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.
iamacant says:
Wednesday, May 8, 2013 at 22:38
jean7brodie,
TRFC are fecked 😉
Happy tonight!!
jean7brodie
? Any reason for this sudden happiness 🙂 I’m hungry for some good news 😉
From this para alone this is mince:
Queen’s Counsel, Roy Martin QC, who oversaw the investigation has completed a draft report which will be handed to the clubs board confirming there is no credibility in obscene claims made by serial liar Whyte that he
Could we please keep the acronyms in order ladies and gentlemen:
Easdales = Busboys
I wouldn’t want to raise sectarian hackles but the link to ‘Celticnewco’ (yet another level of desperation has been achieved) spurs me to venture onto somewhat precarious territory. Hopefully I can express myself in a way that is insightful rather than confusing.
I was never really a big Celtic supporter. My Father went to most home games I believe but the fact he may not have been around every other Saturday afternoon never registered with me and he never wore colours or talked about the game on a Saturday evening. We would always watch the football highlights on Saturday night and I knew from his reading of the Sunday papers that he had a keen interest in the green and white hoops but there was no real ‘culture’ in the family. Just that understanding that there was a sporting allegiance and even as an outsider to it all, I knew Celtic were my team (of course, school would have exposed me to that).
Both my parents were raised in Ireland. However there was never any question of us having an allegiance to Ireland other than as my parents homeland. At school, everyone was interested in Scotland’s performance. I don’t recall anyone concerning themselves with the Republic of Ireland. Scotland had a good team back then but even later when fortunes waned and the Republic did well internationally, I and I suspect most of my friends, viewed their games in the same way as you would do Wales for instance; a UK team making us proud to be British. I would have felt the same way about Northern Ireland. The cultural divide just didn’t stretch that far.
I knew from the rebel songs that there was a strong backdrop of Irish culture (in Celtic) but this was always associated with the football club, never as a national differentiator. Even my Father I suspect would far rather watch Scotland playing than the Republic of Ireland. Partly because Scotland had a good team back then as I said but also because they would have a few Celtic players on show. I’d look at the Scotland team to see if Celtic had more players in it than Rangers. However when Scotland played and a Rangers’ players did well, there was no real equivocation. They were all Scotland players and as such were supported by the nation. My pals who came from the Rangers tradition seemed to have a similar attitude. They would laud the Rangers players that done well for Scotland but they would equally show appreciation for the Celtic players. This applied to the players of all clubs in the Scotland team, though there did tend to be a fair quota of Old Firmers.
Only later in life did the sectarianism begin to concern me. There may have been the odd occasion when I felt discriminated against and this made me aware that this sporting rivalry ran deeper than I had appreciated. One of my names is a dead giveaway concerning my family roots and I would maybe get a wee bit ridicule now and again that I was poorly equipped to deal with. I think my parents very intentionally steered clear of the sectarian thing because as relative newcomers to Scotland (twenty years before I was born), they felt the need to assimilate to some extent though I’m sure they had their own personal traditions that they maintained.
I’m wondering outloud a bit now so forgive me if I stray but is there perhaps a more explicit adoption of Irish culture (it was always there to some extent as I said), a sign of growing self awareness. A sign that its okay to express your cultural heritage whereas twenty or thirty years ago people might have been a little more circumspect. If this is the case, I’m not sure why it would have occurred now (not without being really contentious). Celtic have been around for over a hundred years and so has this Irish heritage but I haven’t, so its hard for me to see if the explicit resort to Irish heritage is something that has occurred recently.
Just a few thought to open up to the TSFM’ers who don’t support the hoops in the hope of providing a bit of insight.
A crooked Mr Big netted pounds 1.5 MILLION in just six months with a string of dodgy deals.
Fraudster Alex Easdale was jailed in July after his hi-tech scam was busted by VAT men.
Now we can reveal they have got the go-ahead to CONFISCATE more than pounds 360,000 worth of Easdale’s assets.
As he languishes in his cell, Customs officers will move in on…
All the cash he has in his bank account.
His stake in two pubs.
His share of two taxi firms – including the taxis.
Masses of computer parts found in his scrapyard.
His luxury Mercedes car.
More than pounds 46,000 which was seized from him when he was arrested.
If Easdale makes it difficult for Customs men to recover all his assets, he could face another two years inside.
They found stolen hi-tech parts in his scrapyard in Greenock, and uncovered a VAT scam that spread all over Britain.
Agents followed a long trail that led to London crook John Geddes being caged alongside Easdale.
They had been watched for months, and when officers pounced they found pounds 45,000 in cash stuffed inside a Tesco carrier bag. The rest was in a briefcase.
The bag was hidden behind a couch at Easdale’s home.
