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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Weeminger @1828
Decent game on Saturday, great result, best crowd for months, best atmosphere too, Forrest had a good game and sevco are in deep deep doo doo.
You musta known some regulars were gonna be missing
weeminger
18:26 on 20 January, 2014
Sat on my own waiting to see Mogwai at CCA. #billynomates
Wee Stuart is a neighbour & wee big ‘tic bhoy
http://www.onfieldsofgreen.com/suckers/
As their fans continue to focus on other things, the lifeblood is being leeched out of Sevco Rangers ….
Adi_dasler – I know I always see him in Mono on Euro nights.
Weeminger
Mogwai and Low… Excellent taste..
Great game on Saturday. Had the pleasure of meeting oldtim, dougc, subterranean, johanmurdoch, dbbia, eldiegobhoy, and malorbhoy.
Oldtims’ PC has packed it in but hopefully he’s sussed out how to post on his phone!
John, I am that old I remember when Mickey Cannon was an upstanding citizen. As a boy I would see him walking over the hill to Rosyth for mass. Spotless white shirt and tie, all suited and shoes shining.
His son and daughter were at school with me, good family, then Mickey let the bevvy take charge and he went to the dogs.
Sad, but there but for the grace of God go I.
weeminget
Mono ?
Richie
He can read on his phone but can’t post as yet…
Sorry Weeminger !.
Big fat finger trouble
For John read divotbhoy.
Adi_dasler – it’s a Glasgow watering hole.
Cheers
West Brom v Everton or Forfar v Sevco. Hmmm, difficult choice!!
TGSC@18.15
“And without wanting to sound patronising we really shouldn’t need the SFA to tell us what is self evident.”
Why I need the SFA to affirm it is, for the reasons already stated, to prove that we have open, fair administration and regulation.
The fact that you and I believe it is a new club does not make it self evident, anymore than the Tax Case verdict proved that they were cheating bassas.
The official view is not the same as the truth but it remains the official position. If it was self-evident, why would it not be admitted by a governing body that would know that they could not get away with denying the self evident?
It is for every Celtic fan to take their own view on this but, for me, I cannot continue to accept officially endorsed corruption. It is one thing to give tacit support but, if it is made official, I am out.
Gretnabhoy@18.37
The facts you give seem to be in accord with mine. I have no problem with the people of Gretna 2008 who took steps to dissociate themselves from the toxic brand. My only point was that Gretna 2008 were not offered a deal to start in Div.3 or above, whether the new club wanted that or not.
Guidi ….. Rangers would sell lee Wallace to Celtic for 5 million wwaahhaaahhaaaahhhaaaa !!!!
Neil Lennon May leave if something disastrous happens of somebody hands Swally Mc Moist 25 million or something wwaaahhhaaahjhaaaahhaaaa !! My belly can’t take any more !!!
What a shower o muppets !!!!!
BT
I managed to get Davie logged on to post but not sure if that’s still the case.
The Anto Stokes tackle on Lasley?
Is Lasley injured and will he miss the next three months of the season?
No?!
He was lucky he wisnae tackled by Bertie, Davie Hay or Jim Brogan. However, no player ever had their career ended by a tackle from one of those three.
HH!!
The Superbowl this year will be contested between Seattle and Denver.
The states that these two teams are in, Washington & Colorado, are the only two states that recreational marijuana use is legal.
So for this year The Superbowl will now be known as “The Stonerbowl”………??
Richie.
Spoke to him this morning and he said he can read but not post. .
tallybhoy
19:09 on 20 January, 2014
He’s lucky it wisnae me that tackled him…..!!!!!!!!
Richie #TeamOscar
18:39 on
20 January, 2014
Your very good ,
“i dont go to rangers games” comment was very funny.
keep it lit.
blantyretim is praying for the knox family
19:10 on 20 January, 2014
I take it he will not be able to e-mail either…
What chance of him getting his PC sorted?
If your lurking oldtim, will call you tomorrow night to get some details from you. Busy tonight or would call tonight.
Keep the Faith!
Hail Hail!
BT
Must have been logged out….I think he’s happy lurking anyway:-)
Lennybhoy.
Said pc is going back to the shop for repair.
Sftb,
Agreed. It’s for every Celtic fan to make up their own mind but the game on this country has always been corrupt.
As for the SFA not making it official I think we both know why? It’s not our fault.
Tom Rogic off to Melbourne ….that should help him out for Brazil….well done Celtic
braw
James Forrest is praying for The Unconquerable Oscar Knox
18:46 on 20 January, 2014
Good read as usual James.
blantyretim is praying for the knox family
19:20 on 20 January, 2014
Cheers mate, in case he is not lurking and if you speak with him, tell him will call around 19:30 tomorrow night.
Keep the Faith!
Hail Hail!
Misty seems a decent spud:
http://bit.ly/1agKk45
No movement with Joe Ledley ? Honestly, think he may be stringing us along to leave for free.
Boyd,Miller,Craigen ,McAllister ……FFS BT Sport just won the prize for the most Hunnish panel ever
Was on trying to find out who the ref was as I’m considering betting a pen and a Forfar sending off
there can be no excuses about the wind from the Angus glens tonight….no gusts and 3mph winds …come on the Mighty loons …. :) braw
Celtic Underground @celticrumours 9h
Hearing that Morton will be taking Stewart Findlay on loan. Apparently they have punted a couple of their centre halves.
Another good move to give a promising youngster. Don’t like rent-a-gub that manages them but he gets his teams to play football from the back which will be good for his development
….PFayr supports WeeOscar
19:28 on 20 January, 2014
Do you really think it matters? I’d say your money was safe.
….pfayr supports weeoscar
19:28 on 20 January, 2014
What price the draw?
Keep the Faith!
Hail Hail!
Lennybhoy
B365 @6/1 the draw.
Forfar +1 @9/2.
As regards the SFA and Zombie recognition, I’m not holding my breath that they’ll come down on the side of new club.
To be fair, I don’t really care. It is self evident they’re a new club. I don’t need to see a death cert to know a corpse is dead.