Apparently, time for Rangers fans to step forward to save their club has passed. For the want of £500k any one or collection of them could have bought an exclusive period as preferred bidder and worked on a rescue but no one stepped forward.
It is perhaps worthwhile reflecting on our hour of need 18 years ago. Celtic had exceeded their agreed overdraft limit and the Bank of Scotland informed the club that unless the account was brought back into agreed limits that day, it would go to court to appoint an administrator.
Back then there were no transfer windows, so players could, and would, have been sold by the administrator the next day. Celtic would have been left with an unwanted shell of a squad.
Word of the impending doom spread around the Celtic business community and John Keane decided to act. He withdrew £1m from his account and paid it straight into Celtic’s account at the Bank of Scotland.
John did this in the hope that he could buy time for the Celtic Movement to pull a rescue together. The bank could still have withdrawn the overdraft the same day, which would have made him an unsecured creditor with no chance of a return. There was also no agreement signed to secure the transfer of the club from the old board, each member of whom would later be dealt with on an individual basis, as shares were sold, or in the case of Kevin Kelly, pledged behind Fergus McCann’s consortium.
John kept his money in Celtic and received a seat on the new board, which he retains. He declined to appear in the publicity photos on the steps of Celtic Park when the club was rescued and although he attends the AGM every year, he remains a quiet and largely unknown figure. He has since invested more in Celtic, money he will never see back, but which has ensured his family can block a Glazier-style takeover of Celtic.
I have spoken to him once or twice, although he doesn’t know who I am, but I have often thought he deserves a standing ovation at the AGM for what he did all those years ago. Maybe this year.
We can only wonder why there was not a John Keane across the city.
Very well done to the Daily Record for their excellent story about CQN’er Tony Conway today. Tony, who now lives in the United States, suffers from motor neuron disease and made the trip back to Celtic Park last year with his Dad, John, and brother, Martin. They spent time with Jinky’s son James and met a host of people at the club, including Neil Lennon and Billy McNeill.
Read it, it’s a great story.
Remember to keep an eye on the signed Celtic shirt being auctioned for Wellburn Care Home, it ends Monday.
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Re the Celtic kits. Aren’t they supposed to be vetted by a group comprised from members of different supporters groups before being accepted by Celtic FC. That used to be the case, has it changed?
If they still have to be approved by the support i would like to set a minimum age limit to be able to sit of the selection committee that way we could ensure we wouldn’t have to endure the abject horror of the bar-code or bumble bee ‘Costa del Sol’ chav beach wear inspired kits in the future.
The Tony Conway story is well worth the read.
SmashingMilkBottles ! You’re welcome.
DBBIA, excellent call. I don’t think Fergus would be up for travelling back but surely John Keane is a better idea than anyone else on the board?
ASonOfDan, aye, I bet they do.
Bada Bing, indeed.
BABASONICOS71, aye.
Slip inside the eye of your mind
Don’t you know you might find
A better place to play
You said that you’d never been
But all the things that you’ve seen
Will slowly fade away
So i start a revolution from my bed
‘cos you said the brains i had went to my head.
Step outside, summertime’s in bloom
Stand up beside the fireplace
Take that look from off your face
You ain’t ever gonna burn my heart out
And so sally can wait, she knows it’s too late as we’re walking on by
Her soul slides away, but don’t look back in anger i heard you say
Take me to the place where you go
Where nobody knows if it’s night or day
But please don’t put your life in the hands
Of a rock n roll band
Who’ll throw it all away
I’m gonna start a revolution from my bed
‘cos you said the brains i had went to my head
Step outside ‘cos summertime’s in bloom
Stand up beside the fireplace
Take that look from off your face
‘cos you ain’t ever gonna burn my heart out
So sally can wait, she knows it’s too late as she’s walking on by
My soul slides away, but don’t look back in anger i heard you say
So sally can wait, she knows it’s too late as we’re walking on by
Her soul slides away, but don’t look back in anger i heard you say
So sally can wait
She knows it’s too late as she’s walking on by
My soul slides away
But don’t look back in anger
Don’t look back in anger
I heard you say
At least not today
The problem with the Big Lie is that for those who get too close, its long shadow, darkens everything that lies outside it; so for those who either hide or are trapped in its shadow, hostage to its darkness, begin to believe it’s real.
Must say I really like the new away jersey
then again I liked almost all the jerseys (apart from the latest bumblebee or barcode yellow one!!!!!)
I still don’t know why they they would need someone like John Keane when they had that Fighting Fund and the wee pensioner who put £20.00 in…
Re Post on new away strip debate:
Black or dark strips look good ,only as casual wear for fans, but should never be worn by the team.
When managing Hibs John Collins caused a bit of a stir by refusing to use their black away strip ( despite agreement with manufacturer).
He stated that the black strips made it more difficult to see team mates.
Remember Fergie changing out of the ManU grey strips at half time against Southampton?
A player running with the ball often has to see team mates in peripheral vision ( rather than looking up)
Anything that detracts from that ( even marginally) is a negative.
