Questions, questions, questions

by

As SFM folk will know, Scottish Football authorities can be enigmatic at best, puzzling and corrupt at worst, and downright crazy and incompetent in either situation. On this blog over the years, we have asked questions constantly of the authorities and the clubs, but like anyone with a fan-centred interest at heart we get ignored. “Fans are not a homogenous entity”, they say, “there are more opinions than there are fans”. This artful premise gives the clubs an excuse to ignore fans’ input, and other than on platforms like this, fan opinion is seldom gathered or curated.
The following blog, put together by Andy Smith, the Chairman of the Scottish Football Supporters Association, asks a lot of simple questions that don’t get asked often. He also invites fans to raise their own questions and opinions.
Of course, there are headline atrocities committed by the people in charge of the game.
The Five-Way Agreement, the continuity myth, the refusal to punish the biggest incidence of systematic cheating ever experienced in the game, and the casual adoption of the post-truth model introduced so successfully by venal politicians on both sides of the Atlantic.

But what enabled those assaults on the integrity of the sport? In order to get away with the big con, there have to be wee cons. Ticket allocations, kick off times and dates for set-piece occasions which make it difficult if not impossible for fans outside of Glasgow to participate, refusal to hold match officials accountable in the way an underperforming player or a misbehaving fan would be, and countless other incidences where fans are inconvenienced, or even put at risk. 

The only way to combat that level of arrogance is to unite where we can, and although in a partisan sport that can be difficult to achieve, SFM is testimony that it can work. This blog is an invitation for us to begin to look forward, and not get distracted by the past. I  hope SFM-ers participate and make their views clear.

Big Pink

 

What did Alan Dougherty, Gordon Harvey and Eddie Hutch have in common?

They were teachers who gave their time, to thousands of kids, including me, and asked for nothing back. To a man they gave up, overnight, as part of a ‘work to rule’, in an ugly pay dispute in the early 80s.
They were never thanked properly by the game?
They were and are sair missed.
Why did football let that happen?
Why has nobody ever grasped this particular nettle since?



Should you be able to have a beer at Bayview watching East Fife play Clyde on Feb 5th?

Just like the fans at Murrayfield, just over the Firth can and will, at the sell-out game vs England on the very same day.



Should you be allowed to enjoy a beer at Celtic Park watching Celtic vs Rangers on Feb 2nd?

A smaller crowd than Murrayfield too, and very few away fans. But some history and maybe a different situation altogether.

 


Are our leagues too small, leading to constant pressure and short termism by clubs?

Club CFO’s say the pressures are brutal and when their team is in trouble everything else gets sacrificed to avoid the financial chaos of relegation.
Many CFO’s dread the thought of promotion too knowing full well the seesaw implications of our small leagues.



Should the bottom of SPFL be an automatic relegation to open up the pyramid?

Our unique, one league only, convoluted play-off formula was only ever a last minute switcheroo/deal by the SPFL2 clubs at the time to protect their places in the SPFL ‘old boys network’.
I’d suggest East Stirling, Brechin and Berwick would change their votes if asked again.

 

Your Invitation to Say What You Think


Scottish Football Alliance Fan Survey January 2022

The Scottish Football Supporters Association is an independent and growing fans organisation in Scotland with circa 80,000 members. We have members from all senior clubs in Scotland and throughout the pyramid.
Many of those members regularly visit the SFM site.

We have been asked by the new Scottish Football Alliance (http://scottishfootball.org/) to provide an independent insight into what fans think about various aspects of our game, in particular what fans think our game needs to move forward. It is time for change, and football seems incapable of change from within.

Scottish Football might not acknowledge it, but it really needs the input of supporters like you. The fact none of us have been asked our opinions in the past says a lot.

We need to help and tell those running our game and other stakeholders like the Scottish Government what football needs to do.

Scottish football certainly has to think longer term and get closer to its fans.
In any business overview we are the core stakeholders.
The way we are treated and ignored is quite commercially bizarre.

To that end we have commissioned a short two minute survey, but we’d also welcome and appreciate any more detailed insights into what Scottish Football needs to do or do better. Please email those insights (in addition to participating in the survey) to me, at andrew@scottishfsa.org

I know from experience that when you get a group of fans in a room to talk about football, after the local rivalries and stuff gets dealt with, usually with humour, we can all see what the game has done for us, the power of good it can be for our communities and the things that need to change.

I constantly find that most fans not only see the bigger picture but also collectively want to give something back.

When this survey ends we will aggregate and analyse the results and share them far and wide inside the game and to other interested stakeholders like The Scottish Government.

The results will also become the foundation of policies The Scottish Football Alliance will publish and circulate.

At each stage moving forward we will work closely with The Scottish Football Alliance providing then with further fan insight.

And we will keep you and all other fans involved.

Survey Notes
You can participate in the survey by follwing this link:
https://s-f-s-a.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/scottish-football-alliance-survey

The questions are simple Yes/No and there are no right or wrong answers, just opinions and insight into what fans think.

1,093 thoughts on “Questions, questions, questions”

  1. I watched the AFC v. TRFC match on Sky last night.

    Officiating – dreadful. The SFA & the Head of Referee Operations must be so proud.

    Football – poor, but what do you expect on a January night in Aberdeen with the wind howling & a poor surface.

    Commentary – again dreadful. Crokka/Wokka dismal & one-eyed.

    There’s always talk about how poor media deals are for Scottish football. Last night was no advert for the game in this country.

  2. jj 19th Jan 11.04.

    Officiating – dreadful. The SFA & the Head of Referee Operations must be so proud.
    //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

    I thought Referee Scott Brown was ok tbh. As for the Clancy chap, the least said the better.

  4. PM, what if we don’t even qualify through the 2 playoff games? Does the Top Tier still shutdown for a month so they can watch the WC? That doesn’t make much sense to me if teams might not have that many players at the WC. Obviously, if clubs have more than the regulated 3 away, then it would make sense, but why announce this before we know?

  5. nawlite 19th January 2022 At 13:07
    Oh ye of little faith !
    They’re basically just bringing the winter break forward again , and it might end the nonsense among fans that these things are arranged to suit any particular club’s agenda . No sight of the hidden hand !

  6. I know!! I was trying not to be too downbeat, but there is a chance we might not make it to the finals. What then? The winter break is traditionally just 2 weeks, do we do 4 for no real reason if thast’s how it turns out?

  7. Hold the front page;

    Shock news Scottish referee sends off a The rangers player!!!

    I suppose, (at half time?) Brother Clancy saw how badly the officials missed the McGregor foul on Hedges, which should have been a penalty and red card, despite the soup-taking sevco apologist Andy Walker’s other-worldly views.

    Clancy will be well down the pecking order now, however I’m sure Brothers Beaton and Madden will do their utmost in Celtic’s next two league matches…

  8. And VAR continues to be kicked down the road …

    Def penalty, Kent not a 2nd booking and Hayes possible 2nd booking for an elbow

    As a shareholder I think I should ask my club and other clubs why are we not requesting VAR immediately as playing without it is directly impacting our business !

  9. Albertz11 19th January 2022 At 11:39

    I thought Referee Scott Brown was ok tbh.
    xxxxx
    Looking at the stats, I’m surprised he couldn’t wangle all 3 points for Aberdeen. I guess he was blind-sighted when he forsook the opportunity to award a penalty and red the keeper….
    Or overly confident?

  11. Seems like Scott Brown is not only in the heads of some or all Ranger players and you might add some of their fans. It would be interesting if Brown was on the market how long would it take for Rangers to be chasing him. Just think how much better the team could be with him in the line up and the players not having to worry about him getting in their ears with some colorful comments. How much braver would some of their light weight players would be if they knew Brown was backing them up. He would go from black hat to white hat in no time. Every tam needs some one like this to provide upset to the other’s team best players and once word gets around about who can be messed with the results become quite clear. You might hate playing against him, but would definitely like him on your side.

  12. nbmumfc

    Shock news Scottish referee sends off a The rangers player!!!
    ……………………………………………………………………………..

    Not too much of a shock when you check the facts.
    Stats are from 1946/47 – 2021/22, so not a chosen timeframe to suit one’s agenda.

    Domestic Red cards Rangers 178 Celtic 140
    League Red cards Rangers 141 Celtic 111
    Old Firm Red cards Rangers 42 Celtic 35

    Old Firm Penalties Rangers 35 Celtic 45,

    Steven Whittaker scored a penalty v Celtic on 06/02/2011.
    Subsequently there have been 34 Old Firm encounters in which Rangers have been awarded One penalty.

