When asked if the £33m he claimed to have lodged for the purchase of Rangers, was “Your own money from your own personal wealth?” in today’s Scotland on Sunday (SoS), Craig Whyte told the newspaper, “Yes, that was done as far back as November 2010.” Perhaps not the most useful information to put into the public domain during divorce proceedings.
I think every single one of you who referred to Craig Whyte as a billionaire, or the cheeky “MBB” (Motherwell born billionaire) owes him an apology. While Hero Whyte didn’t deny he was a billionaire he told SoS he doesn’t “talk about [his]personal wealth to anybody” and that those of you who make continual references to his considerably wealth are “making [him]look silly”.
Let’s be clear, this man does not need you to make him look silly. Please desist and apologise.
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As Dennis Healy might have said “Who’s a silly billy?”
BRT&H
Kevin Bridges,take a bow and a hearty round of applause.
BRT&H,I think you’ve worked wonders with your highlighting of this cause. But no round of applause. I’ll buy you a pint when the appeal reaches it’s target.
Horseshoe Bar,next time I’m home. And I might even stand for one or two others,which I don’t do for just anybody,you know!
PS,you’ll notice I did NOT use the word if. I am supremely confident that the target will be reached. Have you approached CELTIC FC about fundraising at the next couple of home games?
TeachinmagrannytaesookeggsCSC
Good morning, CQN.
Before it becomes too late to talk about Inverness – that was a great result (Celtic seldom win by more than one up there) in atrocious conditions. I mentioned before the game that it was well nigh impossible to pick a poor Celtic side at the moment, but Lennon’s selection punched above its weight, thanks to the hard work shown by Samaras (my MOTM) and Hooper.
Wilson’s performance (esp. 1st half) was probably the most satisfying from the manager’s point of view, his pace more than capable of dealing with the threat, such as it was, of Tade. Will he be picked for Tynecastle, or are two games in such quick succession a bit much at this stage of his reintroduction?
Being picky, Mulgrew at LB was a let-down (although perhaps necessary to have him there while Izzy gets back to fitness), with too many poor long balls, and Commons didn’t really offer that much, despite an ‘assist’ for the first goal, helped out by Tokely.
Hearts will be Celtic’s toughest test this month – a game for battlers, without much room for guile and finesse. It’ll be interesting to see which (if either) of Commons/Forrest makes the starting line-up.
great article and good to know what the Europeans are reading
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/desmond-kane/crisis-least-rangers-avoid-174956831.html
A crisis but at least Rangers will avoid this..
By Eurosport | Desmond Kane – Fri, Feb 3, 2012 17:49 GMT
Celtic attract adverse headlines in troubled times
So the Whyte knight may instead be Walter Mitty, but who do you believe amid this latest outbreak of muscular mudslinging? Who is the honest man in this hoary old tale?
Craig Whyte, a somewhat embattled businessman-turned-Rangers owner who has been busy defending his honour, reputation and intentions for the Glasgow club over these past few rabid days?
Or Scotland’s “best for news and sport”, the Daily Record newspaper, an organ that prides itself on its unwavering truthfulness, accuracy and impartiality?
All hell has broken loose since the Scottish tabloid unearthed the rather unflattering news that Whyte had allegedly flogged four years worth of projected season ticket sales, apparently worth around £24 million, to finance his purchase of Rangers last May.
Amid the flying phlegm, half-truths and conjecture about how bad Rangers’ finances actually are with Whyte yet to front an AGM, it would be easy to imagine that the club’s fans may soon be reminded that season ticket renewals are due for the season 2017/18. What the man in the street has learned from the Record’s story is nothing new. The club are in a bad way off the park.
It seems to have been in decline since it became clear that Lloyds Bank were running Rangers rather than previous owner Sir David Murray, a figure who must be breathing a huge sigh of relief that he is not caught up in this increasingly muddled picture.
In a week when the former Royal Bank of Scotland chief executive Fred Goodwin was stripped of his knighthood for mismanagement, one wonders what the point of such elitist trinkets are when Murray is still considered worthy of his after leaving Rangers, a leading strand of Scottish sporting life, in such a ruinous state?
The purpose of the Record story seems to be focused on Whyte rather than Rangers with some of the images appearing in the newspaper trying to make his eyeballs a touch zany. This appears an outright bid to unseat the businessman, and what they regard as his somewhat mysterious intentions for the club. Times must be bad when the Record are going after Rangers, a red top that could easily have added white and blue to its masthead over the years.
