The last 12 months has seen a lot of water pass under the bridge. For a newcomer it is very hard to see past what the MSM are currently printing – I hope this article will go someway to rectifying that, and allow those who didn’t follow this story from the start to get a basic understanding of the views that have been formed on Rangerstaxcase.com and on TSFM. Further, I hope it refreshes the memories of those of us who have followed the saga since the early days and focuses our attention on asking key questions that remain unasked or unanswered.
I have provided links where possible throughout the time line. I have also highlighted in red where the story seems to end, a question remains unasked, or no answer has been forthcoming. I may also have missed some critical points – feel free to mention these and we can add as we go.
The Rangers Saga as it happened…
June 2001: Christian Nerlinger joins Rangers. Little be known to the rest of Scottish football he will be the first player paid by an EBT (an Employee Benefit Trust) which will later be declared illegal (as administered by Rangers) by HMRC.
Summer 2004: Jean Alain Boumsong rejects English Premier League sides to sign for Rangers on a free transfer. Six months later he is sold (January of 2005) to Newcastle in an 8million deal . This deal is later investigated by the City of London police who raided Newcastle and Rangers in June 2007.
A later report from Lord Steven remarked:
“There remains inconsistencies in evidence provided by Graeme Souness – a former manager of the club – and Freddy Shepherd – apparently acting in an undefined role but not as a club official – as to their respective roles in transfer negotiations.”
April 2010: HMRC hit Rangers with a tax bill of 24m before penalties for non payment of taxes on monies remitted to players and staff via the EBT scheme.
27th March 2011: A new blog appears on wordpress named ‘Rangerstaxcase.com’. Little did we know the impact it will have on Scottish Football.
6th of May 2011: Craig Whyte buys Rangers FC PLC for 1gbp from David Murray, with his holding company Wavetower taking over 85% of the Football club.
Mid-May 2011: Craig Whyte renames Wavetower to the ‘Rangers Football Group Ltd’, the holding company for Rangers FC PLC. He immediately claims he has cleared the Rangers debt to Lloyds Bank and is ready to invest in the team. He quickly removes Alastair Johnston and Paul Murray from the Board and suspends Martin Bain and Donald McIntyre.
5th June 2011: RTC uncovers a MG05 document filed at Companies House showing that Rangers have assigned 4 years of season ticket sales to another company. This is later denied by Craig Whyte, but later on turns out to be the mechanism by which Whyte funded the takeover.
19th June 2011: Craig Whyte is asked about the RTC blog, remarking:
“I’m aware of a website that has dedicated itself to talking about our tax case, I’ve looked at it. What they’re saying is 99 per cent crap”
August 2011: Rangers are knocked out of Europe by Maribor. A seemingly irrelevant event, but one that leaves a £15m hole in Craig Whytes budget. One that he meets by not paying the tax man. RTC questions in October where this money was coming from…
10th September 2011: Court papers from Martin Bain, related to his employment case against Rangers explode across the internet (papers in full here). Within them there is a plea from Bain’s lawyers to freeze the claimed compensation as they feel there is a question mark over the clubs solvency. Further it exposes the assignment of ticket sales to a 3rd party and shows that the debt owed to Lloyds Bank has not been discharged completely. RTC analysis’ of these ‘Bain papers’ is concluded with the following:
While Rangers’ supporters might not be in any mood to thank anyone for helping shed light on this situation, it is good for their club (if not its current and previous owners) that this information is in the public domain. It is especially good for our national game as a whole that we discuss the problems of the last decade openly. Rangers supporters need to ask themselves why they have meekly stood by while the future of their club has been imperiled and whether their “friends” in the media have done them an injustice by becoming complicit in the cover-up of this story.
Unfortunately, despite the information being exposed to all, the Rangers fans failed to listen…
October 2011: In the first mainstream feature on the case, the BBC air a documentary proving that Craig Whyte had been banned from holding a director position in UK companies for 7 years for ‘putting assets out of the reach of creditors’. BBC are banned from Ibrox and Whyte claims he will sue the BBC for presenting false evidence – but later admits that he was disqualified. Rather amusingly he admits this the same day he reveals Rangers have reduced their debt to 14m…. (they hadn’t)
The SFA stay silent on the matter and the writ received by the BBC in February 2012 has since vanished.
30th November 2011: Rangers PLC release un-audited accounts for the year 2010/2011 revealing profits of 2 million pounds and NET Assets of 76m. The accounts are NOT signed by an auditor leading to rumors all is not well in Ibrox.
January 2012: RTC explains in detail Succulent Lamb Journalism… the phrase becomes a defining point of the story, along with ‘internet bampots’, coined by Hugh Keevins.
18th January 2012: The ‘Big tax case’ concludes. We still await the findings…
13th February: Rangers file papers at the Court of Session giving notice of their intention to enter administration within 7 days…
14th February: HMRC petition the CoS to allow them to appoint administrators. After a short hearing, HMRC withdraw the motion and Rangers PLC promptly appoints the now infamous Duff & Phelps as administrators. On Valentines eve, Craig Whyte stands on the steps of Ibrox and announces to the angry mob the unthinkable… Rangers FC PLC is now in administration.
That evening it is confirmed that HMRC had pushed for administration over £9 million in unpaid VAT, PAYE and NI since the Whyte takeover. This later rises to 18m.
99% what Craig?
15th February 2012: The SPL immediately deduct Rangers (IA) 10 points for entering administration, as per league rules. Possibly the last time they follow their own rules throughout this saga.
Bizarrely, Rangers (IA) push ahead with the proposed signing of Daniel Cousin on wages of 7500GBP/week. The SFA make no comment, despite this being against the rules for a club in administration.
David Murray, in typical fashion, professes surprise at events which RTC warned about 12 months earlier while Murray was still in charge. Murray also says:
“Firstly, there has been no decision, and there is no present indication as to the timing of a decision, from the first-tier tax tribunal concerning the potential claim from HMRC of £36.5m excluding interest and penalties.