    Since 2016/17 Bobby Madden has shown 7 RCs to Rangers players and 3 to Celtic players.
    Since 2016.17 Bobby Madden has shown 4 RCs to Rangers opponents and 8 to Celtics opponents.

    Just to be clear i don’t believe that Referees are biased one way or the other, but the stats show that lazy preconceived thoughts can be proven wrong.

  13. nbmumfc

    Should have made it clear in my previous post that my reference to “lazy preconceived thoughts” was not aimed at yourself but to the various sportswriters, pundits & bloggers who are guilty of this behaviour.

  14. Albertz “Not too much of a shock when you check the facts.
    Stats are from 1946/47”

    Please keep this relevant, the club concerned only started playing football in 2012 and had not had a red card from a Scottish referee in around 2 years, despite collecting 4 in their first 6 games in Europe this season. Newsworthy indeed!!

    Just before the original Rangers died, we know how lies were told and scrutiny was avoided to ensure they had a licence to play in the Champions League qualifiers when they should have been ineligible. We now face a similar scenario with the new club whose very survival could depend on winning the Premiership this season. Mountains will be moved to accommodate this, let’s hope they fail.

    Just to be clear, I do believe some referees are shockingly biased!!

  16. Nawlite 20th January 2022 At 15:31
    ”..What’s this? Two teams claiming one history? ”
    %%%%%%%%%
    Oh, be still, my beating heart!
    I wonder how the Romanian Finance Regulators would view a new public company that launches itself on the market on the basis of a Prospectus that misleads potential investors about the football club of which it is the holding company?
    Good spot, btw, Nawlite: fair brightened up my afternoon.
    As for the BBC, they will report truth in sport anywhere but in Scotland, as they have demonstrated over the last decade or so.

  17. And here we ago on the Duff and Phelps (the Company) action :
    “LORD TYRE – S Alexander, Clerk
    Thursday 27th January
    Debate
    CA71/20 Duff & Phelps Ltd v The Lord Advocate A & W M Urquhart SGLD ”
    Lord Tyre has earlier ‘procedural hearing ‘ stuff that morning scheduled for between 9.30 a.m and 10.00 am.
    According to the Scottish legal glossary:
    “Debate
    Intermediate step in procedure when legal points are considered, and which can result in the conclusion of a civil case prior to evidence being led.”
    I’m no judge (!) but I can’t see anything other than Lord Tyre finding that D&P have no case.
    The fact that 3 of their employees were ( wrongly) arrested and charged , all charges subsequently being dropped, is no more ‘damaging’ to D&P ( the company) than would be, say, the wrongful arrest of a bank manager to the reputation and good name of his employing bank.
    No?
    [If Lord Tyre agrees with me, I’ll be signing up for a law degree course!!]

  18. Tuesday was a slow day so I found myself watching the BBC Parliament channel when an urgent question was raised on the ongoing Derby County admin process. An interesting discussion which is available on BBC iPlayer.
    A hat tip to Toby Perkins, the Labour MP for Chesterfield, who reminded the house that Glasgow Rangers and Bury had gone out of existence. ( 17.55 mins into the programme).

  19. Westcoaster 20th January 2022 At 20:11
    ‘..A hat tip to Toby Perkins,.’

    %%%%%%%
    I am already mentally composing the letter I may send him !
    Thanks for posting that interesting link.

  22. nbmumfc.
    From the opening paragraph of the link you provided.

    “SFA regularly engage with all clubs and remain in dialogue with teams throughout the season”
    ……………………………………………………………………………………………………

    I would add that given the poor display v Aberdeen it could be argued it was a point gained rather than two points dropped.

  23. @NBMFC – I saw the report on bbc and am truly at a loss. I watched most (not all) of the match. In terms of key decisions that I witnessed:
    1. Penalty and yellow card to the GK not given – VAR would have picked that up.
    2. Kent and Hayes yellow cards. Kent is a given for a shove in the chest. Not sure why Hayes got one – maybe bad language / aggressive posture / dissent.
    3. Kent 2nd yellow. Soft – yes. Stupid – yes. Petulant – yes. Late – yes. Any complaint from Kent – no. He gave the ref a decision to make not long after it being obvious that the ref was done with the playground stuff.
    4. Hayes “elbow” – linesman should have helped his ref out here. Stupid from Hayes which he got away with.
    5. Aberdeen penalty – no question with the handball. Should the penalty have been retaken because the ball got blown by the wind? Movement was to the disadvantage of Aberdeen so I would say no – can’t imagine it being a concern if a blue shirt was taking the penalty…
    I can’t think of anymore “big decision moments” in the game.

  25. ‘Wokingcelt 21st January 2022 At 15:07

    Hayes “elbow” – linesman should have helped his ref out here. Stupid from Hayes which he got away with.
    Aberdeen penalty – no question with the handball. Should the penalty have been retaken because the ball got blown by the wind? Movement was to the disadvantage of Aberdeen so I would say no – can’t imagine it being a concern if a blue shirt was taking the penalty…’
    ::
    ::
    Re your no.4 – the AR should have flagged for Barisic impeding Hayes by holding his arm. Hayes wrestled free from his grasp & in doing so accidentally caught Barisic.

    Re your no.5 – Law 14 (The Penalty Kick), Section 1 (Procedure) states: ‘The ball must be stationary on the penalty mark..’

    (It’s page 117 in here – https://downloads.theifab.com/downloads/laws-of-the-game-2021-22?l=en)

    TRFC really have a brass neck. They played poorly & escaped with a point.

  26. @JJ – thx for the link. Re #4 – wouldn’t disagree but could be viewed as excessive by Hayes.
    Agree TRFC escaped with a point. Be interesting to see what if anything comes of the complaint – both formally and informally (when will Clancy get another TRFC match to ref…)

  27. I genuinely can’t imagine any other club who had been advantaged by not having a penalty awarded against them AND not being reduced to 10 men early in a match who would then complain about that referee for being unfair to them.

  28. Wokingcelt 21st Jan 15.07

    I can’t think of anymore “big decision moments” in the game.
    ………………………………………………………………………………………………………

    Just for starters there are two fouls prior to the awarding of the Aberdeen penalty. Pretty big decisions i would say.

    1 Brown raises his arm to impede Barasic who is tracking his man as the ball is crossed into the box.
    2 Ferguson clearly pushes Barasic with both hands before he heads the ball which then hits the arm of Morelos.
    Both clear fouls, both missed by the referee despite him looking directly at them.

  29. John Clark 20th January 2022 At 23:34
    ‘Westcoaster 20th January 2022 At 20:11
    ‘..A hat tip to Toby Perkins,.’

    %%%%%%%
    I am already mentally composing the letter I may send him !
    Thanks for posting that interesting link.”
    %%%%
    And here is my email to Toby Perkins MP

    To:
    toby.perkins.mp@parliament.uk

    Fri, 21 Jan at 23:20

    ‘Dear Mr Perkins,
    I have just watched (for the third time), on the BBC Parliament channel, the discussion in the House of Commons of the ‘urgent question’ of the position in which Derby County Football Club finds itself in.

    I am not English, do not live in England, and am not particularly interested in ‘politics’. You will therefore forgive me if I say that until I watched that discussion I had not heard of you.

    Believe me when I say that you are now a hero in my eyes, an honest hero.

    Why? Well, because you are the first public person to say, and to say in no less a place than in the chamber of the House of Commons, these words:
    “…clubs go out of existence altogether as we have seen in the case of Glasgow Rangers and Bury..”

    There is a culture of denial in the Scottish mainstream media, including BBC Scotland, of the fact that Rangers Football Club plc , on being wound up in consequence of the disastrous failure of the [publicly acknowledged] incompetent/inefficient Administrators either to find a buyer or to achieve a Creditors Voluntary Arrangement, went into Liquidation- and thereby went out of existence as a football club entitled to participate in Scottish professional football.

    What I want to put to you, however, is not so much a matter of football business, but of insolvency legislation and the launching of new companies on the financial market.

    To cut to the chase: the purchaser of some of the assets of Rangers FC plc [not of the whole of the club, otherwise the club would not have entered Liquidation!] was allowed to create a new club. But had to apply for membership of a recognised league. The new club [ initially un-named except asSevco5088/SevcoScotland] had to apply as a new club.

    As a new club it was admitted into Scottish professional football.
    But it was, by a secret Agreement, permitted to claim to be the Rangers Football Club that was founded in 1872!
    So far, so football.