How much control Whyte has of Rangers is open to some debate. Until judgement is passed on how much cash Rangers owe the taxman, nobody really controls anything. Whyte is merely occupying a role that may soon become unworkable for the most wealthiest of supporters in the near future.
Walter Smith proved himself an alchemist by managing to deliver three straight Scottish Premier League gongs in trying times, but the swingeing cuts have finally caught up with present coach Ally McCoist.
Smith made the right choice by choosing to get out when he had the chance last May. “The new owner is aware the club needs quite a large level of investment into the team. He’s also aware that if they don’t get that they will not continue the success they’ve had,” said Smith as he prepared to parachute out of the festering mess.
It is little wonder that the Croatian striker Nikica Jelavic is relieved to have done likewise in opting for Everton. He looked as if he had just been released from a stint in Barlinnie Prison when he was paraded at Goodison Park with an Everton scarf the other night.
Tabloid journalists working on football tend to live or die by how much speculation they can drum up. Rangers are signing nobody – they cannot afford nobodies at the moment – which is bad for business in the tabloids. Newspapers are growing increasingly irrelevant when fans can gather their daily news elsewhere. If they fail to drum up imaginative tittle-tattle, what else can they offer?
An old colleague of mine used to regale me with tales of how sales of the Record and Sunday Mail tended to shrink when Rangers lost a match. Another story doing the rounds today seemed to find the Celtic assistant manager Alan Thompson’s preference to share a few social pints with the Rangers goalkeeper Allan McGregor on a midweek night as newsworthy. The mind boggles.
The end game for Rangers may not be known until a decision is made on whether or not the club owe HM Revenue and Customs over their use of Employee Benefit Trusts to pay staff. A figure of £35 million in unpaid taxes and £14m in penalties harking back a decade has been touted. The final outcome may not final for months, with appeals possible, plunging the future of Rangers into further doubt.
What cannot be in dispute is that Whyte, once heralded by his new detractors as a multi-millionaire saviour, could not or would not unearth the finances to help McCoist in his hour of need.
To allow Jelavic to leave the club without a new face to replace the top goalscorer is a quite stunning turn of events. Rather than a Union Jack, a white flag should have been waved outside of Ibrox to mark the end of transfer deadline day.
Unless Celtic stage a grand collapse, and Rangers can unearth the spirit of yesteryear under McCoist, they face a mammoth battle to hold onto the SPL championship this season. They need to avoid injuries to key men. Even then they will require large dollops of luck. The continued absence of the injured Steven Naismith is probably a greater dagger to the heart than the departure of Jelavic.
Stranger things have happened in the weird and wonderful world of Scottish football, but Celtic have the numbers and quality to snag first place. Judging by the defeat to Inverness that did for them in the death throes of last season, all that is in doubt is their nerve.
Whyte encouraged an arm’s length worth of natural enemies when he ousted the old board within days of his arrival. There has been no shortage of former members of the old board willing to line up to fire grapeshot at him from outside, but their credibility must be in doubt after being party to the mess that has left Rangers hamstrung.
Whyte is correct when he offers the assessment that it is a bit rich – or rather not – for such figures to act as wise sages when they were short on the investment needed to rectify the situation.
When Celtic were in a similar pickle, but not in such a severe state in the early 1990s that they lost out on a player to Hibernian, it was open season on them by such newspapers. The pages of cracked crests are conspicuous by their absence this week.
If there is any solace to be gained by Rangers supporters in such harsh times, it is that the club crest will not be shattered in two with little or no thought by Scottish tabloids. Or a hearse won’t be stationed (see above) outside of the main stand at Ibrox to mark the occasion, even if the threat of administration or liquidation hovers over the club like it did their city foes in the 1990s.
It would hurt so many in so many ways to go down such a route. Such treatment is traditionally reserved for Celtic.
Leckie never missed. oooft some one never got their lamb and wine hamper this week.lol
KLV
up-over-goal- Cha Mul Grew is a much better CH than fullback. I would play Joe ledley at LB, keep Mulgrew and Rogne at CH, and suggest a midfield for Wednesday of Forrest/Wanyama/Brown and Samaras.
But hey, what do I kno.
twists n turns says:
6 February, 2012 at 08:05
That’s a really significant article.
Of course it will be ignored by the mainstream media because it is at odds with the conventional stupidity here and, more importantly, it includes a credible vision of a rangers-free Scotland.
