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 The bank could still have withdrawn the overdraft the same day, which would have made him an unsecured creditor with no chance of a return.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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This month’s favourite band
http://youtu.be/7JLhl_ylPq8
Okkervil River – Bruce Wayne Campbell Interviewed on the Roof of the Chelsea Hotel, 1979
Baba:
I am not using my own quotes. Someone might steal them.
WG
I will buy you a pint to celebrate the success of yer Espana Establishment favourites tomorrow in my favourite East End watering hole, along with celebrating the Budapest B’hoys 50th.
God knows what it is with you and Establishment teams…
Demain, mon ami…
Tully
(did Craigy Whyte sell the Huns shares in Royal Madrid as well…)
timbhoy2 on 2 May, 2012 at 22:55 said:
EXILED TIM Opus dei a right wing movement supporting franco
Spanish civil war `36
Franco supported by Hitler and Mussollini
Republicans supported by Stalin.
JULY `39 Hitler and Stalin support each other and carve up Poland.
Cue : Deep disillusion and soul searching for the good and well intentioned people of the International Brigades.
Your comment about Opus Dei speaks volumes about you and says nothing about them.
Beer or vino ? Aye and the rest
El Medano only one Brit pub and it’s a dump.
Pint and big wine less than 5 euro
Will definitely be back
Right, it’s been tomorrow for an hour now, work in the morning.
Not proper work mind you, just work that I enjoy, and make little from, but work all the same, tis good for the soul.
Take care and may your god bless you.
HH
KTF
wonkyradar,
I’ll not ask again zen. ;-)
Sandy Jardeen’s like the character played by Brad Douriff in Mississippi Burning.Wee cowardly creep.
Macjay what do you mean
timbhoy2 on 3 May, 2012 at 00:01 said:
Macjay what do you mean
Precisely what I said.
macjay1
That was not directed at me I hope, just to be clear like…..
Obviously not, my mistake, just saw my nom de blog there, sorry.
El Madrigal
Yes, tonight. It’s called extended squad. Man who is a coach made no credit to himself. Pawel Brozek and others who are not getting the games should be not in the squad. Artur Boruc is not in the suad becouse Smuda does not like him. More bad examples.
I say we let the Opus Dei/Spanish Civil War stuff slide and get back to mocking the huns and saying how awesome Big Vic is. ;-)
ONLYWANWANYAMAcsc
Timbhoy2,
It was an obvious message, we’re did you learn to read ?
A pint and a decent glass of wine for 5 euros is good for a holiday place.
It’s about the same here, a bottle of wine and a bottle of beer about 6-7 euros, plus loads af tapas.
Enjoy mi amigo, if you can’t catch the game in a bar tomorrow, it’s on the betting sites.
Hahaha ya daft huns.
Big Vic’s awesome! ;-)))
Where even
TET,
The slum brit bar said they will show it :0)
TET,
Tapas is awesome.Like Big Vic. ;-)
La Tasca used to do these chicken croquettes with a garlic mayonnaise,absolutely (Shatner endorsed word) delicious.
I have an excuse, I’m a dipso.
Nytol
A friend of mine is just back from a trip to the Serengeti.He says it’s awesomeness reminded him of Big Vic. ;-)
BABASONICOS71
They have to give you tapas here, it’s the law, some bars better than others, free of course.
My fav is hamon and melon with a garlic dip, always with the mandatory bread.
“BABASONICOS71 on 3 May, 2012 at 00:08 said:
I say we let the Opus Dei/Spanish Civil War stuff slide and get back to mocking the huns and saying how awesome Big Vic is. ;-)”
Totally.
Plus we know Vic wouldn’t be in Opus Dei. He would have fled Donegal, leaving a trail of broken hearts and unborn babies in pursuit of the socialist ideal, sacrificing personal responsibility on the altar of political idealism.
Oh hang on, that’s Dancing at Lughnasa by Brian Friel. Feck it, here’s someone much more clever than me, singing about the same stuff. Music and politics.
http://youtu.be/FCFZPT2skTY
Enjoy
no, I’M Neil Lennon “i’ll never walk alone” (fourstonecoppi ) on 2 May, 2012 at 23:45 said:
>>>>!<<<<
Envy fills my mouth with stones. HH!
Another friend recently scaled K2.On his return he commented that when he stood at the foot of the monster he said to himself,”this is awesome,it reminds me of Big Vic.” ;-)
In the here & now : I sure hope we hold on to big Vic Wanyama…he’s only 20 ffs..a LOT of potential there & I do believe he rather enjoys being a Bhoy.
Neil Lennon is our leader.
tarrant,
Ma mhan. ;-)
Have a tune.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QLTp_9E9U4
Thanks Zybsek.
Shame for Boruc but with 3 champions of Bundesliga in the team they have a chance to get through a close group. What do you think of their prospects?
El Mad
Zbyszek, If you are still on, thanks for posting the video of the Legia fans the other day, awesome…………………………….
rangers are dying.
Bloody hell, I dont do hate or stuff like that, rangers are beneth any hate they generate but rangers dying and scrambling about hoping for a life line with some stranger called sandy jardine? (who he?) and a wee daft fella from EK as their main man in crisis is beyond my wildest dreams.
Seriously, this Is Majic, we are getting to the tiggly bit in this long ‘tanks in the marble staircase’ laugh at the utter muck that is Glasgow rangers ‘football club’ that beautiful fact has to be celebrated. This is the very end of rangers. The final, finito end of the worst thing that has happend to Scotland.
We are living in Great times, stop and enjoy them.
Der Fruer…. The Death of a rancid ‘football’ club
I believe if Big Vic keeps improving,with the ability he has allied to his physical strength,he could play for a potential Champions League winning side.I really wish that could be us but unfortunately the big leagues have monopolised the competition for filthy lucre.
However,IMHO the big fhella could play at the very top.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IazuHlt6QYU
El Madrigal
I hope we can go through from that weak group. I don’t see us playing later.
Must say that I don’t rate our coach.
on the prevoius discussion. I’m not sure if I’m right but remembered information that Tommy Burns was the member of Opus Dei?
I read here they are masons, right wing, even fascist.
Like I suspect,many others on this site,I had no idea of the contribution of Mr Keane,now,having been enlightened,I would encourage anyone who can,support his business in any way we can.Another point,his silence since his magnificent gesture speaks volumes for his love of Celtic,to the best of my knowledge,he has made no attempt to cash in on his gamble,yet another unsung hero.
A report from NASA yesterday stated that,
“We have new evidence that space and it’s countless galaxies have even more awesomeness than we first thought.To try and describe it’s awesomeness we would need to compare it to something like Big Vic,the Glasgow Celtic football player..” ;-)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRtmLalf2gk
Jeez_
:-)
We got penalty yesterday for that.
For bringing confetti and stopping the game for four minutes.
Ok I’ll discuss Sandy Jardine…
I feel sorry for him. He’s trying his best. He believes what he’s doing is best for RFC and Scottish football.
Unfortunately he is severely handicapped by denial and very low intellect. He is also inept and impotent in the modern world and only holds appeal to the most desperate and base of Huns.
He probably sees himself as an 11 th hour hero but he just comes across as a bit of a numpty.
The thing is if he was just a wee bit smarter he’d keep quiet and enjoy ex player hero status among the Orcs.
My toes curl when I listen or see him. Cringeworthy.