“Secondly, legal opinion on the strength of the club’s case remains favorable.”
21st February: Daily Mail confirm what RTC told us last year, by confirming that Ticketus bought 100,000 season tickets at Ibrox over the next 4 years. It was this money that Whyte used to buy the club. Rangers fans are up in arms. Even though they ignored the warnings a year earlier.
The SFA announce that Lord Nimmo Smith will chair an inquiry into the circumstances leading to administration.
25th February 2012: The Sun on Sunday launches by printing what they claim is a ‘side letter’ given to Rangers players. A financial expert tells them:
“Number one, you are going to get £122,000 and number two you get £1,200 for a first-team game.
“It equates to salary as far as I am concerned. I would say this sort of letter will be a central thread in the big tax case.
RTC will later confirm they are correct.
27th February 2012: The SFA confirm they will start an investigation into these ‘side letters’
3rd March 2012: D&P admit Rangers have no chance of making Europe next season, as they admit audited accounts by the 31st of March would be almost impossible.
However, in a baffling move, one month later D&P reveal they are ‘appealing’ the decision to ban Rangers from Europe. UEFA respond by saying
“Licence applicants must demonstrate that as at March 31, 2012, they have no payables overdue towards their employees or social/tax authorities as a result of contractual/legal obligations to their employees that arose prior to December 31, 2011.”
8th March 2012: Lord Nimmo Smith forwards his report to the SFA Judicial Panel. The report contains prima facie evidence that Craig Whyte was not a ‘fit and proper person’. A hearing is set for the 29th of March. This is later postponed at the request of Whyte. The full Nimmo Smith report has still not been released by the SFA.
9th March 2012: With no redundancies in sight, Rangers players agree to pay cuts, ranging from 75 – 25%. It is later revealed that these are not ‘pay cuts’, but pay deferments which must be repaid in the summer, otherwise Rangers will be in breach of contract. No info is forthcoming in the summer on whether this was paid or not.
5th April 2012: D&P reveal in their first creditors report that Rangers debts could top 134m, with HMRC claiming 93m of the total.
The report also details debts to football creditors of around 2.3m. It also details debts of hundreds of creditors, such as that for Susie Thomson – a face-painter from Glasgow owed 40quid. These were the real human losers in this story.
Interestingly, assets are valued at 116m, as per the 2011 accounts.
23rd April 2012: The SFA’s independent panel finds Rangers (IA) guilty of 5 different breaches of SFA rules relating to disrupte charges and are handed a 160,000GBP fine, the maximum available and a 12 month transfer embargo. The judicial panel state that the offenses committed by Rangers were only one step “lower than match fixing”, and reveal that they considered the punishment of suspension of license or expulsion from the SFA. They determine a fine would not be enough given the seriousness of the charges and thus impose a transfer embargo.
In the judgement, the panel make reference to evidence given by the Rangers Financial Controller who said invoices to Ticketus were such that they ” appeared as though Clip Art computer processes had been involved in their creation.” The FC tells the panel he had never seen them.
24th April 2012: The uproar from Ibrox is loud, with the Bears taking their anger out on the SFA. McCoist makes a rallying call, demanding to know “who these people are”. He makes an ‘apology’ the next day for putting their lives in danger, but stops short of apologising for forcing names to be released, despite his club previously voting in a motion to keep names confidential.
As a result, a poor director at Raith Rovers takes his family into protective police custody, and Raith are forced to hire round the clock security after arson threats to their ground. Finally, in August 2012, McCoist is charged by the SFA for his remarks. He has decided to challenge the charge and the case is ongoing.
Rangers blame the SFA for not stopping Whyte earlier, despite warnings before he took over from RTC.
“Why did the SFA not investigate when they said they had suspicions before Christmas rather than wait until the club went into administration?
9th May 2012: American tycoon Bill Miller walks away from a proposed offer for Rangers (IA) after being subjected to threats from the Ibrox crowd and discovering a “30 million black hole” in the Rangers accounts.
11th May 2012: Rangers reveal they will appeal the transfer embargo and fine imposed. The SFA inexplicably name the 3 man panel that will oversee the decision, going against SFA rules agreed by ALL clubs, including Rangers (IA).
13th May 2012: Reports suggest Charles Green, backed by a global consortium (still unknown!) has bought shares from Craig Whyte for 2quid. He is given an exclusivity period to propose a CVA worth 8.5m.
17th May 2012: SFA uphold the transfer embargo against Rangers (IA) . The SFA state that it was “proportionate to the breach, dissuasive to others and effective in the context of serious misconduct, bringing the game into disrepute.”
The Rangers Fighting Fund along with D&P announces they are paying a lawyer to challenge the SFA in the Court of Session. SFA say nothing.
22nd May 2012: It is now May, 3 months since the SFA/SPL announced an investigation into side letters and unauthorized payments to players from Rangers FC. RTC once again provides evidence of a ‘prima facie’ case by revealing details of Christian Nerlinger’s EBT letters.
23rd May 2012: BBC air a damning documentary revealing details of EBT payments and side letters to Rangers players since 2001. They also uncover emails showing that D&P’s David Grier seemed to have prior knowledge of the Ticketus deal. D&P and Craig Whyte threaten legal action, but none is forthcoming. The BBC also hint at payments made to managers not employed by Rangers at the time, including Graeme Souness.
29th of May 2012: D&P reveal their ‘CVA’ proposal. One that was doomed to fail, offering creditors little or nothing. It also revealed if it was rejected then the ‘assets’ would automatically be sold to Charles Green and Sevco 5088 for just 5.5m (the ‘new’ value of the assets. No evidence has yet been presented on how these ‘assets’ were valued.)
On the same day (seeing the pattern of bad news being overshadowed by good news yet?) Rangers ‘win’ at the Court of Session, with the court ruling that the SFA had no powers to give a transfer ban. They decide to refer the decision back to the SFA judicial panel to decide on a new punishment.