Anybody know if the hun Holt bid was wrapped up with Laughatme
Hail Hail
Some say he likes to sprinkle Naga Viper Peppers on his Cream of Tomato soup
and that he once drop kicked Saturn V into orbit after engine failure
All we know is…. He’s Victor Wanyama.
Morning all and with sincerest apologies to Creedence Clearwater Revival.
I See the admin a rising
I see the taxman on his way
I see law suits exploding
I hope they’re liquidated today
Don’t go around tonight
Well they might just take your life
There’s an admin on the rise
I hear Coisty he’s a moanin’
I know the end is coming soon
I hear the Bears have stopped blowing
I hear there songs of rage and ruin
Oh don’t go out tonight
They might just take your life
There’s some bad huns on the rise
They’ve not got their things together
Looks like they are gonna die
Looks like we’re in for better weather
So bye,bye huns goodbye
Let’s go out tonight
Have a real good time
There’ll be no huns on the rise.
Dontbrattbakkinanger
Think it will be Samaras and Hooper up front on Wednesday, but the rest of your choices I’d go along with. One thing I would say is that Dan the Man always does well at Tynecastle – his experience might come in handy and I wouldn’t be too surprised to see him and Mulgrew in defence.
BMCUW
Now I haven’t had a pint in the Horseshoe in years– and I used to go in regularly. Mind you I used to go to loadsa pubs regularly lol.
Just give me a shout whenever that may be.
Can I point out that I understand that Celtic management and players have made a donation to the fund which will not be seen on the Just Giving page
and which is likely to be in addition to the total that is seen there.
Rangers skipper Steven Davis: We got what we deserved against Dundee United.. dumped out of the Scottish Cup
Feb 6 2012 By David McCarthy
steven davis
STEVEN DAVIS fronted up to the media after yesterday’s Scottish Cup debacle.
It was exactly what the man entrusted with the Rangers armband should have done and the midfielder’s hurt at the abject display that saw them ejected from the competition with the minimum of fuss was obvious.
He spoke from the heart. He admitted it wasn’t good enough and he admitted the loss of Nikica Jelavic on deadline day was a body blow to the dressing room – particularly when manager Ally McCoist was not given the financial backing to bring in a replacement of any kind of quality.
McCoist decided it was better to bring in nobody, rather than try to do a deal with the pittance he would have been handed by owner Craig Whyte.
But yesterday’s 2-0 defeat by Dundee United – in front of less than 18,000 – brought home just how far a club that was playing in a European final just three and a half years ago has fallen. And how quickly.
Davis is not a rent-a-quote. He’s not that kind of man but he speaks honestly enough and was thinking about an answer to this question: “Do you think the board has backed the manager?” when a tap on his shoulder told him the interview was over.
It seems some folk at Ibrox think a grown man, who is deemed responsible enough to wear the armband, is incapable of thinking for himself.
Or they were simply afraid of the answer he was going to give.
Either way, like the performance that had gone before, it wasn’t good enough. Earlier in the interview, Davis had been allowed to say he hoped McCoist would be given the wherewithal to go into the market and pluck a free agent from off the shelf.
That’s what it has come to. That’s where Rangers are at.
He said: “It’s disappointing to see someone like Jela – a very important player – leave without getting anybody in.
“That’s a bit of a blow for the players but we just need to try to get together and we’re looking at the same thing, to try to salvage something from the season.
“At the minute, the window is closed and only frees are available. It would be nice to see a little bit of investment in the team, without doubt, and try to add what we already have.
“The problem is we have a lot of key players out and that is something that has gone against us this season.”
The Northern Ireland star insisted that uncertainty over the on-going tax case, and last week’s Record Sport revelations about the way in which the club is being financed, had not filtered down into the dressing room.
He added: “I don’t think newspaper reports have had an effect. We’ve had that ever since I came to the club so it’s nothing new to us.
“I wouldn’t say the tax thing is affecting the playing side. That has been hanging over the club for a period of time.
“We just have to try to regroup as a team. We know what we’ve got and it’s up to everybody in the dressing room to try to save something from the season, in terms of the league.
“It’s a difficult job, especially at the minute. Every time we lose a game it becomes a crisis when you play here.
“But with everybody pulling in the right direction we have managed to pull through and get a little bit of success, even in adversity over the last couple of seasons.
“We have to go again and regroup now. It all starts again for us tomorrow.
