We’ve often talked about the only real danger to a football club: internecine strife:
Internecine, def: pertaining to conflict within a group, mutually destructive.
In football, your enemies can’t inflict permanent harm, that can only come from within. This morning’s media cover threats from Sevconians to boycott (clearly in homage to Irish tradition) club/company products. More power to their elbows, they should boycott every piece of tat Newco’s disparate IP rights holders churn out, apart from the occasional novelty duck.
Here’s the thing, before you turn the tanks inwards, you’d better be sure you’ve got the ‘What happens next?’ question sorted. If you don’t, you’re playing a real life version of Lemmings.
Threatening Mike Ashley? Aye sure, that’ll work, knock yourself out. I’m sure Ashley’s known as a big pussy, he hasn’t got the money to face down the malcontents, either. I bet he’s already writing his capitulation letter, “Dear Sevconians, by noticing that I can’t handle conflict you’ve outsmarted me. The game’s up.”
What was it Charles Green told John Brown he would do to Ibrox? Hmmm.
Blame the SFA, SPL, BBC, Celtic, Her Majesty’s lawyers, the Daily Record and Raith Rovers but you need to be on the inside to wreak havoc like this.
Interesting front opened by the English Premier League today on the copycat use of pyrotechnics at football games. “Someone could get killed”, said policing minister Damian Green. You’re 20 years out of date, Mr Green.
Here’s the problem: it’s possible to discharge one of these devices in a crowded area without accepting the safety/reputational/fine consequences. Enormously invasive searches of unconnected people would be required to prevent pyros being taken into a stadium which is just not possible, eradication requires everyone to decide not to participate.
The only practical method I can see of stopping the use of pyrotechnics in Scottish football is to give Sports Direct exclusive distribution rights. Who’d buy them then?
Order your CQN Annual, in time for Christmas, here:
And/or order your copy of Sean Fallon, Celtic’s Iron Man, here:
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Akbw 1888 :)
BMCUWP
100 % correct
The club wanted these players to take wage cuts. That was PL’s first remit that MON was well aware off. I have had this discussion with SFTB before. He doesn’t seem to want to contemplate that the club has got it wrong with wage structures or incentives.
HH
Toffee Tim :-) :-)
Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo
I reckon it will be a dead heat on a merry go round on what gets Ogilvie and the SFA first.
Rangers re entering administration – why were they allowed in ahead of better run clubs?
The consequences for the LNS Commission of Ogilvie’s silence on ebts or rather what he did say and what he did not.
Then the FTT if it finds for HMRC and the LNS “get out” card being shot down because of the foregoing.
The completion into the licencing and monitoring process in 2011 which will give Celtic more problems if it is not completed than if it does.
Plus the other stuff you mention
I give it another 6 months before it all collapses under the weight of the deception..
SFTB
Bobo was placed on the Peter Lawwell scrapheap far too early. It signalled a change in how we do business. Hardball and very wasteful. Bobo slaughtered him as far as I was concerned and revealed a pettiness unbecoming of the club but now defacto under the Lawwell era aided and abetted by CQN
HH
Sssshhhhh, Paul 67 …….. Let them get on with it…..whisper, whisper
DBBIA,
I was chatting with my auld Dad and my aunt, his sister, about life in Williamson Street when they were growing up. John Cairney’s brother was called Jim, and he was even younger than this man Craig. John Cairney must be about 84 today; he was a classmate of another of my aunt’s.
By the way, my Dad thought Celtic were great on Sunday.
Auldheid,
I very much so look forward to that
HH
setting free the bears
Oh I know exactly where you are coming from my man.
However, looking at it another way – we remain unbeaten in the league, one of our best starts for a while – yet are only 5 pts clear. It shows how well Inverness have been doing.
Where I am coming from is that IF they maintain their form, and we don’t go through the season unbeaten, then it will be tighter than any of us would have imagined, including the bookies! Never forget the ability of the bookies to change their minds like their underwear:)
I do concede that I don’t expect Inverness to maintain their form and that ultimately, we will wrap it up comfortably. But with a complacent attitude we will make it hard for ourselves,
HH
parkheadcumsalford- JC is down in Dumfries quite a lot; down for Burns’ stuff, mainly.
It’s good to hear that after all his years on the boards he still has his Williamson St accent ;/)
-are you going to CQTen?
SFTB
BMCUWP
The decision to cut the wage bill was taken in either October or November 2004 after a game v Shaktar Donesk.
It was taken by DD and Brian Quinn with PL in attendance whose job it was to implement the change in policy.
This was after Seville 2003 when the cost of that relative success was recognised as unsustainable.