Lawyer Gregory Ioannidis remarks:
“If the Scottish Football Association decides to not take action against Rangers, in relation to Rangers submitting the application to the Court of Session, then Fifa can actually penalise the SFA, and the individual club, and the national team of Scotland, and impose an international ban on all of them.”
No action is ever taken by the SFA or FIFA.
12th June 2012: HMRC release a statement saying that they will reject the CVA. Given that they have over 25% of the debt, it makes the creditors meeting scheduled for the 14th irrelevant.
“A CVA would restrict the scope of such action. Moreover, the liquidation route does not prejudice the proposed sale of the club. This sale can take place either through a CVA or a liquidation, so the sale is not being undermined, it simply takes a different route.
“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.”
14th June 2012: The CVA is formally rejected. D&P immediately sell the assets to Sevco 5088 Ltd and Rangers FC PLC (IA) cease to operate as a football club. The assets are later assigned to Sevco Scotland Ltd. SPL rules state that a club that ceases to function as a football club should immediately relinquish its share and membership. This does not happen.
15th June 2012: Ian Hart denies being part of the Green consortium buying the Rangers assets. Green had earlier named him when pushed to name his backers
So starts the misinformation campaign from Sevco.
17th June 2012: Rangers FC are excluded from the fixture list for the forthcoming SPL season, replaced instead by ‘Club 12’. It is widely reported, that if Sevco Scotland are refused a place in the SPL, then Club 12 will be Dundee. The SPL give no reasons why.
17th – 27th June 2012: Walter Smith, Allan Stewart and Stephen McKenna, and then John Brown all turn up in the papers making ‘bids’ for the assets which Green has already bought.
22nd June 2012 – Lord Hodge seeks report from D & P re: a potential “conflict of interest”, after information given to him by the BBC.
25th June 2012: The BBC reveal that Sevco Scotland will not be granted admission to the SPL, after 6 clubs publicly declare their opposition, after season ticket sales fail to materialize as fans make their views known.
27th June 2012: John Brown stands on the steps of Ibrox and pleads with Rangers fans not to buy season tickets until Green reveals who are his backers and who owns Ibrox. This question remains unanswered. Brown is now silent.
4th July 2012: Despite weeks of pressure from the SFA, SPL and MSM, the SPL clubs reject the application from Sevco Scotland to join the SPL.
Stewart Regan warns of Armageddon for Scottish Football if Sevco are not admitted to SFL1 instead. We are still waiting.
5th July 2012: Stenhousemuir reveal details of a talk given to them by Neil Doncaster and Stewart Regan, where SFL clubs are threatened with bankruptcy if they don’t vote Sevco Scotland into Division 1. Figures presented are ridiculed by the internet bampots.
Clyde and Raith Rovers emerge as the cheerleaders for sporting integrity in the lower leagues, with both clubs openly speaking out against what they describe as “irresponsible”. Raith Chairman Turnbull Hutton suggests the SFL clubs send their mascots to vote on the proposal for Sevco to enter SFL1.
9th July 2012: the SFA refuse international clearance for players who decided to leave Rangers (IA) when the assets were sold, as were their rights under the TUPE laws. This decision has yet to be explained, and is contrary to legal advice.
Meanwhile, Sevco director Imran Ahmad, when asked what he felt was the exit price to sell Rangers/Sevco was, replied:
“On a bad day the club is worth £50m.”
Of course, they had just bought the club for just 5.5m, and still had no league place for the forthcoming season.
13th July 2012: Expiry of deadline for submission of report on D&P conflict of interest. News suggests that Lord Hodge is on holiday. No news has been heard since and the administration continues…
13th July 2012: Sevco Scotland are allowed to start life in the 3rd division, subject to gaining an SFA licence, after SFL clubs vote to reject the proposal to allow Sevco Scotland into the 1st division. There is no sign of Armageddon.
15th July 2012: FIFA write to the SFA asking for reasons why former Rangers IA players are having their registration transfer blocked. The players claim their free agents and have rejected the TUPE arrangements with Green’s new club. As of August Allan McGregor’s move to Turkey is still onhold as they wait on international clearance. We await an answer, as we suspect FIFA do to.
24th July 2012: Ian Black signs a 3 year deal with Sevco Scotland. It is unclear how he is registered or who he is contracted to.
9pm, 27th July 2012: Just 48 hours before the first scheduled match for Sevco Scotland the SFA grant an unheard of ‘conditional’ membership to Sevco Scotland. It is reported that Sevco Scotland have agreed to a 12 month transfer embargo, starting on the 1st of September 2012. They also agree to pay all football debts of Rangers (IA).
Sevco, playing in strips of Rangers (IA) defeat Brechin City in extra time to record their first ever victory. Ian Black plays as a trialist, despite signing a contract with Sevco Scotland earlier in the week. It is further unclear whether players are registered to Rangers IA or Sevco Scotland, and if the former, how?
31st July 2012: At an EGM of Rangers FC PLC (IA) the directors change the company name to Rangers 2012 (IA). At the same time Sevco Scotland pass a resolution to change their name to ‘The Rangers FC Ltd’. Companies house data shows that Charles Green owns more than 10% of The Rangers FC Ltd, despite his claims that no one person would own more than this. No one from the MSM thinks to ask this question.
3rd August 2012: The Rangers FC Ltd are granted full SFA membership, after having the membership of Rangers 2012 (IA) transferred to them. Under what rules this was possible is not clear.
ESPN follow SKY in agreeing a new deal with the SPL for TV rights. No sign of Armageddon yet.
15th August 2012: Dundee Utd in a short statement reveal that they have not been paid by Sevco/TRFC for the unpaid debt relating to last season’s Scottish Cup with Rangers (IA). Despite an agreement with the SFA to pay these debts, Charles Green blames the SPL for going back on a agreement made in May to pay this out of money owed to Rangers (IA). Dundee Utd, and other European clubs remain unpaid, as does the poor face painter from Glasgow.
It is unclear how the ‘conditional’ membership works if the ‘conditions’ have not been met.