He was selling stolen parts to businessmen, who were claiming the parts had been bought lawfully and forging VAT returns.
On Friday, Customs asked a judge at Croydon Crown Court, London, to confiscate the millions they believed Easdale made from his crooked deals.
They were keen to recover cash raked in by him during his reign.
Customs also demanded cash from two pubs in Greenock – the Green Oak Bar and The Regal – owned by Easdale and his brother.
They also want his shares in two taxi firms in the town – Dees Contracts and A.E. Taxi Hire – including the taxis.
The judge ruled that Easdale made pounds 1.5 million over six months while he was watched.
He said Easdale should be stripped of every asset, but that was only pounds 367,565.
The judge added that he considered Easdale had made more money in the months leading up to the start of the surveillance, but that could not be accounted for.
One Customs man said: “We’re delighted with this result. The reason why he wasn’t caught before for anything is because he’s a good villain.
“The parts were worth a fortune to him. We spent well over pounds 100,000 to get him.”
Easdale’s 27-month sentence upset Customs investigators who had toiled for months to snare him.
One added: “He’ll be out in just over a year. That’s why we rely so much on confiscation hearings.
“If we can hurt his pocket and recover the funds gained through crime, then at least that slows him down when he gets out.”
Lord Wobbly says:
Thursday, May 9, 2013 at 20:15
‘..It’s ok. I don’t think the good people at Balvenie were listening anyway :’
———–
There were indeed, my lord, some very good people in Balvenie (Street, Garthamlock) in the year that the European Cup was won(for the first time by a ‘British’ club) by a phenomenally inexpensive team of local lads of individual brilliance, coached by a manager who would have had nothing to learn from SAF in respect of managerial/coaching abilities.
It is a pity that Jock Stein did not have SAF’s brass-necked self-interest in demanding the appropriate level of respect and remuneration from his club.Even more of a pity that the club did not spontaneously offer him the rewards he had earned.
resin_lab_dog says:
Thursday, May 9, 2013 at 21:12
Founded 1994! ah well still much older the Sevco then, almost 20 yrs 🙂
For those who may be unfamiliar with whitewashing
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
1 .The investigation is always assigned to someone with impeccable credentials
Where “Impeccable” = has done this before and will generally deliver what your lawyers said he would providing you have given him a tight remit.
i.e. Your lawyer could have done the job for 10% of the cost but with zero credibility since he works for you
2. The Terms of Reference for the Investigator will exclude investigatory work like interviewing witnesses, reviewing emails etc. It will generally consist of reviewing written evidence prepared by “impeccable sources” and reaching a written conclusion.
i.e. Challenging the written evidence is not permitted under the Terms of Reference
3 The Terms of Reference require the Investigator`s findings to be submitted in draft format. This is to enable the Client to “adapt” the wording to suit the “political and PR context” without in any way changing the “thrust” of the findings.
4. The Investigator must present his “Draft Report” and agree the “Final Report” before he gets paid.
Thereafter all public response to the Final Report are handled by the Client
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
RE Green and TRFC
Following the above principles we can expect
A sturdy defence of Green and his reinstatement as CEO
No comment by the Investigator
A brief PR campaign designed to “put this behind us”
Some moonbeams to distract the more gullible Bears
e.g
Return of Miller and Boyd and a strong hint that Messi has been discussing a move with his friend Nacho
Some serious price cutting in next years STS “To reward the fans for their loyalty and exemplary behaviour”
News
Anyone to Rangers – Long time fan- Millions=Top striker (minus the c)
Always dad mum blue orange millions super Top defender midfield maestro for (enter SPL/SFL/EPL/Spanish?Guatemalan club here).
Please. I’ve had enough They will buy NO ONE
Mullach great post.
Your surname isn’t Kintyre by any chance?
Interesting post Mullach, well expressed
So the busboys, who are undoubtedly the same persons as they were the day they were born, want us to forget their history – particularly anything that happened over 16 years ago, but are part of a movement that insists we respect the 140 year old history of a company just coming up to its first birthday?
“C’mon, get off” as they say
therampantbaron
I can see that I will have to change my name now.
Thanks a bunch.
Smiley-facey-thingy.
Brenda says:
Thursday, May 9, 2013 at 23:03
Who, little old me??!!!
jean7brodie @ 7:42
Lol you are a devil 🙂 reading quite a lot on twitter, but for the moment will try to remain as calm as possible ……… Fun Friday ahead ??? Maybe not 🙁
TSFM says:
Thursday, May 9, 2013 at 18:19
53 4 Rate This
Hi Folks.
OT but related to the finances of TSFM. We have used up the £400 and more we received in donations purchasing domain names, forum software, and the basic equipment required to enable us to produce podcasts starting in the summer.