    Turn to the world of business and finance and the Financial Conduct Authority(FCA) and associated matters.

    We find that the shareholders in a football club created in 2012 swap their shares for shares in a to-be-launched-on-the-market PLC, to be known as Rangers International Football Club plc.

    Oh, then we find that the Prospectus issued in the launching of this new PLC claims that it will be the holding company of Rangers football Club- founded in 1872, and the most successful football club in the world in terms of sporting honours and titles etc!

    Even to a thicko like me, that is a blatant untruth: the club created in 2012 cannot possibly be the club that is currently in Liquidation (under the name RFC 2012).

    It was the Rangers Football Club of 1872 that was liquidated. There was no ‘holding company’, as Companies house confirmed to me recently.

    I have tried to raise this with the FCA. The Nomad , it seems to me, seriously failed in his duty to check the truth of the ‘summary’ of the Prospectus.

    Blank wall!
    Which raises dark suspicions about the integrity of our Financial Regulators: a ‘Prospectus’ which misleads potential investors must surely have to be looked at.
    I do hope that Derby County gets out of Administration.

    As a wee footnote, I would not write to my own MP, because he has never asked questions about the secret ‘5-Way Agreement’ that allows a plc to claim that its primary source of revenue is a 150 year old football club instead of a club that was in fact only admitted into Scottish football in 2012 !

    Yours sincerely,

  30. And what about this?
    Listen to what one of the non-exec Directors of Celtic plc has to say in today’s ‘The Scotsman’.
    ” You need to be of a certain age to remember Kenny McIntyre [ed: I think that’s a reference to the father of the current BBC Sportsound presenter] when he was Scotland’s fearless political reporter….He would have held in contempt the present-day school of reporting-let’s stand outside Holyrood reading the latest communique, and would you be so kind as to give us a prepared sound-bite, Minister?……Scotland’s broadcasters need to change their mindset and play their part in holding authority to account..”

    What hypocritical cant from someone who sits on the Board of a two-faced plc which refused, and refuses still, to ask hard questions of the Scottish Football authorities.
    Gie’s a brek, Brian Wilson!

  31. Albertz11 21st January 2022 At 23:11
    //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

    It seems that you, in common with whoever (club or company) wrote the 8-point letter to the SFA, are determined to studiously avoid the most critical point about the performance of Clancy and his assistants.

    None of the subsequent individual ‘refereeing errors and inconsistencies’ that were listed would’ve come to pass if the officials had taken the correct course of action when Allan McGregor clattered into Ryan Hedges in the penalty box. I wonder why that escaped the list of damning evidence.

    Nobody can predict with any certainty what would have happened after such a sending off and penalty, but I’d wager that an increasingly dominant and confident Dons side would have won the game at a canter, based on how the game panned out with a full complement of players.

    Post-match, that failure by the officials to award a penalty and send off the keeper was almost universally acknowledged as something that would have been corrected by VAR.

    If I thought for a moment that Rangers* were in any way highlighting the woeful standard of our officials for the common good of Scottish football, I’d applaud them. Unfortunately, their selective amnesia about certain events merely confirms that they are simply trying to appease the substantial knuckle-dragging element of their support while dictating who should and shouldn’t officiate future matches.

    Their misplaced sense of entitlement is almost reminiscent of their predecessor club before its self-inflicted demise.

  32. Highlander 22nd Jan 10.06

    Penalty – Yes
    Red Card – No

    Barasic was clearly covering and therefore no obvious goal scoring opportunity was denied by McGregors genuine attempt.
    As you correctly say “Nobody could predict with any certainty what would have happened” and so any subsequent comments are pointless.
    As i said previously i don’t believe referees are biased but some , Clancy being one, are not up to the standard required . Rangers have every right to go through the proper channels and express their concerns.
    Every club has this right but as per usual it only seems to attract attention when Rangers are involved.

  33. https://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/19867176.demonising-scotlands-referees-puts-risk-endangers-national-game—matthew-lindsay/

    Matthew Lindsay in today’s online version of the Herald –

    ‘…The match official had a split second to make his call at Pittodrie. If the referee was in any way unsure about what had happened then he could not give it…

    …So wasn’t the referee correct to allow play to continue?…’

    Well Matthew, let’s see:

    If he was unsure what had happened, then something must have occurred to make him ‘unsure’. (The alternative is that he found McGregor’s failure to play the ball & Hedges’ going to ground as unremarkable. That is, in itself, remarkable for a ‘top-flight’ referee’.) Was it a foul by McGregor, punishable by a penalty-kick & a yellow (not red, I think, under ‘double-jeopardy’ interpretations) card? Was it simulation by Hedges, who had played the ball beyond the keeper towards the six-yard line & still within the field of play, punishable by an indirect free-kick & a yellow card? Either of those should have led to a whistle, but didn’t. TRFC played on, transitioned upfield & scored.

    Lindsay also writes –

    ‘…Nobody working for broadcaster Sky Sports could agree [that it was a penalty] after watching numerous replays from different angles…’

    Boyd & McInnes both thought it was a penalty when asked at half-time. Walker (who was rarely correct in any of his comments throughout the match) thought it wasn’t, then it was. Crocker? A waste of a seat on the gantry. He appears to be paid for the number of times he can shoehorn ‘Old Firm’, ‘Celtic’ & ‘Rangers’ into his commentary, not for his skills in interpreting what is happening on the pitch.

  34. Many clubs will contact the SFA with concerns, but rarely do clubs use friendly journalists to get it all over the media that they did so. It’s not that long ago Willie Collum was taken off Rangers games for months, after Rangers publicly complained about one of their players being red carded. I suspect Kevin Clancy will now face the same situation. Any time Celtic have made a complaint in the past the same Referee is defiantly put in charge of one of their games within 3-4 weeks, with huge SFA and media backing. I’m quite sure other clubs haven’t had Referees removed from their games either. If Kevin Clancy is not given a Rangers game for a while now then serious questions really need to be asked of the SFA.

  36. Paddy Malarkey 22nd January 2022 At 15:45
    ‘..Not Scottish but nearby …’
    %%%%%%
    Thanks for that link, PM.
    What’s in a name, indeed!
    I went on a fascinating exploration online of why a ‘drone’ is a drone…
    .. ‘Tiger moth’ planes pre-war, ‘queen bees’, the male counterpart , drone, from old English/ Germanic language…
    See this blog? Bloody marvellous at throwing up interesting and stimulating questions that are not necessarily related directly to ‘football’, but which lead people to seek the Truth.

    And of course there can only be actual Truth, no matter how many perceptions of ‘Truth’ there may be!

    Is TRFC the Rangers Football Club of 1872 foundation?
    As an absolute matter of fact and law, it is not, and cannot possibly be: schizophrenic split personalities are not recognised in the Articles of Association of the SPL/SFL or of SFA!

    People lied in 2012 ( and for a decade before).
    They still lie.
    And, like Macbeth, they are so far steeped in lying[as Macbeth was in blood] that going back is not an option.

    God help the lying wretches, who, of course, KNOW that they are liars, and are hanging together for fear of being hanged separately.
    Honest to God.

  39. Paddy Malarkey 23rd January 2022 @ 1758hrs –

    I note from your link that A. Dallas has been handed Motherwell v. Hibs this midweek.

    He didn’t handle a Premiership match from 05.12.20 until 01.12.21. That’s 51 weeks 4 days. (I don’t know why he didn’t get any Premiership matches in between those dates. I suppose it’s in the SFA’s ‘Big Book Of Secrets That Would Blow Supporters’ Minds’ & can never be made public.)

    That last match he handled in 2020, you ask? Motherwell v. Hibs. That’s two of his last three Premiership appointments featuring the same two teams at the same location. Well done, Crawfie! Yer daeing brullianto!

  40. Paddy Malarkey 23rd January 2022 At 17:58
    %%%%%%%%%
    Your link to the DR’s report that Clancy has been ‘axed’ from this week’s lis.
    Sportsound this afternoon had quite a good discussion about the deficiencies of our referees, and the need for VAR to be introduced so that mistakes can be rectified.
    Reference of course was made to the 8-point – letter from the club that lies about its origins, which of course got Kenny Mac whining aggressively about 2 months having passed since Bankier’s comments about referees yet not a cheep from the SFA .
    In my opinion, McIntyrre is not balanced enough as a chairperson to facilitate discussion , being too eager to give vent over-excitedly to his own views rather than merely pose questions and seek the opinions of his guests and draw them out.
    (Incidentally, although I was/am disappointed that the SFSA appears to have accepted for the moment that challenging the ‘Big Lie’ at the heart of Scottish Football is not within their brief, I nevertheless have completed their online survey, and would encourage fans to do so. The survey can be found at
    https://s-f-s-a.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/scottish-football-alliance-survey
    Scabby and scurvy as it and the crew sailing it may be, I don’t particularly want the ‘SS Scottish Football’ to founder!

