I can’t tell you how many statements I’ve read from those trying to bring down Newco Rangers (bonne chance) but not one comes near to approaching the key question: what can they offer the the men and women who own shares in Newco to convince them to accommodate their future aspirations?
Threats, intimidation and blackmail are all possible incentives, but no one has actually put a case forward which would compensate the investment made by the shareholders who, let’s remember, own all club assets.
An enormous assumption appears to have been made that hedge funds and various Easdales will capitulate and simply walk away and sign their paid-for assets over to a group who are regularly abusive towards them. It’s like 2012 all over again, when parts of the world assumed HMRC would capitulate and agree to a CVA for Oldco, despite all genuine evidence (i.e. published policy) indicating otherwise.
Game Theorists would have a ball with this scenario. Shareholders are being offered a choice, hand over your assets to a hostile opponent or attempt to continue with a vastly reduced business. The former option should not be taken seriously.
Question is, where does this particular game end? It’ll not be in an outcome satisfactory to many of those dreaming of ‘competing with Celtic’ anytime soon.
This mind-set should be familiar. It’s the same one which blamed Celtic, or small-minded small clubs, the SPL and/or SFA, blamed anyone, in fact, apart from those who endorsed years of overspend at Rangers, for their eventual demise.
Walking headlong into unsustainable debt is no different than walking headlong into a conflict with hedge funds who would sell your valued acre for landfill rather than be held to ransom.
I’ll renew my season tickets tonight (still annoyed I didn’t do so in time for the free ticket draw). Whatever happens in the wider scheme of Scottish football, one club will be supported ‘through and through’.
Yogi Bare – The John Hughes autobiography:
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Night night Timland. :-)))) KTF
Weefra HH supporting and praying for Wee Oscar.
the unthank road
00:02 on
I do know what you mean and part of me believes they will never change but I and no doubt every one on this blog knows at least one fan of the dead club that is a decent person who doesn’t buy into that mentality. My hope is that these fans have the courage to stand up and say stop we need to join the real world.
Off to bed, moon howlers be good and don’t be to noisy
Night Timville City Limits!
Mrs jamesgang had trifle in tonight. 2nd say running here. Training for jelly n ice cream? Hope so!
HH jamesgang
Badabing they have a massive inferiority complex,a shadow cast by our success.
HH
Estorilbhoy
As far as I know, yes, that is correct. Meaning they would go into administration due mainly to overspending on players’ wages, players who enabled them to win the division by enough points to take even a 25 point hit, for their ‘second administration’. This would obviously be vital for the continuation of the same club myth.
After a certain date, any administration event, and the penalties it attracts, would apply to next season. Guess what they’d prefer.
Easdale: Rangers’ financial position is fragile but we don’t want to go back to dark days of administration Published on 24 April 2014
Rangers’ financial position is in a “fragile” state, major shareholder Sandy Easdale claims.
Ibrox chief executive Graham Wallace is due to release the findings of his 120-day review into the League One champions’ books on Friday.
But Easdale – the chairman of the club’s football board – has spoken out a day early to admit the picture is not bright and admit he is not sure if the club will enter administration for a second time.
He said: “At the end of the day, the club is at a crossroads at the moment and a fragile position.
“It can either go forward with a strategic view, with a long-term view, steady as she goes, or be pulled apart in other directions.”
The Light Blues faithful have been encouraged by former oldco director Dave King and the supporter coalition group the Union of Fans to withhold their season-ticket fees and instead place it a holding account until they are given security over Ibrox and Murray Park.
And Easdale admitted the ploy had affected ticket sales, which he described as “slow”.
The Greenock-based bus tycoon said: “I don’t actually know the figures [for season ticket renewals] but I think there are a couple of situations there; we’re a couple of weeks early. People are waiting for a report. At this moment in time, ticket sales are slow.”
Rangers made a £3.5million loss for the six months up to December and when asked if the supporter ticket boycott could place the club at risk of another administration, Easdale said: “That’s a difficult question. And it’s a question that I don’t want to answer or be in a position that this board would be forced into that situation.
“I would say that in 140 years, the club’s gone into administration once; I don’t think it would survive a second one.
“So, I would ask every loyal Rangers fan, and I pick my words correctly in saying loyal Rangers fan, supports the club at this time and gives it a chance.
“We don’t want to go back to the dark days of administration. Everything’s a possibility and at the moment we’ve got to look on a positive as a board, taking it forward.”