“Straight after the game it’s really hard to reflect but we will go in tomorrow and look at where we went wrong and try to rectify it.
“But it’s a sore one to take today, definitely. I think that it’s quite simple – we just weren’t good enough.
“In the first half, going two goals behind, it’s an uphill battle from then. In the second half there wasn’t really a lot in it.
“But overall we got what we deserved – and that was nothing.
“Dundee United played well and you have to give credit to them but at the same time we should not be getting beaten.
“Especially at Ibrox. There is a real disappointment in the dressing room.
“The league is still there for us, without doubt. But sometimes it is hard to reflect on it straight after the game when you are still a little bit down.
“It’s hard to take positives out of the situation but we will go back into work tomorrow and get ready to go again.”
And Davis had a “stick with us” message for the support, who vented their fury at half time and full time. But he admits it’s also up to the team to perform if they want to get fans back on side.
Davis said: “We all just need to stick together. Everybody wants the same thing and before today that was to win the Scottish Cup and the league.
“Now we are left with the SPL and the fans want us to win it just as much as every one of the players does.
“We have to support each other. Sometimes the supporters want a little bit of a lift from the players and hopefully we can give them that.
“We have managed to have a lot of success over the last number of years.
“Now is the time for us to show that we are pushing in the same direction, giving our all and showing the desire and what it means to pull on that shirt.
“Hopefully we can salvage something from the season.”
By STEPHEN HALLIDAY
Published on Monday 6 February 2012 00:04
RANGERS manager Ally McCoist has contradicted his chairman Craig Whyte by stating the Ibrox club can fairly be described as being in a crisis situation as they await the imminent outcome of their dispute with HMRC over unpaid taxes.
McCoist suffered a huge blow yesterday as Rangers were eliminated from the William Hill Scottish Cup, losing 2-0 to Dundee United at Ibrox watched by a crowd of just 17,822.
It came on the day Whyte, in an interview with The Scotsman’s sister paper Scotland on Sunday, admitted Rangers were approaching the most difficult period in the club’s 140-year history but insisted it did not constitute a crisis. “I wouldn’t say crisis is the right word,” said Whyte. “Not at the moment. But we’re certainly in the toughest time in the club’s history. The next few weeks, I’d definitely say that much.”
After watching his team’s lame display against United, however, McCoist accepted the potential consequences of the tax case are a crisis, one which he says is having an adverse effect on everyone connected with the club. “The crisis point comes with the tax case more than anything,” said McCoist. “What we all need is clarification, so we can move forward. The uncertainty regarding this tax issue is the biggest problem we have, whether it’s management, players or fans.
“You could use the word crisis in terms of the tax case. We need to know one way or another where it stands and where we are situated, so we can deal with it and move forward. ”
In his Scotland on Sunday interview, Whyte declared he has contingency plans in place if the tax case goes against Rangers but was not prepared to reveal any details. “I play my cards close to my chest,” said Whyte. “Ally and I work closely together and if that situation arises he’ll be the first to know about it. We’re talking about hypotheticals here.
“There’s a plan in place for any eventuality. I couldn’t go into it. If I publicised it then it would potentially jeopardise what we’re working on. But, remember, I bought the club with this thing hanging over it. I’ve been thinking about it since day one. The long-term interest of the club is what I think about every day.”
The short-term picture surrounding Rangers became even darker with their Scottish Cup defeat, another early round elimination from a tournament following first hurdle exits from the Champions League, Europa League and League Cup. “It’s been a really disappointing day.” said McCoist. “You have to give credit where it is due. I thought United, especially in the first half, played well.”
Following the £5.5 million sale of Nikica Jelavic to Everton, McCoist ended yesterday’s tie with a strike pairing of Salim Kerkar and Andrew Little.
McCoist is hopeful Kyle Lafferty, currently sidelined by a hamstring injury, will return before the end of the month and disputed a report which claimed Rangers had been prepared to sell the striker for £1.75 million last week before an unnamed English club pulled out of a deal. “To my knowledge, that is absolute nonsense,” said McCoist. “We are trying to offer Lafferty a new deal, so that’s my view on it. I certainly don’t know of any bids coming in.”
McCoist, who said he will continue to pursue the possibility of signing a free agent to boost his striking choices, is confident his team will respond positively to yesterday’s defeat. “The players will be fine, they don’t have an option,” he said. “They have to roll their sleeves up and get on with it. It is determination and grit, qualities we have a lot of in our dressing room, that will see us through this.”
