achieving-renewal-through-the-fans-corporation).
The legitimacy of business objectives–what they are and who defines them–together with structures of governance and accountability also matter if we want to ensure that what is done in our name is indeed the right thing for Rangers.
We have heard time and again fine words from Rangers’ owners and CEOs about how the fans are the club, that the fans’ voice will be heard and, more than that, acted upon. But with an investor-owned business controlled by a single or consortium majority holding, the only guaranteed outcome is decisions that serve their interests. Those interests may align with those of the fans and club but this is not guaranteed. Real ownership means the ability to exercise influence.
So the question becomes how do we finally put a stop to the Gekko-style plunder of our hard earned cash and our club’s reputation? How do we ensure the ‘We are Rangers’ ethos is translated into the ownership and management of Rangers as opposed to the circumstances that appear to prevail at the moment?
Two avenues strike me as viable: one short term and tactical; the second longer term and strategic.
The Short Term
In the here and now, a mechanism is clearly needed whereby all those small fan shareholders can, if they wish, express a common collective voice. My understanding is that RST has been busy developing a legal basis whereby all fan shareholders (not just RST members) can appoint a proxy (presumably the RST) to vote collectively on key business matters. This is an essential development if fans want–irrespective of their views about the RST-their current shareholdings to matter.
With new investors believed to be hovering with a view to the future purchase of shareholdings currently subject to lock-ins, a formal coalition of small fan shareholders could be part of a new controlling interest aligned to, as Ally describe it, the fans’ vision. Exercising collective influence on dividend pay-outs, director appointments and pay is all readily achievable and would provide a powerful signal of intent.
A Longer Term Vision
Beyond current uncertainties and even the next few bumpy years, there remains the question of what form of corporate entity is best for Rangers Football Club. The German model, which is guided by mutual co-operative membership principles, is much applauded and little wonder when we witness the recent success of Bayern Munich and the resurrection of Borussia Dortmund.
Imitation may be the best form of flattery, but the prescription that Rangers need only copy the German model is far too simplistic. As part of rebuilding process, however, I believe that the current plc model should be seen as having a finite shelf-life and merely a necessary part of the transition to something more sustainable and desirable.
Viable alternatives to the plc corporate form already exist and are increasingly finding traction in the football sector. Portsmouth, at long last, are now effectively a Community Benefit Society organised on co-operative mutual principles via the new ownership of the Pompey Supporters Trust.
This co-operative model already exists at Rangers in the form of the RST’s BuyRangers scheme. The aspiration of BuyRangers is to one day achieve a majority 50% shareholding. I myself bought into the scheme but realistically this objective seems very distant.
What could be a game changer for the longer term future at Rangers is the current plc engaging actively in a debate about what corporate form is best able to deliver on the fan vision. Is it so farfetched, for example, to suggest the current plc could transform itself into a Community Interest Company (CIC)?
CICs are a form of social enterprise company introduced in the UK in 2005. They allow for equity investment similar to the plc model but what makes a CIC different is that they exist for the benefit of the community they seek to serve, taking precedence over individual shareholder interests. Investors can still receive dividends, albeit controlled, but fundamentally all business decisions must serve the community interest. For me the community in our case is the Rangers fan base and more widely Scottish football–where I firmly believe the club should remain.
Statutory asset lock-ins ensure that future shareholders can never morph the company into a for-profit business. In short, the CIC offers a potential way to combine the equity investment model with ensuring and preserving the community benefit provided by a football club. It is probably not that well known that last week’s game against East Stirlingshire was played at the home of Scotland’s first football CIC–Stenhousemuir Football Club.
At the moment, the travelling Bears will find themselves back at Ochilview next season–this time to play Scotland’s first football CIC. That journey most probably faces fewer obstacles than the one that could see the corporate transformation of Rangers into something like a CIC. In short, will the Gordon Gekkos who bought into the successful IPO be easily persuaded to buy into the CIC vision?