  41. Paddy Malarkey 23rd Jan 17.58

    A couple of points
    The appointments for this weeks games were announced last week before any concerns were raised by Rangers.
    He (KC) didn’t referee any games on weeks 19 (18/12) & 20 (26/12) .
    Was he axed then?
    Desperate attempt by the DR to link his absence to the concerns raised last week.

  42. I was reading an article earlier from the Times written a few years back. It mentions that Fergus McCann saved Celtic from going out of business with eight minutes to spare. This general theme is mentioned in various media outlets from time to time. My question is if the same outlets say ‘Rangers’ didn’t go out of business when liquidated in 2012, and go on to say they can never go out of business no matter what, how can they so freely say Celtic would have gone out of business in 1994? I think it’s a fair question.

  43. Add more names to the list of Ranger player (former), Alex Rae and Colin Hendry whom Scott Brown has truly upset and has got deep into their heads. I’m sure during their careers they didn’t try to wind up an opponent, have some form of mocking, etc. Its part of the game and if coaches/managers know it, you can be sure its relayed to players who are good at it. Get over it guys. Will their be another letter on its way to Scottish football hq from Rangers complaining about the lack of a home draw in the next round of the Scottish Cup. Quite an unusual situation for them based on past draws. Finally Alloa did quite a hatchet job on Celtic. Must be some form of a brown envelope on its way from Ibrox for taking out three players Would have been interesting to see their approach to the game if it had been Rangers. I suspect the Alloa team would have been no where near a Ranger player with any intent of a tackle, block, etc.

  44. Upthehoops 23rd January 2022 At 20:52
    ‘..”..how can they so freely say Celtic would have gone out of business in 1994?” I think it’s a fair question.’
    %%%%%%%%%

    It is indeed a fair question to ask, and it is fairly easily answered: they know that the Scottish Football Authorities would have applied the rules with absolute rigour, and the ‘establishment’ would never have countenanced anything else!

    There would have been NO POSSIBILITY of a dirty 5-Way Agreement under which a new club would have been granted immediate entry into Scottish professional football,[ into even the bottom-most league!] never mind being allowed, by a despicable set of conniving liars in ‘football governance,’ to claim to be the Celtic of 1887/88, magically doing what no other busted football club has managed to do-‘survive’ Liquidation; and getting away with marketing itself as the holding company of Celtic of old without the Financial regulators asking hard questions-so far, at least.

    As I have frequently said, the wickedness of the liars in Scottish Football is bad enough : but it is overshadowed by the complicity of the dreadful wretches in the SMSM who style themselves ‘journalists’.
    A plague on them.

  45. Vernallen 24th Jan 01.36

    ” Will their be another letter on its way to Scottish football hq from Rangers complaining about the lack of a home draw in the next round of the Scottish Cup. Quite an unusual situation for them based on past draws.”
    ……………………………………………….
    Cup draws from 2016/17

    Rangers (H) 17 (A) 13.
    Celtic (H) 17 (A) 10

  46. And Big John Beattie asking whether we’ll ever see any of the fraudulently obtained billions of pounds in Covid loans to companies.
    I meantime wonder whether the millions of tax evaded by EBT schemes as operated by at least one football club some years back that conveniently went bust will ever be recovered?
    No?
    I thought not.
    Never heard Big John or anyone else on the BBC slate that EBT football club’s majority share-holder.

  47. ‘John Clark 24th January 2022 At 18:04

    And Big John Beattie…

    …Never heard Big John or anyone else on the BBC slate that EBT football club’s majority share-holder.’
    ::
    ::
    Mr. Beattie is of the blue persuasion. He admitted as much on air when he was host of Radio Shortbread’s lunchtime news show.

  48. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/crown-office-must-answer-questions-on-rangers-fiasco-cgjtfhjbl

    A former Holyrood cabinet minister has called for an independent review into the workings of the Crown Office following a botched police fraud investigation into the takeover of ‘Rangers’.

    Yet not one single politician, past or present, has ever asked questions why the man who put the illegal tax avoidance scheme in place which led to it all remains untouched, and is indeed still revered by many. Just what is it about this man that allows him to hold such apparent power? It truly beggars belief, and from a personal point of view makes a mockery of the view that Scotland is a fair society. The fact innocent people have been maliciously chased, while someone who had some major tax dealings that were ruled illegal by the Supreme Court is still held in such a high position of esteem within the Scottish Establishment is an insult to every honest taxpayer who ever existed. It’s absolutely sickening to the core.

  49. Albertz11 23rd January 2022 At 20:18
    Haven’t a clue or much of an interest . I posted the link for information . It’s your mob that have a thing about Kevin Clancy . I think his very name upsets a certain group of fans , regardless of his competence as a referee . So, was he axed then ?

  50. Albertz11 — 24 Jan 22 — 13:19

    Thanks for your update on draws. Memory may not be what it used to be but seem to recall that sometime after liquidation in 2012 there were a couple of extended streaks in both cup competition where Rangers or TRFC enjoyed home advantage. Stand to be corrected.

  51. Albertz11 22nd January 2022 At 11:04
    Penalty – Yes
    Red Card – No
    Barasic was clearly covering and therefore no obvious goal scoring opportunity was denied by McGregors genuine attempt.
    As you correctly say “Nobody could predict with any certainty what would have happened” and so any subsequent comments are pointless.
    As i said previously i don’t believe referees are biased but some , Clancy being one, are not up to the standard required . Rangers have every right to go through the proper channels and express their concerns.
    Every club has this right but as per usual it only seems to attract attention when Rangers are involved.

    ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

    So, if it was a definite penalty and the purpose of the letter to the SFA was to highlight the poor standard of officiating, why wasn’t the biggest blunder in the entire game on Rangers’* list of errors and inconsistencies?

    As I alluded to above, none of the subsequent incidents that Rangers* complained about would have transpired if the penalty had been correctly awarded. The sequence of events thereafter would’ve been entirely different and Rangers* wouldn’t have broken downfield and scored, for example, as they’d likely be restarting the game from the centre circle following Aberdeen’s penalty.

    Let me be crystal clear here. I’m arguing that if Kevin Clancy is deemed to be such a poor official that he shouldn’t officiate at Rangers’* matches, then he’s clearly unfit to be in charge of ANY GAME, not just those involving Rangers*. The current franchise playing out of Ibrox seem to want to pick and choose the officials that best suit them rather than genuinely striving to improve the standard of officiating for all the clubs.

    The industrial scale criticism contained in the catalogue of errors letter from Ibrox that resulted in a ‘constructive’ dialogue meeting with the SFA seems to fly in the face of the SFA’s well established policy of punishing managers, players and club officials who dare to criticise match officials. I’ll take your word for it that this avenue is open to all clubs, not just those who shout the loudest.

    Finally, I dread to think of the level of seethe if Scotland’s pluckiest new club ever genuinely ends up on the receiving end of poor officiating if this is how they behave when a stonewall penalty isn’t awarded against them but they still portray themselves as victims.

  52. ps – note to the mods – is it really necessary to have Albertz11’s posts in moderation? He and I are about as far apart in opinion over ‘the saga’ as it’s possible to get, but in my opinion he nonetheless deserves the same posting rights as the rest of us so long as he remains polite and respectful, which to my knowledge he has always been. It’s annoying missing one of his replies simply because it doesn’t appear until some considerable time after it was typed. There is a danger that the forum merely becomes an echo chamber if dissenting opinion is stifled or discouraged.

  53. Upthehoops 24th January 2022 At 21:21
    ‘..Yet not one single politician, past or present, has ever asked questions..’
    %%%%%%%%%$
    Yes, indeed ,Uth.
    Likewise no politician or public figure has queried the RIFC plc ” Prospectus” with its nonsensical claim that RIFC lc is the holding company of the Rangers Football Club that was founded in 1872!
    In which connection, not yet having received an acknowledgment to my email , I have sent this email to the FCA:
    “To:
    complaints@frccommissioner.org.uk

    Tue, 25 Jan at 11:44

    Dear R.. L..,
    I refer to my email of 30 December 2021.
    May I be favoured with an acknowledgement of that email?

