Getting your edge. Re-writing Newco history

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I didn’t realise until watching TV last night it was Keith Lasley that Anthony Stokes ‘did’ on Saturday, the player who put Adam Matthews out of the game for a couple of months.  It’s a physical game, and I’m not going to concede violent behaviour is acceptable, but it would be super-human to not be affected by earlier violence.  We need to rise above this.

On a similar theme….  Another incident I missed at the game was James McFadden wresting Fraser Forster, who was holding the ball, early in the second half.  Minutes later Fraser threw himself to deny McFadden what looked like a certain goal.

Players need an edge to be able to summon their very best performances, and a wee nyaff climbing all over you is as likely to give you an edge as anything.  McFadden has a few years left in him.  He’s at a well-run club who will give him the platform to excel, if he can find the focus to deliver.

I see some re-writing of history today and over the weekend on where responsibility for Newco Rangers acute financial plight lies.  Among throwing blame on convenient scapegoats, one-time-hero-though-transparent-chancer Charles Green, and financial director, Brian Stockbridge, few seem prepared to offer up the prized oaf.

They banked £22m from a share issue and cash from circa 30,000 ticket sales, enough to see them through to top flight football, as long as they didn’t blow it on football bling.  So who was responsible for doing exactly that (if you can stretch the definition of bling to Jon Daly and even lesser appealing gems)?

Sure, Stockbridge and Mather signed off, and they certainly knew the financial situation the club was in, but we know enough of the story to explain why it happened.

Despite having a budget close to 100 times their opponents Newco suffered considerable humiliation at the hands of fourth-tier clubs last season.  Without reinforcements their chances of progress from the third tier was far from guaranteed – if they continued to allow Ally McCoist to run football operations.

McCoist was unsackable.  He played the fans perfectly, earning a ridiculous contract and shares a 1p each for his ability to put bums on seats.  Mather had to throw enough talent into the squad to ensure promotion with McCoist in charge, then rely on Charles Green to pull together another share issue.

The question you have to ask is, once McCoist had his reinforcements, who torpedoed the Charles Green supply ship?

No one is going to tell you Charles Green is a man you would want associated with your club, but before mob-rule ensured his attempts to raise investment cash were quashed, should someone not have asked the questions, why did the board find it necessary to bring such a pariah back and what happens if we throw him and his investment plans out?

We’re about to find out.

If suggestions that Newco will come close to expiring cash in hand before season ticket income arrives are accurate I expect they will get there, even if players don’t agree to a wage cut.  Companies can control when to pay creditors, even HMRC, who despite what is likely to be an acute interest in Newco, would take months to complete a debt recovery action.

Don’t get too drawn in the minutia of this, whether an insolvency event happens or not does not change the fundamentals, which we touched on last week.  Newco had a gamblers chance of turning into something resembling Oldco.

Spooking the SPL into giving them a ticket into top flight football would have seen them debt free and competing for last season’s SPL.  Three years of paying our bills while losing the league would have been pointless.  I genuinely think only one of Glasgow’s big teams was ever going to survive the SPL decision on Newco.

Had they liquidated Oldco, then flooded Newco with talent and won the league, Celtic would not have recovered, a reality that should be remembered when journalists talk about Scottish football harming itself in 2012.  It was them or us.
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627 Comments

  1. Morrissey the 23rd Viva Resolution 12! on

    Peter A Smith ‏@PeterAdamSmith Jan 16

     

    According to Rangers board they don’t have creditors, so the only real benefit of admin would be the ability to make quick redundancies…

     

     

    Phil MacGiollaBhain ‏@Pmacgiollabhain Jan 16

     

    @PeterAdamSmith And do a debt for equity swap to wipe out other shareholders not in on the deal….

  2. corkcelt- SUPPORTING THE DAM 5 on

    Just seen on news that the 12 man Hun mob who beat Kevin McDaid to death in Coleraine after the Hun/Celtic game May 2009 have at last been returned for trial almost 5 years after the murder.

  3. embramike @ 23:10,

     

     

    “Sorry Chairbhoy but I’ll stick with the facts of that time. It is easy to check when sevco played in the cup in their first season and the widely reported fact that they did not have a vote in football matters much to the chagrin of McMoist

     

     

    You are quite correct and I should have clarified..,

     

     

    The first Cup game Sevco played was away to Brechin at the end of July 2012, they were still Sevco at that time.

     

     

    They had been accepted into Div 3 of the SFL but must have played that game with an Associate Membership of the SFA, as the 5 way agreement wasn’t ratified (if it ever was) until the beginning of August 2012.

     

     

    At the beginning of August…

     

     

    The SFA Board transferred the Rangers FC membership to Sevco,

     

     

    The Rangers FC PLC (ia) changed their name to RFC 2012 and gave Sevco permission to use – The Rangers F C Ltd.