The plain truth is probably not at the moment. But the current diffuse ownership structure and the time limited nature of things like tax relief benefits for investors means that is not always going to be true. And of course investors come and go as share prices go up and down. The controlled dividends and asset lock-ins of a CIC will remain attractive to certain classes of equity investor including those who favour stable and prudent returns over speculative punts. It will be even more attractive to those sharing the community benefit ethos and business objectives of the CIC. The continued growth in the CIC sector and ever increasing demands for socially responsible investment products put this all into the realms of the possible at Rangers.
In the past 12 months there has understandably been much pre-occupation with matters of history. Concrete visions and plans for the future have been notable by their absence. My own feeling is that the aspiration to convert from an investor-owned plc to a member-owned club, whether that be a mutually owned business or a Community Interest Company, deserves serious discussion and debate. Only then will ‘We are Rangers’ ring true.
Movie Postscript
Even Gordon Gekko eventually realised the errors of his ways. In the 2010 sequel Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, Gekko returns as a bit of an anti-hero after a stint in jail. In his words: ‘It’s not about the money–it’s about the game’.
Scott Reid is a regulatory economist by training and Director in an Asset Management and Economics consulting business. Originally from Glasgow he now lives in the Midlands. More importantly he is a Rangers season ticket holder. Follow him on Twitter: @thecroakgang
From same source
Today 13:35TOnyBluntSELL SELL SELL56.50Strong Sell
Heard from reliable sources that SFA meeting early next week is to decide if the footballing licence will be suspended or possibly revoked. Whether this happens or not the effect of even having the meeting to discuss this will cause a large fall in the share price. I strongly advise to sell, may be worth buying again post SFA meeting – but that obviously depends on the outcome of that meeting. Reason for the meeting is that the directors have been given the initial findings of the investigation in to the takeover and it doesn’t look very good. Cut your losses sell now!
neepheid says:
Thursday, May 2, 2013 at 20:11
80 0 i
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Well now that Lunny’s backlog has been cleared, how about a decision on the Berwick “songbook” incident. It seems like yesterday, but was probably some months ago. Justice delayed is justice denied, you know!
——————————————————————————————
Can’t help but think if CG had been bawling his racism from the terraces/stands he’d have got off scot (yorkie) free
Of course, that wasn’t the plan
Just read the Alex Thomson blog.I note he mentions a sports hack allegedly banned from Celtic Park.
Who is the Glasgow based journo Alex alludes to ?
Just a little point of interest.
http://www.rangers.co.uk/news/club-news/item/3878-berwick-hospitality-sold-out
THE club’s commercial department is delighted to announce hospitality has been sold out for this weekend’s fixture against Berwick Rangers.
Around 1,500 guests will be dining and enjoying the award-winning hospitality at Ibrox Stadium both before and after the match against the Shielfield Park side.
Commercial Business Manager Raj Athwal said: “This is the first time all hospitality packages have been sold out since our last Old Firm game.
——————————————————————————————————————————
Now the link on the pages to hospitality prices puts the top package as being from £165.
So lets say (thought it won’t be) 1,500 at £165 a pop – £247,500.
However there will be costs to run the hospitality, so lets say they make a generous 50% profit and round it up to £125k per game.
But we are told it has NOT BEEN A SELL OUT since the last Old Firm game.
Therefore what have they been running at in terms of % to capacity?
Lets just say they make an average of £100k per game for 18 home league matches (buit can’t see that for mid week fixtures etc).
Thats only provides £1.8m of income. (Don’t have time to search on what figure was put in the interim accounts for hospitality to see how that matches up).
Now £1.8m is not to be sniffed at if you are any other Div 2/3 team but hardly a bucketful when it comes to the financial oputlays for running a club the size of T’Rangers.
As my earlier post indicated that amout could pay for McCoist and his pals while the season tickets pays for the players.
Someone has to be hoping the shirt and sponsorship deals are covering the wages for all the remaining backroom staff and admin staff.
Oh and the rates, the utility bills, the security, travel and accommodation, etc etc etc – and not forgetting the papers.