Sergio unable to select Kello as board question his ‘commitment to the club’
Published on Monday 6 February 2012 02:19
HEARTS manager Paulo Sergio revealed after his team’s 1-1 draw with St Johnstone yesterday that he was not allowed to select first-choice goalkeeper Marian Kello for the match.
The Hearts board had hoped to sell Kello to Austria Vienna last week to raise some much-needed funds, but the Slovakian, who is out of contract at the end of this season, turned down the move. The board’s response, according to Sergio, was to bar him from the team on the grounds that he was not committed to the club.
“There is an issue running between him and our board, a political thing,” Sergio said. “I was told that because Marian is not committed with the future with Hearts, we should play the others. It’s a tough situation. We will wait [and see] what happens between Marian and the board after they talk.”
Jamie MacDonald played in the cup match, with Mark Ridgers on the bench. Both goalkeepers agreed new contracts last month, when Hearts brought in transfer fees for Eggert Jonsson and Ryan Stevenson, but they had also hoped for offers for David Templeton and Marius Zaliukas as well as Kello.
The future at Tynecastle for the 29-year-old keeper is uncertain, and Sergio accepted that, unless there was a change in the board’s stance he would be unable to include Kello for the league match at home to Celtic on Wednesday night. “If the situation is like it is now, no, I don’t believe it,” he said. “But we never know.”
Kello was also ordered out of the Hearts squad last season when Jim Jefferies was manager, having incurred the displeasure of club owner Vladimir Romanov for a matter that was never publicly explained. Yesterday is thought to be the first time that Sergio has been denied the right to select his own team.
MacDonald played reasonably well without having many difficult saves to make, and was only beaten when his defence were caught flat-footed by a St Johnstone break from inside their own half. Asked if goalscorer Cillian Sheridan had been offside, Sergio said: “I’m not sure. When you lose a goal like that you always think it should be offside. If it’s not, it’s our mistake.”
The manager was more certain that his team should have been awarded a penalty when Dave Mackay, who was later sent off, appeared to handle in the box. “I think it’s clear,” he said. “I think everybody can see that. I don’t want to get myself in trouble with the ref, but it’s a mistake. I make my mistakes, too.
“And at the second yellow card for the St Johnstone player [Mackay] we had a situation where it was four against one. We should have played advantage, and we had time after for [the referee to give] a second yellow card or not.” However, Sergio accepted that his team had not played well overall. St Johnstone manager Steve Lomas, by contrast, enthused about his team’s performance. “I never doubt my boys’ fighting spirit,” he said. “It’s a great trait to have.”
Lomas thought Mackay’s second booking had been harsh, arguing that a player should not be penalised for dangerous play if he has his back to his opponent.
Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo says:
6 February, 2012 at 08:55
Well done, Desmond. Notre Dame, Greenock boys can see right through to the truth. And, boy, can they tell it.
Ignore the rumours, Ally McCoist is going nowhere
Michael Grant
Chief football writer
IT would be putting it mildly to say that there’s a twitchiness about Ally McCoist’s future as the manager of Rangers.
If McCoist goes quiet for a few hours – if he isn’t seen around the club, or doesn’t return messages promptly – some people are quick to get very jumpy. Where is he? Why hasn’t anyone heard from him? Has he absconded with the transfer kitty ? What if it means he’s quit, walked out, handed in his notice? According to the grapevine, McCoist is so scunnered with Rangers that he’s only one more slap in the face away from resigning. Every five minutes on the social websites someone in the know will tell you he’s gone.
It’s a classic plotline in the endless Old Firm soap opera, and especially because the reason for McCoist walking out would be a supposed inability to tolerate the working conditions inflicted on him by owner Craig Whyte. That’s a fertile context for gossip and speculation. When McCoist headed out of Ibrox last Tuesday night with a face like fizz after meeting Whyte there was a scrum of snappers and cameramen there to add drama and a sense of theatre. Even Whyte’s own sister phoned him, claiming to have heard that he had resigned. Bookies still have him as favourite to be the next Premier League manager to leave his job.
Managers do reach the end of their tethers and leave clubs. A lack of funds does become too much for some. High expectations and meagre resources is a combination which can drive a coach round the bend. There are plenty of examples of bosses who decided they’d had it up to here with an exasperating chairman/owner and couldn’t put up with working in a straitjacket any more. McCoist wouldn’t be breaking any new ground if he decided that enough was enough.
