I’ve been trying to think if there are circumstances where a company has appointed an administrator when they have been paying all debts when due. Newco Rangers are, to the best of our knowledge, paying creditors when due and have enough cash to continue to do so until the anticipated arrival of cash receipts from new season ticket sales. They are, therefore, also able to fulfil obligations to current season ticket holders to stage football games.
It may be advantageous to the club to call in the administrators, because we all know how this story ends, but before you ask an administrator to ‘do his thing’, you need to give him a job to do. Right now a Newco Rangers administrator would be able to pay all creditors when due – and would have money left over.
Under these circumstances, an admin would have difficulty breaking the contracts necessary to reduce costs for next season. Before a court would agree to appoint an administrator appropriate justification would need to be found, and I don’t see it, yet. There may be as-yet unpublicised justification, but I suspect it would require a thoroughly creative, creative accountant, to produce it.
Season ticket sales for next season imposes an obligation to stage games all the way through to May 2015. If the club have little or no chance of meeting obligations between now and then, the directors must recognise this fact when it formally becomes apparent, stop accepting season ticket money, and appoint an administrator to protect creditors’ interests, before they start to consume this cash to pay for day-to-day expenses.
This is the point administration would normally be considered.
There has also been a great deal of hot air about trading insolently and illegally. Companies are allowed to trade while insolvent if they have a reasonable belief that they will be able to generate enough cash to pay creditors when due. Right now, for Newco, this means they can continue to trade while season tickets are on sale. Doing so beyond the renewal deadline, even in the face of terrible sales, is legally justifiable.
The same goes for claims of foul play over Graham Wallace’ pronouncements in December that his club had enough money to get to the end of the season. It was simply wrong that Newco had enough money to get to the end of the season, but projections – any projections – are so caveat-dependent there is no way the police will do anything more than take a cursory look at the issue. Whoever reported Wallace either doesn’t know the mechanics of projections or is simply trying to pee in the Bovril. If you’re visiting Ibrox soon, avoid the Bovril.
Flying a kite, in the form of a proposed share issue in the autumn, will legally allow the directors to gobble up season ticket money between now and then. If/when investigated following an insolvency event, directors can point to the £22m share issue in 2012 as an example of what they planned to do once the season ticket cash was gone. In short, they can trade throughout the summer, until whatever money they bring in is spent, without fear of personal rebuke or liability.
I was reminded in an article in The Herald this morning of the critical move, made back in 2012, which brought the club to its knees today. “The Rangers Supporters Trust urges fans not to renew season tickets”.
This stance was adopted in an attempt to force Charles Green to sell out to the Blue Knights group. Green was forced to ditch his sustainable business plan, promise to spend big, reward his manager with a contract worth circa four times as much as the one on offer and slash season ticket prices. The original plan was to pay players no more than £50k p.a., retain the manager on £200k p.a. and ask fans to back the future by buying tickets at full price.
Notwithstanding the limitations of the manager, Newco should have reached the Premiership with money in the bank from the IPO, while the original investors in the club, including Green, could have taken the long view, and avoided the unseemly haste to get their cash out.
They would have been a significant force to be reckoned with, Celtic’s guaranteed ticket to the Champions League qualifiers would have been competed for, for at least a season. If you see Paul Murray, any other Blue Knights, or their performing puppets, thank them for all their work.
Big Picture: Find the lady
Keep an eye on the property assets. The Rangers FC Ltd’s major creditor is also their only shareholder, Rangers International PLC. After an insolvency event RIFC would be entitled to acquire property assets to compensate for their satisfied debt. Once this happens they can jettison TRFC Ltd to its fate. They can sit as landlords for as long as TRFC can pay rent, or use their assets for a mixture of landfill (Ibrox) and housing (Murray Park).
Big Picture: Fundamentals
While considering all these fast-moving events, don’t lose sight of the overarching fundamentals. It costs circa £17m to operate Ibrox and Murray Park as football venues, before you employ a footballer or coach. No one has suggested how any club in Scotland, with this level of infrastructure to support, is viable without regular Champions League income.