STV further report that SPL clubs still do not know how much TV cash they are going to get from the new SPL SKY deal. The SPL make no comment.
17th August 2012: Lord Nimmo Smith is appointed to chair an independent commission into Rangers (IA) making undeclared payments to players from 2001 onwards. They are unlikely to sit before October.
22nd August 2012: ‘The Rangers’ announce they have signed a joint venture with Sports Direct for the merchandising rights. Companies House shows that the new company, ‘Rangers Retail’, is owned 100% by SportsDirect.com
23rd August 2012: There is still no word on who are the investors in Sevco Scotland. The SFA have not released any details to explain how Green passed the fit and proper person test. No details of proof that Sevco Scotland have the finances to last the season. The question of where are Ticketus is silent. Lord Hodge has still not returned his findings on a conflict of interest in the appointment of D&P. The FTT result is still awaited, just like BDO await the liquidation of Rangers 2012 PLC. Meanwhile, Stewart Regan resurfaces to announce details of league reorganization in time for next season, reducing Scotland to 3 leagues from 4.
Oh… and there is still no signs of Armageddon.
28th August 2012: Campbell Ogilvie finally breaks cover to talk about how league reconstruction was on the agenda long before Rangers ran into problems. He managed however to proclaim;
To be fair, nobody really saw the situation coming
Yes Campbell… just like you didn’t see the side letters.
—-
http://twitpic.com/aodzsa/full
Ogilvie denies reconstruction is for the benefit of Sevco.
Police may want Forres cup tie moved.
It is interesting that Ogilvie says that promotion will be by merit, how does that sit when it will likely be by a team that is playing in the league without merit.
He also says that they want a structure in place that is attractive to supporters, how does that sit when supporters views will not be considered.
Shug questioned bomber ,aye right,
Shug ,bomber where the f#ck have you been ,you cannot just make a speech to the peeple then nothing.
Bomber
Listen shug ,slurp,aye canny tell ye where av been cause its ,slurp ,wipe of the mouth on the sleeve ,part of the plan,until we know who owns oor club ,we canny reveal ooor backers cause we need transparencey or something a bit more clearer from Chas,
Shug
But bomber things have moved forward since you have been away.
Bomber
Like f#ck they have ,ah tellt the mob tea dea nothing ,ye herd them ,if a find they have went behind ma back
To be continued
briggsbhoy says:
August 27, 2012 at 22:21
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Yes. KDS had destroyed Traynor’s billionaire story within hours. The offer document produced later had much of the same material in the form of the directors disclosure. Murray and Grossart
are famously “telepathic” in their business dealings….they go back a long way. They knew. Just look at the timeline for the raising of the money.
Fan Club says:
August 27, 2012 at 22:42
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You’re right…under normal circumstances – no. But Murray was a desperate man and had run out of time and the trick was to bail and put as much space between him and the -£134million. This pantomime is primarily now a public order issue, was designed to keep the peace, let Murray slither off without responsibilty and let the cheats dump the debt.
Grossart and Murray for me. They knew fine well what Whyte was up to. This is still all window dressing.
Fifa 23:25
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/johns-fishy-story-1280399
Hugh Keevins:
I SAID in last week’s column that John Brown had gone quiet – but I should have remembered that Bomber never shirks a challenge.
He’s been on to me to say the reason why he’s been silent on his campaign against Charles Green’s ownership of Rangers is because he’s been on a fishing trip to Alaska.
As you do.
But he remains certain Green’s financial backers are not the men Rangers need at this time.
Brown has vowed he won’t be going back to Ibrox to see his team until Green has left the premises for good.
Meanwhile Bomber continues to maintain there are skeletons in the cupboard that need to come out for the club to start with a clean sheet.
Watch this space.
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I’m just guessing here, but more and more often the media are starting to put wee articles in to cover their own back……just in case The Rangers follow Rangers into administration…..
briggsbhoy says:
August 27, 2012 at 22:21
Insomniac at 21:32
Grossart, is that Angus, the financial banker based in Edinburgh
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Is this why we have Succulent Lamb?
“The managing director of merchant bank, Noble Grossart was Sir Angus Grossart and its co-founder was Sir Iain Noble. Sir Angus Grossart was chairman of The Scottish Daily Record.
Sir Angus Grossart was Scotland’s leading investment banker and a dealmaker whose influence reached into many boardrooms. He controlled large amounts of arts funding as chairman of the Heritage Lottery Fund in Scotland, served on the boards of brewer Scottish & Newcastle, the Royal Bank of Scotland and even became a director of David Murray’s Murray International Holdings, which listed Noble Grossart as its merchant banker. (Jack Irvine had been both managing director and editor-in-chief of Murray’s failed newspaper, The Sunday Scot).”
http://www.scottishmediamonitor.com/articles2.cfm?ID=200
campsiejoe says:
August 27, 2012 at 21:44
Thanks for that,cj.
Schneeb says:
August 27, 2012 at 22:50
10 0 Rate This
More phoenix moments on Sunday as the old songbook could be heard load and clear on the tv coverage – any mention in the press? Probably not.
______________________________________________________________________
Aye it was mentioned in one of the big papers today ,the article had a real touch of regret about about in much the same way as people on here and RTC had hoped that the mob would move on into the 21st century but of course that was never ever gonna happen.
When the chips are down they go back to what they know best.
Who decides who makes the Scottish Cup Draws, or the Ramsden Cup Draw, Trevor Steven today along with Campbell Ogilvie, Gordon Smith done the Ramsden Cup.Do they all have to have represented Rangers at some time, never see any ex Gretna stars making cup draws.
On Broadfoot leaving, how many clubs have the SFA got him registered for this year?
His registration from last year must still have been valid, a club then played in the first round of the Ramsden cup, called ???????, he played then, and he also played for The Rangers.
Can’t see him getting another club surely, those players who didn’t transfer would have been ok though.
Ogilvie talks to the press for the first time in almost a year.
Anyone ask him about his EBT?