We will need some more cash to put together the whole shooting match and pay for hosting when we move to vBulletin. Rather than solicit more donations perhaps looking at external ads might be better …
————-
Regarding the betting ad side of this, I’m pretty much opposed to betting in general and on sport in particular. I see it as not only having a potentially pernicious influence on sporting values and fair play, but aimed at people who can least afford to throw their money away. My personal opinion is that a forum like this should not be seen to be promoting gambling, especally on sport. My son recently asked why the UK sports channels I subscribe to only carry ads for betting and loans. Cynically, I said the two can be related and the one thing can be followed by the other, out of necessity. He laughed but he’s never seen the ruination it can cause.
Glossy commercials, online apps and ads are designed to enable the common man to leave his family poorer off. There are even thoughtless sports commentators in the media who boast about their betting habits and of having had a wee flutter, usually the same types who openly adhere to the sporting bevvy culture of ‘a good night oot’. There are two stand-outs on national radio stations and both are Scots. Anyway, to conclude my rant, the end result is that many people now see betting as an intrinsic part of sport. Worrying if this is passed on as the norm to the younger generation. I side with the posters above who believe that this forum does not need and should not solicit these types of ads.
Danish
I couldn’t agree more with you, gambling and money lending, the ruin of many and the curse of some sports.
We want a share issue.When do we want it? Now!
Ahl get ma coat. And ma bank card.
Neil Lennon now odds on for the Everton job!!!!
Can’t see it myself
No mention of Sally in the betting
bill1903 says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 08:30
0 0 Rate This
Neil Lennon now odds on for the Everton job!!!!
Can’t see it myself
No mention of Sally in the betting
=============================
With Corals, Lennon 4/7, Sally 50/1
Danish Pastry,
Your contribution and some others (both public and privately expressed) re. the ads eloquently expresses my own thoughts on the betting and lending industries. To be honest, I am a bit embarrassed that anyone had to spell that out for me.
Our approach thus far has been pragmatic in as much as we would like to do some other things, adding value to the site, and it is difficult to ask for donations to fund that (although donations have been generous – one in particular extremely generous).
We have decided that whatever approach we might take on ads in future, that we should stay away from betting and loans. The sponsorship route is one which has not been fully investigated either, and we will pursue that as an on-going means of paying for the site.
I will have some more info over the weekend on a kind of mission statement for TSFM which will I think have to clear and unequivocal as a means of finding a suitable and appropriate sponsor.
Thanks for all the suggestions and contributions (and donations) received in response to my post earlier.
It would be foolish to rule Sally out of the Everton job.
Everton have some strong connections with the old Rangers.
Didn’t his mentor, the Cardigan of Dignity not have employment with both clubs?
Signed quite a few players for Everton from the old Rangers too, if I’m not mistaken …..
myohmy1 says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 05:46
We are all Spartacus on here myohmy1. Perhaps I missed the pun but if it was a real enquiry then no, that is not my surname. I have visited Kintyre though and it is a desolate but beautiful part of the country.
Lord Wobbly
Your Lordship, just to underscore my pun blindness, I am unaware of the reference you made concerning an earlier post of mine. Initially I thought you were referring to a Scots whisky manufacturer until a later comment (was it John Clarke?) clarified that Balvenie was actually a Street In Garthamlock.
I’m not sure why anyone qwould be remotely interested in the outcome of Rangers own internal enquiry into the links between it’s major shareholder and previous owner. Particularly when the business had a vested interest in the findings. Indeed findings the “wrong way” would threaten it’s very existance.
The real question is, when will the Scottish football authorities be carrying out an investigation into whether or not Charles Green lied to them when seeking the relevant licences (or whatever) to play senior football in Scotland, and whether or not Craig Whyte was behind the new club, in spite of being banned from having any involvement in Scottish senior football.
Whilst on the subject when will BDO or the Scottish Police be investigating Craig Whyte trying to buy the assets of a company which he was liquidating, on the cheap.
The authorities, whether they be the football authorities or the legal ones must surely put no weight whatsoever on the findings of this “investigation”. In short, who pays a lot of money to have an investigation which may kill off their own business with it’s findings.
chipm0nk says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 10:03
=============================
There is absolutely no appetite from anyone at the SFA/SPL to investigate Rangers unless they could guarantee the outcome, that outcome being the continuance of Rangers in any shape or form. Any investigation that could threaten their existence will be avoided like the plague.
This investigation by Rangers is no more an independent analysis of the facts than a scientific study into the side effects of using a mobile phone commissioned by Vodafone would be. He who pays the piper calls the tune. If the SFA rely on its findings in any way then they are as usual taking everyone else involved in Scottish football for fools.
