A Blog for Scottish Football Monitor by Stuart Cosgrove
At the height of summer of discontent I was asked to contribute to a BBC radio show with Jim Traynor and Jim Spence. ‘Armageddon’ had just been pronounced and if the media were to be believed Scotland was about to freeze over in a new ice-age: only a cold darkness lay ahead.
To get the radio-show off to a healthy and pretentious start I began by saying that Scottish football was experiencing an “epistemological break”. It was an in-joke with Jim Spence, who I have known since we were both teenage ‘suedeheads.’ I was a mouthy young St Johnstone fan and Jim was an Arabian sand-dancer. But even in those distant days, we shared a mutual distrust of the ‘old firm’ and in our separate ways wanted a better future for our clubs. We both grew up to become products of the fanzine era, Jim as a writer for Dundee United’s ‘The Final Hurdle’ and me as a staff writer for the NME. Without ever having to say it, we had both engaged in a guerrilla-war against what Aberdeen’s Willie Miller once characterised as “West Coast Bias”.
The term ‘epistemological break’ was shamelessly borrowed from French Marxist philosophy. It means a fundamental change in the way we construct and receive knowledge and although I used it on air as a wind-up to test Spencey’s significantly less-reliable Dundee schooling, deep down I meant it.
Social Media has proved to be one of the greatest disruptions in the history of the football supporter – greater than the brake clubs of the 19th century, the football specials on the 1970s; or the fanzine movement of the post-punk era. The pace of change in the way we send, receive and interrogate information has been so dynamic that it has wrong-footed administrators, asset strippers and sports journalists, alike. No matter who you support we are living through media history.
2012 had just witnessed an unprecedented summer of sport. The Olympics provided a snapshot of how sudden and pervasive the shift to social media has become. Over 40% of UK adults claim to have posted comments on websites, blogs or social networking about the Olympics and in younger age-groups that figure tips conclusively to a majority – 61% of 16-24’s posted Olympic comments. Think about that figure for a moment. Well over half of the young people in the UK are now participants in social media and pass comment on sport. The genie is out of the bottle and it will never be forced back. That is the main reason that Armageddon never happened: we no longer live in an age where the media can guarantee our compliance.
On the first day of the 2012-13-season, Rangers were in the deep throes of administration and facing certain liquidation. With no accounts to meet the criteria for SPL membership, one among a body of rules which the old Rangers had themselves been an architect of, the new Rangers could not be granted entry without a wholesale abandonment of the rules. It was not to be.
St Johnstone launched their new season at Tynecastle so I travelled with misplaced hope. We were soundly beaten 2-0 and both Hearts goals were entirely merited. On the day, I did a quick if unscientific survey of two supporters’ buses – the Barossa Saints Club, a more traditional lads-bus and the ‘208 Ladies’ a predominantly female and family-friendly bus. On both buses, over 75% of fans had mobile phones with 3G internet access and the majority of them posted updates or pictures before, during or after the match. They mostly posted via micro-blogging sites such as Facebook or Twitter, many commenting on the game, their day-out and the surroundings. Most were speaking to friends or rival fans. Some were publishing pictures and updating forums or blogs. And when he second a decisive goal went in some were undoubtedly taking stick from Gort, Webby DFC and DeeForLife, the pseudonyms of prominent Dundee fans, who as the newly promoted ‘Club 12’ were suddenly and very temporarily above St Johnstone in the SPL.
By my rough calculations, well over half the St Johnstone support was web-connected. I have no reason to think the Hearts supporters were any different. This small experiment reflects an unprecedented shift in the balance of communication in Scottish football and in the truest sense it is an ‘epistemological break’ with past forms of spectatorship. Social media has been widely misrepresented by old-style radio ‘phone-ins’ and by journalism’s ancien regime. The presumption is that people who are connected to the web are at home, in dingy rooms where they foam at the mouth frustrated by loneliness and mental illness. The term ‘internet bampots’ (coined by Hugh Keevins) and ‘keyboard warriors’ (Gordon Strachan) speaks to a world that is fearful of the web, irked by alternative opinions, and the threat that the new media poses to the traditional exchange of knowledge.
It further assumes that opinion from social networks is naïve, ill-informed, or unreasonable. Whilst some of this may be true, mostly it is not. No one would dispute that there are small enclaves of truly despicable people using social networks and comment sites, but they are overwhelmingly outnumbered by the multitude of fans who simply want to talk about their team and share their dreams and memories.
Social media is porous. By that I mean it has cracks, lacunae and fissures. This inevitably means that information leaks out. It can be shared, released and in some cases becomes so energetic it becomes a virus. It is no longer possible to ‘keep secrets’, to withhold information and to allow indiscretions to pass unnoticed. Newspapers have been caught in a whirlwind of change where views can be instantly challenged, authority quickly questioned and pronouncements easily disproved. Many papers – almost all in decline – have been forced to close down their comments forums. Undoubtedly some of that is due to breaches of the rules, the cost of moderation, and the rise in awareness of hate crimes. But another significant factor is that ordinary fans were consistently challenging the opinions and ‘facts’ that newspapers published.
Talking down to fans no longer works and we now have evidence – Armageddon did not happen. The beast that was supposed to devour us all was a toothless fantasy. In the more abrasive language of the terraces – Armageddon shat-it and didn’t turn up.
In one respect the myth of Armageddon was an entirely predictable one. Tabloid newspapers make money from scaring people – health scares, prisoners on the run, fear of terrorism, anxiety about young people, and most recently ‘fear’ of Scottish independence is their stock in trade. Almost every major subject is raised as a spectre to be fearful of. Most newspapers were desperate to ‘save Rangers’ since they themselves feared the consequences of losing even more readership. It was easier to argue that a hideous financial catastrophe would befall Scottish football unless Rangers were fast-tracked back into the SPL. Newspapers found common cause with frightened administrators who could not imagine a world without Rangers, either.
So we were invited to endorse one of the greatest circumlocutions of all time – unless you save a club that has crashed leaving millions of pounds of debt, the game is financially doomed. You would struggle to encounter this bizarre logic in any other walk of life. Unless Rick Astley brings out a new album music will die. That is what they once argued and many still do. That is how desperately illogical the leadership in Scottish football had become.
Armageddon was a tissue of inaccuracies from the outset. It tried to script a disaster-movie of chaotic failure and financial disaster and at the very moment when senior administrators should have been fighting for the livelihood of the league, they were briefing against their own business.