The Onlooker
Thank you John Keane!
I am with DontBrattbackinanger – get JK & Fergus to unfurl the league flag in August!
Their day has come.
HH
CTTC
Paul, I had the pleasure of being introduced to Mr Keane and son Mark a year or so ago. An absolute gentleman.
No Love over Gold in relation to der hun.
More like Gold over Love.
Listening to The Clash’s “Straight to Hell”…and thinking of you know who…
…Bye, Bye.
Sol Campbell has retired from football.Did he not do that 2 years ago? ;-)
Rangers 2012 to unveil Scottish Challenge Cup kit, sponsored by Govan Carpets. (thumbsup)
re -Football tops .
Recently accompanied the woman from Padova as she endured the horrors of root canal treatment .
Whilst she was in the chair , I read an Italian Womens Mag .
Entertaining wee feature re Italian Womens view of British men . Much comment on the strange phenomenon of fat gits in football strips.
Lori from Verona commented —-
” they look like condoms stuffed with walnuts “
Adidas was a small sports shoe manufacturer whose fortunes were transformed by Adolf Dassler persuading Jesse Owens to wear his spikes at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin.
Owens’ 4 golds was a fantastic achievement but he had a bit of luck- before the Games his main rival got injured , and for the relay the Germans objected to the US picking 2 Jewish Americans for their team and he took one of their places.
Hello folks, I think both the new jerseys are crackin’…..when are the available to buy?
Anybody else noticed about the new away kit,on the pics on stv website the jersey has a triclour band at the sleeve!
The pics on official website are different, there is no tricolour band around the sleeve!!!!!
Paul67 -if ole Dick could be persuaded to buy him a drink perhaps Fergus would come over.
I would only be a teenager when John Keane did the necessary and I wouldn’t have understood the magnitude of his actions.
I do now and am eternally grateful to the mhan.
Hail Hail
curly on 2 May, 2012 at 13:57 said:
Latest valuation of RFC(IA) freehold properties was a net book value of £112m at 30/6/2010. I assume property prices have fallen a bit in the last 2 years ?
HH
Paul Talking about John Keane i worked for him many years ago ,through edinburgh way .demanded a pound of flesh,but was always good to me,i remember jinky working for him as well.i see him coming out the old school on match days ,he hasnt changed much.
Dontbrattbakkinanger – Adidas was a small sports shoe manufacturer whose fortunes were transformed by Adolf Dassler
His brother Bobby set up Puma. (thumbsup)
The Onlooker 14.01
You are correct,ridiculous colour of strip to play in,players have split seconds,at times,to spot a team mate,black is detrimental to this.
This strip is purely aimed at the fans to buy,with no thought to the possible negatives on the field.Sign of the times am afraid.
Are Adi and Bobby related to Gordon Dazzler of Snyde infamy? ;0)
navanbhoy,
noticed that too, the nike store has it without too. The official site does have the tricolour in the description, so I wonder if you can fold the sleeve cuff up and down.
Dontbrattbakkinanger on 2 May, 2012 at 14:08 said:
Adidas was a small sports shoe manufacturer whose fortunes were transformed by Adolf Dassler persuading Jesse Owens to wear his spikes at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin.
—–
It’s a of a sports wear dynasty with 2 bothers creating Adidas and Puma and becoming rivals
latest news on the apparent naughtiness…
latest intention is to invade the pitch in the 72nd minute and show us fearful timmies what they’re all about…
if they do that, chances are they’ll reduce the demolition costs for the death star’s new owners.
no very bright, the orcs.
Thanks to all for Chinese restaurant advice.
Oglach- yes, and they went on to hate each other as only brothers can!
They were the J.R and Bobby Ewing of gutties.
Barcelona had a black kit last season (10/110,really affected their performances didn’t it?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHYKoSu62WY
(10/11)
Sir David Murray is the no-longer-Sir Fred Goodwin of football. (thumbsup)
Jesse Owens’ unlucky rival- Eulace Peacock
why do we have dark strips, are we in mourning.no our colours are green ,so lenny do what fergie done ,get shot of asap. and i for one never liked nikes football tops.as someone posted im all for adiddas stuff
Should Sir David be stripped of his knighthood, or ennobled? (thumbsup)
Paul67 – in our hour of need we had John Keane, Fergus and Brian Dempsey. They Paul Murray, Mark Dingwall and Wee Wullie Bluenose.
One team in Glasgow
Gotta go,maybe by time i return they will have expired.Fingers crossed.
If anyone hasn’t got it yet,Fleet Foxes album Helplessness Blues,get it.
Laters.
FOREVERANDEVER!!!
BABASONICOS71 on 2 May, 2012 at 14:16 said:
Barcelona had a black kit last season (10/110,really affected their performances didn’t it?
Barca players do not need to look up to see where their team mates are,
they know where they should be ….. and 99 times out of 100, they are where they are supposed to be .
Barca (in full flow) could be wearing Harry Potter invisibility cloaks and Messi would still find them.
The Onlooker