However, Rangers boss Ally McCoist – who was due to meet with Wallace later on Thursday to find out the full scope of the club’s financial state – insists he is not panicking yet.
“I wouldn’t say I’m worried,” said the manager. “We will react to what we are told we can and cannot do.
“But worries are something that have been with us in one shape or another for the last couple of seasons. We will just have to wait and see what happens and react to it accordingly.”
McCoist – whose side will celebrate their third-tier title success when they parade the League One trophy after Saturday’s final home game of the season against Stranraer – is reported to be interested in a number of targets ahead of next season’s Championship campaign.
Former Ibrox striker Kris Boyd – now with Kilmarnock – Motherwell’s Shaun Hutchinson and St Mirren midfielder Kenny McLean are among those on his wish list but the Ibrox boss is still unsure if he will even be allowed to keep his current squad intact, never mind add to it.
For now, he says informing the players already under his charge is his first priority.
He said: “It’s of paramount of importance that we start talking to our own players about the club and their futures. The next step is planning for the squad for the future.
“We’ve not been able to offer other players any deals and that leaves them open to offers from elsewhere. That is obviously a potential problem for us but there is nothing we can do about it.”
Responding to Easdale’s comments, the Union of Fans released a statement raising a number of concerns.
It said: “The financial position of the club is not down to lack of support or loyalty from any of our fans, it is down to two years of mismanagement and the squandering of huge sums of money, which Mr Easdale has been a part of for the past seven months.
“Mr Easdale, despite his apparently intimate knowledge of the PLC’s financial position, was unwilling to provide the club with a loan without taking security on it. He now urges fans, who are completely in the dark regarding this board’s ability to take the club forward, to put their money in to sustain the current regime, fronted by him, on behalf of nameless, faceless shareholders of [Blue Pitch Holdings] and Margarita.
“We would like to know why Mr Easdale is being pushed out to speak on behalf of a PLC board he is not part of. Mr Easdale’s comments about the financial position of the club are share-price sensitive, as are his comments about possible administration. These comments directly contradict those of the CEO, Graham Wallace, who is on record as saying that a second administration is not a possibility.
“Why is the PLC board allowing Mr Easdale to make these comments on their behalf and why does he have access to such information in any case when he is not a director of the PLC? Once again huge question marks are raised over corporate governance at Rangers by Mr Easdale’s role at the club, which has never been clarified.”
Those who look forward to Rangers in the SPFL for the competition are in for a disappointment. They won’t be competing with us for a long time to come.
I hope they disappear forever, but if they do not, and eventually make it to the top division, I’ll look forward to us humiliating them again and again, but just for the joy of that. Nothing to do with more competition.
Awe_naw
Agree 100% with Mr CEO, Graham Wallace!
Goodnight and God bless all Tims
GCT
My view is that Rangers(1872-2012) has gone forever, as the club was liquidated. However, I admit that this Sevco tribute act has got under my skin, having adopted most of the traits I so disliked in their original version. Therefore, I too would look forward to humiliating them for the same reasons as you, but also would prefer complete disappearance.
Beatbhoy,
Couldn’t have put it better.
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS ………Praying for our WEE HERO!
23:42 on 24 April, 2014
Sadly, you almost begin to expect it.
Sad, angry people with no compassion or hope.
Some humans ain’t human – John Prine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lB2E6RX7W44&feature=kp
McCoist frets over ‘fragile’ Rangers
Published: 25 April 2014
Rangers shareholders James, left, and Sandy Easdale at Ibrox with Graham Wallace. Sandy Easdale is worried about the clubs finances. Picture: Rob Casey/SNS Group
By ALAN PATTULLO
Rangers manager Ally McCoist has admitted major shareholder Sandy Easdale’s description of the Ibrox club’s finances as “fragile” is a significant concern ahead of today’s publication of a 120-day business review.
Rangers manager Ally McCoist has admitted major shareholder Sandy Easdale’s description of the Ibrox club’s finances as “fragile” is a significant concern ahead of today’s publication of a 120-day business review.
McCoist was visibly taken aback when he heard Easdale had already given an interview to BBC Scotland yesterday, ahead of the manager’s own press commitments before tomorrow’s final home league of the season against Stranraer. Although Rangers will be presented with the League 1 championship trophy after the game, it is today’s long-awaited business review, prepared by chief executive Graham Wallace, that dominates the agenda at Ibrox.
Staff at the club are anxiously awaiting the outcome of the review and whether it will impact on their jobs amid fears of further cost-cutting. McCoist said that the welfare of employees was of paramount concern.