Armageddon was a big inarticulate beast but it faced a mightier opponent – facts. One by one the clubs published their annual accounts. Although this was against the backdrop of a double-dip recession and fiercely difficult economic circumstances it was not all doom and gloom. The arrival of Club 12 (Dundee) meant higher crowds and the potential for increased income at Aberdeen, Dundee United and St Johnstone. To this day, this simple fact remains unfathomable to many people in the Glasgow-dominated media. The arrival of Ross County meant an exciting new top-tier local derby for Inverness Caley Thistle and a breath of fresh air for the SPL. St Johnstone insisted on the first ever SPL meeting outside Glasgow to reflect the new northern and eastern geo-politics of the Scottish game.
European football meant new income streams for Motherwell. Of course times were tight, football is never free from the ravages of the economy and some clubs predictably showed trading losses. But the underlying reasons were always idiosyncratic and inconsistent never consistent across the board. Inverness had an unprecedented spate of injuries and over-shot their budgets for healthcare and so published a loss £378,000.
Meanwhile Dundee United published healthy accounts having sold David Goodwillie to Blackburn. Celtic reached the Champion’s League group stages with all the new wealth it will bequeath. St Johnstone – led by the ultra-cautious Brown family – had already cut the cost of their squad, bidding farewell to the most expensive players Francisco Sandaza and Lee Croft. The club also benefited from compensation for their departed manager, Derek McInnes and player-coach, Jody Morris. Paradoxically, Bristol City had proven to be more important to the club’s income than Rangers. Again this was not part of the script and proved unfathomable (or more accurately irrelevant) to most in the Glasgow media.
Hearts failed to pay players on time due to serious restraints on squad costs and internal debt. They were duly punished for their repeated misdemeanours. Motherwell and St Mirren despite the economic challenges were navigating different concepts of fan ownership. By November most clubs – with the exception of Celtic – were showing increased SPL attendance on the previous season. Far from the scorched earth failure that we were told was inevitable what has emerged is a more complex eco-system of financial management, in which local dynamics and a more mature cost-efficient reality was being put in place.
It may well be that Armageddon was the last desperate caricature of a form of media that was already in terminal decline. Flash back to 1967 when Scottish football had a so-called ‘golden age’. There was European success, we tamed England at Wembley and names like Law and Baxter brightened dark nights. Back then access to knowledge was a very narrow funnel. Only a small cadre of privileged journalists had access to the managers and players, and so fans waited dutifully for the Daily Record to arrive at their door to tell them what was happening. That system of ‘elite access to knowledge’ was in its last decadent throes nearly thirty years later, when David Murray would dispense wisdom to his favoured journalists. We now know they drank fine wine and ate succulent lamb in Jersey and the most loyal attended Murray’s 50th birthday party at Gleneagles. One journalist was so proud of his invite he danced round the editorial office mocking those who had not been invited. This was the early height of the Rangers EBT era but it is now clear that difficult questions went unasked by either journalists or by football administrators.
Although it may not suit the narrative of this particular blog my first realisation that David Murray’s empire was living on leveraged debt was from a small cadre of Rangers fans. It was around the early years of the Rangers Supporter’s Trust (RST) and they were determined to shake more democracy from the Ibrox boardroom. Whilst real fans of the club argued from the outside, the press took Murray at his loquacious word. He was in many respects their benefactor, their visionary – their moonbeam.
By the 1990s onwards, football journalism had ritualised and festered around the inner sanctums at Ibrox. This was an era where relevance meant being invited to a ‘presser’ at Murray Park, having Ally’s mobile or playing golf with ‘Juke Box,’ ‘Durranty’ or ‘Smudger’. Many journalists, showing a compliant lack of self-awareness, would use these nicknames as if conveyed closeness, familiarity or friendship. It is desperately sad that careers have been built on such paltry notions of access and such demeaning obsequiousness.
Around this period I had become a freelance radio-presenter and was presenting Off the Ball with my friend Tam Cowan, a Motherwell fan. We both wanted to fashion a show which saw football not trough its familiar narratives, but through the lens of the ‘diddy’ teams, a term so demeaning that we tried to reclaim it. Refusing to peddle the inevitability of ‘old firm’ power we sensed that journalistic compliance at Ibrox was now so ingrained that it was ripe for satirising. This was the main reason that Off the Ball branded itself as ‘petty and ill-informed.’ It was a self-mocking antidote to those journalists that could ‘exclusively reveal’ breaking stories from ‘impeccable sources,’ which usually meant they had heard it on the golf-course, from Walter, a man who needed no surname.
Many fans are astonished when I tell them how the journalism of this era actually functioned. On Champions League nights, journalists from opposing papers gathered together to agree what to write. Circulation was in decline, money was tight, agency copy was on the increase and foreign trips were under-scrutiny. No one dared miss the ‘big story’. So sports journalists who commonly boasted about their toughness and who ‘feared no one’ were often so fearful of returning home having missed an angle, that they agreed by consensus to run with variations of the same story. Celtic fans may wish to recoil at the image – but journalists would go into a ‘huddle’ at the end of a press-conference to agree the favoured line.
So the summer of 2012 witnessed an ‘epistemological break’ in how knowledge and information was exchanged. But let me go further and taunt Jim Spence one more time. It was the summer we also witnessed an ‘amygdala-crisis’ exposing the way the media works in Scotland. Amygdala is the nuclei in the brain that manages our tolerance for risk and is the key that often unlocks creative thinking. Many people in relatively high places in the media – a creative industry – demonstrated that they could not conceive of change, nor could they imagine what football would look like if Rangers were not playing in the SPL. They not only resisted change but lacked the imagination to think beyond it. A common language began to emerge that tried to ward off risk and an almost a childlike fear of the dark. ‘Scottish football needs a strong Rangers,’ ‘But there will no competition’; ‘other clubs will suffer’; ‘Draw a line in the sand’; ‘It was one man – Craig Whyte’, ‘They’ve been punished enough’ and of course, the daddy of them all – ‘Armageddon.’
The biggest single barrier to change was the lingering and outmoded notion that Rangers subsidised Scottish football. As a supporter of a club that had spent seven economically stable years in a league that Rangers have never played in made me deeply suspicious and I was in the words of the we-forums ‘seething’ that St Johnstone were portrayed as somehow ‘dependent’ on a club that was already fatefully insolvent. Because so little is known about the experience of the fans of smaller clubs, they are often misrepresented. For seven years my friends and I, travelled home and away in the First Division, often narrowly missing out on promotion as rival clubs like Gretna, Dundee and Livingston all used money they did not have to ‘buy’ success. It remains an incontrovertible fact that St Johnstone FC has been among the most consistent victims of fiscal misdemeanour in Scottish football. That is the irreducible issue. Several clubs have very real reasons to loathe financial mismanagement, rogue-trading and those that gain unfair advantage on the back of unserviceable debt.