Also if 1500 is the capacity then we now have the maximum numbers of those who may not make it onto the Police count at the turnstiles 🙂
rantinrobin says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:40
Hugh Keevins
Cheers Scapaflow ,what was the Keevins spat all about.?
Rumours sweeping Twitter/LSE share chat board that SFA are meeting to revoke club licence early next week.
nowoldandgrumpy says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:36
While it is probably what is required I have the feeling that it may all be a bit of mischief making.
I don;t expect the SFA to suddenly jump into Rambo action mode on the issues at T’Rangers – or anything else for that matter.
Araminta Moonbeam QC says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:52
0 0 Rate This
Rumours sweeping Twitter/LSE share chat board that SFA are meeting to revoke club licence early next week.
——————
hmmm 1 poster repeating himself – sweeping? 🙂
I’d have much more sympathy with Alex Thomson’s position if I felt that journalists reporting on Scottish football (and possibly English football as well, though I am much less familiar with how things work there) were genuine journalists who’s criticism of clubs or personalities was deserving rather than simply an extension of Media House or some such organisation… or worse an unashamed career move.
rantinrobin says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:49
As I recall, Mr Keevins dragged a family member into dispute with the Chief Exec. Distasteful, undoubtedly, but banning him, only damages the club and gives the wee gnaff martyr status.
Better to invite the chap to the league victory celebrations and force him to revel in his loserdom
rantinrobin says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:49
Cheers Scapaflow ,what was the Keevins spat all about.?
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Hyuck printed something about Celtic that was true. They didn’t like it. He got banned. It’s called supporting the free press in a democracy or something.
angus1983 says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:06
Lifted off RM:
—
According to Leggo this morning!!!!!
Friday, 3 May 2013
RANGERS SET TO FREEZE SEASON TICKET PRICES
RANGERS are set to reward their fans by announcing that season ticket prices will be pegged for next term.
I can reveal that there have been talks inside the Blue Room as to how best sort out the season ticket situation ahead of an early summer sales drive.
For Rangers do not want a repeat of last year and the club knows it needs supporters to rally to the colours again to keep the Rangers recovery on track and help stay in tune with the spirit of the New Gallant Pioneers on the long trek back to the top.
My information is that there will soon be an announcement and that the news will be good news for supporters
———————————————————————————
During the IPO – I am sure that the prospectus said that SB prices for 2013/14 would increase by 20% with a further increase in the following 2 seasons.
Is the holding company that operates the club then not committed to seeing through those increases?
The rumours are more sweeping Twitter. Probably from that one post on LSE 😀
Long Time Lurker says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 14:00
No there is a standard board reserves the right to act as they see fit in the best interests of the company bit in there somewhere. Best to think of the prospectus as aspirational 😉 methinks. We will aspire to play at Ibrox, we will aspire to be trading in 2014 etc etc
scottc says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:26
4 0 Rate This
wottpi says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:16
Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:11
Season Ticket income circa £8m
Current squad wages circa £7m
Coach and his two pals circa £1.5m
As the yank Bill Miller would have said when he looked at the figures.
You do the Math!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yeah, but you have forgotten to factor in the pies.
__________________________________________________________________________
, , , , , and the new dart board !
Is the Great Waldo about to jump ship? The man with one name is rumoured to be walking away. Any truth ?
The Rumours doing precisely nothing only about £6k traded all day.
Looks like a day for…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRte0S2a_dA
HirsutePursuit says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:36
————————————-
Exactly so HP, so when I heard Neil Patsy on the radio the other day opining about Hearts and the administration of Unio Bankas, I nearly swerved off the road when he said
“Of course the health of Scottish football will be far from the minds of the administrators, their sole concern will be to achieve the best return for the creditors.”
You couldn’t make it up, but D&P did (as they went along)
Today 14:07footsie1000Title Deeds56.50No Opinion
CRAIG WHYTE CONFIRMED AS OWNER OF IBROX & MURRAY PARKToday 14:02footsie1000Imminent departure56.50No Opinion
Walter Smith set to leave the fallen Scottish giants. Storm clouds developing at Ibrox.
