News that Hearts are set to go into administration today will give Scottish football has yet another morality lesson to consider, but this time, there will be no pleas for rule changes, no lobbying by the massed ranks of the media for other clubs to ‘do the right thing for Scottish football’, as opposed to the actual right thing. Hearts will face their fate with a straight bat.
This is an unusual football insolvency. Normally clubs go into administration when they cannot cut costs quickly enough to satisfy a creditor but on this occasion it was the way the club’s debt was structured which caused the problem.
While Celtic have long term loans with fixed repayment terms stretching years into the future, Hearts owed money to their own shareholders, most of which was repayable on demand (as almost all non-term loan bank borrowing is). If Hearts shareholder-creditors had issued loans instead of an overdraft, as long as the club continued to make repayments administration would not be on the table.
Ukio Bankas and UBIG, once both controlled by Vladimir Romanov now both insolvent, extended generous credit to the club without the formalities of an agreed repayment schedule. This informality led to their ultimate downfall.
I’ve read interesting views elsewhere that the absence of Rangers International from the SPL has claimed a further victim but there is no evidence to suggest that RI FC playing in the SPL would have sufficiently supported the Lithuanian property and investment market to prevent the collapse of the country’s banking system.
As far as we are concerned it is business as usual but there could be a crunch coming. All we can do is look after Celtic (principally by buying season tickets, never underestimate how important this is) and let nature take its course. If the crunch comes to Kilmarnock (I know, how would this be possible with a sharp kid like Michael Johnston in charge?), St Mirren, Motherwell and others, the game here needs to come up with something more radical than a unitary league body. Any ideas? I’ve one.
You can buy Willie Wallace’ autobiography below:
[calameo code=0003901713852289beccb lang=en page=12 hidelinks=1 width=100% height=500]
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Morning
Good article too ,Paul
Spot on
Top 3
Paul67
These loans of which you speak-I thought we had declared ourselves virtually debt-free?
I understand there is a revolving availability of c£23m with our bank,but I thought it remained untapped.
Hmmm-what have I missed?
‘I’ve read interesting views elsewhere that the absence of Rangers International from the SPL has claimed a further victim but there is no evidence to suggest that RI FC playing in the SPL would have sufficiently supported the Lithuanian property and investment market to prevent the collapse of the country’s banking system.’
Lulz.
Time for “The Boss”
Expect there will be a wee court battle re who gets to appoint the Administrators . Assume a Lithuanian win will see Flats Flats Flats whereas a Scottish win might just delay that.
BMCUW,
I believe that the cash we have currently more than covers the long-term loans that we still have outstanding. Hence the “debt-free”.
But im sure Paul67 will give you a better and probably more accurate answer……
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
Had a nice wee night last night . son of shades made his confirmation at st vincents , attended by bishop divine, who announced that this was the last confirmation he will be doing as he is retiring , reckons over 32 yrs he has confirmed 120,000 kids in this area, that’s some going. Feel honoured that my son was was of the last to be confirmed by the bishop .( and he took my name as well).
Hope you have a long and peacefull retirement Bishop Devine .
10?
Aussies score
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS
12:06 on
18 June, 2013
Paul67
These loans of which you speak-I thought we had declared ourselves virtually debt-free?
I understand there is a revolving availability of c£23m with our bank,but I thought it remained untapped.
Hmmm-what have I missed?
If I rember correctly in looking at last years accounts we had debts /loans of say £23m but had cash in bank of £17m giving us net debt of £6m.
This year we will presumably have loans of £23m say and cash in bank of at least £23m making us debt free on a net basis, Presume we are unable to repay these loans early
or alternatively we would rather have the freedom of being able to call on the cash in the bank when we need to rather than having to arrange new loans.
HH
I ve NEVER liked Tynecastle. It seethes when we visit..
We ll watch for a D&P style admin….
HH
THE TOKEN TIM
Aye,that will be it,most likely.
Loved your RA acca story,ya spawny git!
Enjoy yer hols,bud. I gather you haven’t been overseas for some time,mind….
The soloution is simple. Live within your means and pay your bills.
FT Australia 1-0
Tom on his way to Brazil.
Well done Aussies . Win one nil
I’m with BRTH as regards the drip drip from Charlotte.
In the absence of context setting, and more particularly, the difficulty Charlotte seems to have in identifying the significance of the information and thereafter bottoming out each strand, the thread is at risk of degenerating into little more than salacious gossip.
To date, the info has been interesting in terms of the light it has shed on the relationship between the assorted Rangers’ interests at Ibrox and at the SFA, and their approach to press management.
There has though been no ‘smoking gun’ yet that demonstrates anything very much at all beyond what seems to be chronic bad decision making at the SFA with regards to the whole shabby affair. At each turn, they could have… but they chose differently. so far, each decision on its own is justifiable, albeit collectively shambolic.
Every time the SFA had a decision to make, they chose unwisely…
To date though, there is no information from Charlotte that individually or collectively ‘proves’ anything, although the information released on the DOS scam was entirely new. The fact that RCO instructed the DOS nominees as regards share capital does indicate that he had executive responsibility for it, and thus opens up a further can of worms, although it should be borne in mind that in 1999 such a scam did not break SFA/SPL rules. It did of course subsequently, but we don’t talk about that, do we.
PS
The money owed to MIH by Whyte’s Rangers is likely to be rental for the car park, a total of £278K being owed to MIH at the time of the Admins being appointed.