Social media has allowed these smaller incremental versions of history to be told when the established media had no interest in telling them. Blogs can dig deeper than the back pages ever can and fans are now more likely to meet on Facebook than on a supporter’s bus. Many players now bypass the press completely and tweet directly with fans. Rio Ferdinand’s recent attack on racism in English football has been conducted entirely via social media, over the heads of the press. In the Rangers Tax Case context, restricted documents are regularly shared online, where they can be analysed and torn apart. Those with specialist skills such as insolvency, tax expertise or accountancy can lend their skills to a web forum and can therefore dispute official versions of events.
Not all social media is good. Open-access has meant a disproportionate rise in victim culture. The ‘easily-offended’ prowl every corner of the web desperate to find a morsel that will upset them but that is a small price to pay for greater transparency and even the most ardent bore is no excuse for limiting the free exchange of information.
We have witnessed a summer of seismic change. A discredited era that largely relied on ‘elite access to knowledge’ has all but passed away and information, however complex or seemingly unpalatable, can no longer be withheld from fans. The days of being ‘dooped’ are over.
It has been a privilege to participate in the summer of discontent and I yearn for even greater change to come. Bring it on.
Stuart Cosgrove
Stuart Cosgrove is a St Johnstone fan. He was previously Media Editor of the NME and is now Director of Creative Diversity at Channel 4, where he recently managed coverage of the Paralympics, London 2012. At the weekend he presents the BBC Scotland football show ‘Off the Ball’ with Tam Cowan. He writes here in a personal capacity.
Turnbull Drier @ 20:46
Pretty much the same guff they came out with when RFC(IL) went into admin
“No reliance may be placed, for any purposes whatsoever, on the information contained in this presentation…..”
___________________________________________
Wow wow wow…………….this has to be a wind-up of all wind-ups.
Incidentally Greene must be having a whale of a time with his audacious wind-ups. For the sake of my fellow bloggers blood-pressure, please pay no heed to Greene’s utterances, we need you around a little while longer.
paulsatim says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 20:55
0 0 Rate This
SouthernExile, Gorbalsdoodledandy
I’m just the messenger, my first thoughts were spoof!!!
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Mine too, until I cast my mind back 3 or 4 months. Wasn’t there an even worse PP presentation by Charles and Ally at Hampden, to the SPL, or was it the SFL?
I thought they claimed to have 500m worldwide fans. According to that PP 99% of them have walked away.
But they also claim to have been relegated as well so I guess we can forget any attempt at accuracy within that document.
I’m e-mailing it to as many SFL clubs as I can to see how many were aware of the Colt idea before it was revealed or were Rangers the only team consulted in advance?
Turnbull Drier says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 20:46
ClashCityRockers says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 19:51
__________________________________
I know it’s the Herald, but they do give a quote.
Hope the link works.
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The link worked fine. Scratched ma hied an got a splinter. They is not he.
Sevco fans Global map, LOL!
http://i48.tinypic.com/23m603k.jpg
Turnbull Drier
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I know it’s the Torygraph, but they to give a quote.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/rangers/9086664/Rangers-must-continue-for-the-future-of-Scottish-football-and-for-the-fabric-of-the-country-says-Alex-Salmond.html
If Chuckles does get any takers can I have their names and numbers………….I got batches of sky hooks and left handed tea cups to shift
Anyone taking any bets, that by this time tomorrow, at the latest, Charlie will be telling us that this a malicious fake, designed to discredit him and the great institution that is Sevco 🙂
Anyone remember those “auctions” where there was 1 genuine set of good cutlery or 1 real stereo system on show. The poor punter buys “selfsame stereo” in a sealed box gets it home and finds its 99% genuine cardboard and made in Botswana.
Mark my words it will be a week before Chuckles is selling the shares with “a win a million” lucky certificate buried in the pile.
john clarke says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 20:18
____________________________________
Unlike you, instead of addressing my concerns to Colonel Blimp and General Melchett, I took the political route to the chappie in Whitehall.
The Right Honourable Philip Hammond MP
Secretary of State for Defence
13th November, 2012
Dear Sir,
Military Presence: Ibrox Stadium 10th November 2012
I watched a Rangers TV video covering the half-time behaviour by members of the armed forces at Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow on Saturday, 10th November 2012. I was appalled that those in charge of The Rangers Football Club had turned the annual Remembrance Day observance into a circus.
You may be aware that in the west of Scotland the poppy appeal has in recent years been hijacked by The Rangers Football Club in order to encourage the more baser elements of its support in a display of triumphalism.
At a time when our troops are being denied all necessary numbers, training and equipment to properly do their duty oversees, Rangers F.C. directors are currently responsible for avoiding some £94 million in tax. This is a substantial sum of public funds, which could have contributed greatly to improve the lot of our brave service men and women.
I wish to know:
Who was responsible for sanctioning the presence of military personnel (regular and territorial) at Ibrox Stadium on 10th November 2012?
Who authorised the artillery weapon to be brought into the stadium and just how did it add to the dignity of the remembrance?
Why was an officer not appointed, or do his job to ensure that all the servicemen acted with the utmost discipline and decorum on such a solemn occasion? (I note that the conduct of the servicemen at football grounds elsewhere in the UK was impeccable).
I presume that, as these troops were in uniform, they were being paid expenses and ‘drill’ money. There would have been additional costs for military transport etc. What, therefore, was the overall cost to the taxpayer in The Ministry of Defence providing this ‘entertainment’?
I sincerely hope that you will carefully review any future request by The Rangers Football Club for any “rent a regiment” appearance at its stadium in future.
Yours faithfully,
Test
Well done Tommy (& JC,)
Did you think to mention the orange poppies and sashes? These to me were the worst elements of a charade which should never have been countenanced by those organising the event or by the forces officers in charge.
Actually surprised that there has been no reaction politically or from the British Legion / Haig folk.
Tommy says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 21:37
‘…. I took the political route to the chappie in Whitehall.
The Right Honourable Philip Hammond MP
Secretary of State for Defence….’
——
Excellently well done.
I think I’ll copy my letter to him as well!
And for two pins, I would even send a copy to the Scotsman ( except that I would not believe they would let me away with ‘name and address supplied’!)-and I would not trust them to do so, even if they said they would!
Wonder where this lack of trust in the Press can have come from?
Clashcityrockers
__________________
I’ll give you that… What I put is all that should have been said, I suspect a bit of ill advised grandstanding to an international audience may have been at play..