But it would still be unusual, and it would look desperate. Even this potless Rangers, with the backside hanging out of their trousers and creditors gathering at the door, have advantages which every manager in the country, bar one, would rush to embrace. Murray Park, a squad peppered with internationalists, about 45,000 fans at every home game (okay, okay, not yesterday): Neil Lennon is the only other manager in the country who wouldn’t give his right arm for that.
When he was asked about all this the other day McCoist was, once again, emphatic. Had he ever regretted taking the job? “Never.” Had any of his friends advised him to walk away, for his own good? “No. Because my friends know me.” He said something revealing as he explained why he wasn’t going to sit there and paint a woe-is-us picture about Rangers: “The fans don’t deserve it. The players don’t deserve it. We deserver better” Those are three motivating forces which should not be underestimated when it comes to getting in to McCoist’s head. He feels a sense of responsibility towards the supporters and his team. It’s not just about him. It would look selfish if he walked out and made the mess even worse for everyone else.
That his contract drawn up by Martin Bain is very extravagant, in fact “border line criminal activity” according to Craig Whyte should not be considered a factor in what drives McCoist. The small print in it demands a six figure pay off sum which is quite a condition to have when you consider McCoist’s experience.
He is still a novice in managerial terms. He hasn’t got a full season under his belt yet. People can forget that he is trying to start a career in management. He seems so inextricably linked to Rangers that it is easy to overlook the notion of him eventually wanting to prove he could cut it at a club in, say, the Barclays Premier League. If he walked out on Rangers now, how would that look on his CV, especially after what happened yesterday? And at what level would he get back into management after that? Bailing out because life is hard might be understandable given the stress of trying to live with a financially superior Celtic, but it wouldn’t cut any ice with club chairmen in England. If McCoist resigned they’d put an asterisk beside his name and think of him as an inexperienced manager who walked out on a massive club because it didn’t have enough money for him and failed to get his multi million pound international stars motivated for what should have been a formality against Dundee Utd. Five cup ties in one season and only one win against Arbroath will not set the heather alight down south now will it ?
The thought of having to find a new manager would horrify Rangers. If they can’t afford to make serious bids for anyone, and a trialist they like ends up instead at Hibernian, they’re not exactly in the market for Jose Mourinho. Despite the fevered speculation, though, it’s hard to see this as an issue. Having crashed out of four cup tournaments already and taken second place so far in a two-horse league race, McCoist would be the first to admit he has plenty of work to do. Rangers still have a better squad than Dundee United. It was his job to ensure they didn’t lose yesterday.
He’s bound to be exasperated by Whyte. There’s the impression he might as well have put his list of January transfer targets in the bin, for all the good it did him to hand it to the owner. But there’s a world of difference between the fevered gossip about his future and everything he’s said about it himself. Could he snap and decide enough was enough? Of course. It’s a free world. But he also knows this much: if he wants to make his name as a manager he has to soldier on.
Fatty will never get a job managing anywhere, once he leaves the debt ridden midden.
He’s the White John Barnes.
Morning all.. Maybe we should sign Lawrence Tynes as back up penalty taker.. He doesn’t miss much… Super Bowl winner and all
I’m the billionaire !
A beautiful, bright, bright, sunshiny day here in North Ayrshire.
Make sure you watch this to the end.
Very funny
http://youtu.be/LNP4_dV-zTs
Celtic Cyberspace is boring right now. Newsnow/Celtic is a wasteland of bluster and tumble-weed. You’d think the redtops could at least make up some lies about our players or something, like the usually do. Instead, they’re devoting all their attention to reporting on the drama at Ibrokes.
“Davis: Splash the Cash [on free players]”
“Super Ally’s Going Nowhere [until he’s had a good feed]”
“Out of the Cup, no strikers, no money, haunted by crippling tax bill… Rangers are a club in crisis”
Ack well, off to folly folly I go, with Babelfish on the “Bampot to English” setting on another tab.
Salmond’s ruck with Beeb chief
‘Nazi jibe’ after rugby TV ban
By LUCINDA CAMERON
Published: Today
Add a comment
ALEX Salmond is on a collision course with BBC chief Lord Patten over his ban from talking on TV about Scotland and England’s rugby match.
The First Minister was left fuming when he was axed from his planned appearance on the Beeb’s live coverage of Saturday’s Calcutta Cup clash due “heightened tensions” over the independence referendum.