Beginning now to look like a windup account.
exfallhoose2012 says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 09:23
Hearts were in trouble before Rangers dropped. Dumfermline should have been allowed to stay in the SPL if the various football authorities had ruled fairly on various matters including the small matter of inelligible players which could have been dealt with before the end of the 2011-12 season if the SFA had been forced to examine and rule on the evidence. If they had stayed up, the extra money may have saved them from the situation they are now in. Collateral Damage?
————————————————————————————————————————-
Multiple choice question for you:
Q. Why were Hearts in trouble before Rangers dropped?
A. They were trying to keep up with a hyper inflated market driven by reckless spending / borrowing at Ibrox.
B. They were owned by a man who did not ‘give’ the money club, but rather made it borrow money from his own bank – thereby stiffing the club for interest and making it dependent in much the same way as a pusher controls a heroin addict.
C. Prior to Vlad taking over, they were under the influence of a bank which seems to have been more interested in protecting a certain club from the Southside of Glasgow.
D. Said bank was allowing a certain Mr Masterton considerable leeway to influence Scottish Football finance – and we can also see how well that is working out for his beloved DAFC…
E. All of the above and probably more.
Reckon we could do a similar multiple choice for DAFC, but I reckon the role of the Bank and Masterton would be significant, as would the role of Sir Minty of Ibrox in inflating football spending beyond that which was sustainable.
Having some reincarnation of RFC back in the top flight would have minimal positive impact in terms of increased revenue for other clubs.
The real danger would be from a reincarnation returning to the SPL bringing with it the sort of business practises that led to the previous demise and contributed so significantly to the difficulties currently being experienced by other clubs.
A team playing in blue, based in Ibrox is almost inevitable (like it or not) – but it should not be allowed to poison the rest of Scottish football with either its dodgy business model or its associated sectarian bile. Come back with a reformed character or don’t bother.
I sincerely hope DAFC make it through their current difficulties and are able to get shot of Masterton mill stone.
yeah, i’d agree nowoldandgrumpy
nowoldandgrumpy says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 14:11
Today 14:07footsie1000Title Deeds56.50No Opinion
CRAIG WHYTE CONFIRMED AS OWNER OF IBROX & MURRAY PARKToday 14:02footsie1000Imminent departure56.50No Opinion
Walter Smith set to leave the fallen Scottish giants. Storm clouds developing at Ibrox.
Beginning now to look like a windup account.
=====================================
Have we become that cynical to anything about Sevco, that the one thing that most have predicted on here to be true, is immediately shot down as a windup account?
Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 14:13
0 0 Rate This
yeah, i’d agree nowoldandgrumpy
++++++
Me too, but isn’t it a criminal offence to publish false information which is designed to affect the share price of a traded company? This joker needs to watch his step.
Forres Dee (@ForresDee) says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 14:18
0 0 Rate This
nowoldandgrumpy says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 14:11
Today 14:07footsie1000Title Deeds56.50No Opinion
CRAIG WHYTE CONFIRMED AS OWNER OF IBROX & MURRAY PARKToday 14:02footsie1000Imminent departure56.50No Opinion
Walter Smith set to leave the fallen Scottish giants. Storm clouds developing at Ibrox.
Beginning now to look like a windup account.
=====================================
Have we become that cynical to anything about Sevco, that the one thing that most have predicted on here to be true, is immediately shot down as a windup account?