QUANTUM
As with TTT’s reply-thanks,mate!
Assuming it to be true-and it sounds the part-a good and long-term view of doing things.
Pity it will never catch on…..
BMCUW
Good morning, you were quick off the mark today. :))
Weefra HH
Lions lose in the egg ball chasing also
Work done for the day —–beach time …
Will watch the Euro Under 21 Final..
Expect Spain to win but Italy might just do it . Don’t normally care if Italy win or lose but I find myself rooting for Italy . Italian football could do with a boost and a win might just convince the ever so conservative Italian National set up to give youth a chance.
‘there is no evidence to suggest that RI FC playing in the SPL would have sufficiently supported the Lithuanian property and investment market to prevent the collapse of the country’s banking system.’
pmsl…
KK,
If you’ve nothing to offer the discussion why get involved at all ?
There was zero contribution from you except to have a go at me, really what was your point ?
You then go on to congratulat BHRT on a piece that led with misinformation what’s that all about ?
BMCUW,
LOL!
Beginners luck and all that.
As for t’other, it will make a pleasant change knowing i have a nothing more than 2 weeks of sun and beers after the flight. But. Work is generally more “relaxing” than the 2 weeks of “Dad, I want/can you….” etc that will be facing me after this particular flight.
:-)
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
Need some advice…
I need a recipe for cheese on toast that I can take to the Bruce Springsteen concert whilst updating CQN on my I- phone….
When does the football start…
WEEFRATHETIM
Not that early-good afternoon,haha!
Truth be told,I had flicked back to the article before last to see if there were any horsey tips there-got a page podium too!-and when I flicked back….
Voila,PHILVISRETURNS eat yer heart out!
How’s things with yourself,your good lady and a’ yer wee weans?
Michael Greenwell @mgreenwell 32m
Good rundown of the whole Charlotte Fakeovers thing so far, the @ETimsNet podcast from about 55 mins http://www.spreaker.com/user/4647859/podcast_16_transfers_dejavu_charlotte …
Summer football and 3.00pm Saturday Kick-offs !
THE TOKEN TIM 1228
Ffs,ask Paul to delete the last part of that before yer missus reads it!
Send me a postcard,usual address:
Mad Jock Git,
Swindon
and have fun.
canamalar1
12:15 on 18 June, 2013
KK,
If you’ve nothing to offer the discussion why get involved at all ?
There was zero contribution from you except to have a go at me, really what was your point ?
You then go on to congratulat BHRT on a piece that led with misinformation what’s that all about ?
_____________________
Canamalar,
‘Nothing to offer the discussion’ ?
There was NO discussion.
My reaction was to your attack on Auldheid, whose efforts to shine the torch on the cheating of our game’s administrators has been relentless & courageous.
Instead of praising those efforts you choose to attack him for not concentrating on your fixation of our BORED’s supposed ineptitude.
‘Zero contribution’ ?
You may be right, but a great teacher told us that we should not dismiss the ‘widow’s mite’.
I give what I have.
I don’t need anybody’s permission to allow me to post my thoughts,…Thank God.
My ‘congratulation’ of BRT&H’s piece was because it was worthy of praise.
That needs no explanation or permission.
Good Luck.
The Hearts support in recent years at Tynecastle have proved to be an odious collection of twits, so no tears will be shed for them by me.
I agree with you Paul that the latest rearranging of the deck chairs on the sinking Scottish Football ship is not going to acheive much of anything. Radical thinking regarding positive and innovative restructuring of the game in Scotland seems to be beyond the powers that be. They reserve innovative thinking and ideas for resuscitating the lifelees body of that auld club Rangers and a return to the old ways of doing things. Maybe when Celtic is the last club left not in administration or liquidated they might wake up and spot that the iceberg hit the ship quite some time ago. Or will they be too busy throwing the women and children out of the lifeboats to make good their escape ?
Marti
Kinnear obviously there to pi## off Pardew (no bad thing), his interview last night when he couldn’t pronounce Newcastle players was embarassing.
BMCUW
Oops, been a quick morning. :) We are absolutely fine and we have a wee sick duck, but hopefully she will be ok when I get some worming fluid when I go to do my school run. Weans, I did Hamilton Academy yesterday and the height of these students??? I felt like a dwarf. Haha hope you and family are well. :))
Weefra HH
French blaming it on having no Sevco in French football.
Over 100 years of footballing history is in the balance as AS Cannes face liquidation in the coming days -unless they can raise €1.2 million.
never mind hearts, i,m off to see the boss…….and its two years to the day since the big man passed away. RIP…
It’s quite embarrassing Sevconia attempting to gather solace from Hearts impending administration, and as Hearts mini mimicked their big brothers antics, for years, it’s
hysterical they’ve even paro(died) them into bankruptcy. Whilst a CVA is much more likely
as they ‘only’ owe £25M it’s fun times and pay back for dodgy deals set up between the machinations of both of them i.e. for Lee Wallace read back to Neil McCann.
Celtic will simply see more clear sky and an even path towards the Champions League, more modernity, a vibrant tree lined ambient gazebo with a cash rich superbly run scouting and transfer system, that will leave zombie clubs trailing in their wake like the walking dead.
Amido Balde CSC
I need a laugh, think I will hunt down some Green quotes about Super Sevco and their hunners of millions and Barca begging them to play in Spain.