Owen Coyle?? Thoughts??
Just … the Crossbar Challenge.
Was it confirmed whether anybody got a shottie at the million quid at the Berwick game?
If not, have Strathan ME Limited, Matador Sports or Active Corporate (all mentioned on the rangerscrossbarchallenge website, but only the latter with their own site) been asked why by any suspicious bear? Has there been any mention of where the money raised via the phone-in competition went or how much was raised?
chipm0nk says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 10:03
I’m not sure why anyone qwould be remotely interested in the outcome of Rangers own internal enquiry into the links between it’s major shareholder and previous owner. Particularly when the business had a vested interest in the findings. Indeed findings the “wrong way” would threaten it’s very existance.
The real question is, when will the Scottish football authorities be carrying out an investigation into whether or not Charles Green lied to them when seeking the relevant licences (or whatever) to play senior football in Scotland, and whether or not Craig Whyte was behind the new club, in spite of being banned from having any involvement in Scottish senior football.
Whilst on the subject when will BDO or the Scottish Police be investigating Craig Whyte trying to buy the assets of a company which he was liquidating, on the cheap.
The authorities, whether they be the football authorities or the legal ones must surely put no weight whatsoever on the findings of this “investigation”. In short, who pays a lot of money to have an investigation which may kill off their own business with it’s findings.
==============================================
Rangers investigation will say no link + SFA will ask no questions = Nothing to see here move on. This bit is simples.
HMRC are happy to see a football club in blue play at ibrox, they and therefore by extension BDO are after individuals not the club. They will only pursue any phoenixing or other such activities where not to do so could seriously hinder the future application of those laws.
Don’t expect either of the Greater Strathclyde Police Service or the Greater Scottish Council Chambers to press for any rules or laws to be applied to Sevco; They are far to worried about Armageddon and Civil Unrest that could follow a complete collapse.
The only thing that could temporarily halt those in light blue is the club/company itself and then expect all the rules not yet, bent / misread / mis-interpreted / ignored / broken to be abused, in order to unsure that Third Rangers (another new club) are placed in whatever the SFL2 equivalent is at the time.
Oh look, a squirrel!
@TSFM
“We will need some more cash to put together the whole shooting match and pay for hosting when we move to vBulletin.”
Save yourself a bundle and use myBB or phpBB or one of the other free alternatives to vBulletin that are readily available.
http://bit.ly/10mH8rR
What a great picture, Spivs looking to our left.
Oh Look, Squirrels! looking to our right and the Rangers Men looking straight ahead with Dignity!
A little perspective from a poster ‘The Mighty Shire’ on RM
=======================================================================
Probably time to say goodbye
….as you set forth on your next journey out of the hapless Division Three.
The Mighty Shire have, as usual, ended up rock bottom with a most unimpressive playing record but, along the way in our meetings, we have given you a couple of decent games although you have also had cause to complain about one or two of our cloggers and I have no argument with that.
I am not aware that we have had any “problems” with Rangers supporters despite the reputation forecast by some who may, or may not, have their own agenda.
We have had terrible injury problems and have virtually no back up to replace those.and so we have had a number of disastrous games although we did (briefly) get to 6th place. But that was then.
I “think” we have enjoyed playing you and have given you a couple of decent games although there was only likely to be one winner in all of them. However I am happy that, with luck, we did not disgrace ourselves against the mighty Gers.
I had hoped we would not be bottom (again) but there we are. A couple of years ago, as previously posted, we were close to going out of business so I should probably shut up moaning.
It’s been an odd week this end. The World’s Greatest Football Manager has announced his retirement.. He started out as a Manager with East Stirlingshire (only for 110 days before being poached by St Mirren) but that is where he started and still remains the Patron.
I have no idea what your budget was for this season (in your reduced circumstances) but I can now exclusively reveal – as the season is over – what the playing budget was for East Stirlingshire.
It was £40,000..
Best of luck for next season Gers.and personally all good wishes.
Forres Dee
Reckon that photo could be on the cover of Phil’s next book – Downfall the sequel. Brilliant.
Fit & proper image.
Watched Chris McLaughlin interview the Easdale brothers in a bus.
I personally find it very hard to take seriously two men sitting on a bus talking about spending millions.
It’s only a matter of time before it enters the lexicon.
or else, becomes part of Kevin Bridge’s next comedy routine.
In any event, I’d say it’s a perfect match.
Ibrox might even come to be known as Easdale.
I look forward to the first SFA board meeting which takes place on a McGill’s bus!
mullach says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 00:02
48 5 Rate This
————
Fascinating biographical post mullach. Your specific thoughts may be more of a debate subject for a Celts’ fans forum though?