———————————-
too much action…..SFA to act, Walter to go, report shows CW owns assets – all in one go? no chance, clearly a wind up
more likely, maybe report has been finished and is to be published
a couple of months later – walter might think about bolting
a couple of years later – SFA might think about acting
nowoldandgrumpy says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:36
6 0 i
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http://www.lse.co.uk/SharePrice.asp?shareprice=RFC
=================================================
nowoldand, that could just as well be from KDS or here – it’s an open forum supposedly to be used by investors/potential investors keeping each other informed about companies. In reality it’s a few Rangers fans struggling to keep up with the winding up they get from a number of others, mostly Celtic fans. That doesn’t mean it’s not true of course.
nowoldandgrumpy says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:38
6 1 Rate This
From same source
Today 13:35TOnyBluntSELL SELL SELL56.50Strong Sell
Heard from reliable sources that SFA meeting early next week is to decide if the footballing licence will be suspended or possibly revoked. Whether this happens or not the effect of even having the meeting to discuss this will cause a large fall in the share price. I strongly advise to sell, may be worth buying again post SFA meeting – but that obviously depends on the outcome of that meeting. Reason for the meeting is that the directors have been given the initial findings of the investigation in to the takeover and it doesn’t look very good. Cut your losses sell now!
——————————————————————————-
#FS
when are you gonna learn.
with campbell ogilvie and SR at the helm, added to their assertion that without sevco/rangers, the whole of scottish football will be donald ducked, so, on that basis, there is NO WAY, the SFA
will take any decision to revoke, suspend, delay, review anything to do with the sevco licence.
no way at all.
and another thing.
all the posterts who “reckon” that sevco are down to their last few £millions,
are daein ma heid in. you keep getting ma hopes up, only to be let down by statements from stockbridge, mather, and superswally, that they are still loaded and the £millions are burning a hole in imran’s maw’s purse.
stop it, unless you got proof !!
The market is not interested
Time/Date Price Volume Trade Value Type Buy/Sell
13:05:52 03-May-2013 56.50 3,495 1,974.68 Ordinary trade
13:04:47 03-May-2013 56.50 3,495 1,974.68 Ordinary trade
10:23:29 03-May-2013 56.50 2,641 1,492.16 Ordinary trade
09:01:29 03-May-2013 56.50 65 36.72 Ordinary trade
08:01:07 03-May-2013 56.50 200 113.00 Ordinary trade
Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 14:21
Forres Dee (@ForresDee) says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 14:18
nowoldandgrumpy says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 14:11
Today 14:07footsie1000Title Deeds56.50No Opinion
CRAIG WHYTE CONFIRMED AS OWNER OF IBROX & MURRAY PARKToday 14:02footsie1000Imminent departure56.50No Opinion
Walter Smith set to leave the fallen Scottish giants. Storm clouds developing at Ibrox.
Beginning now to look like a windup account.
=====================================
Have we become that cynical to anything about Sevco, that the one thing that most have predicted on here to be true, is immediately shot down as a windup account?
———————————-
too much action…..SFA to act, Walter to go, report shows CW owns assets – all in one go? no chance, clearly a wind up
more likely, maybe report has been finished and is to be published
a couple of months later – walter might think about bolting
a couple of years later – SFA might think about acting
=======================
I actually agree with you, but more because monday is Bank Holiday and there will be no chance of the SFA coming in.
However, if its in the best interests of sevco to have its licence ‘suspended pending internal investigation’ immediately AFTER promotion has been secured, then that is what will happen.
scapaflow14 says:
Friday, May 3, 2013 at 13:25
Excellent blog from Alex Thomson on clubs who ban journos and yes, Celtic get some deserved criticism too. If its wrong for Newcastle its wrong for everyone
http://blogs.channel4.com/alex-thomsons-view/banning-journalists-time-football-clubs-grow/4798
———————–
I hate when clubs ban the press, the best way to deal with it is facts, the way O’Neill handled JM. If the story is worng, call them on it, if it is not false then it deserves to be aired.
I don’t know the full history or truth behind the HK ban at Celtic and that is the most annoying factor, if it has not been officially announced by the club then the fans are left to make assumptions, better to let them into press conferences and call them on the issue.
Fae Twitterland…
Jim Spence @bbcjimspence 1m
Sent from my iPad Ten clubs are ready to quit the Scottish Football League in time for next season and join a new SPFL.