What makes him think it is safe to show his face again now??
http://twitpic.com/aodzsa
Ogilvie’s latest p!sh
Insomniac @ 23.34 – yes, but that’s a totally different proposition to the one where SDM is really still calling the shots through Ticketus. I do think it’s more likely that SDM wanted rid of RFC and they didn’t care a shyster like MBB came along. In fact, they probably were glad MBB came along as nobody else was silly enough (or desperate) to buy the club. The big unanswered question is where did MBB come from? Was he sourced or did he just see an opportunity? That could be a pretty “nuclear” story, but only for the parties involved, not for RFC. I also think there’s a good deal of truth in the assertions that LBG were putting the strong arm on SDM to get rid of RFC. Donald Muir was the man appointed by the bank to play the role of bad cop here. I still struggle with notion that SDM is still involved as RFC has served its purpose for him.
Slightly unrelated, there were a lot of “promises” mentioned by MBB in stock market announcements concerning plans for the club, investment in working capital, playing squad etc. as none of these “promises” were ever stuck to, can’t FSA take action especially as the company was a PLC?
Duff and Phelps doc posted on KDS at the weekend.
http://www.mediafire.com/?3rc10vd2lnbttxy
midcalderan says:
August 27, 2012 at 23:45
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See also Phil’s recent post on Steve Sampson.
http://www.philmacgiollabhain.ie/police-charges-out-of-the-blue/
http://scotslawthoughts.wordpress.com/2012/08/25/for-sevcos-5-5m-it-bought-all-rangers-players-fixed-assets-goodwill-and-2-67m-prize-money/
Eddie Rice says
I fear that Eddie and others may be right in pointing put that the start of liquidation will not be game changer in the short to medium term. If the timescale of 5 years plus any other relevant legal cases is right then we can forget any external involvement in changing how TRFC will operate.
Legalities and appeals involving corporate and personal cases will drag on for years, with the inevitable financial gain to accountants & lawyers, and whilst the results might have massive fallout for some, the football environment will likely be unaffected in the short / medium term i.e. one or two seasons.
So there we have it folks, we better get used to it. TRFC will have its challenges to meet and it remains to be seen if they will survive financially and if their footballing abilities will keep the fans onboard (although the referees will no doubt have a part to play, haha).
Whilst it would be nice if BDO make quick decisions in favour of RFC creditors, its more likely that TRFC, the SFA & the msm will continue to keep us intrigued and involved for years to come. I had initially naively believed there would be the nuclear event / meltdown this season or earlier, but now, oh well, at least i’ll have this site to visit for a while yet.
The more astute posters will no doubt have realised this some time ago, but I suspect that there will be others like me who had some idea of justice being done, being seen to be done, and being done in a reasonable time. In the words of a cartoon colleague,,,”drat and double drat.”
The latest ramblings of the sevco mouthpiece vis-vis Alex Thomson
http://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/single/?p=11690813&t=8719788
Schneeb says:
August 27, 2012 at 22:50
More phoenix moments on Sunday as the old songbook could be heard load and clear on the tv coverage – any mention in the press? Probably not.
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Should we not be writing to the broadcasters and advertisers – if games are televised on commercial TV – advising that we are not willing to tolerate the broadcasting and sponsorship of sectarianism. Such sponsorship must be outwith the Law of Scotland!
Sorry it was the record who reported on the latest none sense from the sevconians
“However, the fans performed at times equally as badly as their team as the Billy Boys was dusted down for a couple of airings while hopes we could all say RIP to FTP in this new era for the Ibrox club appear, sadly, optimistic at this stage.”
Fan Club says:
August 27, 2012 at 23:55
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As I said – would Murray’s ego allow him one last sly payday from them through a few bob in a Ticketus consortium? That would be some brass neck. Even Murray would stop short at that. Wouldn’t he.
A look at the shareholdings in Murray’s companies tells me was not in control of anything by the
time of the sale. (Althoug his lickspittles in the msm will remain his beatches for a while yet.)
The bank did let him go out and find Patsy Whyte though. Wee Craig is a willing and participant
and his reward already appears to be owned by a BVI-registered company in his father’s name.
Is it gratuitous alienation? By the time we know all the ins and outs the newco will be back in the top flight and their support will be singing their songs of supremacy like nothing has changed.
Scottish football’s only hope is for this charade to be stopped and the guilty properly exposed and properly punished. There will be no game otherwise.
Itsagoal! says:
August 27, 2012 at 23:35
8 0 Rate This
Fifa 23:25
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I’m just guessing here, but more and more often the media are starting to put wee articles in to cover their own back……just in case The Rangers follow Rangers into administration…..
——————————————–
Hmmn. I’m noticing that too. Suspicious huh?
Bear in mind, way back, early days of RTC, SDM and MBB’s Old man had connections in Belshill….Old Days…They know each other well!!! Was it along the lines of.. Hey wait, My boy has been out of the picture for a few years, we’ll bring him over to execute(pardon the pun) the deal.
Oh the web
Sorry, forgot to add the reference to the post
Fan Club says:
August 27, 2012 at 23:55
Insomniac @ 23.34 – yes, but that’s a totally different proposition to the one where SDM is really still calling the shots through Ticketus. I do think it’s more likely that SDM wanted rid of RFC and they didn’t care a shyster like MBB came along. In fact, they probably were glad MBB came along as nobody else was silly enough (or desperate) to buy the club. The big unanswered question is where did MBB come from? Was he sourced or did he just see an opportunity?
I thought it was interesting that Ogilvie thought it was okay for him to surface. Is this a sign that the SFA have now drawn a line under this whole affair, as previously stated by Regan.
I take it that the dual contracts issue is part of this line drawing also.
That is it then, time to close the blog.
Aye right Ogilvie.
The line was drawn by Ogilvie and Regan.
Unfortunately for them the line now signifies the time when things changed, and folk were onto them.
To mis- quote the film, Network, I think it was..”we’re as mad as hell, and we’re not going to take it any more!”
