The mind is a remarkable thing. If you ask around, you’ll find Celtic fans tell you we played Boavista in the Uefa Cup semi-final in Porto on the Thursday night, before going to Ibrox on the Saturday (it was the Sunday).
Similarly, Barry Ferguson is mumping his gums without restrain today, complaining about Rangers fixtures in May 2008. Rangers were due to play a ridiculous number of games in May due to qualifying for the Scottish Cup and Uefa Cup finals, while catching up on postponed fixtures.
The SPL decided to accommodate them by extending the league programme until two days before the Scottish Cup final. This final was on the last possible date before clubs were ordered to release players for that year’s Uefa European Championships, which started 14 days later.
This season has echoes of 2008 but nothing more. Whereas clubs would have been forbidden from using certain players after the date of the Scottish Cup final in 2008, under current proposals for this year, the second bottom club from the Premiership and qualifier from the Championship will need to retain a number of players beyond their contract end date of 31 May.
Retaining players beyond 31 May will cost clubs money, and players could theoretically refuse to extend their season by a few days, which is this season’s problem. 2008’s problem was a hard deadline imposed by Uefa with no extensions possible. The decision was out of the SPL’s hands.
Great article on the club site today marking Br. Walfrid’s passing and the struggles faced by our forefathers in the late 19th Century. The news that the Foundation are feeding 500 of Glasgow’s homeless today continues the momentum from Wednesday night. Well done to all involved.
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Geordie Munro:
I must have missed it. Any chance you could copy and paste?
kitalba
Aren’t we all mate:)
Celtic would have to factor in the ticket prices for the demand that will come The Rangers appearance in the top league, not to do so would be unprofessional.
The last time I was home I was amazed to learn how many Celtic through and through mates of mine no longer go to the games and to be honest f I was in Scotland in my current financial situation I would be going to many games myself. With all the skulduggery there are plenty of reasons to find something else to do with your time.
Celtic may well wither and die as “The One Big Club of Scotland” questions I have many, answers only a few…
So if all the clubs in the SPL believe there is a risk that ‘Rangers’ cannot fulfil a season, like their own accountants – Delloites – do, then why, come what may, and planning, and season ticket sales, and the continuation of morals, ethics, integrity, honour, decency and dignity, why don’t they collectively block any engineered promotion?….
bugger it, we all know we don’t need the bigot pound, the sheep don’t want it, Dundee don’t want it, Edinburgh says no, Perth is rolling about in fits, and the ghosts of Clydebank rest their chins on their chests. They’re tired, very tired. Just like their cousins in Gretna.
GM-Wait for a decent tipster to post one mate:)
What is an Employee Benefit Trust?
A trust enables an individual to own an asset on behalf of someone else. The first person is the “trustee” and the second is the “beneficiary”. Company pension schemes are a common example of a trust.
With EBTs, the employer deposits money in to the trust, which is paid out to the beneficiaries in the form of tax-free loans.
Trusts are often postponed and are sometimes refused by the trustee, who is, in theory, acting independently of the employer.
In many cases, the loans are never repaid.
Why are Rangers in a court dispute with HMRC over EBTs?
Payments from an EBT should not be made on a contractual basis, as it would make them part of an employee’s salary and subject to tax and National Insurance.
HMRC claims that Rangers’ EBT scheme was a tax scam as it was contractual, which forms the basis of the so-called “Big Tax Case”.
HMRC also insists it has proof of this in the form of documents and emails between former directors at Rangers and players’ agents.
In 2010, HMRC issued Rangers with a bill for £35m in unpaid tax and interest, and £14m in penalties which Rangers challenged at the Court of Session in Edinburgh, but the verdict has not been announced.
Have any other Scottish football clubs been involved with EBT schemes?
BBC Scotland Investigates wrote to all of the Scottish Premier League’s member clubs and asked whether they had ever operated an EBT scheme.
Celtic confirmed that it established one EBT scheme in April 2005, which BBC Scotland understands was for the benefit of the Brazilian midfielder Juninho Paulista. The scheme was worth £765,000 but the club did not declare the trust payment to the Scottish Football Association or the Scottish Premier League.
The payments made to the trust were declared in Celtic’s annual report for 2004/2005, but in 2008 the club became aware of an event giving rise to a potential tax liability which was subsequently paid after agreement with HMRC.