On a not-unrelated personal note:
Our family were not big on football, much like yourself we got most excited about the national team. Celtic Park wasn’t too far from us. It was actually the first stadium I ever saw and peered into. As a wee boy, I wandered all the way there on my own early one Saturday morning and looked through some wooden slats from behind what must have been the old Jungle. The lush green grass of the pitch is a vivid memory; certainly a huge contrast to the grey-black streets of the East End.
Only my older brother went to football matches. He seemed to be a big admirer of Celtic but went to Ibrox. Now the odd thing for me has always been why he did that (and took me along too sometimes) instead of supporting what was our ‘local’ team down the road in Parkhead. For that matter, Shawfield was just as far as Celtic Park, on foot. When you’re young and naive you tend to think along the simplistic lines that it was because of how nice the blue kit looked compared to the green hoops 🙂 But even back then (mid-Sixties) there was perhaps the sense that Celtic was somehow an Irish club. Of course, I had no idea if it was, and on the face of it, it couldn’t really be since all of the players were Scots. But I do remember there being that sense, maybe in part because some of my local pals who had Irish-sounding names were all Celtic supporters. Daft, but it’s how you reason when you’re very young.
To my memory there was nothing like the demonstrative display of national flags back then that we’ve seen across Glasgow in recent decades. Both sets of fans say they are doing it because it’s ‘a celebration of their heritage’, and both can, in theory, argue their case. The reality is though, that these flags are used to further a non-football agenda. I see them waved more in provocation than in celebration.
I followed the Celtic newco link and read the thing about NL’s track suit. That was one, rather skewed interpretation of the Irish identity theme you alluded to. You know your question works for the blue side too: Why this over obsessiveness with being more uber British than UKIP? I reckon the answer to that has to with issues outwith Scotland, but as you hinted, the subject can very easily become contentious. That said, I’d be interested to read some follow-ups to your specific post from others, although this might not be the proper forum.
‘The McGills Arena’, has a certain ring to it.
chipm0nk says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 10:03
25 0 Rate This
…
Whilst on the subject when will BDO or the Scottish Police be investigating Craig Whyte trying to buy the assets of a company which he was liquidating, on the cheap.
…
====================================================
The involvement of Craig Whyte in the purchasing company is of no real relevance – except, of course, if he was intending to use the assets to create & operate a new football club called Rangers.
We do not know for certain; but it seems likely that his plan was for his company (Sevco 5088) to hold onto the heritable properties and another company (ASDFGHJKL Ltd – formerly RFC 2012 Ltd – formerly RFC 0712 Ltd – dissolved on 5th April 2013) would operate as the football club.
I don’t think he has ever said that his involvement with Sevco 5088 gave him ownership of the “Club” (the brand). He has only ever claimed to own the “Club’s” assets.
As long as he personally distanced himself from the Rangers brand, there would be no legal impediment to Mr Whyte’s part in attempting to purchase the old club’s assets.
As an aside, I find it interesting that Charles Green’s directorship of ASDFGHJKL Ltd was listed in the share prospectus as a company NOT part of the Rangers Group of companies. In the same way that it is strange that Charles Green was listed as the sole shareholder (but NOT a director) of Sevco 5088.
The police interest (if there is any) may not come from the Scottish Police at all. As I understand it, the principal allegations of wrongdoing, would place jurisdiction with a government department based in London.
Danish Pastry says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 07:50
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My residual Calvinism says I agree with you. My libertarian streak says let people make up their own minds. I have therefore made my mind up by tossing a coin and it came out no gambling related advertising. I bet few others have had such a quandary.
Carl31 (@C4rl31) says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 12:00
‘The McGills Arena’, has a certain ring to it.
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As does the “Washeteria Stadium”
bogsdollox says:
Friday, May 10 2013 at 12:15
Best out of three?
angus1983 says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 10:33
16
1
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Just … the Crossbar Challenge.
Was it confirmed whether anybody got a shottie at the million quid at the Berwick game?
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According to Big DJ on SSB yes, he said the ball just about reached the 6 yard line, so not a very good effort from whoever it was. Or maybe it was Gordon Dalzell, I often get them mixed up but it was defo talked of on the show. There must have been one of those oversized cheques with the million on display because he added that it was briskly whisked away after the punter missed.
fara1968 says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 12:38
According to Big DJ on SSB yes, he said the ball just about reached the 6 yard line, so not a very good effort from whoever it was. Or maybe it was Gordon Dalzell, I often get them mixed up but it was defo talked of on the show. T
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Gordon is the one with half a brain. HTH.
Gym Trainer says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 10:38
Are you the guy that used to leave comments on Jim Traynor’s articles on the DR website?