It would have been helpful if he had actually been interviewed and asked the same question a before Heats got their extension just to gauge his response…
Tommy says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 21:37
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The guy in charge of all troops in Scotland is ultimately:
Major General Nick Eeles
HQ 51 Scottish Brigade
Craigiehall
Queensferry
Edinburgh
EH30 9TN
I think he is well worth copying-in on anything. Correct address when writing is ‘Dear General Eeles’. I too was disgusted by the spectacle of troops in uniform playing football and taking kicks at goal. I have never seen troops in uniform wearing football colours previously when on any official business let alone a supposed Remembrance occasion. It was a real demonstration of how easy it is for order and control to disintegrate and I find it hard to believe they were front-line Regular Army. That is my only consolation from the whole sorry event.
There was also RN personnel as well as a small contingent of RAF although they might have been RAF Regiment. It seemed to me that there were no officers in attendance at half-time although there were NCOs. The soldiers from their white Hackles were mainly Royal Scots Fusiliers but I haven’t bothered checking the hat badges of the others. I could see nothing from start to finish that in any way honoured or was a contemplation of those who have died in conflict and to me that means more than just military casualties.
But there were officers at Ibrox from all of the various units and approx 6 of them paraded behind the Rangers Directors for the poppy wreath laying at John Geig’s statue which is obviously of importance to Ibrox supporters as it marks the sad loss of fans who died in the Ibrox disasters. But I am unsure as to what, if any, significance it has to the war dead of our nation.
The triumphalism was very inappropriate for the occasion and all the more so to me considering that a Scottish soldier was murdered that day as he played a game of football trying to build bridges with the local population in Afghanistan. A terrible loss and his family are certainly in my thoughts and the team he supported makes no difference to me.
I do support our Army at this time in Afghanistan, who are tasked to a job that cannot be achieved, and they know that. And I have stood at homecomjng parades and cheered as they marched past and that is the kind of occasion where that is fine. But even then they wear their uniform according to regulations, are disciplined and march with pride.
And btw all praise to the GB yet again for their card display against Barca and also the very sensible and mature decision they took on Sunday.
Sorry.. Hearts obviously….
I started to disect the presentation and gave up after page 6. That is the biggest load of tosh imaginable; it has to be a hoax, surely?
Green said previously that the wage bill had been reduced to £6m. Presentation states ““oldco” (sic) had wage bill of £28.2m and it is now “rebased with £20m pa reduction in player wages”. But it also goes on to say that the current wage bill is £7.2m. So which is it – £6m, £7.2m or £8.2m?
The first line of the preamble also confirms once and for all that it is not the old Rangers. Also note in preamble that it relates to the purchase of Ordinary shares only so limited say in running of company and you’re last in line if it all goes pear-shaped.
If it is truly genuine then it is being very, very economical with the truth and simply raises a lot more questions than answers. Perhaps one of the MSM might like to ask for a copy of the valuation report from October 2012 or confirmation of the basis of the valuation (remember, Lambert Smith Hampton said £15m in May 2012 although that was written off in marketing and administration costs by D&P).
Perhaps their fellow SFL members might like to comment on slide 12?
Test
The Remembrance Sunday Circus at Ibrox was really sad actually. There are times of the year to celebrate the victory over fascism, like V.E, Day, but Remembrance Sunday is not one of those times, it is specifically a time to reflect and honour the poor souls who perished.
paulsatim says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 20:05
10 0 Rate This
CG’s road show! https://skydrive.live.com/view.aspx?resid=7241D12A18C19C59!387&app=PowerPoint
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sorry to disappoint any readers who may be potential investors, but there is absolutely nothing in this presentation that would entice any institutional, or private, investors to put money into a venture, any venture based on this information. Any presentation needs to be interesting right from the first instant and this does not grab any aspect of my imagination. I’ve tried to look at this as objectively as possible and with an open mind, the mind of a potential investor. There are nothing concrete to get your teeth into; its full of conjecture and appears to be a bit “fuzzy”.
I am no city whizz kid, but I do have some experience in the AIM specifically and the first rule of any investing is that you do not invest any more than you can afford to lose. A simple rule, but an extremely important rule to follow if you wish to have any success. This presentation will only succeed in encouraging fans to sink their savings into the venture as there is nothing to encourage fund managers to take it seriously. Based on the presentation and the presentation alone, this will fail to attract the sort of money that he’s looking for as it simply fails to spark the imagination, it is not an attractive presentation, unless of course you are a fan and you really want it to work.
My greatest fear is not that the floatation fails, I think that’s as good as said, but I fear for the gullible fans who will be sending in their £500 expecting to bring sevco to the fore of european football and lose the lot. Its the individual fans and their families that will suffer from this. From Green’s perspective the timing is perfect and extremely cynical. Its the run up to Christmas and ordinary working folk will have some money saved up and this offer is being touted and aimed at them. This is all going to go very wrong for the ordinary working fans who struggle week in week out, the ones who live and breathe their club and the ones who can least afford to lose their cash. If they abide by the simple rule of not punting more than they can afford to lose they will be ok as they won’t be investing anything at all.
How many times are they prepared to be duped? Firstly it was Minty Moonbeans, then the MBBGEF, now they have this shyster who gives snake oil salesmen a bad name. Where will it all end for them? I think I have an idea that it may be the BVI.
ecobhoy says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 22:1
‘..The guy in charge of all troops in Scotland is ultimately:..’
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Yes,but I sent my letter to him at his Edinburgh Castle address!
Thanks for the confirmation that there were officers ‘officially’ present at least part of the time.
The senior officer will, I hope, be asked a question or two about the descent into farce.
Rhetorical question I know, but how the blazes did the Double Ds get away with selling property that Charlie now values at £79 million for just £1.5 million
I know it was a fire sale, but a difference of £77.5 million is frankly incredible
It’s not right, and surely has to be at the very least questioned, and yes, I am aware of gratuitous alienation
Alex Baskhanov @alexbaskhanov
(1/2) MS Powerpoint stores author and other details when saved, here are what that Powerpoint threw up: #AndrewBlain pic.twitter.com/3hzp3Aop
View photo
12m Rangers Tax-Case @rangerstaxcase
@alexbaskhanov I’m on an iPhone so limited searching. Who is Andrew Blain? This file originates on FF?
Hide conversation Reply Retweet Favorite
2:29 PM – 13 Nov 12 · Details
11m Alex Baskhanov @alexbaskhanov
@rangerstaxcase Andrew Blain is an employee of Cenkos Securities – who are responsible for getting them onto stock market. Here is his (1/2)
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10m Alex Baskhanov @alexbaskhanov
@rangerstaxcase full LinkedIn account with biography. http://uk.linkedin.com/pub/andrew-blain/18/bb/33b … . Leaked by Andrew – file then uploaded to Skydrive by FF. (2/2)
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6m bigmacca @maccasixty7
@alexbaskhanov @rangerstaxcase I think it could be a wind up! No
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3m 19LisbonBhoy67 @19LisbonBhoy67
@maccasixty7 @alexbaskhanov @rangerstaxcase wouldn’t surprise me if they really r that unprofessional but on reflection it’s got 2 b fake!
