Paul Simon wrote about ‘a loose affiliation of millionaires and billionaires’ but if you want to raise money to rescue a company you need more than a loose affiliation. ‘The rebels’ at Celtic managed this in 1994 (somehow), but Paul Murray’s Blue Knights affiliation unravelled over a few days.
While Duff and Phelps were casting aspersions on the SPL for spiking their plans to announce a preferred bidder last week, the Blue Knights were already struggling to pull £0.5m together as a covenant to secure a period of exclusive rights to buy the club.
18 years ago a Celtic supporter walked into a branch of Bank of Scotland and paid £1m into Celtic’s bank account to bring it back under agreed limits and prevent the club going into administration – without any security or negotiating rights. A discrete but hugely important act by a man still on our board. No one from the Rangers consortium was prepared to gamble half as much last week, they even asked Ticketus, finance provider for Craig Whyte’s doomed venture, to stump up the non-refundable cash! The ticket agency declined.
The Celtic consortium soon fell apart with a modest degree of acrimony but personal issues were put to the side until the job of securing the club was complete. Paul Murray’s group was less fortunate. As a chartered accountant Murray would have been fully aware of the Employee Benefit Trusts which brought the club to its knees. What he knew and whether he benefited are likely to be some of the questions other consortium members were asking. He was not best placed to lead the recovery.
Murray also tried to keep a broad church together, from wealthy but detached Rangers fans to various elements of the support. This sounded ambitious from the off.
The most important comment from the Blue Knights yesterday was “The consortium believes that the whole deal process has become incredibly complex and it is critical that a preferred bidder is appointed this week.”
If it’s possible for the words “incredibly complex” and “critical” to be an understatement this is the occasion. The Scottish Premier League and Scottish Football League announce their fixtures in the middle of June. If Rangers are to phoenix before then they better hurry up and die. The liquidation process will take weeks (if it goes smoothly) and can be open to legal challenge. Stadium ownership has also to be secured and the claims of Ticketus and Andrew Ellis have to be satisfied.
Add to the mix creditors, the big tax case, punishments from the SFA for their on-going inquiry into the last takeover, potential punishments from the SPL inquiry into improperly registered players, increasingly widespread opposition from within the SPL and the rest of Scottish football to a place being created for a phoenix and you get the picture.
The last few years reads like a lesson in how to destroy a huge football club. Chances of SPL football at Ibrox next season? No more than 50%.
Bids for the original canvass painting of Neil Lennon by US based artist, Joseph Gormley, have hit an incredible £500. Keep an eye on the auction, which ends on Thursday, here.
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new article posted.
Like I said last night – I’ll happily ask Neil to stop any carry on when the refs and the SFA stop theirs…
KEV JUNGLE 1228
I see your point! I’m not entirely sure of the strategy. Have the board said that as long as Neil is justified in his anger,they will back him?
Has he told them to mind their own business?
Is he running interference while the ammunition is being gathered?
Has he actually done anything wrong?
This is going to be my last post on the so called Celtic fans attacking Neil Lennon and how he should behave.
Super Sally has won hee haw and has not received half the abuse from rangers fans or Celtic fans.
The level of criticism from some in the Celtic support is an out an out disgrace.
They can dress it up in any way they like but IMHO opinion they are nowt but feckin huns.
If you can not accept Neil then walk away and keep walking.
Even on this blog for the last 4 days the idiots with keyboards have forgotten were we where under Mowbray .
Off to work now as the stink on here gets more like follow follow by the day.
GLASGOW CELTIC CHAMPIONS
GLASGOW CELTIC CHAMPIONS
GLASGOW CELTIC CHAMPIONS
Jam67
I was anxious how I was goin’ to fill the 100 days until the ole olympics start but now I’ll turn here every day to catch up with ole Dick Byrne v BMCUWP, like Godzilla V King Kong, or Mr Ng v the Blue Knights.
Auldheid..,
tell me where this would be if the manager had not made his very public statement ?
Had the club done it as you suggest, would MSM have publicised it, while their are trying to bury the whole cheating episode ?
This would not even be a topic for discussion today if it wasnt for our manager, it would be a lost cause.
The MSM are very very good at moving along the agenda, as you know.
Our manager has decided enough is enough, regardless of the state of corrupt fc, and if he needs to spotlight it by action then that is the way to go.
My initial reaction remains the same, good on you Neil its time to step up to the next level.
Given the ref did not apply the rules of the game when he gave the penalty what punishment is he getting?
How about his match fee is halved or not paid?
Refs pay has to be performance related, everybody elses who provides a measurable service is.
I bet that will make them take a bit longer before making a decision.
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS on 18 April, 2012 at 12:32 said:
………………………………………………….
If the hierarchy are behind Neil then, tomorrow will be worth looking out for.
After the attempted stitch-up of Neil by the MIB’s at ibrokes, maybe the new tactic is to have a, face-off with the MIB in full glare of the camera’s. No hiding place for the peepils agents!
Hail Hail
Canalamar
All that is happened is the generation if heat and little light.
What I’m saying is until we change the dynamics we will continue to generate heat.
In any case for the idea to have the desired effect the manager has to see it is a more effective way of fighting his corner which means the club do not pay lip service and get in the corner with Neil.
Henriks Sombrero on 18 April, 2012 at 11:33 said:
I’m with Neil Lennon 100%.
He is taking on an organisation which has cheated Celtic for decades. They have lied to him, cheated his (and our) team at every turn, and told lies about him to try to get him punished more than any other manager. They are attempting to bully and intimidate him. Bully’s prefer their work to be done in underhand ways and out of the prying eyes of the world. That way they can deny being bullies and lie about what has been said.
Neil is tackling the bullies headon. He was very clear and open about what he was directly asking the cheat in black on Sunday. He was letting the world see there was no swearing, no physical attack. Just two simple questions. ‘Did you see it’ ? ‘Are you sure’ ?
Some people talk about his behaviour not befitting a Celtic manager. Utter tosh. If directly and openly confronting liars, bullies, and cheats is not the behaviour of a Celtic Manager, then I don’t know what is.
Keep exposing them Neil, and keep fighting them. With you 100%.
…………………..
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR BEING WITH ME 100%, Henr1k
Had a wee smile to myself earlier…… Every time I accuse someone of being a bhun on CQN, not one of them come back to tell me to ‘wash my mouth out’ etc ……. This makes the official bhun- catcher on CQN …..LOL..!!!!
Auld Neil Lennon heid on 18 April, 2012 at 12:35 said:
They’ll get their bonus doubled …… And the MIB at iPox will now be on an EBT……….
Neil canamalar Lennon hunskelper extrordinaire on 18 April, 2012 at 12:35 said:
ABSOLUTELY SPOT ON………..our Board are also playing the right game in all of this, and they are working closely with NEIL …….. And we Celtic fans need to get right behind them, which, to be fair, all real Celtic fans are……..
There’s reports of a long term touchline ban for our manager.
Maybe Neil, Johan and Alan will have had enough, hitch up the wagon and head for the hills.
IMAGINE JUST LOGGING IN TO SAY I’VE GOT THE 1000s POST ON THIS ARTICLE ;-)
I THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!