Schneeb says: August 27, 2012 at 22:50
More phoenix moments on Sunday as the old songbook could be heard load and clear on the tv coverage – any mention in the press? Probably not.
————————————————————-
From the ITV Borders webpage:
“We have received reports that some sectarian chanting did occur and these reports will be fully investigated and reported to the relevant Scottish authorities.”
– Superintendent Derek Scott, Northumbria Police
I don’t really care what anyone says, but I’ve got to tell you the best joke I heard on Karmic Sunday:
” The only way McCoist will ever become a coach is if he gets all his teeth removed and has some seats put in. ”
🙂
http://www.scotsman.com/sport/campbell-ogilvie-denies-reconstruction-plans-are-aimed-at-fast-tracking-rangers-1-2492085
http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/top-football-stories/scottish-cup-excuses-have-now-run-out-for-rangers-says-trevor-steven-1-2492087
http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/top-football-stories/scottish-cup-second-round-draw-rangers-face-trip-to-forres-1-2491796
From the Hootsmon:
“Highland League champions Forres Mechanics have been given very long odds to beat Rangers – sponsors William Hill make them 18-1 to knock out the club which has won the Cup 33 times and beat the Mechanics 6-0 in the only match played between the two clubs – a friendly back in 1908.”
As a matter of fact, Forres’ cup opponents have never played a Scottish Cup match, let alone won the trophy 33 times. And as for a previous meeting in 1908, that was 104 years before the club Forres will meet in the cup were even founded.
And Forres will never again meet that club they played in 1908, because that club is defunct, kicked the bucket, and joined the bleedin’ choir invisible.
Listening to SSB, isn’t it amazing that all of a sudden the lower league teams are full of great players and teams according to yesterdays doom and gloom merchants.
eddie rice says:
August 27, 2012 at 22:50
Great post.
I also feel those who are pinning their hopes on BDO riding to rescue, using their time machine to unravel all the wrongs of the last six months and unpick the dodgy deals, are gulity of wishful thinking on a grand scale.
Tommy says:
August 28, 2012 at 00:51
2 1 i Rate This
Schneeb says: August 27, 2012 at 22:50
More phoenix moments on Sunday as the old songbook could be heard load and clear on the tv coverage – any mention in the press? Probably not.
————————————————————-
From the ITV Borders webpage:
“We have received reports that some sectarian chanting did occur and these reports will be fully investigated and reported to the relevant Scottish authorities.”
– Superintendent Derek Scott, Northumbria Police
——————————————————————————————
Thanks for that Tommy, good to hear.
Several of the posters on RM have openly admitted singing TBB, FTP, and other delightful sectarian ditties. In fact some of them have gone as far as to say they weren’t that bothered about the result as they’d enjoyed a ‘superb traditional loyalist day out’. 🙁
I hope fans of every SFL team complain about this stain on society and their illegal, moronic chanting. We cannot tolerate behaviour of this kind in the 21st Century and should seek to highlight it at every opportunity.
http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/no-plans-to-invite-rangers-into-top-flight-insists-ogilvie.18710467
http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/turnbull-hutton-the-riled-rover.18705225
http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/former-ranger-pairs-his-old-side-up-with-mechanics-then-tells-clubs-new-breed-that-its-time-they-got-out-of-secon
http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/president-gives-his-state-of-the-nation-address.18705116
Turnbull Hutton, ye’re some man. Every line an Exocet winner.
Thanks stunney, great article. What a man.
From the Turnbull Hutton article:
‘Then the police contacted us to say there was a credible threat of our stadium being torched because of Eric’s involvement. They had information that two guys in Kirkcaldy had already been paid to do it.”‘
Who paid the guys in Kirkcaldy? Did any more info come out about that? Another ongoing investigation?
the best post ever, was posted yesterday
Forres mechanics fc -v- Quantum mechanics fc
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_mechanics
…”The name quantum mechanics derives from the observation that some physical quantities can change only in discrete amounts”…
[assisted by forces such as, the SFA, SPL, MSM, Jabba, SSB et al]
john clarke says:
August 27, 2012 at 17:37
Pardon me, but I think I said that.
Blindsummit says:
August 27, 2012 at 20:15
Despair is a very valid response.
If that is the best Ogilvie can come up with he is either utterly incompetent or lying.
As has been seen in the global financial balls up – whenever the old “nobody saw this coming” excuse is aired it means everyone was filling their pockets and are now sweeping it under the carpet.
Danish Pastry says:
August 28, 2012 at 06:19
Who paid the guys in Kirkcaldy?
====================
Well, we can rule out anyone at RFCIA, they don’t do paying.
Comical Ali Graham vs Hugh Adam- you, reader, decide who is telling the truth.
http://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/single/?p=11691011&t=8719788
Night Terror says:
August 28, 2012 at 08:37
0 0 Rate This
Blindsummit says:
August 27, 2012 at 20:15
“Former Rangers director Ogilvie said …”
————
“I don’t see any conflict because I haven’t been involved in any of the debates surrounding the Rangers issue.”
Having a lame-duck president throughout the past few months contributed to the chaos – or is that only how I ‘perceive’ it? Can you imagine how it might have been if Turnbull Hutton had taken over, even in a temporary capacity?
A person of different morals would have resigned or stood down long ago.
Longtimelurker 8.46
Chris Graham
What is wrong with the so called real sevco support ,this guy is is determined to keep the shyster machine rolling along and its being allowed to happen,months and even years of failings have been brought out into the open and all this guy [Graham] wants to do is deflect the real issues by trying to lay accusations at other people’s door,so what if Mr Thomson or anyone else for that matter investigate a story and dont report the full facts they are not doing any worse than the likes of Graham who should have an invaluable foot in the door to any shennanigans and report it to the fans of his club ,but no ,he still treats them as sh*te on his shoe and more fools them for allowing him to continue ,just when you start to feel a little sympathy for supposingly genuine fans this chancer pops his head above the parapet and fires of a volley of bile aimed at bringing the rank and file back into a line that he must see as wavering,do all your selves a favour and take the opportunity to rid your club of these cancererous cells and go forward ,as sure as night follows day if you dont you are without doubt a finished entity on gods earth,you do have the choice ,remember life is not a rehearsal.