    Better still, may I have an answer to my basic question:
    has, or will, the FCA examine the ‘Prospectus’ issued by Rangers International Football Club plc in 2012 in connection with its IPO , in which it marketed itself as being the holding company of a football club [ company number SC004276] that went into Liquidation in that year and which is still in Liquidation, when in fact and law it was/is the holding company of ‘The Rangers Football Club Ltd’ [ company number SC 425159]?

    I believe that the Prospectus was seriously misleading, and gave the impression that potential investors would be investing in the historic Rangers FC of 1872 instead of a brand new club first admitted into Scottish football in 2012!
    At a time when Government itself at the highest level is under heavy pressure to explain itself, I think it is of critical importance that Financial regulatory authorities, accountable ultimately to Parliament, should be ready to show that they listen to and respond to serious questions seriously put to them by members of the public.

    Yours sincerely,..”

  54. Sad to hear the news that former Celtic manager Wim Jansen has passed away.

    Despite being the man who stopped our 10 it was impossible to dislike him.

    Condolences to his family.

  55. John Clark 25th January 2022 At 12:03
    ………..
    The club web site tells you The Rangers International football club plc is the Holding company of The Rangers Football club Limited. I have not read the prospectus for some time but i takenit is missleading?

  56. Further to my post of 12.03 today, and having listened to the latest developments in the Downing St ‘partygate’ matter , I have copied my email [ to the Complaints Commissioner] to Toby Perkins MP just for his general interest in failing football clubs, and to say that when Government itself is suspected of hiding unpleasant truths, we may be sure that Government agencis/departments might not be above doing likewise if it suits their book.
    Integrity?
    We have not seen much of that in the BBC/SMSM in relation to the nonsense of the 5-Way Agreement. Are we seeing it in the FCA?

  58. Cluster One 25th January 2022 At 12:35
    “..e but i taken it is missleading?”
    %%%%%%%%%
    Have a look at this link for starters , reading the whole of it.

    https://www.investegate.co.uk/ArticlePrint.aspx?id=201212050956047840S
    This excerpt in particular
    “COMPANY BUSINESS (INCLUDING MAIN COUNTRY OF OPERATION) OR, IN THE CASE OF AN INVESTING COMPANY, DETAILS OF ITS INVESTING POLICY). IF THE ADMISSION IS SOUGHT AS A RESULT OF A REVERSE TAKE-OVER UNDER RULE 14, THIS SHOULD BE STATED:

    Rangers International Football Club plc following admission will own and operate Rangers Football Club Limited. Rangers Football Club, based in Scotland, has become one of the world’s most successful clubs, having won 54 League titles, 33 Scottish Cups, 27 League Cups and the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1972. Playing at the 50,987 seater Ibrox Stadium, Scotland, and benefitting from the world class 37 acre Murray Park training facility, the club has been a dominant force in Scottish football for decades.

    The club generates revenues from match-day sales, broadcasting rights, retail and merchandising as well as other media rights. ”

    It’s very clear to me that potential investors were led to believe that whatever the name of the football club, they would be investing in the historic Rangers that had won 54 league titles etc etc!
    It is astonishing that the ‘NOMAD’ let that go!

    [I’m having difficulty downloading the full IPO Prospectus, but I’ll keep trying. It has of course disappeared off the RIFC/Rangers FC website’s investors page, but I should be able to turn it up]

  59. ‘Cluster One 25th January 2022 At 12:35

    John Clark 25th January 2022 At 12:03
    ………..
    The club web site tells you The Rangers International football club plc is the Holding company of The Rangers Football club Limited. I have not read the prospectus for some time but i takenit is missleading?’
    ::
    ::
    I thought I’d have a look for the prospectus to refresh my memory.

    I chanced upon this on the Investors’ Chronicle website, bylined Ken Wieland & dated 13/12/2012:

    https://www.investorschronicle.co.uk/2012/12/13/shares/news-and-analysis/rangers-to-debut-on-aim-Cfp9SvZqxYCJG1VyljMyYI/article.html

    This is the first paragraph –

    ‘Rangers International Football Club (RIFC) plc is expected to join London’s junior market on 19 December. For fans, that means the opportunity to grab a stake in Glasgow Rangers, 54-times Scottish champions, as an early Christmas present. The official name is now Rangers Football Club Ltd. RIFC is to own and operate Rangers FC, which, after exiting administration earlier this year, is now debt-free but plying its trade in the fourth tier of Scottish football.’

    Quite hilariously inaccurate, Mr. Wieland.
    [I’m still looking for the complete prospectus online.]

  60. Dom16 25th January 2022 At 14:34
    ‘…Maybe the SFA should take a look to avoid and such scenario here?’
    %%%%%%%%
    Do you mean this scenario
    “…both of whom believe Derby knowingly skirted EFL rules to gain an advantage at their expense, ..” ?
    Are they accused of giving false info to the EFL about how much they were paying their players, by any chance?
    Surely no club would even dream of cheating like that? And surely if a club were to do that it would deserve to be expelled in total disgrace not merely suffer Liquidation!

  61. Jingso.Jimsie 25th January 2022 At 16:00
    “..I chanced upon this on the Investors’ Chronicle website, bylined Ken Wieland & dated 13/12/2012:”
    %%%%%%%%%
    Good spot!
    Wieland would have got a job on any of the Scottish newspapers, with such ready disregard for truth!
    Honest to God, I have no difficulty in working out where Dante would put him!

  62. Highlander 25th Jan 10.15

    ” why wasn’t the biggest blunder in the entire game on Rangers’* list of errors and inconsistencies?”
    ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
    At the conclusion of every fixture both clubs must complete a online form giving the match details. This includes any comments regarding the performance of the match officials. I daresay the incident you refer to will have been included in Aberdeen’s post match assessment . Rangers, like very other club, are unlikely to highlight a decision that benefitted them.
    Re – KC, my personal opinion is that he falls quite a bit below the standard expected from a top level official with two decades experience and should be removed from the list of approved officials.
    …………………………………………………………..

    “SFA’s well established policy of punishing managers, players and club officials who dare to criticise match officials.”
    ………………………………
    We have recently seen Hibernian defender Paul McGinn given a two match ban for being critical of a referee’s performance so it will be interesting to see if this is applied on a consistent basis given the comments by the Celtic manager toward Don Roberson today.

  63. There must have been a shiver among the board of directors at Rangers today with the news UEFA has cracked down on FFP regulations with two clubs feeling the brunt. I’m sure they were scouring their files for any “overdue payables” that needed clearing by the end of the month. Potential for another share issue? With the potential of being barred from CL play, EL play or EL Conference on the table it might be squeaky bum time. It seems to me the former edition of Rangers had problems discerning overdue payables and payables due. It would be ironic if they did win the Scottish league then not be qualified for the competition due to “overdue payables”.

  65. HirsutePursuit 25th January 2022 At 23:59
    ‘.JJ…[ link to the RIFC plc Prospectus]
    %%%%%%%%%
    Good man yourself!
    Section B3 is the dastardly cunning bit.
    ” …RFCL [ed: meaning SevcoScotland] acquired the assets and business of the Club… It is the intention of theDirectors and the Manager for the Club to RETURN [ed:my capitals] to top flight football as soon
    as possible. [ed: clearly implying that it was the Sevco club that was in the third division and would aim to get back to the top flight] ”
    It’ such a monstrous fiction that one has to admire CG”s wicked genius, while hoping that he never enjoys any lasting benefit from his ‘cleverness’.
    How could any Nomad ever have accepted that it could be right for a new plc to claim to be the holding company of the most successful football club in the world, when that club had ceased to exist?
    There are as many questions to ask of that Nomad as can be asked about ‘Partygate’, in my opinion.

  66. Vernallen 25th January 2022 At 22:40
    ‘.. It would be ironic if they did win the Scottish league then not be qualified for the competition due to “overdue payables”.’
    %%%%%%%%
    Such a consummation is devoutly to be wished as being no more than condign punishment for claiming to be what they are not, as well as being a beautiful example of poetic justice!

    But of course the liars in Scottish football governance would easily be persuaded to take a ‘pragmatic’ view’ , as that ar.e-hole of a junior Minister urged the EFL to do in relation to the Derby County situation, and do another fix. They have thus far got away with the first fix, and would try another without a blush.

  67. Vernallen 25th January 2022 At 22:40

    I believe for UEFA to act against clubs requires the relevant National Association to bring issues to their attention. I don’t think anyone at Ibrox needs to worry about anything on that score.