There is a working assumption in some places that a Rangers brand can phoenix indefinitely. This is clearly not the case, a newco takes tens of millions of pounds and tens of thousands of people. One of which will almost certainly not be available next time around, the other of which is in some doubt. My money is on Sandy Easdale’s hunch, that this toxic bird will rise from the ashes only once.
Congratulations to Kris Commons on his enormously deserved Player of the Year award. He and the magnificent Lisa Hague are a credit to the club, and to the values demonstrate so often. As a player, Kris has been peerless; so valuable, so in tune with his surroundings, he could have been born wearing green and white hoops.
We have a few tickets available for the Supporters’ Association 70th Anniversary Dinner Dance this Friday at Celtic Park. It’s always a great event, let me know if you would like to be there, celticquicknews@gmail.com
Signed copies of Yogo Bare available below:
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Celtic TV carrying game available to ALL subscribers
Is it free, the game on eltic TV imean
Celtic
Scramble in their box couple of shots blocked
They break and we tidy up
Yellow for visitor as Celtic break forward
Big cup winners.
Good point the diddy team support always put on a show.
I just hate hearing that bile in my own place.
Young hoops playing well.
Tony
I believe free to all subscribers regardless of geography
Gg
Thanks
Shot bt Tierney dragged wide.
Tierney cross just a wee bit too high for Centre
Celtic swarming all over them
PTT tweet
McCoist getting it tight in directors box don’t sack McCoist
Good cross just cleared by visitors
Pressure from Celtic is relentless
Tierney shot blocked
Corner to Celtic on left
GK holds corner
Visitor break cleared
Some bangers in crowd. Head bangers
Bad tackle yellow for a thug in blue
FK headed away
“Welcome to SSB. Please leave your integrity at reception and pick it up again on the way out”.
Well Done, Tom Boyd!
As Macca almost completes a coherent, er, emm, thingmy.
Great move down right with Tierney just cleared up
Tierney catching the eye
Long long shot goes over visitors bar
how do you resurrect a zombie ?
we’ll find out soon .
Corner to visitors as HT approaches
GG
are you there aw yersel’?
Headed away
HT 0-0
We have dominated retaining possession for long periods with good passing and closing the visitors down when they have the ball.
MWD
Howaboot a wee gem a fives , between the yay voters, and the nay voters , if your team wins they huv tae buy you the confectionary and refreshment uv yoor choice , a wid piy in
Take see that gem , ambulance and police presence wid jist be precautionary , ahem fir obvious reasons :))
Zombies head of for some half time carrion.
Billy bhoy
I’m sure you are all watching Corrie or Eastenders or some such rubbish.
There will be a brief break in feedback as I will have to meet my beautiful grand daughter when the school bus comes in about 15 minutes
gg
Thanks for the commentary. Much appreciated with Kojo as summariser.
Well done Ghuys.
Celtic will have a lad playing at CH called Aaron Comrie.
He is from my hometown of Buckhaven in Fife.
He decided to sign for Celtic despite being brought up in a staunch Oldco family.
A brave decision by the boy ,backed fully by his Dad.
Can anyone tell me how well he is playing?
TT
A zebra can’t change it’s spots
Sevco Fans are Vile.
Man.. they ur That~
Sevco Players ur.. Viler.. though.
Man.. They ur That..
Hmmmmmm..
Ah hiv furgutten how vile they ur.
Kojo
Disgusted
Girl in the work used to go to a BDSM club, but chucked as she has bought a season ticket for the midden.
“The pain that’s coming over that way cannot be missed”
KinkypervyCSC
The crowd has been “lively” tonight.
A few fireworks have gone off.
The visitors have revived some of their old “hymns.”
We have had a couple of crowd shots showing some restlessness.
Stewards have their hands full.
If this is a sample of what we can expect if they return, we can do without them
Hope our players aren’t brutalised as usual. Paul George and others have suffered from these cavemen thugs.
Kojo, don’t you want them back?
Take care over there.
Celtic defence have been in control as the visitors have been forced to resort to the long ball.
The two centre backs have coped well with a black guy who looks quick and likes a wee dig.
I didn’t catch their names though.
Hello TT,
He’s not in the starting line-up. Maybe on the bench?
I’m from East Wemyss myself, so I can well understand the pressures that will be on young Aaron.
HH