“Nothing’s changed in my opinion with regards the livelihoods of the staff,” he said. “That’s arguably the most important thing. Obviously the future and health of the club is of vital importance, but without doubt the people within the football club and their livelihoods are extremely important.”
Easdale, who is also chairman of the club’s football board, yesterday admitted Rangers were “at a crossroads”. The businessman urged supporters to keep buying season tickets. The most recent set of interim accounts published by the Ibrox club saw accountants Deloitte note that “the company has made key assumptions in relation to the timing of season ticket monies”, adding that uncertainty over the receipt of season ticket income indicated “the existence of a material uncertainty which may cast significant doubt about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern”.
Compromising the club’s plans is a strategy of some fans, backed by former Ibrox director and potential investor Dave King, to withhold season ticket money in a fund. The sum will only be released when certain conditions are met by the board.
Season-ticket sales to date were described as “slow” by Easdale. Also concerning for McCoist was the major shareholder’s sopinion Rangers could not survive another administration.
“In 140 years, the club’s gone into administration once,” said Easdale. “I don’t think it would survive a second one. So I would ask every loyal Rangers fan – and I pick my words correctly in saying ‘loyal Rangers fan’ – supports the club at this time and gives it a chance.”
It was this kind of rhetoric McCoist admitted was troubling, although he had not yet been fully briefed on Easdale’s comments. “He told the BBC that?” asked McCoist. “That’s news to me. I wouldn’t react to it until I had time to digest it to be honest. But if that’s what he’s said then that would be a little bit concerning.”
The manager, who had a series of meetings yesterday with club hierarchy, was cautious when asked to comment on what he expected would be the contents of the review.
“I would be hopeful of non-negative news,” he said. “We will react accordingly to the news we get. I don’t want to pre-empt this. There is no point in guessing what might or might not happen.”
Earlier in the day Easdale had admitted he was uncertain what the future held for Rangers. “At the end of the day, the club is at a crossroads at the moment and a fragile position,” he said. “It can either go forward with a strategic view, with a long-term view, steady as she goes, or be pulled apart in other directions.”
The bus tycoon also outlined his concern over season ticket renewals. He said: “I don’t actually know the figures but I think there are a couple of situations there; we’re a couple of weeks early. People are waiting for a report. At this moment in time, ticket sales are slow.”
McCoist, meanwhile, is braced for being told there are limited funds with which to strengthen his current squad, who have gone through the current league season unbeaten. He said that being challenged to win the Championship title next season with an equal or even lesser budget would “go with the territory” of being Rangers manager in the current times.
“It’s not a concern because I accept it,” he shrugged. “Whether I like it or think it’s right or wrong is immaterial – I accept it. It goes with the territory and I’ll have to handle that.
“The budget has dropped in the region of 70 per cent of two or three years ago and it’s dropped again this year from last year. But what everyone needs to realise is that I don’t set the budget. I didn’t give the new players their wages, I had nothing to do with that, that was the previous regime, so you’d have to ask any questions relating to that to them. I was only working within the parameters that were given to me. I wasn’t the one who offered them x amount of thousand pounds a week. That wasn’t my gig. I just wanted to play them and thankfully I got the players.”
McCoist is relieved that at least his options, if he has any, will become clearer by the end of today when it comes to the matter of signing players. The club have been linked with moves for Motherwell defender Shaun Hutchinson and St Mirren midfielder Kenny McLean, as well as Gavin Gunning and Kris Boyd, of Dundee United and Kilmarnock respectively. More crucial, McCoist pointed out, is the need to sort out the futures of players nearing the end of their contracts. “I’ve still only spoken to two players but in the crazy situation we are in, I haven’t been able to offer them anything,” he revealed. “If I get the go-ahead we would be interested in talking to them.
“That’s all I can say to them,” he added. “It’s anything but ideal. My priority is to speak to the guys here at the club first. That’s the very least they deserve.”
The Union of Fans, a coalition of Rangers supporters, issued a statement last night hitting back at Easdale’s comments. It said: “The financial position of the club is not down to lack of support or loyalty from any of our fans, it is down to two years of mismanagement and the squandering of huge sums of money.
“We would like to know why Mr Easdale is being pushed out to speak on behalf of a PLC board he is not part of. Mr Easdale’s comments about the financial position of the club are share-price sensitive, as are his comments about possible administration.
“These comments directly contradict those of the CEO, Graham Wallace, who is on record as saying that a second administration is not a possibility.