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3m bigmacca @maccasixty7
@19LisbonBhoy67 @alexbaskhanov @rangerstaxcase it looks a wind up and they have just put a name on it by using google
bill1903 says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 18:40
35 0 Rate This
My ears are bleeding listening to SSB
The panel are really missing the ‘old firm’ games as are most Celtic fans etc etc
How do these muppets get a gig?
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By virtue of people still tuning in to them?
On the PP from CG, RFC have gone from being an institution to a franchise.
“Rapid revenue growth over coming years” – the technical detail is bewildering isn’t it? With such growth, why the need to float?
Slide 20 – “Possible..Potential..May..Could..” Where do I sign?
Captain Haddock says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 22:07
Well done Tommy (& JC,)
Did you think to mention the orange poppies and sashes?
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I didn’t see any orange poppies and tbh I think the sashes you refer to are actually red and part of the dress uniform worn by warrant officers and senior NCOs who also had green commando berets but not possible to ID further as their cap badges not showing. No need to ID anyway as someone somewhere has authorised this and everyone will be listed.
I think the claim of 400 service personnel is close to the mark and I doubt if there would have been as many as that anywhere except London. I have no doubt that these soldiers were fired-up by the moment and when they reflect on it they will know themself that their actions were questionable.
I blame the cynicism of Rangers ‘using’ them for its own purposes which had nothing to do with Remembrance and the failure of their officers which identified a breakdown in leadership. On any occasion where you have mixed units in a situation like this there has to be a clear leadership structure and it didn’t work because at a guess the officer were being treated to Rangers hospitality at the time and the squaddies were left to their own devices. All very very sad but one thing about The Forces they do learn from their mistakes – well eventually.
I should have mentioned I did see quite a few green hackles of the Royal Irish Fusiliers dotted about and one Ulster Banner being waved by a squaddie which was slightly worrying in view of the connotations.
Having re-read this “document” again, it smacks of the usual triumphalist, WATP nonsense, so beloved of Sevco and its predecessor
Based on that alone, it could well be genuine
paulsatim says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 22:43
‘.. @rangerstaxcase it looks a wind up and they have just put a name on it by using google..
——-
Now we’re into the world of Bletchley Park,ffs! 🙂
If that PP powerpoint presentation is a spoof, it was cleverly done, because it would have worked in the way that all spoofs and cons work- by playing to what many of us would have expected to have seen coming from Sevco, following their Hampden presentation.
But, would somebody please tell me it was not a spoof, for sure?
wjohnston1 says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 20:28
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Well done JC.
I first raised this on the board on Saturday evening and was amazed, surprised but pleased to get over 250 TU’s. Many folk obviously shared my displeasure. The responses which you receive should be interesting.
~~~~~~~~~~
I’ve also written today to the MoD and contactedPoppyScotland for their opinion. I’ll update responses on the site when I have them.
If Walter Myth and Sourness have intentions of staying at The Tribute Act for any kind of sustained period why would they encourage the Sevco fans to pay off Green?
Green is obviously going to pocket any money raised and do one. Will that not leave Myth and Sourness without the option of their own much needed fund raiser for a while?
Those 2 snakes are never going to dig into their own pockets, so why are they willing to tow the line on Greens con?
Myth was sent running with his tail between his legs when he tried to oust Green soon after Fakeover no.2.
So why is Myth so compliant when it is certain to cost him and his cronies money if they have any intention of staying at Ibrox for a while?
I seem to have missed something
When did Souness get involved in the new club ?
john clarke says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 22:41
Yes,but I sent my letter to him at his Edinburgh Castle address!
—————————————————————————————
I could be wrong but my understanding is that due to recent reorganisation that HQ Scotland has moved from Edinburgh Castle to Craigiehall although the General still retains the ‘Governor of Edinburgh Castle’ title.
I always find in dealing with a GOC that letters go through many hands and layers of bureaucracy with a lot of opportunity for error. You may wish to send a copy to his aide-de-camp, Captain Kelly Robinson, at the Craigiehall address and I would mention that you have also written direct to the General.
had a quick look at the document……hahahahahahahahahahhaha
OK, but moving on, can anyone tell me the relevance of the revenues brought in by clubs like Real Madrid, Manchester United, Bayern?
What about the relevance of the £3Bn TV deal for ENGLISH clubs?
Anyone care to tell me why the revenues of NFL teams would be important to the future and potential of a Scottish Soccerball team?
If this is a genuine document to encourage people to invest, then they should be sued for misleading the investors. Scottish Broadcasting income isn’t even the steam off the shite off the shoes of the EPL diddy team relegated each year – never mind a significant part of a clubs income.
I can only assume the document is a fake and that there is no plan to bring in any “city” or Pension fund type investor.
Surely even the bears can see this talk of huge TV deals is utter balderdash.
ecobhoy says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 22:49
‘..and the failure of their officers which identified a breakdown in leadership.’
‘…. Royal Irish Fusiliers dotted about and one Ulster Banner being waved by a squaddie..’
———
Frankly, what this scenario presents is the possibility that the officers who were there so share the mind-set that they could see nothing objectionable in letting the squaddies enjoy a bit of orange triumphalism.
Sends out quite the wrong signals, with unpleasant associations with events that I remember very well from the 1970s.
ecobhoy says: (Edit)
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 22:49
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Captain Haddock says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 22:00
Well done Tommy (& JC,)
Did you think to mention the orange poppies and sashes?
—————————————————————————————————–
Not personally convinced about the orange poppies, didn’t notice sashes but some military personnel certainly had orange scarves. What’s that go to do with Remembrance Sunday ? It was horrible.
paulsatim says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 22:43
‘.. @rangerstaxcase it looks a wind up and they have just put a name on it by using google.
——————————————————————————————————————
Looks like a spoof done by a child or person or persons unknown with limited intelligence 🙂
Is this the author of the most convincing IPO presentation ever seen?
http://www.shepwedd.co.uk/people/andrew-blain.html
Authors : Andrew Blain
Revision number : 103
Content created : 6/11/2012 14:43
Date last saved : 12/11/2012 14:19
Last printed : 9/11/2012 15:30
I noted Slide 12 : Catalyst For Change :
“Potential restructuring of Scottish football
Possible introduction of ‘colts’ teams – following the Spanish model
May allow Rangers and Celtic freedom to break from National Association in due course
Could see Rangers progress faster through the domestic league structures
Prepares Scottish Football for a new future”
This clearly shows prior knowledge of the planned announcement on possible restructuring due by the SFL on 13/11/2012 :
http://sport.stv.tv/football/200292-in-detail-the-scottish-football-leagues-plans-for-league-reconstruction/
And a couple of tasty bits for all SFL/SPL Chairmen :
“May allow Rangers and Celtic freedom to break from National Association in due course”
“Evolution of competition structures could provide significant opportunity for the larger,
well-supported, clubs including Rangers” (slide 14)
“We want a bigger Champions League and hope one day we could play perhaps Barcelona versus Manchester United on Saturdays. We want to have the Champions League under the UEFA umbrella but we want UEFA to hear our demands. We are asking for more revenue. We are asking for governance, transparency, insurance. We would like to have a Champions League with more teams”
Sandro Rosell, President F.C. Barcelona (slide 14)
Translated – thanks for your help suckers, we’re off just as soon as we can!