And the row took another turn yesterday when Mr Salmond was accused of a “Nazi slur” against the corporation.
He compared the Beeb advisor who called for the decision to a “gauleiter” — a provincial governor in Hitler’s Germany.
Mr Salmond, right,said: “The political gauleiter intervened to say this shouldn’t happen. I understand that he has been extremely busy with BBC Scotland and the football but what this means is that a journalistic decision by the sports editor has been over-ridden for political reasons — that’s what you get in tin-pot dictatorships. You’re not meant to get it in the BBC.”
Mr Salmond will now confront BBC Trust chairman Lord Patten, below right, over the issue when he meets him in Edinburgh on Thursday.
But opposition politicians called on Mr Salmond to apologise over his outburst.
Labour called his gauleiter jibe an “ugly smear” while the Tories accused him of “bully-boy tactics”.
Lib Dem leader Willie Rennie said Mr Salmond should “retract this slur on the BBC’s integrity”.
A Beeb spokesman said: “It was decided it was inappropriate to give undue prominence to any single political leader in the context of the tie.”
Our crisis is OFF the park
By KENNY MacDONALD
Published: Today
RANGERS went out of their FOURTH cup in six months yesterday — but Ally McCoist insists the only crisis is off the pitch.
Boss McCoist heard his side booed off after Dundee United roared to a Scottish Cup win at Ibrox.
That leaves Gers — also out of the Champions League, Europa League and League Cup — with the SPL as their only hope of silverware this season.
But under-siege McCoist says the REAL shadow hanging over the club is the HMRC tax case.
He said: “You could use the word ‘crisis’ but only around the tax case. That’s the biggest problem the club faces.
“That’s where we need clarification so we can move forward. The uncertainty isn’t pleasant.”
Rangers never looked like pegging United back after they’d opened up a two-goal lead and McCoist admitted: “It was a horrible day, really disappointing.
“You have to give credit to Dundee United who played well but we should have done better at both goals.”
McCoist rubbished newspaper reports yesterday that Gers had attempted to sell striker Kyle Lafferty behind his back in the transfer window.
He insisted: “To my knowledge it’s absolute nonsense. We’re trying to re-sign Kyle to a new deal. I know nothing about any move to sell Kyle.”
The game was watched by a crowd of under 18,000 but McCoist said: “I thought the crowd were good. The timing of the game and live TV contributed to the low crowd. They were disappointed and they aired their views at half-time and full-time.
“But I thought the Broomloan Road kept things going and did their bit to raise spirits.”
McCoist insists he will keep morale up and revealed there are still funds for a new face outside the transfer window.
He said: “There’s no option other than to get the sleeves rolled up and go again. Determination and grit has got us through in the past and has to do so again.
“I believe there is cash available to bring someone in should I need it. We’ve two or three targets who’d be appealing.
“But I won’t bring in anyone if they wouldn’t better the squad so it should be easy”
DeniaBhoy: 6 February, 2012 at 08:47
Once again the name Walter Smith is missing in the list of those culpable in the demise of the Hun.
McCoist stating that the Tax Case is more important than football results provides the players with the perfect excuse.
Of all the possible messages he might put out, this is the one that will prove to be most counter-productive.
Silly Billy.
Was yesterday a foretaste of things to come? Rangers a very poor second, at Home, to a mid-table SPL team? If so, will it gradually become less enjoyable or will we enjoy seeing just how low the crowd figure goes?
JJ
JJ
We need to see if they can get down to 2000 like they did in 79!
The Sky contract is interesting in as much as How Sky view it. I agree with Corsica that the current contract is so pitiful that it couldn’t drop much.
The numbers are interesting. The amount paid would suggest that Sky do not see it as other than a schedule filler for quiet viewing times. The SPL rarely gets the prime spot on Sky Sports 1.
I very much doubt that SKY would run the risk of dropping the SPL contract if Rangers drop to Div 3. My suspicion is that ESPN would step in with a longer term contract which would be for possibly a 6 year term, and would mean ESPN would have the rights to all Old Firm games when Rangers return to the SPL in year 4, and keep them for 3 years . That could and probably would be advertising gold, especially as it is likely to co-incide with a return to a healthier more robust economy
I also suspect that Rangers working their way from Div 3 to the SPL would attract a decent TV audience. By the nature of the grounds that Rangers will visit the away support will drop by on average 2,000 per away game. Those 2,000 would no doubt subscribe to a TV channel which showed all Rangers away games live. Rangers Newco would also be able to demand a very high slice of any SFL live TV contract. It may in fact work out that Newco suffer NO drop in TV income whatsoever during their SFL sabbatical.
