Rangers International’s advice to shareholders, issued last night, for next week’s General Meeting is legally spot on. They have read the contract but they’re not reading the narrative.
As they say, the club would not be bound to repay the £5m loan from MASH if shareholders vote in favour of doing so. Repaying this loan may not be in the interests of “shareholders as a whole” (I dispute this).
In asserting these views, and winning the vote on the matter, Rangers International will surely not surprise MASH.
When someone as thorough and well-resourced as Mike Ashley puts resolutions in front of you, when his motivations are “not clear to the directors”, you have to consider if you’re in a Rope-a-Dope scenario.
Without knowing anything about Ashley’s plans, I can give you an assurance that he will expect shareholders to vote against his resolution. He is asking for his money and expects this request to be declined. He is also asking searching questions about the events which led to the succession of the current board. I do not expect him to be satisfied with the answer.
The real question is, why has Ashley engineered a scenario where he has made a legitimate request for repayment and been rejected?
If you think next week’s meeting is about winning the vote you could not be more wrong. The cynic would say Ashley wants justification for what he’s about to do next.
Those shares in Rangers Retail Ltd (RRL) which are due to be returned from MASH to Rangers International on repayment of the loan are currently worth 26% of RRL. I wonder if they will be worth more than 0.1% of the company this time next month.
This is a classic Rope-a-Dope. Pay him his money, do it quickly, secure as much of your Intellectual Property as you can, as quickly as you can. This is not a matter for brinksmanship. You stupid, stupid, lemmings are walking off a cliff. Again!
704 Comments- Pages:
- «
- 1
- ...
- 11
- 12
- 13
- 14
- 15
- 16
- 17
- 18
- 19
- »
From Henry Winter in The Telegraph.
Those of us in Paris six years ago, talking to Republic of Ireland fans outside Stade de France, will never forget their disgust at Thierry Henry’s cheating and the Frenchman’s attempt to console heartbroken players like Richard Dunne. Their anger surely returns with a vengeance at the astonishing revelation that their own people, the FAI, accepted $5m from Fifa not to pursue a legal case, basically cash for no questions.
For those Irish supporters in Paris, that hush money must feel like blood money. For observers of Fifa’s notorious approach to smoothing out wrinkles in its precious tournaments this was another dispiriting case of money first, morals second, honest players and real supporters joint-third.
To one side of Stade de France, near where it leans on the hard shoulder of the A1 autoroute, there are vans selling beer. Fans congregate to reflect on the match, keeping an eye out for taxis. On that ignominious night of Nov 18, 2009, a group of Irish followers stayed to drown their sorrows, debate Henry’s duplicity and the verdict was withering.
His unpunished offence, handling the ball twice towards William Gallas to score and take France to the 2010 World Cup finals, was rightly deemed a crime against players like Dunne, against their own (magnificent and vocal) support and against the sport itself. Henry could have become a revered ambassador for fair play, admitting his handball, but he chose the cynical path as, sadly, most professionals would. It was his unabashed celebration, as well as the double handball, that also outraged. Irish fans have never forgiven him.
It was even more of an assault on the essence of sport by Henry because the Irish, a team of lesser abilities but bigger hearts, had played so well from Shay Given in goal to Dunne and Sean St Ledger in defence, to the tireless Keith Andrews and Damian Duff, Robbie Keane, Kevin Doyle and others. They were unfairly denied a trip to South Africa, concluded the Irish fans bemoaning their fate. The Irish are one of the more principled teams in a sport lacking scruples, making Henry’s offence even more shameful. The horrible lesson from Paris was that cheats prosper.
If Henry’s pollution of the spirit of the game stirred contempt and fury, the FAI’s willingness to stay quiet for $5m is even worse. Nobody gathered around those beer-vans could have even guessed the FAI’s chosen course of action. The talk that night was of a replay. Take the money?
That’s laughable, contemptible, inconceivable. How could anyone with any soul or simple respect for their fellow-man put a price on the heartache suffered by Dunne, those fabulous fans and a sport craving probity? How could the FAI consider with a straight face investing that Fifa “loan” into any stadium used by players who dream of reaching a World Cup? As somebody remarked the day after the game: “It’s not about money. This is about sporting integrity.” Who said that? Step forward John Delaney, chief executive of the FAI.
After Delaney’s subsequent comments on Thursday afternoon, Fifa released a statement claiming it was a “loan” to the FAI for the building of a stadium and the $5m was to have been repaid if Ireland qualified for the 2014 World Cup. When they failed to make Brazil, Fifa wrote off the “loan”. Who accepts an agreement like that? Even leaving principles to one side for a moment, qualification for 2010 would have been worth ten times the Fifa “loan”, probably more.
The FAI should not have bowed so meekly towards Sepp Blatter and Fifa, even if Delaney argued it was “an agreement not to proceed with a legal case”. It was actually an agreement to let down players like Dunne and those supporters standing in disbelief outside Stade de France. It was done quickly, surreptitiously.
Delaney and the FAI should have been above that. They should not have been stooping to Fifa’s debased standards that money is the answer to everything. England’s fans have just acquired some new song-writing material as they head to Dublin this weekend. The FAI was bought off by Blatter.