And a final thought……surely that future absence of Sevco will lead to another Armageddon?
Doubtless the MSM will pick up on that terrible threat…..
ecobhoy says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 23:06
‘..You may wish to send a copy to his aide-de-camp, Captain Kelly Robinson,..’
—-
In the post first thing tomorrow.! Thank you.
Or is it this Andrew Blain?
Andrew Blain
Growth Companies Analyst at Cenkos Securities
Manchester, United Kingdom · Investment Banking
Can we let the topic of Remembrance Sunday go now. Follow up your anger with letters by all means, but I think we have had enough on this subject and have other matters to deal with.
No offence meant
Aye redlichtie its obvious theres shenanigans going on in the background – I suppose with Greene we should be more worried when hes quiet than when hes spouting rubbish as it means hes up to something. It looks like hes been getting together with the authorities to lay out The Rangers future up through the Scottish leagues and beyond – leaving a Colt Rangers to play in Scotland. That was my first thought when I saw the SFL proposal so its nice to have it confirmed.
Did someone fire that Powerpoint together on their lunchbreak? If it was an hour lunchbreak they should really have done better.
OK,
On reflection, the PP presentation has to be a fake. Nobody could possibly seriously present that to serious investors.
The questions then are Who did it and Why?
The next question to my mind is; What exactly is Charlie presenting and to whom?
This “Roadshow” seems to be crossing the globe but nobody seems to have actually seen it except from some people in Belfast.
What is Charlie doing in London? Who is he making presentations to? I am certain they are not Pension funds.
High net worth investors do not reach that status by making insane investments on the basis of B’ll”it.
Oh, and where is the prospectus?
mirrenman says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 23:33
Can we let the topic of Remembrance Sunday go now
—————————————————————————-
I’m a fairly new poster here so just feeling my way – so is that how it’s done that if you feel discussion should come to an end on a subject that you actually just post-up you think it should end.
Most other sites I have posted on over approx 20 years – you know when people have lost interest when you’re the only one posting. Still if them’s the rules fine by me.
I just happen to know a bit about how the command structure works and was trying to be helpful because all of the Services are quite adept at shuffling paperwork as are the Civil Service when it suits them,
Tommy says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 21:37
=======================
Well said, faither. Absolutely spot on.
Shocked at the general naysaying displayed here. I’m now further convinced that Mr Green as the business acumen to facilitate a monumental success.
Where else, for the small matter of £10,000, would I be able to guarantee my irrevocable shareholding in the club, a 100% return on my investment, a divident payment in due course, the collegiate embrace of 5m like minded souls from as far afield as the Phillipines to Haiti and, as a special bonus, get some sort of subscription to the NFL and entry into the soon to be patented pick-your-league system of European Football?!
lets take a look at this committee who came up with this awesome save scottish football plan shall we
campbell ogilvey former rangers shareholder and director lol
longmuir former rangers shareholder and lifelong fan lol
ballantyne former rangers shareholder and lifelong fan lol
chuckie green former rangers ghost director (duff&duffer in their own words said chuckie was helping run rangers before liquidation) now the savior of sevcoticketus now known as The rangers lol
would you trust these people to come up with a plan to save scottish football without putting sevcoticketus now The rangers first lol
Forgive me, at this late stage, but I’ve just discovered that I can cut and paste from my original microsoft word draft. ( I had been faffing about trying to scan and copy and paste, unsuccessfully)
This is my letter to GOC Scotland.
—
Major-General N Eeles,
General Officer Commanding Scotland,
Edinburgh Castle,EH1 2NG.
Dear General Eeles,
You will, I imagine, share my dismay that Army, Navy and Royal Marines service personnel were participants in a travesty of a ‘Remembrance’ parade at Ibrox Park, Glasgow, during half-time in a football match being played between The Rangers FC and Alloa Athletic last week-end.
Whatever the original intention may have been, the occasion was allowed to degenerate into what I can only describe as a show of sectarian support- by the military personnel involved- for one particular section of Scottish society and one particular football club.
It was in no way respectful of the men and women ( among whom I include my own father) who suffered death or injury in the second World War, but was an absolutely undisciplined display of sectarian bias by the army unit(s) involved, who, I believe had balloted to be present because of their personal support for the aims and ideology of The Rangers FC.
In my view, the officer who authorised the use of tax-payers’ money for such a shameful partisan display, and the senior officer present on the day ( if indeed, any officer was present) should be asked to apologise to the people of Scotland for being so crassly insensitive to the feelings of many like me, who distance themselves from the poisonous ideology behind Orangeism and who do not wish their support for the Armed Forces of this country to be predicated on a false assumption that Orangeism equates to patriotism.
I am copying this letter to Rear Admiral Hockley (Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland) and to Major-General Davis, CBE RM (Commandant General Royal Marines)
Yours sincerely,
Just had a good read through the Bad-gers (simple but great sobriquet) prospectus …
It has to be a phony – the faux financial vocabulary; simplistic framing; grammar; spacing and the complete lack of pertinent information for the ‘professional’ investor, it’s just flash and no substance. I think someone’s been playing on a Mac with Indesign (for dummies).
But if it turns out to be the real document … nah! it just can’t be.
M8Dreamer
How much longer does the rest of Scotland have to suffer the continued sanctamonious crap that comes out of Ibrox from Chuckie and the amazing MSM media.
Every statement made is complete nonsense and is only believed by the deluded Rangers Tribute
Act supporters.
The sooner that this “institution” and all affiliated apologists disappears from the planet will be a day for celebration within Scotland.
To: jimmurphymp@parliament.uk
The Rt Hon Jim Murphy MP
Sir,
I wish to draw your attention to the appearance of some members of the British Armed Forces at Ibrox Park on Remembrance Sunday. I assume that you are unaware of the appearance of said troops and the disgusting way that they were manipulated and turned a solemn occasion into a farce and a circus.
I was disgusted at the way these troops paraded themselves waving Rangers scarves and flags as well as seeing one particular individual adorn himself in an Ulster flag and dancing in front of a cheering and baying support.