Faced with a new threat from ESPN, Sky would be playing a very high stakes poker game by threatening to ditch the current contract. If Neil Doncaster and Ralph Topping do not realize this they are very poor negotiators.
Remember also that ESPN are no Setanta. They are in fact part of a much much larger organization than SKY. Disney are the ultimate owners of ESPN, and they have the resource to support what could be a once in a lifetime opportunity for them to grab a big chunk of market share in Scotland.
Corsica has laid out quite clearly why gate revenue will not be materially affected. I have laid out a scenario where TV income could be maintained. The notion that Scottish Football will die without Rangers is fundamentally flawed. Once the MSM realize that they won’t die either because Rangers are not in the SPL, we can hopefully have a wide ranging discussion around appropriateness, fairness, integrity and ethics. Which given we are discussing a Sport , should always take precedence
Finally, the solution I floated about ESPN and a long term contract could also apply to clubs trying to protect season book income. Fix the prices for 3 years in the SPL, and contract with season book holders that they will be exempt from any increase when Rangers come back in year 4.
Season Book holders who stick with the club should receive a much much better price than those who duck out and come back in in 4 years time.
That incentivizes season book holders to stick with their through a Rangersless SPL. Rangers could also do something similar as they work their way back to the SPL
Glad to see the hordes have their eye on the main issues around their club right now. From FF.
bluelacoste
1st Team Regular Join Date: 31-07-2006
Posts: 1,249
Re: 1690 scarfs banned at Ibrox.
——————————————————————————–
Quote:
Originally Posted by buddhabear
I can see the relevance of 1314 to Scottish history, I can’t see any connection whatsoever regarding Rangers and 1690.
Sniff Sniff
You must be fishing
Might not have any direct link to the club but the supporters of the club who are the life line of the club have strong connections and beliefs to what happened in 1690, and what we hold today has part of what freedom we have left.
You might not like it but that is the background.
Did the scarf have anything on it about the battle of the boyne or King William on it? if not and just said “Remember 1690” I would have throw it back at the steward and told him I was from a Serbian family and I was remembering the battle of Kosovo in 1690 see how he would come back to that one.
I didn’t see all of yesterday’s game. Although I thoroughly enjoyed the result, I could not say the football on offer from the Govanites was, to coin a cliche, a great advert for Scottish football.
This is undoubtedly the worst TFOD team I have seen in 30 years. They kicked and hacked thier way through the whole of the second half, ably abetted by a certain W. Collum. I know we’ve seen this stuff for years especially at Ibrox. Given the issues raised by the oldco/newco scenario, it did raise one question in my mind.
IF there is to be a vote by the whole of the SPL as to whether or not to allow newco into the SPL, I would suggest that every chairman of every SPL team asks themselves this question:
Do you really want to allow a team which physically attacks your own players with impunity, and which is proteceted by the referree when it plays like this, into the SPL?
I have an offer from greenjedi. Any offers below 2,000? Come along , Ladies and Gents! Going, going…..
JJ
Paul67
How could anyone make Chalky look more silly than he already looks?
1690 is the reserve price.
1690 will be the average gate.
Morning from a slushy, balmy Chilterns,
I watched quite a bit of Scottish Football over the weekend, all I can say.
Crisis! What crisis?
Thought the Scottish Cup showed a competitiveness, quality and excitement – Scottish Football is on the up – no doubts.
Was impressed by the Hearts, St Johnstone game and Dundee United looked full of promise and determination – My Guess is our Jet setting Scouting travel bill for Scandinavia and Eastern Europe can be curtailed – Get a camper van and do a tour of the East coast.
On the subject of the Arabs what about the BBC coverage from Ibrox – Oor Pat’s always one fur a laff these days – His fulltime punditry was a profundity of excuses for the home side, he summarised thus – you only have to look at the R@ngers subs Wylde, Kerker and Little (i.e. Unknowns) then as wi’ them all, he was allowed a side comment on a classic Dundee United performance (That includes the DU Manager and Goalscorers BTW)
He says – ”MaKay-Smith had a good game.”
Hey Pat yes he did – & that young unkown was actually Gary McKay-Stevens.
Paul67
Message to you.