The remaining 10 SPL clubs replied and confirmed they had never set up an EBT scheme for any of their employees.
Who set up the EBT scheme for Rangers and the Murray Group?
A former lawyer who advised companies on tax strategy known as Paul Baxendale-Walker. He was struck off the roll of solicitors by a disciplinary tribunal in 2007. Mr Baxendale-Walker is the author of two books on EBT tax strategies and advised Rangers on how to set the scheme up and operate it.
He subsequently became involved in the porn industry, producing, directing and acting in films under the name Paul Chaplin.
How much did Rangers and the Murray Group pay into their EBT schemes?
Between 2001 and 2010, Rangers paid a total of £47.65m in to their Employee Benefit Trust. Details of the amounts paid in to the trust were declared in the club’s annual accounts.
Rangers also operated another tax avoidance scheme for two former players, Tore Andre Flo and Ronald De Boer, between 2000-01 and 2002-03 known as a ‘Discounted Options Scheme’ – commonly referred to as the “Wee Tax Case”. HMRC issued Rangers with a bill of about £4m for outstanding amounts owed from the discounted options tax scheme, which was settled, but has not been paid.
BBC Scotland understands the Murray Group paid at least £10m to the trust.
How many beneficiaries were involved the Rangers EBT scheme?
A total of 111 sub-trusts were set up between 2001-2010 for Rangers directors, players and other staff – along with employees of Murray International Holdings and its subsidiary companies.
A total of 53 Rangers players and staff received side contracts giving undertakings to fund their sub-trusts with cash, according to documents seen by BBC Scotland.
How much money did the beneficiaries withdraw in loans from the scheme?
The amounts varied from a total of £6.3m received by Sir David Murray to £7,500 for Bellshill-born defender Steven Smith, who left the club in 2011.
Former Rangers captain Barry Ferguson received a total of £2.5m while ex-Ibrox player/manager Graeme Souness received £30,000 from the scheme almost 10 years after leaving the club.
The average amount received by Rangers and Murray Group employees was about £445,000.
What if Rangers players have received side-letters?
BBC Scotland has also seen evidence, which was submitted to a court, suggesting that 53 Rangers players and staff had side-letters giving undertakings to fund their sub-trusts with cash.
According to the Scottish Football Association’s registration rules, payments received by a player solely relating to his playing activities must be fully recorded and declared, otherwise the player has been improperly registered.
If a player is deemed to be improperly registered, the norm is for his team to forfeit any match in which he has participated.
So, could Rangers be stripped of past titles and trophies?
Precedence exists for this kind of rule-breaking and subsequent punishment in football and other sports.
In 1994, Marseilles were found guilty of financial irregularities and a match fixing scandal involving then president Bernard Tapie.
The French club was forcibly relegated to Ligue 1 and lost its 1992-93 Division One title and the right to play in the Champions League in 1993-94, the 1993 European Super Cup and the 1993 Intercontinental Cup.
HH
kitalba
Just vanished a whole reply Kit:)) Time tae get the dinner on here..
The football is the least of this story and it will be interesting to see if the case against Duff & Duffer brings us any closer to the truth..
Hail Hail fae the Valley..
Seen the headline in today’s DR regarding the league not being extended.If I recall correctly the league was extended but they wanted it extended again.As for his ” We could have brought a European trophy back to Scotland” comment. To have won that game Oldco would have needed to have attacked the opposition and they didn’t-seriously one sided game.The only thing attacked that night was most of Manchester and each other.
Bada,
Lmfao.
Too late. I’ve got ocd.
It’s gone
HH
I see former Hoops legend wee Paul McGowan has been taigged…….*I think that’s what they said*
starry plough:
Don’t fear mate, if they don’t tell us the truth we’ll just smack them in the face with ‘the dossier’ and it that doesn’t get instant results well boot them in the baws with ‘the portfilio’.
‘The Prorfolio’ is nuclear, it ‘ll blow them away. Far.
And if that doesn’t work… we’ll employ silence, ‘the silence ot the Tims’ confuses the life out of everybody, especially the Tims but it is wicked, it is potent.
When did we lose our soul?
Where did we lose our soul?
Has anybody seen our soul?
Who cares about soul… here we go 10 in a row.
What glory Gretna?