There’s be about about 20 comments every week, all pointing out the holes, errors and downright lies in Jim’s article, and then you’d get “Jim Traynor’s Gym Trainer says: Alright, I admit it – I’m no very good at my job.”
Used to make me laugh every time. I think it was the repetition, like a catchphrase, that I found funny.
Was interested to read that it was the supposed ‘trolling’ and sectarian sentiments that stopped the DR from allowing comments on their stories. If I was a little mischevious, I would suggest it was more to do with the fact that the stories themselves were being shown up by the readers for the heady mix of half truths, distortions, and Craig Whyte editorials that they actually were….
Thanks, fara. That clears that up, then.
5000 up Me bad
Mullach@9.58
Yeah you’re right.pretty weak pun. Seemed funny at 5.46.
On missing the crossbar challenge the sunglasses wearing fans slaps his balaclava clad head and says, “ee by gum, in thee yoonger days thy would ner a missed that. If thy see t’ball was going t’miss thy was so bloody fast I would’ve ran after thee ant kicked ball t’again. Thy was so bloody fast nowt would t’noticed”,
The fan was so angry when leaving the field that he actually tore off his own beard and through it at Sally on his way past the dugout. Out of sheer instinct Sally caught the beard in his mouth and devoured whole.
🙂
No Pasaran @NCCMick 9m
Channel 4 News might be well worth a watch later tonight as Alex Thomson is filming outside the Asbestos Arena right now
Retweeted by BaroldHatchback 5088
Brenda says:
Owen Coyle?? Thoughts??
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Well he’s a free agent and has a good pedigree. There is no reason at all why he shouldn’t be on Sally’s shopping list
areyouaccusingmeofmendacity says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 12:49
Are you the guy that used to leave comments on Jim Traynor’s articles on the DR website?
Only because it was impractical to leave a jobbie on the byline for them (there’s only so much jobbie one man – even of Jim’s stature – can produce)
manandboy says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 11:11
17 0 i
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Fit & proper image.
Watched Chris McLaughlin interview the Easdale brothers in a bus.
I personally find it very hard to take seriously two men sitting on a bus talking about spending millions.
It’s only a matter of time before it enters the lexicon.
or else, becomes part of Kevin Bridge’s next comedy routine.
In any event, I’d say it’s a perfect match.
Ibrox might even come to be known as Easdale.
I look forward to the first SFA board meeting which takes place on a McGill’s bus!
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Is it any more ludicrous than the Motherwell born multi-billionaire wealth off the radar tycoon being met by succulent lamb reporters coming off a train at Queen Street heading to take a black cab to Ibrox?
None of them questined that.
I look forward to the Conflicted One catching the train from Croy into ‘The Toon’ for one of his legendary nights out
http://sport.stv.tv/football/clubs/celtic/224721-celtic-guaranteed-seeds-for-all-three-rounds-of-champions-league-qualifiers/?
apologies if anyone has posted this, in relation to
the SPL winners [of which there is only ONE SPL]
compared to the SFL winners of which there were THREE
Partick thistle – winners SFL
Queen of the South – winners SFL division 2
Sevco – winners SFL division 3 [the lowest of the SFL DIVISIONS]
p.s, i note from…
http://sport.stv.tv/football/clubs/celtic/224721-celtic-guaranteed-seeds-for-all-three-rounds-of-champions-league-qualifiers/?
there is a welsh team named – the new saints
fair play to them
that’s what i call honesty !!
Soooo slooowwwww today but on the up side historically on here that usually means something juicy is brewing 🙂 I hope!!!!!
Nothing to get worked up about yet.
Reckon Thommo is filiming for a piece on clubs banning journos just now but still working on other story re Sevco that may be out shortly.
Lloyd K @Lloyd1888 1h @alextomo Are you filming outside Ibrox? Can we expect the big story today?
alex thomson @alextomo 15m @Lloyd1888 yes. No. I hope a series of things will happen from Tues. How “big” is not for me to judge.
To give them their full name, The New Saints of Oswestry Town & Llansantffraid Football Club formerly known as Total Network Solutions FC.
Their home kit will interest a few on here.
Interesting though
james reilly @jamesx2k13 4h @alextomo alex it is people like you that always have negative stories about rangers when are you ever going to say anything positive. never
alex thomson @alextomo 4m @jamesx2k13 I only ever do extremely positive stories about Rangers – giving fans the info the spivs don’t want made public.
All quiet on the Hampden front.
If I was a near neighbour to Hampden
I might be inclined to go see if there’s anybody there!
Hampden is amazingly quiet these days!