  68. Let me say that yesterday afternoon I received a reply from the Complaints Commissioner’s office to my most recent email to them on 25 January 2022. It was more or less merely a repeat of the previous reply , which didn’t deal with my actual complaint about the RIFC plc ‘Prospectus ‘ but about my complaint about the delays by the FCA in replying to previous correspondence. I clearly did not express myself too intelligibly!

    It seems I am out of time to make a complaint to the Complaints Commissioner unless I can persuade her ( the Commissioner is a woman) to accept my reason for not complaining within the normal time.
    Here is what I have sent in reply:

    “complaints@frccommissioner.org.uk

    Wed, 26 Jan at 14:28

    Dear Rachel, (if you don’t mind the informality),
    Let me eat humble pie!

    I had thought that the FCA was the last word in financial regulation, and had not really appreciated that the Complaints Commissioner existed as an independent entity. That was my fault for not really carefully reading what I believed to be a reply to what was not my basic complaint; I was complaining about delays but that was incidental to my substantive complaint which was not about the delays in communication, but about the possibility that a plc had issued a misleading IPO Prospectus and had been allowed to do so by the Nomad/FCA.

    If I may, I now wish formally to complain to the Complaints Commissioner
    That,
    The ‘Prospectus’ issued by Rangers International Football Club plc [‘RIFC plc’] in December 2012 relating to their Initial Public Offer was, in my opinion, misleading in that it represented that RIFC plc would be the holding company of Rangers Football Club[ company number SC004276], whereas in fact and in law it would become, did become, and is the holding company of ‘The Rangers Football Club Ltd] [ company number SC425159];

    that Rangers Football Club plc, having failed to be brought out of Administration entered ‘compulsory Liquidation’ under the name ‘RFC plc 2012’, and ceased operations as a football club in October 2012, having had to surrender its share in the then Scottish Premier League and having in consequence lost its entitlement to membership of the Scottish Football Association;

    that the Rangers Football Club Ltd [co.number SC 00425159 ] is a football club newly created and admitted into Scottish Football only in 2012, and is not and cannot legally be the football club of which RIFC plc claims to be the holding company, and entitled to be marketed as being RFC plc[ company number SC 004276];
    and
    that by claiming that Rangers Football Club Ltd [company number SC 00425159] is RFC plc [company number SC 004276] , the Prospectus issued by RIFC plc is wholly misleading in its claim to be the holding company of ‘the most successful football club in the world’;

    that the Nominated Advisor ought to have been aware of the fact that RFC plc had not been brought out of Administration but went into Liquidation [in which state it continues to this day] and that The Rangers Football Club Ltd came into being only in 2012, and had no history-sporting or otherwise- as a football club.

    As I understand it the FCA itself is unable to deal with this complaint.

    I also now understand that I am ‘late’ in making this complaint to the proper quarter, the Complaints Commissioner.

    However, I ask the Commissioner to understand that I am not at all well-versed in matters of this kind, and that I came to understand the seriousness of this matter (if my opinion of what happened is at all correct) only in relatively recent times. I tried to ‘complain’ as soon as I, as an ignorant layman, thought I had got to grips with what I think actually happened, having checked the source material as best as I could; and ask the Commissioner to him to exercise her discretion and investigate this complaint because, if I am correct, then what happened was that a massive deception was de facto [whatever may have been the intention] practised on the investing public, a deception which ought to have been spotted by the Nominated Advisor: in my opinion.

    I thank you personally for your unfailing courtesy, and of course I sincerely apologise for any curtness on my part, occasioned by my own failings to communicate sufficiently clearly!
    Yours ….”

  69. JC…
    I’m not sure if this may be of any assistance to you, but the original SPL articles may be of some interest to you…
    https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/SC175364/filing-history/ODAyNTYwNjhhZGlxemtjeA/document?format=pdf&download=0
    Article 4 is especially relevant. Here, the term ‘football club’ is used in its natural, everyday meaning. There is no capitalisation, because the meaning is clear and unambiguous.

    In this article it is expressly stated that only football clubs can hold shares.

    It could be written in this way because all of the football clubs were corporate bodies and could legally hold shares in another company.

    The list of shareholders is given here…
    https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/SC175364/filing-history/OTk3MTk0ODVhZGlxemtjeA/document?format=pdf&download=0

    The IPO capitalised the word Club so appears to have a specific meaning that would be different from normal usage – but no definition (that I could find) was provided to distinguish ‘Club’ from the natural, everyday meaning of ‘football club’. Since, as you say, the original football club is clearly not the same as the current football club, I can only agree with your assessment that the IPO document was, at the very least, misleading.

    Did the IPO take its lead from the updated SPL articles?

    In 2005, the SPL rewrote its articles to be able to distinguish between the holder of a share and the football club. At the time, Brechin could have become eligible to be part of the SPL (under proposals for SPL 2) but is not an incorporated body. As an unincorporated association cannot legally own anything, the share in the company would have to be held by one of the club’s committee members. That, under the original articles, would have meant the committee member (as holder of the SPL share) would be considered to be the football club.
    The new articles simply allowed the share in the SPL to be held by someone other than the football club.
    The new articles even say that the definition of Club should normally include its owner and operator – that is because the owner and operator of a Club is normally the football club itself.
    It is only when a football club is unincorporated that the Club and its owner and operator (the SPL/SPFL shareholder) can be distinguished as separate entities.
    Since Rangers was an incorporated body, even under the new SPL articles, there is no separation between the original Club (as defined by the SPL articles) and the football club that was The Rangers Football Club plc.
    Obviously, there is no separation between the current Club (as defined by the SPFL articles) and the football club that is The Rangers Football Club Ltd.

    No matter how many times Neil Doncaster and others repeat the lie, The Rangers Football Club plc is simply not the same Club (football club) as The Rangers Football Club Ltd

    If the IPO was a fraud, who were partners to it?

  70. Regardless of contributors affiliations the passing of Wim Jansen should not be allowed to go without this site expressing a collective sympathy to the family of a genuine football man who had an enormous impact on Scottish football .

    R.I.P.

  71. HirsutePursuit 26th January 2022 At 17:53
    ‘…JC…
    I’m not sure if this may be of any assistance to you, but the original SPL articles may be of some interest to you…’
    %%%%%%%%%
    HP, any confirmation that I’m not an auld monomaniacal eejit chuntering on about an imagined wrong is comfortingly welcome !
    And thank you for your post.
    I think I’m on record as having been no more than quietly entertained by ‘Rangers’ tax difficulties, believing that SDM had plenty of millions to cover any little tax problem if he would but choose to do so, without me for a minute thinking that there had been any fundamental , deliberate cheating of both the taxman and the Football Authorities behind it all.

    The RTC blog [ honour to him] opened my eyes to the ugly facts, and prompted me to begin to attend such of the legal proceedings that were open to the public and accessible by me, who knew/knows not a lot about the business/investment/sports administration/sfa/UEFA/FIFA /legal worlds.
    I have learned a helluva lot since!
    These present days, when Government at the highest level is being questioned as to its fundamental honesty , one can be forgiven for having reservations about the readiness of agencies of government to adhere to principles of truth, if in so doing they make problems for themselves!

    I hope that the Complaints Commissioner ( Ms Amerdeep Somal] will see my complaint, and judge that there is sufficient substance in it as to warrant investigation, even if 10 years after the event.

    She will surely be alive to the fact that if RIFC plc can get away with what I think is a misleading Prospectus, there will be other folk who might follow suit.
    And bang would go the credibility of the FCA as any kind of meaningful ‘regulator’
    Honest to God!

  72. Might be interesting to see how this Administration turns out . I saw this a few minutes ago
    https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/derby-county-is-given-a-four-week-stay-of-execution/ar-AATciX4
    From the Daily Mail
    Charlie Walker For Mailonline 49 mins ago

    ‘Following a formal review of revised financial forecasts at Derby County, the EFL and Quantuma (the Club Administrators) have today agreed a month-long extension to the deadline set for proof of funding to be provided,’ the statement said.
    The EFL and Quantuma said the stay of execution would allow Derby to continue discussions with interested parties and provide ‘additional time to seek clarity on the claims from Middlesbrough and Wycombe’.

    The statement came after local politicians and officials demanded a meeting with the EFL and Quantuma following days of frustration and ‘radio silence’.

    Derbyshire MPs, led by Conservative Pauline Latham want to meet both parties on Friday.

    The EFL and administrators have not said how the additional month will be funded, however, Derby has reduced its cost base with six players leaving during the January transfer window.