     

     

    RFC 2012 transferred their share in the SPL to Dundee.

     

     

    The great Football swindle was done!

     

     

    Hail Hail

  4. Many of the SFA rules have a wee clause basically saying that the SFA can overrule whenever they feel like it. And they are certainly in the mood when it comes to all things Rangers.

     

     

    The SFA approach has always been, “now, how can we interpret the rules to benefit Rangers or at least to minimise the impact on Rangers?”

     

     

    But, in spite of their full knowledge of the above condition, Rangers managed to get so far out of control that even the SFA couldn’t keep a lid on it.

     

     

    Falling foul of HMRC is not under SFA governance.

     

    They couldn’t control the actions nor the fallout of the HMRC decision.

     

    They tried…. How they tried! But failed.

     

     

    One of the most important tools in the SFA toolkit is secrecy.

     

    Keep everything quiet.

     

    Don’t allow anyone to know what is actually going on and they can keep things under some degree of control.

     

     

    They also employ the delay and let things die off policy.

     

    Announce that an investigation is underway. This takes the heat out of the immediate event/scandal/story.

     

    The outrage gradually dies down and in due course announce that the investigation found nothing, end of story.

     

    Time and time again this has been the pattern.

     

    Time and time again they get away with it.

     

     

    The biggest problem in Scottish football IS the SFA.

     

     

    The very body which is supposed to prevent corruption and cheating is the most corrupt group of them all.

  5. jude2005 is Neil Lennon \o/ on

    Chic Murray was standing at the bus stop when this wee wumman came up and asked him How long will the next bus be?

     

     

    Chic Says about 32 feet.

  6. Morrissey the 23rd @ 23:24,

     

     

    That’s great news – don’t suppose there’s any chance of Johnny Marr on guitar:-

     

    )

  7. dombhoy67

     

     

    23:32 on 20 January, 2014

     

     

    Anyone else notice that there was a Dick in each dugout at the Forfar v Sevco game tonight?

     

     

    =================================

     

     

    Wa-hey! LOL. :))

  8. 67Heaven ... I am Neil Lennon, supporting WEE OSCAR..!!.. Ibrox belongs to the creditors on

    chairbhoy

     

     

    22:05 on 20 January, 2014

     

     

    I’m not in denial …… They’re feckin deed and won’t be seen on any football pitch…..ever again

  9. jude2005 is Neil Lennon \o/ on

    I wonder if the cock cried thrice when Mr Wallace said he didnt know Green or Whyte?

  10. ‘Interpretation’ of rules allows our football authorities to minimise any punitive action they are forced to take. Nothing in their rule book appears to be black and white. It is virtually down to how they view matters and we all know how they do!

     

     

    It may not matter anyway as Sevco’s arrogance in continually spending what they don’t have may be their downfall.

  11. kikinthenakas @ 23:00,

     

     

    “Auldheid has been saying in order to play in UEFA competition, they need to be full members of the national association for three years.”

     

     

    Apologies, missed your comments the first time round.

     

     

    That would be an interesting one – as I said before, I thought that Auldheid said the SFA could issue a temporary Licence, maybe he will clarify.

     

     

    If they got into the Scottish Cup final this Season would UEFA look on Sevco’s membership running from Rangers establishment in 1873 or the transfer to Sevco 2012.

     

     

    67Heaven @ 23:51,

     

     

    Too true – I’m saying Rangers supporters who don’t understand they are dead are in denial.

     

     

    Yet Celtic supporters who believe the authorities smoke and mirrors that the authorities are going to do anything other than promote Sevco as a continuation of Rangers are equally deluded.

     

     

    Not saying it’s right, just saying it’s happened.

     

     

    Hail Hail

     

     

     

    Hail Hail

  12. NatKnow - Supporting Wee Oscar on

    Chairbhoy

     

    00:14 on

     

    21 January, 2014

     

    kikinthenakas @ 23:00,

     

     

    “Auldheid has been saying in order to play in UEFA competition, they need to be full members of the national association for three years.”

     

     

    Apologies, missed your comments the first time round.

     

     

    That would be an interesting one – as I said before, I thought that Auldheid said the SFA could issue a temporary Licence, maybe he will clarify.

     

     

    If they got into the Scottish Cup final this Season would UEFA look on Sevco’s membership running from Rangers establishment in 1873 or the transfer to Sevco 2012.

     

     

    UEFA would ask the local Association. The SFA would say everything is above board – and then do whatever it took to ensure they could claim it was. Then Sevco would play in Europe.

  13. macjay1 for Neil Lennon on

    Lads

     

     

    Forget the legalese and the theoretical technicalities.

     

    With respect,nothing has changed.