They must be either incredibly busy –
or in trouble.
alzipratu(corsica1968)
It’s all about perspective
Those lovely people in Sevconia keep assailing me with their wit and wisdom yet continually fail to see the point of my blog about the Rangers Charity Foundation so let me present the issues a little bit clearer for them so that they understand:
Between May 2011 and June 2012 (at least), the Rangers Charity Foundation was badly governed and managed and was little more than an operational department of the former Rangers Football Club.
Between June 2012 and up to this date, the Rangers Charity Foundation is badly managed and governed and is little more than an operational department of Sevco.
Rangers Football Club (In Administration) contrived – with the acquiescence, approval or assistance of the Rangers Charity Foundation – to divert to the Football Club (essentially to pay D&P’s fees) at least £190,000 that should have been due to the Foundation and the AC MIlan charity.
Sevco contrived – with the acquiescence, approval or assistance of the Rangers Charity Foundation – to host a “charity football match” between Rangers Legends and Manchester United Legends which generated income of at least £350,000 yet only donated £75,000 towards the nominated charities with 73% of income being kept by Sevco.
To put it into perspective; despite much wailing and gnashing of teeth, no one from Rangers Football Club (In Administration) or Sevco has ever produced a shred of credible evidence to refute or rebut these allegations.
The Office for the Scottish Charity Regulator is very reluctantly investigating the Foundation as are other bodies because they have been pestered to do so by concerned individuals. Both they and Strathclyde Police/Police Scotland have neglected their public duty by trying to ignore this. However the facts stand and these are serious issues, no matter how much you or they may dislike it.
Finally, there is absolutely no doubt that the Rangers Charity Foundation raises a lot of money for good causes and does a lot of good work; that is not the issue. As I stated yesterday in a tweet, think how much more money could be raised and how much more good could be achieved by the Foundation if it was properly managed and governed. To put that in perspective: the £465,000 that should have gone to the Foundation from those two “charity” games alone would fund 18,600 hours of Macmillan Cancer nurse care or a single Macmillan Cancer Nurse for 9.5 years. Which do you think is a more deserving cause?
Danish Pastry says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 11:21
Danish I appreciated your post. I agree I was off topic but I think my motivation was a need to set the cultural icons into some kind of personal context. I know there are readers from a variety of clubs on TSFM and I was concerned that the heritage thing was in danger of becoming an issue. As you remark, both sets of (Old Firm) fans seem to be clinging to this heritage and making it more significant than it really is. “Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel” (Oscar Wilde I think). However I’ve long felt that football has come to replace not only religion but it is also reminiscent of what a medieval battlefield would have looked like. Two armies bating each other with their standards wafting in the breeze. Thankfully nowadays the casualty count is relatively insignificant
That may be a good thing in many ways as we transit from being serf soldiers to a point where the reason we do these things has been largely forgotten. If the trend continues, in a few generations no-one will care much about the heritage other than the historians.
I enjoyed your own personal insight. It shows how the motivation for a sporting allegiance can be something other than a deep rooted tribalism. We are all individuals but when we are gathered together en masse a different dynamic can take hold. Some people manipulate this dynamic to cause mischief and thats where the trouble starts.
y4rmy says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 14:31
3 0 i
To give them their full name, The New Saints of Oswestry Town & Llansantffraid Football Club formerly known as Total Network Solutions FC.
Their home kit will interest a few on here.
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Home and away contrast is interesting. Anyone remember the Glagow v London game yonks ago with the weird green-blue combination for the Glasgow team?
Mullach – it was Samuel Johnson
To
torrjohnboy(sic).
WOW.
Go get them.
torrejohnbhoy says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 15:17
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Curiouser and curiouser….the last remaining trustee – Jackie Gourlay, head of business management at TributeActFC – has been playing the hokeycokey on her LinkedIn profile. Last month she was the ex-head, now she’s back in again but also shows as a head of finance and planning for a company called Vicast.
What is going on here?
angus1983 says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 10:33
29 1 Rate This
Just … the Crossbar Challenge.
Angus, one of the sensible Bears on P&B has indicated it did indeed go ahead.
Whether this is true or not?
parmahamster says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 16:09
Rate This
torrejohnbhoy says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 15:17
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Curiouser and curiouser….the last remaining trustee – Jackie Gourlay, head of business management at TributeActFC – has been playing the hokeycokey on her LinkedIn profile. Last month she was the ex-head, now she’s back in again but also shows as a head of finance and planning for a company called Vicast.
What is going on here?