Not sure when the players were impacted as a result, but that bit of info (I got from a Celtic book whose title escapes me) might help.
SETTING FREE THE BEARS
I didn’t suggest that the club tried to force a reduction in wages. You,in your previous post,suggested that Chris and others expected an increase in wages.
The only players who could demand that were those out of contract at the time.
Bobo and Jackie.
One came up trumps,the other didn’t.
High earners were unloaded as soon as possible after MON left. The facts are there for all to see. Neil Lennon renewed his contract downwards on a yearly basis,but others weren’t even offered that,despite their contribution to the club.
You’ll be telling us next that the overall wage bill went down,and the standard of player improved.
It is utter revisionism to rubbish those players that you did,and disrespectful,IMO,to players who served us very well.
Awe_Naw
Our Club has to operate within an affordable wage structure any
Business can not pay more than 50% of their earnings on wages
when the other 50% is being shelled out on running costs it’s
elementary my dear Awe_Naw anyway these past wages are
bye-di-bye now what is positive news is that the our Club is
nearly 4Mill in the black (Excluding the sale of VW-GH & KW)
& With astute and financial investment in other use money to
make more money then there is and for a change a bright light
over the horizon thank God
So let’s all go for the Up, instead of the down (D&G) & I’m not
referring to the perfume and clothes business with (D&G) remark
either. :-) :-)
…Add to that the fact that our big striking project from the summer has turned out to be exactly that and the fact that our big striking hope from Schalke has also turned out to be a project then it may be more difficult than any of us imagined…
HH
As a rule I do not visit Rangers related web pages but I had a peek at Bill McMurdo’s latest.
If that is the Best they can up with then they are definitely The Simple.
(See what I did there?) :)
Bom dia to one and all.
So with less than 200 days to go until the World Cup kicks off, what’s happening in Brasil?
Well the FIFA Circus for this Friday’s draw continues with a furore about who’s presenting it. Apparently, a racial equality suit has been filed that there’s an exclusive “whiteness” about the link men/women on display. Now, for me there’s more than a grain o truth in that, but my natural cynicism say’s (and with FIFA and Brasil involved, it’s a Triple whammy) that the real driver is a financial gain/loss for some fat cat/faceless corp somewhere.
The Serie A finishes this Sunday and with Cruzeiro already champions. Focus is split on the remaining Libertadores places. Gremio are already ensured a spot. However, Atletico- PR, Goias, Botafogo and Vitoria are all still in with a shout. However, with Atletico-MG (current Libertadores holders) and Flamengo (won Copa do Brasil winners last week) and MAYBE Ponte Preta (play first leg of Copa Sul America final tonight) all in the mix, it’s a complex situation, which makes for hours of “what if” conversations in the streets here.
Now if that’s complex, the relegation battle is worse. Nautico and Ponte Preta (yep) are already down. This Sunday they’ll be joined by two from Fluminense, Vasco, Coritiba, Criciuma and/or Inter RS. Upshot of all this being that next season there’s a real chance that two of the Rio teams will be playing Serie B fitba. IF Flu do go down, don’t expect Fred to stay with them, instead he maybe looking for one last trip to Europe – just saying like.
Speaking of Serie B – champions this year are Palmeiras, with Santa Cruz (World record holders of the biggest home gate for a 4th division match) also promoted from Serie C. Santa Cruz were founded in 1914 and next season will be celebrating a legitimate centenary of footballing history. Something that other challengers for this particular “World Record” cannot, legitimately, lay claim to either!!
Até Mais !!
akbw1888
15:47 on3 December, 2013
Thanks for your well intentioned post but it is a lesson in arithmetic I dont need. Nor do I need censored.
Thanks anyway
HH
I know Auldheid.
They need their nappers looked into,
It’s medication time, for them.
Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo
15:38 on
3 December, 2013
Bobo’s problem was that his basic(£28k) + appearance fee(£7k) meant he was on more than £40k/week a lot of the time. I haven’t seen the contract of course but that came from within the club, although I admit it could be wrong.
Now as far as I’m concerned he was perfectly entitled to expect the club to stick to that contract.
At the same time the club were perfectly entitled to take the stance that they couldn’t not afford to pay him more than his basic and therefore he would no longer feature in normal circumstances.
Thanks Awe_Naw for the response
I’m only trying to make a point, with
all due respect.
DBBIA,
I would love to and bring my auld Dad but the last time I tried to take him to such a “do” (Paul67 provided the tickets), he got sick the same day.I don’t know if it was the excitement, as he is 90 and last Christmas had surgery for cancer.
Fwo Ashway to the fwo sons of stwuuf and stwike him vewy wuffwy…
ULY
“Do you have a speech impediment?”
