I enjoy Roddy Forsyth’s articles and broadcasts but I’m staggered at today’s article in The Telegraph. The initial headline read “Scottish clubs fear bankruptcy if Rangers are stripped of titles for tax avoidance”, but was amended to “SPL (sic.) clubs fear they will be hurt financially themselves if Rangers stripped of titles”.
Justification for this claim lies with the fact that clubs who lost a cup final to Rangers during their tax evasion (not avoidance) era, may have to pay a win bonus to players, which would be enough to tip them into bankruptcy.
These clubs would, we are told, prefer to sit tight as runners up, than be awarded a cup win. One chairman told Roddy, “Celtic might be able to afford that but nobody else could”.
Nobody else could afford a win bonus, so let’s not impose the unwelcome burden of winning on them! Consider what that makes supporters of these clubs!
Another chairman told Roddy, “my view is that the EBT scheme was questionable and maybe even reckless from the start but they were given expert advice and they acted on it”. “Questionable”, “reckless”, I think the word you’re looking for is illegal. Paul Baxendale-Walker’s expert advice was only one aspect of his flamboyant commercial undertakings.
Documentation was also hidden from HMRC, the SFA and SPL, and as ‘Mr Black’ told the Tax Tribunal, the ruse was designed to recruit better players. Who win more trophies.
Falkirk, Queen of the South, Dundee, St Mirren, Dundee United, Motherwell and Ayr United all lost finals to an EBT-fuelled Rangers, as well as Celtic, of course. Let’s hear from any of them who don’t want the matter formally examined. And let the door slam on their backside on the way out of competitive sport. Forget what’s happening in Russia, this is going on TODAY in Scotland!
If any of these clubs are campaigning for Rangers to keep their EBT trophies, it’s important their fans know about it. Roddy doesn’t suggest his two chairmen-sources come from any of these clubs, in fact, he describes them as “SPL” chairmen, the former name for our top flight.
So who are they?
Celtic, Aberdeen, Dundee United and Hearts can all be excluded from consideration. Think what you like about any of these clubs, but I cannot imagine any of their chairpersons considering this nonsense. Which leaves:
Kilmarnock. Michael Johnston is no longer chairmen, that role is fulfilled by Jim Mann.
Partick Thistle: David Beattie.
Motherwell: Brian McCafferty.
Inverness: Kenny Cameron.
Dundee: Bill Colvin.
Hamilton: Les Gray.
Ross County: Roy MacGregor.
St Johnstone: Steve Brown.
To the horror of Accies fans, in 2012 Les Gray said “SFL clubs should not be put in the position to vote on something which may destroy Scottish Football”. I wonder what Les is saying off the record now.
The Brown family have chaired St Johnstone through many issues, but their fans were off the mark quickly in 2012 to let Steve know their thoughts the last time Scottish football faced a decision to follow the rules, or not.
Roy MacGregor bristled with irritation when others tried to influence him in 2012. He has a reputation of knowing his own mind.
I don’t know anything about Bill Colvin, Kenny Cameron, Brian McCafferty, David Beattie or Jim Mann, but I suspect the names of both Roddy’s chairmen are on this page.
You’ll never read a better insight into why corruption was allowed to fester in our game than the glimpse available in today’s Telegraph, or that it remains endemic. Scottish football cannot be a comfortable haven for lawbreaking.
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Hell yea lol
Where you all go?
hopefully change is well on it’s way….but never too confident seeing some of the morals displayed by some public personalities
Aweeeee it’s a 123
nearly Tony
It’s a conspiracy. Well done TD, happy podium.
But the real conspiracy is what is happening a la Paul 67’s article.
HH.
**Misses podium shocker
Paul67 –
Or….Roddy has made it all up. Which is my take on it.
Well said! Shark-jumping stuff from Roddy Forsyth, which I discuss in my latest blog!
https://theclumpany.wordpress.com/2015/11/12/bankrupt-arguments/
HH
The denial continues..