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Your wish is my command……………………….eh …..well…..a few well known names feature here parma
Document Description
AP01 12/04/2013 DIRECTOR APPOINTED MR JOHN FERGUSON MCCLELLAND
SH01 11/02/2013 08/02/13 STATEMENT OF CAPITAL GBP 1342.86
LATEST SOC 11/02/2013 11/02/13 STATEMENT OF CAPITAL;GBP 1342.86
RES11 11/02/2013 DISAPPLICATION OF PRE-EMPTION RIGHTS
AP01 08/02/2013 DIRECTOR APPOINTED MR PAUL MURRAY
SH02 24/10/2012 SUB-DIVISION
17/10/12
RES01 24/10/2012 ADOPT ARTICLES 17/10/2012
RES13 24/10/2012 1 ORD SHARES OF £1 BE SUB DIVIDED INTO 100 ORD SHARES OF £0.01 17/10/2012
SH01 23/10/2012 17/10/12 STATEMENT OF CAPITAL GBP 1000
CERTNM 23/10/2012 COMPANY NAME CHANGED LEMAC NO. 6 LIMITED
CERTIFICATE ISSUED ON 23/10/12
RES15 23/10/2012 CHANGE OF NAME 17/10/2012
NM01 23/10/2012 NOTICE OF CHANGE OF NAME BY RESOLUTION
AP01 23/10/2012 DIRECTOR APPOINTED NICOLA YOUNG
AP01 23/10/2012 DIRECTOR APPOINTED MR MARTIN EDWARD BAIN
TM01 23/10/2012 APPOINTMENT TERMINATED, DIRECTOR PETER WATSON
NEWINC 09/10/2012 CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION
GENERAL COMPANY DETAILS & STATEMENTS OF;
OFFICERS, CAPITAL & SHAREHOLDINGS, GUARANTEE, COMPLIANCE
MEMORANDUM OF ASSOCIATION
MODEL ARTICLES 09/10/2012 MODEL ARTICLES ADOPTED: PRIVATE LIMITED BY SHARES
Just checked out a company called Vicast for parmahamster. Interesting as it contains some serious ex Rangers directors notably Bain, Mc Clellan and Paul Murray. Professionally I was most interested in RES11 11/02/2013 DISAPPLICATION OF PRE-EMPTION RIGHTS. This is one of the neccessary steps to turn this company into a funded SPV (Special purpose vehicle)……….just like Sevco 5088! Presumably theyare trying to sell shares in the SPV to fund a tilt at Rangers. Maybe The Blue Knights ride again!
100bjd says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 17:31
Note that Director Nicola Young also worked in a media role at the oldco for one year a few years back.
Peter Young whose Directorship is terminated is presumably the same Peter Young of Levy McRae who represented the oldco as referred to by Paul McConville in this blog below. Thus the original company name of LEMAC No 6 Ltd
http://scotslawthoughts.wordpress.com/2011/09/22/rangers-bring-on-the-subs-and-change-lawyers-why-are-they-represented-by-insolvency-experts/
Sorry I meant Peter Watson of Levy McRae
End of the week fatigue!!
Could the bampots be onto another scoop ahead of the MSM?
What are these guys up to and are we to assume from the dates that the plan has been ongoing for the last six months or so??
‘We would have got away with it if it hadn’t beeb for thos pesky kids.’
Come on Mr Cosgrove if you are watching – lets add Vicast to Charlotte 18 as a cryptic clue on the BBC shows tomorrow 🙂
Share price appears to be down another 2% at close of play, without any listed trades indicating why.
angus1983 says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 17:57
If its the London South East site that seems to have been happening at the end of some days, recently, but only to jump back up the next morning.
I ain’t got a clue, so it might just be a wee glitch unless there are some delayed trades hanging about in the ether
Anyone with a twitter account want to pass on the name Vicast to AT and Phil Mac?
Just to be helpful you understand 🙂
wottpi says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 17:54
Rate This
Sorry I meant Peter Watson of Levy McRae
End of the week fatigue!!
Could the bampots be onto another scoop ahead of the MSM?
What are these guys up to and are we to assume from the dates that the plan has been ongoing for the last six months or so??
‘We would have got away with it if it hadn’t beeb for thos pesky kids.’
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It certainly looks like an SPV to me…….and Ms Gourlay still at Rangers…….all extremely odd unless of couse you are a spiv and you need to sell/place your shares off market. In this scenario they would be promoting Ms Gourlay to be involved in a company who might fulfil this strategy as it would be in the spivs enlightened self interest. Just a quick thought and I need to view it a bit more……..but……interesting…Yes!
wottpi says:
Friday, May 10, 2013 at 17:54
Rate This
Sorry I meant Peter Watson of Levy McRae
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Very good and correct. This company was originally called LEMAC NO 6 as in LEvy MAC rae…..another off the shelf limited company with one share owned by Peter Watson. A bit like the Sevco companies really…in fact a mirror image of the Sevco company. I wonder why?
Belter chaps. Definitely a buy in vehicle