This is no way for anyone, let alone uniformed British troops, to act on a day when we, as a Nation are engaged in honouring our fallen from numerous military campaigns, including the conflict in Ulster itself. This despicable escapade shows utter disrespect and a total disregard for the sacrifices made by millions of British men and women in protecting this Nation.
I would like to ask you to enquire into the reasons that this circus was allowed to occur as it casts shame on every single individual who took part in this pantomime. The image of British Uniformed Troops dancing and prancing under banners of orange coloured poppy’s, waving Rangers scarves and playing to an overtly sectarian audience makes me feel sick, especially when you consider the connotations for the minority ethnic population of Ulster.
On a personal note Jim, this was absolutely disgusting and if you haven’t seen it, have a look on you tube and you will understand the outrage that I and many, many others feel at this escapade. Someone was responsible for allowing this to happen and I am contacting you as both the Shadow Sec of Def, but also as a person that I know will not stand for instances of troops being manipulated in such a shocking and ugly manner.
I look forward to hearing you ask a question of your opposite number in the House as to why this was allowed to happen as well as who authorised it. It was a disgrace Jim, an utterly disgusting display that must never be allowed to happen again. I greatly anticipate your reply.
Finally, Its a pity that I have to contact you over a matter such as this, but it would be good to catch up sometime.
Your friend
====================================================================
Just sent this to someone I was on the NUS Executive with 20 years ago!! Hope to receive a reply as soon as.
Reply will be posted here.
If this were genuine would they have misspelled ‘Edmiston House’ as ‘Edminston’?
If The Cardigan and Souness are taking closer interest in Sevco there is only one possible explanation ……..and its nothing to do with TRFC
They are back in order to get information from Ibrox files that will help them fight HMRC when he comes after them
Its that simple
redlichtie says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 23:26
Is this the author of the most convincing IPO presentation ever seen?
http://www.shepwedd.co.uk/people/andrew-blain.html
———————————————————————————————
I note that Shepherd & Wedderburn list Scarborough Property Group as one of their clients – can’t be assed checking at this time of night but isn’t that connected to Leeds United and therefore maybe a Green connection?
Why are the fools on SSB so desperate to convince everyone that supporters of every other Club “miss Rangers”. Their reasoning for this they say, is that when they meet supporters and they discuss how much “Scottish Football needs a Rangers”, supporters always agree. Personally I think they are misreading the smiling and nodding of the supporters they are talking to.
ordainaryfan
Re wattie ,IMO he has been told that Ticketus (or the man behind them ) wants his cash back and from the original source targeted (the fans ) .
Before the sting came off the rails Ticketus expected to get their cash from STs but as soon as the hordes found out their secret there was no chance of that ,so there had to be a rethink ,enter CG and his secret millionaires .
My guess is that Wattie and Harte (ex BK) will be the ones eventually fronting triggers broom fc but they and the rest of TBKs are not willing to fork out the 20m needed to get Ticketus out the picture .So with the share issue looking like fooling nobody in the city (more likely a ruse to attempt to give it a look of credibility) TBKs need the hordes to part with their cash and maybe the hordes were getting cold feet .
Look at the timing of wattie and harte stepping on to the board then look at the list of directors
Murray
CG
Stockbridge
Smith
Harte
How would that list have looked to the hordes without the new additions also with Ahmed /zeus in with the other 3 with the internet bampots assumed links in the last few weeks (is this why he has suddenly vanished without a word ) IMO too much of a chance to take for ALL the peepil involved in this mystery .
As for sourness what if he felt he owed some peepil as the JAB transfer led to Hectors snooping
Not that I think that though
M8 Dreamer
As “OrdinaryFan” says, Scottish Football does NOT need Rangers Tribute Act.
There are numerous benefits to their absence from the SPL.
1. No sectarian singing from the away end twice a year
2. Lower Police Costs for matches with Dundee
3. Lower Security Costs for matches with Dundee
4. Civilised Dundee Supporters
5. Less Social Unrest
6. Less Domestic Violence
7. Family friendly football stadium environment
8. Child friendly football stadium environment
9. Less dubious refereeing decisions
10. Less MSM Media lies and untruths
Andrew Blain:-
http://thesoapbox89.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/the-big-house-must-stay-open.jpg
Was just looking at the skydrive slides lol
Slide 8 states ibrox Value £65 valued by independent valuers in October 2012
Did chuckles not state on an interview on STV that he had it valued at £80m 😉
A drop of £15m in less than a month lol
tcup2012
Yes and he also seems to have lost 495m peepil from his fan base
£15m lost on Ibrokes and 495m customers in the last month alone ,investors will be falling over themselves to get into this action ,although they better get a move on before Chukles looses anything else
Frank Forrest says:
Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 00:04
“the minority ethnic population of Ulster”.
In the last census of 2011 the figures relating to religious divide in NI were withheld and may be released at a later date. I am certain that if released we would find that the balance is shifting, the seige mentality may be setting in, I jest.
That’s my OT for the day, sorry
jonnyod@00.47 What I don’t understand is how do Myth and Sourness plan on getting out of dodge themselves? Do they know that soon they will not be “fit and proper” Myth didn’t slink away just before Craig Whyte set the scam in motion, to simply return to a potless reincarnation that is still looking at years of serious problems on and off the field. How do they get out? Could they be confident that they wont pass as fit & proper? Then they leave as Martyrs and the Sevcovians can play the victims. It will certainly be intriguing to see their escape plan play out.
Briggsbhoy, Frank Forrest,
Don’t forget that the province of Ulster consists of nine counties on the island of Ireland
ecobhoy says:
Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 00:14
==========================================
Kevin McCabe at Sheffield Utd.
simple thought, why doesn’t somebody email or phone mr blaine explaining there is a document on the internet bearing his name, can he confirm it’s authenticity?
http://www.hibernianfc.co.uk/news/20121113/club-statement_2262950_2979668
Statement from Hibs: I can’t argue with the reasoning, if indeed he was instructed what to do. If I willfully ignored my boss I would probably get the same treatment.
HOWEVER, this part of the statement does annoy me:
“This is not an issue about having or not having a sense of humour.”
Er… yes it is. It was funny.
Someday the football clubs will remember they are in the ‘entertainment’ industry and start, er… entertaining.
ecobhoy says:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 23:43
I’m a fairly new poster here so just feeling my way – so is that how it’s done that if you feel discussion should come to an end on a subject that you actually just post-up you think it should end.
ecobhoy,
re rememberance day posts
totally understand what you are saying but I personally feel that this issue should be kept out of this blog, it being The Scottish Football Monitor.