     

     

    Rangers are alive and kicking.

     

    I saw them tonight.

     

    Same hunnish mob,same team,same mentality.

     

    What`s in a name?

     

    S.f.a.

  14. Neil Lennon & McCartney on

    Celtic Under-20s´ game against Aberdeen this Tuesday, January 21, kicks off at 2pm. Free entry.

     

     

    For those who can´t attend the game at Cappielow, there will be live updates on the club´s official Twitter feed: @celticfc

  15. macjay1 for Neil Lennon

     

     

    00:24 on 21 January, 2014

     

     

    Lads

     

     

    Forget the legalese and the theoretical technicalities.

     

    With respect,nothing has changed.

     

     

    Rangers are alive and kicking.

     

    I saw them tonight.

     

    Same hunnish mob,same team,same mentality.

     

    What`s in a name?

     

    S.f.a.

     

     

     

    =============================

     

     

    But nae cash.

     

     

    None.

     

     

    And their underclass hate-addicts will keep it that way. No chance of a Fergus-mimicking 50k seasons at £400-500 a pop.

     

     

    Never a threat to us again on the park. Slow realisation among the shitterati and slow death amid mediocrity.

     

     

    Big difference. Big laugh.

  16. eddieinkirkmichael on

    Anyone else just dying to read BRHT’s article on Nevin? It seems like it’s taking forever to come out.

  17. eddieinkirkmichael

     

     

    00:36 on 21 January, 2014

     

     

    Anyone else just dying to read BRHT’s article on Nevin? It seems like it’s taking forever to come out.

     

     

    =============================

     

     

    So is Nevin…

  18. So based on the above info from Chairbhoy etc we should expect Scottish Cup Quarter finals to be, (as all they need is to avoid us until the final to get into Europe next year),

     

     

    Huns v Albion or Stenny @ the Bigotdome,

     

    Dundee Utd or ICT @ home to Celtic

     

     

    Semi Finals

     

    Huns v weakest team left

     

    Celtic v strongest

     

     

    EC67

  19. kitalba

     

     

    00:44 on 21 January, 2014

     

     

    Regards the huns, why is ‘receivership’ never discussed as a possible event?

     

     

    ===========================================

     

     

    Would you want to receive them?

  20. Mea Culpa @ 23:38,

     

     

    Too true, the SFA have very little info on their site…

     

     

    Much of the (dis)information comes through the MSM, if you’ve seen the e-mail Stewart Regan sent, you will see that he said – it was well documented in the press – surely you would expect these things, like the status Clubs to be clearly detailed on their official site.

     

     

    NatKnow – Supporting Wee Oscar @ 00:18,

     

     

    “UEFA would ask the local Association. The SFA would say everything is above board – and then do whatever it took to ensure they could claim it was. Then Sevco would play in Europe.”

     

     

    That would be my take – to a certain extent I understand why fholk take the view that the SFA’s opinion on the status Oldco/Newco is irrelevant as “they died” but it’s not my take, National Associations regulate the domestic game and have a lot of autonomy.

     

     

    Hail Hail

  21. Sandman:

     

     

    I was just remembering the way sevco business was conducted between Green and Whyte, the club and the SFA. At the time it became difficult to determine which snake had the most venom and would strike first. Even if they are all in it together, which snake with savvy would trust the hiss of another? So if you had a floating charge over the assets… do you trust all the snakes to see through your Dick Dastardly plan?

  22. Morrissey the 23rd Viva Resolution 12! on

    If we beat Hearts down on the 22nd we could relegate them

     

    and win the league.

  23. Neil Lennon & McCartney on

    Hindu man “This spot (on head) is a portal to which all goodness, joy & ecstasy may enter the human form”

     

     

    ……[pause]

     

     

    Peter Griffin “A vagina?”

     

     

    About an hour ago from Electronic Tims’s Twitter via web

  24. Margaret McGill on

    Morrissey the 23rd Viva Resolution 12!

     

     

    01:04 on 21 January, 2014

     

     

    Whats the chances of rangers going into administration on Feb 13th?

     

     

    Finally got that 10 9 10 9 97 97 10 10 thing sorted out on Punctured bicycle

     

    On a hillside desolate :)

  25. Margaret McGill on

    نور اگر رفت سايه پيدا نيست نقش ديوار و چشم خيره ما نقش سايهدگرنمي داننور اگررفتسايه. ررفت سايهپيدا

     

    نيستنقشديوار وچشمخيره مانقش سايهدگر

     

    نميدان نوراگر رفتسايه پيدانيستنقشديوار

     

    وچشمخيره م

  26. Morrissey the 23rd Viva Resolution 12! on

    Hello Maggie! What do I know? Umm. You’ve thrown me. Not a romantic then?