Many congrats to the subscribers over these last few days. A lot of work and research has gone into the comments. It is important that this work is done during a “quiet ” period in the proceedings. This will be invaluable in the coming days/months/years.
Having done our homework when the time comes we will reap the rewards
Again many thanks to those who have contributed so much.
That’ll be the same Chris Graham who recently described the Celtic supporters as “that manky mob” on Follow Follow.
Likes to come across as the acceptable face of Rangers when in reality he is a Leggatt/Dingwall clone. File under delusional.
Graham does, at least, engage to some extent with people who don’t agree with him, which is much more than could be said for Dingers.
Dear Campbell Ogilvie
People’s reality of events is shaped by what they perceive to be happening as opposed to what is actually happening. They can of course be the same but it is unlikely for there to be unanimity when more than 1 person is involved.
Just saying some issues are perceived doesn’t mean you can ignore them because your own perception is that everyone else is wrong!
“Moving forward” is not going to happen Campbell, until you fully address the widely held perception that Rangers cheated the entire population of Scotland and beyond through illegal use of EBTs that allowed them to hire players they otherwise could not afford. Titles will have to go if RFC(IA) are found guilty.
I can just about accept the gerrymandering that placed Sevco in the SFL in order to save one of the cash cows of Scottish football just don’t ask me to believe its still the old Rangers.
The perception that further manipulation of leagues & entry criteria will occur to aid Sevco is one that can be avoided by stating, without caveat, that league position will be the sole criteria used to determine any club’s place in a new structure & any other proposal will not be sanctioned by the SFA.
Faithfully
Sugar Daddy
Good Morning.
So CO sticks his head above the parapet. Is this a proclamation of innocence or a GIRUY moment?
Perception can be everything, if you are perceived as being conflicted you are, and the proper course to take would be to resign until you had been compeletely exhonorated.
For me the reconstruction of Scottish Football would be a good thing but not if it preserves 3 governing bodies. There should only be one governing body led with men of the calibre of Turnbull Hutton who know what is needed and is not afraid to speak his mind.
Over the next year or so there is an oppourtunity to revisit how our game is structured and how it is run. I would suggest that this opportunity should not be missed but before we decide how many leagues we have and who should be in them, we should prune the parasitic element within the game who cling to power for what they can get out of it , not what they can do for it.
One Governing body, one set of rules, one chance, get it right.
Night Terror says:
August 28, 2012 at 09:50
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
If Graham is the ‘acceptable face’ of SevcoFranchise, then I’m sorry but give me Dingwall every time – at least you know upfront what you’re getting with him. Graham on the other hand, is snide, insidious and even more bitter than the average Bear.
Ogilvie is (rightly) getting a complete hammering today in The Scotsman Comments section. The format for the MSM now seems to be that they reprint the latest Sevco/SFA Press Release ver batim and leave the questions and commentary to the posters. This makes a lot of sense – the latter are better informed and prepared to do some decent journalism.
Night Terror says:
August 28, 2012 at 09:50
Graham does, at least, engage to some extent with people who don’t agree with him, which is much more than could be said for Dingers
—————————————————
He only engages up to the point when he loses the argument then he bans the poster. Hardly the act of a person who wants to encourage genuine debate. He certainly comes across well on TV but when put under pressure he reverts to type. His backing of Whyte up until administration was embarassing and should never be forgotten. In fact he has probably done more harm to Rangers cause than good.
ParmaHamster says:
August 28, 2012 at 10:01
Whatever you might think of Graham, I’m of the opinion that it is better to engage with people you disagree with than insult and ignore.
It’s much better if Rangers fans are genuinely part of any solution to Scottish football’s problems. If they are self-identifying victims, however valid their perceptions, it just creates a problem for the future with a very large disgruntled support of one club keen to cause trouble for any reform.
It’s in everyone’s interests that there is dialogue and a working relationship between Rangers fans and the rest of Scottish football (if that is indeed how the division really is) which I have not seen in the past. It might be a vain hope, but that doesn;t seem like a good reason to abandon any efforts to try.
I know it’s great sport mocking Rangers New & Old, but they are not going away and we need to deal with that. Do we want them to be perpetually hostile, excluded and disruptive to any change, or do we want them to be part of constructive discussion for the betterment of Scottish Football?
tomtom says:
August 28, 2012 at 10:03
So, an improvement on Dingers then!
Glad we agree.
:^)
@StephenSanPH
Regarding your comment that McCoist admitted he already knew who these people were, is there a link for that? I don’t remember him admitting that – mainly because the usual journos were to chicken to ask.
tomtom @ 10:03
My favourite chrisgraham76 moment was the now mysteriously vanished ‘Enemies of Rangers’ (wonder if it’s floating about elsewhere) post on his blog where he vows vengeance on the SFA, anyone who voted against the CVA and a pub that had the temerity to hand out jelly and ice cream as a half time treat during a Man City game.
Night Terror says:
August 28, 2012 at 08:37
“Former Rangers director Ogilvie said: “To be fair, nobody really saw the the situation coming, then there were a whole catalogue of votes, rules in the SPL and SFL were different.”
==================================================================
Which “situation” did nobody see coming?
– The no vote for SPL entry?
– The no vote for SFL1 entry?
– The fact that Rangers went into admin?
– The fact that Rangers were denied a CVA?
– The fact that Rangers would be liquidated?
– The fact that the SPL share was non transferable?
– The fact that there are other clubs in the league due respect, like Dundee given onew weeks notice of SPL membership.
– The fact that the owner of Rangers was a barred director?
– The fact that Rangers should have been denied a license last year?
– The fact that pesky bloggers could persuade fans not to buy season tickets?
– The fact that when the CVA was denied Rangers FC should have been removed from the SPL?