“Yeth,I’ve got a withp”
Cruel cruel word.
Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo
15:38 on
3 December, 2013
Sorry that wasn’t really needed. We’ve all been over it before.
Awe Naw
“He doesn’t seem to want to contemplate that the club has got it wrong with wage structures or incentives.”
The oul’ weasel word “seem” gives you the space to attribute any attitude or motivation. It is the rhetorical equivalent of a body-swerve.
I do feel the club got it wrong on wage structures; we were paying Bobo and Chris too much,IMO. These were wages based on obtaining a quick invite and entry into another league. When that road was blocked off we had to “downsize” in order to remain afloat and viable. There is nothing virtuous about letting unrealistic high wage levels continue for longer than necessary.
” (Bobo) revealed a pettiness unbecoming of the club but now defacto under the Lawwell era aided and abetted by CQN”
Did he write to you? :-) I was unaware of any revelations from Bobo.
If you are basing your feelings on the outcome, i.e. Bobo stayed and was rarely played, you can say that was because of our “pettiness” or , you can accept WGS at his word and say that he was 3rd or 4th choice centre back for that manager. Either way, not much difference in outcome.
When the new era was signalled, Neil Lennon took a pay cut and stayed on to play (to be brutally honest, to no great effect as he, too, was past his best) and coach.
Bobo said “Stuff you, I’ve got my contract and my wages are guaranteed. I’ll stay and rot until such time as I have to struggle to break into a Valenciennes team that gave Sebo more pitch time”
and Chris, in his unique dry humorous way, said “No thanks! I’m off to Villa for more money and to play under a manager I like”
I believe in treating employees favourably and with full rights but I am a little jaundiced about the wage negotiations of superstar footballers, actors and musicians and their resort to claiming their rights as they screw the fanbase supporting their activities and lifestyles.
All 3 of the above were entitled to react in the way they did. Funny though, that Bobo and Chris get more adulation from our support for cutting and running than Neil got for staying. Sometimes , in our desire to boot the board we cheer actions which damage our club’s competitive prospects.
SFTB-Hope you are well,I always enjoy reading your posts.I feel i have to take you to task re Chris Sutton and Alan Thompson.You are absolutely correct that WGS came in with the Board mandate of reducing the wage bill.I maintain that Chris could have played CB ,the same way as Weiry Dave did at Diedco,only better.Alan Thompson went on to be a big part of the NL coaching team after being headhunted from Newcastle United’s Youth Academy,thus showing he could have been a major asset to a new manager,and helping new/younger players settle in .I spoke to Chris at his Tribute Dinner about 2 years ago,without going in to detail he and Thommo were very shabbily treated,after proving themselves to be exceptional players in the Hoops.As you say,it’s all about money and the downsizing at that time, but i cannot agree that we did not miss these players when they left.HH
traditionalist88
“But with a complacent attitude we will make it hard for ourselves, ”
Only if the players and managers have it. We can be as complacent or diligent as we want on a blog but it makes no difference to sporting outcomes.
BMCUWP
“You’ll be telling us next that the overall wage bill went down,and the standard of player improved. ”
It’s hardly worth the bother of me posting when so many know already what I am going to say.
Or, would like me to set up an idiotic argument which is easily refuted :-)
Let me speak for myself. As bad as I am at it, it’s unfair to delegate the task.
MORE GOOD NEWS!!!!!!
Malcolm Murray: Rangers won’t survive unless I’m voted back
Former chairman’s stark warning to Ulster-based fans
03 December 2013
Former Rangers chairman Malcolm Murray has raised fears over the long term future of the club if the consortium that he is part of fails to win the approval of shareholders at this month’s AGM.
He and ex-board member Paul Murray – who is also a member of the group that is trying to win control at Ibrox – met with representatives of 60 Rangers supporters clubs in Belfast last night. And he didn’t sugar coat the message that an institution that had designs on being kings of Europe less than 20 years ago remains on the precipice – 18 months after it entered administration.
The future can be bright, however, with ambitions to play in a European Super League down the line – but only if the club is on a secure footing. “I personally think that the club is in danger if we don’t get a win here,” said Malcolm, who is likely to return as chairman if the vote on December 19 goes the way of his group rather than the current board being re-elected.
“I don’t see how it’s going to be funded. The official statement from the last fans meeting with the current board said that they would have £1m cash left in April. “They spent quite a lot of that already in pay-outs so I don’t know how much longer it will be before it runs out – probably before Easter if things don’t change dramatically or unless they have investors lined up, which they haven’t said they have. “We do have, both private and institutional investors, who will back us.”