“Once again huge question marks are raised over corporate governance at Rangers by Mr Easdale’s role at the club, which has never been clarified.”
Geordie Munro
Thanks. Was dreading an argument, as I’m cream-crackered, so I’ll quit while I’m ahead!
Good Night, and Hail! Hail!
Has anyone ever heard the Norwegian Blues team which won the Cup Winners Cup(?) in 72 referred to as the “Barcelona Bears”? Just heard it as part of the tribute to Sandy Jardine and have to say its the first time I have heard the term.
Seems being presented with a trophy in the bog puts you on a par with the Lisbon Lions.
BB,
I shudder to think of what would happen if they cut their cloth accordingly, played the young team, one or four experienced old guard, dropped the songs and admitted they were a new club!!!!!!
Yikes!! I mighta had a soupcon of respect for them ;)
eddie in kirkmichael.
Your right, and slightly wrong too, if you don’t mind me saying so. We all know a sevconite who talks sense, the problem is, he has a thousand brothers who cannot see what is happening. remember two years ago on the Tv;- “The big hoose must stay open” , no logic, just this mentality of superiority, “we are too important to go down”, no sense of reality, backed up by the lunatic ravings of walter no name, that rankers had to keep spending because they were rankers. Absol;ute nuts.
Anyway
Night Night CQNers and sweet dreams ( mostly of tomorrows fun!)
awe_naw_no_annoni_oan_anaw_noo
01:01 on 25 April, 2014
Sleekit Ally as usual placing the blame for his shortcomings elsewhere, denying responsibility and knowledge.
Last week was Holy Week but he’s still doing his impression of Pontius Pilate.
And this is the man they are getting behind?
Just catching up on today’s posts and yet again some interesting discussion is interceded by some more space cadet nonsense from our resident #insert your preferred description# :
So MT should have kept his son’s disgraceful experiences, which others have also experienced and are experiencing, away from CQN? Aye. What a valuable contributor to intelligent debate you are tonydonnelly67. If only we could get rid of further education which you believe is the cause of all our questioning idiocy and produce more muppets like you.
Every time I see your blog name, I can’t help but unpleasantly recall the picture you proudly posted of yourself with soiled underpants. Oh the irony.
I also can’t help wondering why you prefer to try (failingly) to protect the Celtic Board at the expense of your fellow supporters. Odd beyond belief, but I suppose by the law of averages, there has to be one of you amongst the Celtic Support.
—–
tonydonnelly67
09:32 on 24 April, 2014
If I thought Celtic where doing me an injustice I would be finding out what the procedure is as in who to get in touch with who to state my case to, be it by e mail, letter, or phone call, and I think the guy who deals with this is J P Taylor, I would get in touch with him ASAP, I would do it on my own without the help of any one, until I think that I had exhausted all lines of communication, then and only then would I seek advice, but I’d be very careful on who was giving me advice as some would use it to meet there own agenda and there are many in here who would jump at that opportunity as I’ve noted with many of the posts, you get more attention from bees using honey than using vinegar, and when it come to an attack on the Celtic board, there is enough vinegar in here to cover fish suppers for every one in Castlemilk for a weekend, trust me, and it’s all the usual suspects, good luck to your son, I’m sure if he has done no wrong then all will be fine. Hail hail, lurking Huns GIRUYs.
Sad news for the Jardine family.
Condolences
HH
FFM
I haven’t seen the picture of TD and going by your description, i’m not missing much. Anyway, I prefer to imagine him as Paul Calf, Steve Coogan’s original alter ego.
HH
skyisalandfill
:) It would be amusing, if he wasn’t attacking further education and encouraging blind, blatant sycophancy to the children who read these pages, which are otherwise, I think, an important and enjoyable read for the younger CQNers.
I think I know where you’re coming from – he’s having a laugh. But a laugh at the most serious issues affecting our support in a long long time. Not funny, but ugly stuff and more damaging than any troll from the dark side or Jack’s paid entourage could have ever have done.
And now I’ve just seen his post at 12:03pm.
Stalking CQNers online now. I suppose that’s light given his “reds under the bed” attacks on JF of the CST.
Dangerous half-wit of a man.
I was sitting in Darky Kelly’s in Christchurch – Dublin sipping a cold Guinness and guess who walked in? It was only BMCUW with sweat dripping off him as he’d missed the last train…..