– The fact that a NEW CLUB should be treated differently from an old club?
– The lack of audited accounts?
– The refusal to pay footballing debts?
– The idea that a football club can appeal to a civil court?
– The idea that TUPE does not exist for footballers?
– The fact that the rule book does not apply to Rangers or any club bearing that name?
If nobody seen any of this coming then somebody should be sacked.
The fact that rules were different in the SPL and the SFL could only have been agreed by the SFA. Retrospectively, nothing has been announced to clarify these anomalies. In fact at one point the rules were being used to parachute “Rangers” into the SPL.
Is Ally (sneakin’ down wine alley) McC the Tyrion Lannister of football? Or does he simply not measure up? 🙂
smallteaser says:
August 28, 2012 at 10:30
////////////////////////////////////////
In my opinion, spot on. Co knew it was coming and there is much more to come his way. He was a Director and Secretary at Rangers(IA) and will not be able to plead ignorance.
If there is one thing that we can say about him, it is that he is an excellent administrator.
To that extent he knows the rules inside out and therefore knew exactly that what was going down was against all known rules.
He is in post for no other reason than to protect those who are complicit in this sham.
miki67
What are you on about?
Night Terror says:
August 28, 2012 at 10:19
I have a memory of hearing him say something along these lines but a quick search didnt turn up anything. I will check again tomorrow. I’m sure it came out in the appeal that he had been involved in the process at the first hearing too…
Night Terror says:
August 28, 2012 at 10:10
ParmaHamster says:
August 28, 2012 at 10:01
If Graham is the ‘acceptable face’ of SevcoFranchise, then I’m sorry but give me Dingwall every time – at least you know upfront what you’re getting with him. Graham on the other hand, is snide, insidious and even more bitter than the average Bear.
Whatever you might think of Graham, I’m of the opinion that it is better to engage with people you disagree with than insult and ignore.
It’s much better if Rangers fans are genuinely part of any solution to Scottish football’s problems. If they are self-identifying victims, however valid their perceptions, it just creates a problem for the future with a very large disgruntled support of one club keen to cause trouble for any reform.
It’s in everyone’s interests that there is dialogue and a working relationship between Rangers fans and the rest of Scottish football (if that is indeed how the division really is) which I have not seen in the past. It might be a vain hope, but that doesn;t seem like a good reason to abandon any efforts to try.
I know it’s great sport mocking Rangers New & Old, but they are not going away and we need to deal with that. Do we want them to be perpetually hostile, excluded and disruptive to any change, or do we want them to be part of constructive discussion for the betterment of Scottish Football?
———————————————————–
I would love for decent Rangers fans to enter into this debate but other than a very, very, tiny part of their fan group they seem to have morphed into the worst kind of fan. It would be a delight for Scottish football if the “fans” who have bought ST’s and turned up at Ibrox in their 000’s were desperate to shed the old bitter, WATP, image but so far all I have seen is the very worst element. Time will tell if this is a blip and a new, respectable (and respected) fan will emerge but I wouldn’t hold my breath on that happening any time soon. Until then we can expect more of the sectarian hatred and bile to fill our screens and airwaves. Although other than the piece in the DR yesterday you’d never know it. The microphones that are dotted around the grounds to pick up the “atmosphere” are telling us more than our boys in the MSM would ever dare to.
Night Terror says:
August 28, 2012 at 10:10
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I completely agree with the idea that Rangers fans need to be part of the solution. But how much willingness on their part have we seen so far? I also agree that we should not simply abandon their entire support to perish on the rock of their self-delusion of “no-one likes us, etc, etc”. But with some notable exceptions seen on here and on RTC, the bulk of them would happily build a bonfire and chuck any approaches to dialogue on it.
Until a sizeable number of Rangers supporters (deid club, Sevco or whatever) step up to the mark and say that they genuinely want their club to part of any future, Scottish football has no chance of moving forward on this. A start would be to dismiss the likes of Graham, Dingwall and their ilk as spokespeople. There MUST be better men or women out there than them who can speak for that minority. There must be, otherwise there can be no constructive discussion.
@tomtom
Isn’t it possible to move past such characterisations of Rangers fans en masse and engage with the ones who do step up to speak intelligently and brook debate and dissent?
Rejecting any dialogue because some Rangers fans sing things you don’t like doesn’t get anyone anywhere.
Football is naturally antagonistic, especially at the match – fans of all teams set out to antagonise the opposition. I’d rather not go down the route of getting too het up about that, especially if it results in fans pushing for the recent ridiculous Offensive Football Behaviour being invoked.
Night Terror says:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Hold on…..the core of t’rangers support seems to have been taken over by the worst elements,intent on violent intimidation,exemplified by McCoist,demonstrably guilty of imprisonabe offences and WE are meant to deal with them? I don’t think so. It’s up to the police to deal with them.
Every effort has been made to engage with them, but their entitlement fuelled intransigence is something to behold.
That core does need to go away. Even Struth would be ashamed of them.
People paid to ‘torch’ a football ground? (see the article re. Turnbull Hutton) .
The whole catalogue of crimes? It’s patently more than “disgruntled”.
Seriously…..they need locking up. For our good,for the good of football.and for their own good.
They are a danger to themselves and others, and that is the criteria by which dangerous lunatics are measured.
added the comments Ogilvie made today as posted by Night terror… I will get round hopefully this week to adding the others mentioned so far in this thread – please bear with me 🙂
@ParmaHamster
Totally agree, but you can only play the hand you’re dealt.
Right now, Graham and the Rangers Standard guys are the only place I’m aware of where any sort of discussion takes place. They should be applauded for that, even if it isn’t everything you hope it would be.
Why is there a big discusion concerning a blogger on another site who doesn’t, as far as I am aware. post on this site?
miki67
I guess we will have to look elsewhere than yourself for a mediator between the The Rangers support and the rest of Scottish football.
*tiny voice*
any volunteers?
smallteaser says:
August 28, 2012 at 11:00
Only things posted here are open for discussion?
Really.