I know most of the comments were about the triumphalist nature of the people on the park at Ibrox, but when and as it did move into talking about ‘ orange ‘ issues, then are we not veering towards breaking one of this sites main rules.
2. Absolutely no discussion with regard to religion should take place.
Willmacufree 14 Nov 02:26
I am well aware of that fact as I’m sure Frank is but my point refers in particular to the 6 counties as it is a UK Government Census Report that has as yet only been partially reported but I’m it will raise some eyebrows when it is.
http://www.thefootballlife.co.uk/post/35653783779/spl-viewing-figures
Collated the SPL’s viewing figures for televised games so far this season and the viewing figures of matches they clashed with on other channels based on BARB top 10s (so if anything’s missing, blame them!)
Of the top 3 televised domestic games, two were Rangers games with the most watched game of the season so far being Celtic-Hearts.
Figures normally come out 8 days after the week has ended so, for last week, should be next Monday-ish and I will try to keep updated once new figures are available. Last week’s should be interesting just to see how many people watched Celtic vs Barca. The away game pulled in more viewers than Arsenal or Chelsea in that game week, so I’d expect that to have been the top rated CL game of the week on Sky (with more viewers than Man Utd).
A lot of you are saying the PP presentation is so pathetic that it must be a spoof. On the other hand, surely anyone creating a spoof presentation would make a much better job of it? Unless the perpetrator is under the age of 12.
For those who have forgotten how bad a real Sevco Powerpoint presentation can be, here is a wee reminder from 4 months ago- http://t.co/eJYTEQQ0 . And bear in mind, that was designed for an audience who were about to adjudicate on the company’s future.
Charles Green claims to be on the road right now, wowing the Pension Funds with his latest Powerpoint offering. Has anyone heard of any real institutional investor who has attended, or even been invited to, one of these events? I would have thought that anyone who had been to such an event would be regaling all and sundry with the details. Good for a few laughs down the pub, I imagine. I can’t find anything on the internet from any participant, which seems strange to me. Unless these presentations are another figment of Charles Green’s fevered imagination, of course. Whatever happened to that Apple deal, by the way?
There is still no prospectus, and in my opinion, there never will be. Without a formal prospectus, containing real figures, and real information (about TRFC, not Dallas Cowboys), why would any fund managers waste their expensive time listening to Charles Green, because if all he can tell them is the nonsense in his presentation, then they really would be wasting their time.
Institutional investors are simply not interested in investing other people’s money in football clubs, not even premiership clubs with huge guaranteed income from Sky, never mind some two-bit hand to mouth operation in the bottom tier of Scottish football. Green knows that very well. If he is to get his money, it will have to come from the bears. And it will have to come via a private share sale. He doesn’t dare go down the IPO route, because that involves a prospectus, which in turn involves revealing stuff like who really owns Sevco, what is the group structure, what does the company you are being asked to buy shares in actually own (anyone seen the deeds yet?) and what the level of debt is. Charles is surely not going down that road, I will be amazed if he does.
Charles really needs to get the money in before Christmas, while the bears still have some cash to spend. He is tight for time, even for a private sale. He needs to get the begging letters out in the next week or two, aimed at his select “Rangers Family” target audience. We may be about to find out how thick and gullible the average bear really is.
ordainaryfan
You forget we are talking about two LEGNEDS here ,who in Scottish football would persue a FAPPT for these two pillars of society ..
Anyway from what I have seen so far Pol Pot would pass this joke of a test
ordinaryfan says:
Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 00:42
34 0 Rate This
Why are the fools on SSB so desperate to convince everyone that supporters of every other Club “miss Rangers”. Their reasoning for this they say, is that when they meet supporters and they discuss how much “Scottish Football needs a Rangers”, supporters always agree. Personally I think they are misreading the smiling and nodding of the supporters they are talking to.
———-
Ordinaryfan,
Last night’s SSB podcast was one of the poorest I’ve heard. I’m not sure how Dunfermline fans felt about the repetition of the ‘Dunfermline have nothing to offer the SPL’ line. I notice the Ross County boss has also had a change of heart about a larger, single-H/A fixture-type SPL. Odd that. Sad that league construction is now vilified as a secret plan to benefit Charles Green. Some people might want to help him and his illegitimate club, but league reconstruction is sorely needed. It was discussed before the RTC story broke.
I thought this comment I found in the Clyde FC archives was rather perceptive:
“With hindsight the advent of the Premier Division was a disaster for clubs like Clyde. At a stroke the ability to generate money was restricted to a small elite. In the old format with a large top tier Clyde could have a poor season but still survive. There was breathing space to consolidate and sometimes even prosper. Being denied that opportunity, Clyde haven’t graced the top flight ever since.”
It is indeed the self-preservation league.
nnepheid
I think the timing for CG share issue is spot on ,it is the PANTOMIME season after all
Turnbull Drier
Apologies if you found my comment, regarding the First Minister, at 19:51, a tad insensitive or rude. I was being a bit facetious and was typing under the influence of Italian beer.
But what I will say is that David Murray did not jump ship from the Tories to the SNP on a whim. I see this move as being very much a calculated move, hence the FMs direct and public involvement. I suspect DM is using all his political, media, business and legal connections and influence to delay and muddy the waters. I am in agreement with others posting on this blog who suspect DM of employing such tactics.
ordinaryfan says:
Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 00:42
Why are the fools on SSB so desperate to convince everyone that supporters of every other Club “miss Rangers”. Their reasoning for this they say, is that when they meet supporters and they discuss how much “Scottish Football needs a Rangers”, supporters always agree. Personally I think they are misreading the smiling and nodding of the supporters they are talking to.
——————————————————————————-
Personally I think the simplest solution is most likely – they are just making stuff up. Of course this is aimed at Bad’gers supporters and they realise no one else believes them.
Richard Wilson (@timomouse) says:
Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 08:31
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http://www.thefootballlife.co.uk/post/35653783779/spl-viewing-figures
Collated the SPL’s viewing figures for televised games so far this season and the viewing figures of matches they clashed with on other channels based on BARB top 10s (so if anything’s missing, blame them!)
Of the top 3 televised domestic games, two were Rangers games with the most watched game of the season so far being Celtic-Hearts.
Figures normally come out 8 days after the week has ended so, for last week, should be next Monday-ish and I will try to keep updated once new figures are available. Last week’s should be interesting just to see how many people watched Celtic vs Barca. The away game pulled in more viewers than Arsenal or Chelsea in that game week, so I’d expect that to have been the top rated CL game of the week on Sky (with more viewers than Man Utd).
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
The question re the two Celtic v Barca games that might qualify the viewing figures a little is how many neutrals were looking in to see Barcelona. How many non neutrals were looking in to see Celtic get going over. But hey! Thats what makes the CL such a financial succes!