Sorry, I hope you don’t think I was trivialising his behaviour on here. He can be at times quite funny in a Paul Calf stylee, but, you’re right he seems to be the very antithisus of what this blog is about. I’m all for a range of political, social and philisophical views being aired on the blog but his constant sniping at the Res 12 ghuys, JF and anyone who as much as rolls their eyes at a steward seem almost ‘protesting too much’.
Lifes rich tapestry and all that, but sometimes I wish he would gie it a rest.
HH
MWD,
Your post below was my reaction as well.
Was disappointed in Paul’s last paragraph. Of course unintentional, but it resounded in my ear as “whatever” to the likes of MT.
I think/ HOPE Paul is hinting at something more, as I remember well he predicted these troubling times before liquidation, specifically in relation to our own support.
But if the club’s hands are tied in some way, I can’t see why more can’t be divulged to clarify this.
So I come to the conclusion that, in the same way banks use recessions as an excuse to lay off staff, the PLC board are using this as an excuse to ….well I’ve no idea what they’re trying to do. All I know is that the lives of our supporters are being treated as expendable losses. And that disgusts me.
On another more positive note, it’s great to see you posting more again. Your posts were amongst those that hooked me into CQN many many moons ago, and had me thinking, I want to meet some of these fellas for a pint ! :))
——-
Paul67 maybe if the PLC were genuine and honest with the fanbase and treated us all with respect, did not attempt to turn sections, associations, affiliations of support against othere sections of the support via secret meetings, did not collude whilst pretending not to with Police Scotland to make life difficult for sections of it’s own fan base for too long, did not ban supporters until the full judicial process had been concluded, did not pretend the Huns did not die and afford them the pretence that they still exist as the same entity after that died club shafted all of the Scottish game never mind us then the club would in return receive a full vocal genuine support.
This works both ways.
MWD says Aye.
ffm and skyisalandfill,
As the man on Chewin the Fat said to his boy when he saw the traffic warden, “son, in life there are people who can and people who can’t”, on here TD67 is definitely a CAN’T, but only in my opinion ye know!
AR
skyisalandfill
Not at all amigo.
Must end the chat on that though, we are now a bullying clique me and you :)) And I had loads of stuff on Pauline too…. :)))
HH
AR
Brilliant!
HH
AR,
Yep, a sad sad truth :(
Right, I owe a laugh to you all for making this evening miserable with my moaning.
This always works :)) Of course, I can’t take credit for it, but two good Tims can.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5-z4iMBFZA
FFM
Enjoyed the discourse.
Spill the beans on Pauline.
That is not a euphemism ;-)
HH
ffm,
Still laughing, Jack’s (Ford Kiernan) Dad used to live down here in Western Australia, gave my wife a Still Game book one day when she was at work in the library, not sure if he is still about these parts, small world.
AR
skyisalandfill
Pauline’s life is her own amigo :))
AR,
I didn’t need convinced about how funny the fellas are of course, but I knew they were onto something when I realised they were making middle class OAPs laugh as well as every wean in Scotland. Stood to reason they were Tims as well. You can’t fake intelligence :))
ffm,
What about yon artificial intelligence, do you think the sevcomedians have that brand cornered! -:)
Auldheid,
This is where another element of these developments falls down for me.
The Celtic Board were unaware of this despite it being discussed here on CQN for how long?…
I am in full support of Resolution 12 (for what my tuppence is worth), but when you tell me the Celtic Board are grateful we brought it “to their attention”, ….well do I need to spell it out to you? a. They weren’t aware of it, or b) they were aware of it, but thanks anyway, let us deal with the bits you non board members can’t understand.”
If it’s a sublime way of telling us here that Res 12 is giving them a vehicle to pursue the matter then fair enough, but it’s not coming across like that.
So forgive me still feeling flabbergasted while the support is being decimated, Celtic supporters are victimised by the polis, and the share returns go up in short term value, which all spells out to me, a majority shareholder looking for a quick inflation of price followed by a quick sale.
Auldheid
14:13 on 24 April, 2014
MWD
I reckon it will be a long process of change but what I can say on Res12 itself is that Celtic were treated less than honestly by the SFA and are treating what the Res brought to their attention seriously and are acting in unison with shareholder’s representatives to establish the truth.
That is how matters stand now.
AR,
“Artificial Intelligence”???
Coisty as C3PO:
“Master Jack, Master Jack….. Does not compute, Does not compute….”
It sums up his relation with R2D2, the inter-gallactic cyber version of the Myth:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LayytCn7jno
ffm,
R2D2, “Whaur’s the Deeds ya daftie!”
AR