Ain’t no need to Thank me G-Thang. ;)
Ain’t nothing but a g-thang.
Petec
Garry fae Glasgow loves Dr Dre.
BOBBY,
Roy Keane may not be everybodys cup of tea but he is my kind of dude.
Shocking stuff, I hope all this Truth coming out permeates all Nations and Football Associations.
Always thinking of The Arrows link that FFM dropped on CQN. Defo the best Youtube I’ve watched.
Is he dropping them all now? I think it is this reason.
Everyone is a Sinner so perhaps the Lord is fighting hard for the Souls. ;))
ACGR. I misplaced my reply . On its way to you shortly.
Does this qualify me for moon howler stripes or do I need to talk drivel as well ( no change there – Ed)
Sanna
Lemmings jumping off a cliff was a 1960’s DISNEY staged fallacy for the gullible.
Its a DISNEY metaphor like “beam me up Scotty”.
Seems some lemmings are not a stupid as we think but the that wouldn’t be PLC (Proper Loving Celtic)
DD,
The TeleTubbies
;)
Sanna
Welcome to the dark side of the moon! :)
Petec
Smoke weed every day.
Sums me up.
Us and Them
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Board is not Us (the Support) and the Support are not them (the Board).
DELANEYSDUNKY
(Unless I’m mistaken)
HAPPY HOOOOOPY HAWAII DAY!!!!!
Enjoy yer day,bud. And enjoy the evening with your family.
HH
Delaneys Dunky,
It is a lot less destructive drug than alcohol, that is for sure, but alcohol is Legal.
BMCUW
Thanks. Got here to 50 dead fast. ;)
DELANEYSDUNKY
Only cos you were enjoying it,bud.
For all of the OAP Tims that like a puff.
Njoi the trendy Dance Music
GNGB
Who needs any sort of information?
The Societal Engineers are Clever. They get the Society to mould and shape the Sheople.
Back in the Davie Hay….
A big man with a tattoo walking doon the Street, if he was walking towards me, I’m crossing the Road.
Now it will be the tattooed wans really ducking and diving walking doon the street if a Bad boy Tat isnae on show anywhere.
End Times Bhoys.
The Lucerne, Cern, Switzerland Mad Nutty Pofessors are openly talking about other Dimensions. BIBLE boys…. Study it.
Oops, I guess the scientific Gen
Matthew 24
Diverse places!!!!
Is Ronny gonnae Rock Europe?
It’s the Fifa Countdown
I dislike collectivism – Big Time
ernie lynch, your Love of the Birds, is incredible to me, as My Dad can hardly walk now. My wee cousin gives the go ahead for those horrific Wind Mills, he is an Ornothologist though Ernie.
Hail Hail.
eh?
CQN needs ernie, if it Disney huv philvisreturns.
The Bugles huv been Blown.
The Abyss.
2012 wasn’t the End of the World…
It was the Start of a NEW Golden ERA of Paganism.
Lose your mind?
Even the Great Deserting Desmondinho will be driven MAD by Satan for hiding the Square and the Compass on the JETSKIS.
The Truth is the Truth. Hide and Seek.
Social Darwinism?
Madame BlavatSKY?
Geoff Capes.
What is going on?
clogher celt
20:27 on 4 June, 2015
Cheers for the heads up but wee yin more interested than trying new restaurants than theme parks while on holiday, 6 going on 26
delaneys dunky
Have a magic day with all the family
Day 3 for ‘Tight Lines’ :)
I cannot divulge the bait i’ll be using today, but needless to say i’ve got an extra polly bag in the tackle box for the catch.
downthepierCSC
SuperSutton
23:22 on
4 June, 2015
Excellent insight into the reality of life in Saudi Arabia.
Thanks for taking the time.
No again – evening times
CELTIC have identified Steven Fletcher as the player they want as their marquee summer signing in a move that would signal a significant change in the club’s transfer policy…
Hail Hail and good morning
Cowiebhoy
I’m fairly relaxed about this transfer window now that a centre half has been brought in. Of course my state of relaxation will dissipate quick smart should we sell any of our better players.
I still think we need a natural, predatory goal scorer and left back cover for Izzy.
Good morning friends and a Big Happy Close Season Friday from a rather damp and light grey East Kilbride.
HT
Good morning to you, not disagreeing with
Fletcher is a good player, but not the predatory instinct we need in my opinion, scored 1 in over 4 games for Sunderland.
Still being linked with Dijks, allegedly offering double what Ajax are for him ? According to various on news now
Hail Hail
Cowiebhoy
I don’t know enough about Dijks to comment on whether he’s the answer or not but I do agree with you that I don’t think Fletcher is the answer.
Ronny has said that 2 up front is a possibility in the future but he wanted the team and squad to be comfortable in his preferred 4-2-3-1 system first. Griffiths will do much of his work outside the box because of his pace and energy but we need someone who’ll do it from 12 yards in. Someone of the Judas type player.
DD, when I first met you Im sure you told me you were 60. Have a grand day pal.
HH
Is there any player out there we’ve not been linked with………apart from champion the wonder hun?