Ole Serbian legend Stefan Scepovic set to return to squad/bench for Hamdump.
Mon big Skelfy CSC
Sevco
If I remember correctly
Scottish teams were allowed to
postpone one game before a European game
Rule was it had to be played next available
date. We played ours against Falkirk
mid week Sevco and SFA forgot about next avilable
date rule and added another game to congestion.
They also drew with Partick and Hibs in cup
and had a cup game at Ibrox postponed against
ALLOA or some lower league team because
someone turned sprinklers on and flooded pitch.
Glasgow Bath St and still Baltic
Boscoybhoy02 not only will celtic continue to be, ahem, shat on, they positively want it to happen.
It’s good for business (we are told).
Every day more and more evidence of our collusion appears. Every day it is denied on this site.
Paul won’t even post an article on the SB price changes. Why? Because he would have to deal with the hun lust that’s behimd it. But lots of articles on the Huns and their shenanigans. It’s hypocritical.
Look over ther (but don’t look too hard here).
Weet weet weet 16:22
good post mate. hail hail,was just trawling thro some of that as you posted.
——————–
Have a good weekend Celts :-)
https://twitter.com/Fascinatingpics/status/588960231469744128
HH
Gretna:
They took it on the chin….
I know its been posted before but how does the promotion/relegation play offs work ?
Summa of Sammi….
11:22 on
17 April, 2015
.
Strange But True..
Sir David Murray’s First Job on Leaving School was as a Puppeteer..
*he would have been Sweep, he was good at that.
proudbhoy
16:46 on 17 April, 2015I know its been posted before but how does the promotion/relegation play offs work ?
the huns won it mate…….:)
Natknow,
” No Answer to that”
I concede the floor to you and acknowledge your Novel Approach!! : > )
proudbhoy 3rd plays 4th home and away winner plays 2nd home and away winner plays 2nd bottom from Premiership home and away. winner is in the Premiership, easy peasy. Hail Hail Hebcelt
Would somebody run into Glasgow and throw a coat at BSR.
Not sure if he’s in Bath St. or Baltic St.
Kitalba,
Fair point. I would go as far as suggest that no club in the SPFL or Championship should issue STs unless there was a cast iron guarantee or bond, that TRFC can complete a full 2015-16 season.
Just read that a labour candidate named Clive Lewis has had to apologies for making a joke regarding a , ahem , threesome between himself, ed milliband and a Goat…apparently The Goat
wasnt to Happy…..
Now Thats Funny…
Hebcelt
Cheers
Bada bing
Ribbons probably on and all
I’m sure hebcelt will be along in a minute to bemoan hte entry of politics onto the blog.
proudbhoy
16:46 on
17 April, 2015
I know its been posted before but how does the promotion/relegation play offs work ?
===
1.Huns get helping hand into playoff final.
2.No helping hand will be big enough to stop Skippy, McManus and Pearo lording it over them in the final.
Going to be great:)
HH
anyone know how ticket sales for both clubs are going for Sunday?
HH
Me: to unsuspecting Larkhall Sevconian woman in work “The ASDA still got its green and white signage?”
Sevconian woman from Larky: ” Aye and so has The Co.”
Sevco CSC
Celtic poly-tics
http://image.wikifoundry.com/wiki/Vince+the+Parrot/image/1LA$lc4cNdnzQGfktdTHyXw==10084/GW196H226
Jude
14 05
Chuckling away to myself here.HH
BGX that’s funny dos I heard a joke that Clive was in a threesome with a goat and wee Nicola. Neither the goat nor Clive were happy…….
Tradiomalst1888 have you heard of the phrase “honest mistakes”?
Trad88
Luvit.
Wee skippy banging in two late on to cuff them out :))
Karma csc
setting free the bears for Res. 12 & Oscar Knox
17:00 on
17 April, 2015
I’m sure hebcelt will be along in a minute to bemoan hte entry of politics onto the blog.
………………………………………………..
Bawsman is the easiest to wind up …with a little bit of politicious…..hahahaha braw
Hebcelt is a true gent …
braw
NegAnon you are either on the wacky baccy or your predictive text is!!! H H Hebcelt
Any videos of these 3somes doing the rounds? :)
A pal in Spain has a goat with no hind legs.
He calls it – Gracias.