    Sources close to the negotiations have told Sportsmail that the administrators have sought additional lending from MSD Capital, which has already lent the club £20M secured against the ground and a further sum to pay the bills since it went into administration in September.”

    [* MSD Capital appears to be the holding company of Cayman Islands registered company -MSD Partners Europe LLP.]

  73. John Clark 27th January 2022 @ 1154hrs –

    I’ve been reading up a little on MSD Capital. Its owner is Michael Dell, who basically owns Dell Computers & MSD is run to manage the family’s piles of money.

    Here’s the interesting bit for me:

    Why would a US private investment firm loan a struggling football club a reported £200m (secured against its assets, which aren’t valued at that sum, leaving MSD heavily exposed should DCFC cease trading) to limp along from crisis to crisis when the amount required to remove said club from administration is ostensibly £28m (plus whatever is required to stabilise & restructure the business)?

    Interestingly, Mike Ashley is hovering in the background, as is another US private investment firm, Carlisle Capital.

  76. TaxWatch believes that it has managed to uncover the identity of Mr Red
    …………………………………………………………………………………….
    Really?. I thought his identity was known many years ago.

  77. Dom16 27th January 2022 At 18:19
    Upthehoops 27th January 2022 At 18:56
    ‘The link to TaxWatch, and Mr Red’
    %%%%%%%%%%%
    An excellent spot, gentlemen.
    It’s clear that a chap who could write this to HMRC ” I cannot help with your fantasies and the production of a S20 makes no difference to this” was as arrogantly hubristic and arrogant as SDM himself! [see the para beginning ‘in her dissenting judgment;….] possibly learning how to be so while working on the EBT tax evasion dodge for years?
    Let the s.o.a.b. be nailed good and proper, particularly if he had formerly been a Civil Servant working in HMRC.
    More importantly, let there be VERY hard questions asked of the CIOT itself, such as, ‘who on the CIOT’s ‘professional standards committee’ might have been a Murray/RFC plc sympathiser and would have had the power to refuse to look into the criticisms made by the superb Dr Poon?

    As TaxWatch says: “The failure to take action over very clear and high profile allegations of misconduct by a Chartered Tax Advisor brings into question the robustness of the disciplinary process for the tax profession, which in turn threatens to bring the whole profession into disrepute”;
    in the same way that the failure of the SMSM and BBC to report the truth about the Big Lie has caused many of us to treat them as mere pedlars of lying propaganda for a lying PLC.
    [Boris isn’t in it, as far consistent lying is concerned when compared with the deceitful SMSM and BBC!]

    As an aside, many of the names of the colour-coded witnesses at the FTTT were made known either on this blog or on RTC , or somewhere!
    All my own stuff relating to the FTTT is up in the attic, unsorted. Common sense and a couple of nightcaps deter me from going up right now to try to find anything related!
    But maybe someone else remembers who ‘Mr Red’ was named as being (if, indeed, he was named]?

  79. Jingso.Jimsie 27th January 2022 At 15:55
    ‘..Why would a US private investment firm loan a struggling football club a reported £200m… to limp along from crisis to crisis when the amount required to remove said club from administration is ostensibly £28m (plus whatever is required to stabilise & restructure the business)?’
    %%%%%%%%
    I suppose because in some way that is beyond my capacity to understand they believe they will gain something or other. Perhaps not immediately related to money or access to European advertising markets/ tax advantages .
    A vanity project? To be upsides with other Americans who own a soccer club in England? Quite possibly.
    History is littered with the stories of filthy rich folk whose vanity was never satisfied if their rich filthiness was not honoured and respected by the common people more than the filthy richness of others!
    These are the aspects of civic life that serious journalists should be digging into .
    Perhaps the sports pages journalists of the media need to learn how to ask questions.

  80. From above link.
    Unsurprisingly this led to follow up questions from HMRC on the existence of side letters long denied. ‘Mr Red’ , believed to be Ian McMillan once again, replied to the s20 notices as follows:

  81. John Clark 26th January 2022 At 23:40

    “I hope that the Complaints Commissioner ( Ms Amerdeep Somal] will see my complaint, and judge that there is sufficient substance in it as to warrant investigation, even if 10 years after the event.

    She will surely be alive to the fact that if RIFC plc can get away with what I think is a misleading Prospectus, there will be other folk who might follow suit.
    And bang would go the credibility of the FCA as any kind of meaningful ‘regulator’
    Honest to God!”
    …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
    Great determination as ever JC but I suspect she will play the time-barred card again to cover her own bahookie.
    Should she choose to investigate, we know only too well there will be powerful people behind the scenes steering or subverting her findings to ensure she does not expose the big lie. Should she investigate and fudge the answer, quoting the usual suspects who gave and continue to give credence to the myth, then effectively she is giving the green light for others to follow the same con-trick.

    No, I think she will be guided to stick with the head-in-sand approach using too late as her excuse.

  83. Normanbatesmumfc 28th January 2022 At 11:07
    ‘.. I think she will be guided to stick with the head-in-sand approach using too late as her excuse.’
    %%%%%%%%
    We’ll probably never know, because there appears to be no requirement on the Complaints Commissioner to ‘report back’ to anyone who raises a complaint, even if the complaint was not ‘time-barred’.
    Have a look at this link https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/body/fscc which has this :
    “…The Office of the Complaints Commissioner
    A regulator, also called FSCC
    This authority is not subject to FOI law, so is not legally obliged to respond (details).
    Also known as the Office of the Financial Services Complaints Commissioner.,,,,,,,,,,,” etc etc.

    Imagine what would happen if the Commissioner were to undertake an investigation and concluded that RIFC plc’s Prospectus had been misleading. What then?
    Apparently,’ Criminal liability in connection with the Prospectus may arise under the FS Act, the Theft Act 1968 or the Fraud Act 2006….’
    [A mouth-watering prospect!]
    I would hope that the Commissioner actually gets to deal with the complaint and deals with it with complete integrity and in good conscience arrives at a view.
    Only she of course will know whether what she does is done honestly.
    I’ve no reason to think that she is any kind of boris.
    So, here’s hoping.

  85. Further to my post of 14.52 today, I point you in the direction of this link
    https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/corporate/fca-response-complaints-commissioner-annual-report-2020-21.pdf
    in which the FCA gives facts and figures about the volume of complaints , and what percentage of their decisions on the complaints is upheld by the Commissioner and so on, and boast about how they keep complainants informed of the progress of their complaint.
    But that seems to be about ‘technical’ complaints rather than about potentially misleading Prospectuses being allowed to be published.
    We’ll see what I will told, if anyone even goes so far as to red my complaint!

  86. The apple doesn’t fall from the tree if one has any connection to Ibrox. The Alloa manager is collecting a “dossier” of referees in regards to the red card and suspension of one of his players. There’s probably a template available from Ibrox so Barry doesn’t have to strain himself. After all there’s precious little time to be involved with the management of his team, and get a ghost written column in the DR. I particularly like his comment about the latest messiah to appear at Ibrox, the much ballyhooed Amad Diallo, a potential $30 million plus loan player. One has to wonder why ManU were driven to let this talent go out on loan. I believe Mr. Diallo would be better served by zipping his lip and let his on field performance speak for him. However, Barry likes the look of this talent who has 8 games to his credit.

  88. In my inbox yesterday was this:
    “Summary Of Conclusions of Mr Justice Hildyard
    ACL Netherlands B.V. (As successor to Autonomy Corporation Limited)
    Hewlett-Packard the Hague BV (As successor to Hewlett-Packard Vision BV)
    Autonomy Systems Limited
    Hewlett-Packard Enterprise New Jersey, Inc
    -v-
    Michael Richard Lynch
    and
    Sushovan Tareque Hussain”

    ” SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS OF MR JUSTICE HILDYARD – 28TH JANUARY 2022

    1.1. I will summarise my key findings in the statement I am about to make. This is a public
    statement. However, I will also deliver by 8pm today to the parties’ legal representatives, but
    only to them, a copy of my draft judgment setting out much more fully the reasons for my
    conclusions. That draft will remain at all times strictly embargoed”
    I have read the summary with interest, and what in particular caught my eye was this :

    “20. By far the largest of the claims is brought under Schedule 10A of the Financial Services and
    Markets Act 2000 (“the FSMA claim”). The gist of the FSMA claim is fraud on the part of the
    issuer (Autonomy) in respect of statements or omissions in its published information on which
    the Claimant relied in making an investment decision. It is claimed that “persons discharging
    managerial responsibilities within the issuers” (“PDMRs”) knew those statements or omissions
    to be untrue or misleading, or to amount to the dishonest concealment of a material facts. (An
    issuer’s “published information” is specially defined but for present purposes the ordinary
    meaning it conveys will suffice.)”
    Nothing at all to do with IPO’s or football, of course, but a claim by for massive damages against two individual directors of a company that was bought on (allegedly] untrue/misleading information provided by those directors about its value .
    But I enjoyed reading it.
    the link is:
    https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Autonomy-v-Lynch-summary-280122.pdf

  90. Dom16 29th January 2022 At 20:19
    ‘..And unfortunately for Mr Lynch the Home Secretary has agreed to his extradition.’
    %%%%%%%%%
    That’s an odd one, I have to say.
    It was a CIVIL case that was brought against Lynch here, not a criminal one ( as was brought in the US against the other director, Hussain, who was found guilty of the crime of fraud and sentenced to 5 years]

    That suggests that the Crown Prosecution Service weren’t satisfied that they had evidence strong enough to have him convicted of the CRIME of fraud under English law.