HH
My friends in Celtic,
I may be wrong. I have never seen the cardigans name on any list of EBT recipients.
His name stands out by its omission. I wonder why ?
HH.
Leagues are relatively easy to reallocate, but not so cups, Paul. Never mind who the old cheating club beat in the finals, they should never have got past the four or five other legal clubs they beat on the way. Who knows what any one of them might have done if they’d still been in the competition.
I’d be quite happy for the cups to be effectively unwon, if that’s a word, in the years that the cheats prevailed.
“Scottish football cannot be haven for lawbreaking”
Why not……………………It seems to have been doing it for about a generation.
Whenever Roddy Forsyth was commentating on a game involving them – he would nearly burst a blood vessel when they scored with a loud outburst of passion and adjectives about how marvellous the goal was
Whenever he commented on a Celtic goal it was as if he was at a wake
If ever a man was not able to disguise his emotions it was this so called “neutral” commentator
The man is a bigot – his piece today is simply clutching at straws his life is destroyed because his beloved Huns are cheats he knows it we all know it – Roddy Forsyth is scrambling around in the dirt looking for anything that will give him a glimmer of hope – he is irrelevant
67ECW
Chuckles lawyer is in business…
“Brown says he will “come back to the whole Rangers Football club issue in some detail.”
Paul
Do these chairmen think we’re as thick as they are … ?
VIP
Also Roddy your post is riddled with irony – the reason these so called Chairmen had to commit to such a win bonus was because your cheating huns and EBTs made it necessary for other clubs to try and compete – its the reason Scottish Football suffered
67ECW
We don’t play to win..
We don’t compete at all..
We don’t mind if referees give every decision against us..
We don’t mind if we get no money from anyone..
We don’t actually pay anyone any real money..
We are so proud of losing that we prefer it to winning
We speak without thinking..
We speak after too many libations..
We make things up..
You don’t know who we are..
We are NOT Internet Bampots..
We are journalists and Scottish Football Chairmen..
A wee bit of slow dancing from John Mayer
Courtesy of Tony’s Huddle
http://wp.me/p6DYht-n7
No One Walks Alone
Hi Paul67,
Roddy Forsyth’s piece is of course a travesty, although it does quote the Chairmen in question, it does not note the questions asked or the context In which it was made and you get the feeling you are reading an edit of much longer dialogue – the oldest and most unscrupulous of the newspaper hacks tricks, certainly not one Mr Forsyth would rise above.
The anonymity which precludes anyone to put veracity on the claims makes points even less credible.
Even if the points were valid and accurately and fully reported, which I don’t believe, they fail to get anywhere near the point if discussion with anything near accuracy.
The Tax Evasion that you so accurately describe was not matter of administrative error. HMRC will not tax you on an administrative error, they may impose penalties, they may fine you, but they won’t make you pay Tax you don’t owe.
What happened was Rangers cheated, in order to obfuscate the cheating there were certain conditions that had to be fulfilled, I.e. The emoluments for the players in order not to be subject to Tax had to be disguised as EBTs, something Rangers maladministration of the schemes failed to do.
The other point regarding the cost of retrospectively receiving Titles is moot. The Scottish Football Authorities are in the mess they’re in right now because they choose to look at costs and financials rather than doing the right thing. The Tax evasion and the following cover up must be properly and fully investigated and sanctions and penalties and redistribution of titles must be implemented without fear or favour.
Hail Hail
HMRC losing jobs in Scotland
: > (
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-34798266
Brown if Green was found guilty “The company would have big problems” argues sound commercial reasons for granting legal idemnity.
Well Paul – Celtic seem to think its a haven for lawbreaking – cos they seem pretty happy with it.
Institutionally racist scotland in media consipiracy shocker eh! Who’d have thunk it?