The picture in Govan has never looked bleaker. Craig Whyte bought the club for a mere £1 in May 2011 from David Murray. By February the following year it was in administration and within six months Rangers found itself in the Scottish Third Division for the first time in its illustrious 140 year history. While things are improving on the pitch after last season’s promotion success, off the field uncertainty remains. Paul and Malcolm are working to put Rangers back on an even keel and rallying the support of the club’s Northern Ireland fanbase is crucial to them – hence the reason why they made the trip across the Irish Sea.
Paul Murray said: “These are the customers of the club and unlike an English club, in Scotland the fans are the lifeblood of the club with the money they spend on season tickets, merchandise etc. “What I find disappointing is that last Thursday in Glasgow nobody from the current board came to address the fans and they didn’t even reply to the email invite to come to Belfast, which I think is a really shoddy way to treat the customers.
“The fans saved the club last year and to not engage with them just isn’t right.”
Their attempts to gain control of Rangers have met a number of barriers already. Paul was removed from the board almost three years ago. Malcolm was ousted as chairman earlier this year. They are, however, refusing to give up. Even in the last few weeks they have to go to the Court of Session in Edinburgh to win the nominations at the AGM.
“I want to get involved to help save the club,” said Malcolm. “This time last year there was a short period when we thought that things were looking pretty good. We raised £22m, had a clean balance sheet, had full asset ownership. Unfortunately with all of our difficulties most of that cash has disappeared on non-investment activities. “Investment activities mean spending money on the stadium or players – that’s what a football club does – but the money has been spent elsewhere and it needs tight cash control for the future, new funding – which we have access to -and get the faith of the fans back.” “This puts us in a position to go to any of the institutional investors who are still wavering and say we have the customers overwhelmingly behind our group to clean this up for the future. That’s why it’s important. “I was an institutional fund manager for over 30 years. In 30 years of trying to sort companies out this is the most complex situation I have ever seen, Ending up in the Court of Sessions in Edinburgh to get nominations at an AGM is outrageous and a waste of company funds. It could have been done months ago.”
It’s only five years since Rangers were in the Uefa Cup final. Twenty years ago this season they were in what was effectively a Champions League semi-final against Marseille. Those days can return according to the Malcolm. He said: “Anything can happen, but we have to be in financial health to be involved.”
I think the time is right to pull up a seat and simply watch sevco eat itself over the next three weeks – leading up to the agm
setting free the bears
I’m not so sure about that,complacency from fans can filter through-the players/staff don’t exist in a vacuum. Look at the Morton game- complacency on and off the pitch.
HH
Parkheadcumsalford- 90, eh?
Part time supporter ;/)
Seriously I hope Celtic continue to give him many more years of pleasure, and he has the health to enjoy it.
traditionalist88
“it may be more difficult than any of us imagined…”
Mickbhoy1888 made the same argument last year when, to be fair, there was slightly more justification for it. I will say the same to you as I said to him.
If you genuinely felt there was a strong chance of us losing the league because one of the other squads was capable of a 24 or 25 game run of better results than us as suspensions and injuries hit their smaller squads, you could make a fortune and set yourself up for life in betting that.
Nobody believes it to be a likely outcome this year, despite us having some poor buys and despite us having stuttering form.
Maybe in 2 to 3 years time another Scottish club will have gotten strong enough to do so but they are not there at present.
Ok which one of you guys is Bill Bailey?
Watched his DVD the other night and he talked at length about Cognitive Dissonance.
My money’s on kevjungle.
Is it just Derek Johnstone who has been threatened within an inch of his working knees to not talk ill of the dead or have others also been targetted by travel management?
Hmmmm!!!
MWD
Bada Bing
I was at the same tribute dinner and I am fully aware of Chris’s take on events. He was of the view that WGS was a poor manager and he did not fancy playing under him. He could have done what Lenny did do. He had the option of refusing the board’s approach and doing a Bobo. He declined both and left on a free, which I assume was mutually agreed.
As for missing Tommo or Chris. WGS had his own team and did not know that Thommo was going to be a decent youth coach, albeit with other issues. Losing out temporarily on a youth coach was no great loss.
In Chris’s case, I actually believe that he may have been a loss, if his career-ending eye injury had not made that speculation moot.
My point remains. Thommo left, Chris left, Jackie left, Didier left, and, eventually, BBJ and Bobo left. None of those that stayed briefly, contributed anything significant to WGS’s 3iar. None of those that left had playing careers that made us wish they had been still with us.
SFTB,
Ok,I take your points onboard.Do you not think though that this”Mineshafters,Happy clappers “thing should be abolished.Its nonsense.
Duggan inquest hearing that police officers lied in court – allegedly.
Surely not?!
HH!!