“Falkirk, Queen of the South, Dundee, St Mirren, Dundee United, Motherwell and Ayr United all lost finals to an EBT-fuelled Rangers”
These fans must be reached out to
I’d imagine there is already an appetite for fairness at Hibs, Hearts and Aberdeen.
Also, can you put a price on integrity and fairness? Roddy certainly has tried to.
I mean that Forsyth scoop, this guy must have went to uni. Right? Do they honestly think Joe Public is a lump of wood? How the feck he passed at uni. To be in the media is beyond me, it’s actually embarrassing that a Scottish journalists shoud be allowed to get that in press, some of us have been around, out and about, traveled afar, read different newspapers different articles, I left school before I was fifteen rough as a badgers arse, had a go at most things, some good, some OK, knowing I tried my best was all I had to do my old man used to say, and the other thing he told , me was, never join a secret organisation or involve yourself in cliques, on the first thing Mr Forsyth has failed, on the second one, he needed that to join, it’s called useless, and low self esteem.
Retweeted James Doleman
Either Chuckles wins & bankrupts Sevco with legal bills, or loses and their assets are proceeds of crime #OhMaSides
You know what: I beginning to warm to that Telegraph piece by Brother Forsyth: it has an authentic air of SMSM vacuousity, being both devoid of logic, yet at the same time deliciously replete with the usual bilge.
If that’s the best even the kwality meeja can come up with, these next few weeks are going to be awfy entertaining …
VIP
Quite simple.
The supporters of every SPL club know the question to ask of their Chairman. Each and every one of them is entitled to know……. so ask the question.
Disgusting from Roddy, the gutter-poodle ……. Justice will prevail, however… It needs to, or what’s the point of it all….
In my opinion no tainted titles / trophies should be awarded to runners up.
No individual club should gain , but for the common good of all, the cheats must lose. And be seen to lose
HH.
It appears we are still at the misinformation stage, obfuscation is the nature of the MSM campaign. The ranjurs have suffered enough don’t you know.
How long before we move to the threats and intimidation stage?
I just hope that those goat footering, knuckle maiming, sobs get what’s due to them.
At least the Forsyth article was funny. C’mon give him some credit for making us laugh.
Celtic Stay Silent – Same Old SMSM
Posted on November 12, 2015 /Under Scottish football /With 2 Comments
Since last week’s explosive court of session ruling that Rangers FC effectively cheated every other club over a ten year period there have been calls from Celtic fans for the club to make a statement on the matter. Celtic have remained silent in public.
The club in this instance are correct in saying nothing at this point in time. BDO/Rangers FC (il) have until December 2nd to declare if they want to challenge the ruling at the UK Supreme Court. It would be wrong and silly for Celtic to say anything in public on the current judgement until then. If BDO/Rangers FC (il) decide that they will not go to the Supreme Court then I’m sure Celtic will have something to say, indeed I urge them and every other Scottish club to speak out and see that justice is served. There is no place for doping whether it be financial or chemical in any sport.
Now lets turn our attention to the SMSM. What we are seeing now is a rerun of 2012, with the same old faces telling fans to move on. Phrases like ‘punished enough’, ‘good of the game’ and idle threats from fat media pundits are something we are now well used too. Just like in 2012 we supporters will not just ‘move on’ without justice being seen to be done and more importantly without the Scottish Football Administration being cleared out. If you look at what has happened since 2012 there are only two conclusions we as fans can draw. Either the administrators were working in concert with Oldco/newco or they are rubbish at their jobs. Either way people need to go.
And this years Mint Sauce award goes to………………
Neganon,
I agree I was hooting with laughter
HH
The next time BFDJ rots out that the Huns have won two ties and HMRC have won one – maybe someone could gently point out that the better analogy is that it’s a Cup competition, not a League – and that Sevco have just been knocked out.
I am sure that following the embarrassing bit of “dead air” while his wee brain works overtime – he might actually get the point.
Oscar Jane wins the races……