    Can people be extradited to face criminal charges in another country in a matter for which their own country found no safe grounds to charge him with , let alone find him guilty of, a crime?

    Of course, Hussain may have been charged for something he did which under US law was criminal. and they had sufficient evidence to charge and secure a conviction.
    But if Lynch did not commit a criminal offence under English law, can he properly be extradited to face charges on the say-so of the USA ,or any other State?
    I’ve always thought that when it came to extradition , the ‘crime’ had to be a ‘crime’ that was recognised as a crime in the country where the alleged criminal was living, as well as being a crime in the country seeking his extradition.

  91. John Clark 29th January 2022 At 22:34

    I have no real expertise or special insight into these matters and so I can’t directly answer your questions, however, I believe that a prosecuting authority can make a decision not to take proceedings against someone for a crime for which there is a sufficiency of evidence if the prosecuting authority believes the judicial system cannot realistically impose a sanction that befits the crime if another option is available. Perhaps the Crown Prosecution Service were aware of the extradition request and felt that justice might be better served by having Lynch tried in a US court.

    Not a direct comparison but by way of example, I recall discussing, many years ago with a senior officer of the US Navy, the case of a serious sexual assault on a child by a US serviceman . There was considerable public angst in the town where the crime had been committed because the local procurator fiscal had taken no proceedings in the case and handed the miscreant over to the US Military Police.

    I argued that the fiscal should have taken proceedings. The US officer argued that nothing the Scottish Courts could sentence him to could beat the fact this accused serviceman would now be, “…spending the next 25 years breaking great big rocks down into little tiny rocks.” I believe that had the serviceman been convicted and served a period of imprisonment in Scotland, he would have been deemed to have been dealt with for the crime precluding a further period of imprisonment in a US military prison. I am not aware of any discussions that went on behind the scenes between the PF and the US Navy … but one wonders?

  92. Mordecai 30th January 2022 At 08:34
    ‘.. I am not aware of any discussions that went on behind the scenes between the PF and the US Navy … but one wonders?’
    %%%%%%%%
    It’s an interesting notion , isn’t it , that the prosecuting authorities in one country might prefer to hand an accused over to another jurisdiction because their penalties were more severe!
    I suspect, though, that in the example you cite, the USA military based in Scotland [ geez, how I remember the bunches of submariners that came up to the Locarno in Glasgow from the Holy Loch base, flashing bundles of cash for the girls to see] were able to claim some kind of modified diplomatic immunity on condition that the US authorities would take some kind of appropriate action?

  93. On Sportsound some minutes go, I thought I heard Tom English stirring thing a little by raising the question of there having been no action taken against Bankier for his comments about referees.
    Darryl suggested that the transcript seen by the SFA does not quite use the words used by Bankier
    Kenny asking (disappointedly, or is that just me?]] ‘is that the end of it, then?’
    It appears to be, although apparently clubs have been generally reminded of the need for respect and regard for rules and decent behaviour and awareness of the possibility of causing trouble.

  94. Has Derek MacInnes mounted a challenge to Barry Ferguson on all things Celtic/Rangers. His column today offering advice/thoughts to GVB on this week’s Glasgow Derby will no doubt be taken to heart by the Ranger’s boss. I’m sure GVB is aware of the success McInnes enjoyed as Aberdeen manager against Celtic over the years. Perhaps like Ferguson he should pay more attention to the progress of his latest team then worrying about the Glasgow rivals. I can’t wait for his prediction on the outcome of the game as he has a knack for picking the wrong party time and again. Also Barry’s column will no doubt be full of the blood and thunder of this match which is pretty much a re-write of every article he submits on this particular game. It was good to see his name attached to his Alloa team following some of the articles following the Scottish Cup game.

  95. Interesting.
    When I posted today at 16.08, I was listening to Sunday Sportsound on BBC Radio Scotland.
    I have now just listened to the podcast of that programme, trying to get Darryl’s exact words.

    Lo and behold! that bit off talk that I mentioned in that post ( about Bankier’s comments of a couple of months about refereeing] seems to have been edited out!
    I wonder at whose instigation, and why?

  96. I see, in the passing, that Scotland’s only Labour MP is having difficulty with a ‘Prospectus’!
    https://uk.yahoo.com/news/labour-call-civil-chief-step-213735969.html
    “..Scottish taxpayers should not be expected to foot the bill for a prospectus… .”

    Ian Murray, MP, may have a validly debatable point that a political party in office should not use Civil Service personnel to work on specifically party political planning [as distinct from ‘Government planning in the ‘national’ rather than party interest].

    If I thought he is now, or ever has been, interested in whether what was contained in the RIFC plc IPO Prospectus of 2012 was the truth and the whole truth or whether the FCA may have failed in their Regulatory duty in permitting it to be issued, I might be prepared to look with greater interest at what he has to say about any other kind of ‘prospectus’.

    But he isn’t and wasn’t, so I’m not prepared to be interested in what he has to say about any other prospectus!
    So there! ( was it Violet Elizabeth Bott in the ‘Just William’ stories who used to say that, while stamping a foot?]

  97. John Clark 28th January 2022 At 14:52
    5 0 Rate This

    “I would hope that the Commissioner actually gets to deal with the complaint and deals with it with complete integrity and in good conscience arrives at a view.
    Only she of course will know whether what she does is done honestly.
    I’ve no reason to think that she is any kind of boris.
    So, here’s hoping.”

    Yes let’s hope she is driven to identify right and truth like the admirable Dr Poon, rather than “nothing to see here men” Mure and Rae.

  98. The mad world of transfer deadline day is on us. Lots of rumours but if BBC is correct I am very curious to understand how between them Juve, TRFC and Aaron Ramsey have squared the circle of his £400,000 a week wages for the next 4 or 5 months (whatever possessed Juve to give him a four year contract worth £20m per year in the first place is beyond my reasoning!)

  99. Wokingcelt 31st January 2022 At 16:27
    ‘.. how between them Juve, TRFC and Aaron Ramsey have squared the circle of his £400,000 a week wages for the next 4 or 5 months.’
    %%%%%%%%%
    Aidan Smith in the ‘National’ asserts quite positively that
    “Juventus will heavily subside Ramsey’s huge weekly wage packet during his time in Glasgow as he aims for regular first team football following a frustrating time on the continent”

    And common sense tells us that there’s no way cash-strapped RIFC plc would be able to pay anything like £400k a week in addition to the supposed £2M loan fee unless they have again borrowed from directors or been slid a few bob from a benefactor.

  100. JC and Wokingcelt, now now boys, you know that comments like that will have Albertz11 on any second to let us know that everything is fine with the deal and the financing of it. He might even ask how TRFC’s transfer dealings tie in with the aims of this site re tackling poor governance in Scottish football.

  101. Ramsey’s an interesting one –

    He’s been in the match-day squad 9 times this season (there have been 23 rounds in Italy).

    Started 1 game & subbed after 60 minutes. 2 sub appearances of 18 & 20 minutes. 98 minutes of league football. 6 squads as an unused sub. No appearances since 26.09.21.

    Missed 10 league squads with ‘muscle’ problems & 1 due to Covid19. Not stripped 3 times.

    2 substitute appearances in the CL, the last on 20.10.21, for a total of 14 minutes.

    Looks a good signing, whatever he’s costing TRFC!

    Edit: stats from Transfermarkt.

  104. Nawlite 31st January 2022 At 19:33
    ‘… He might even ask how TRFC’s transfer dealings tie in with the aims of this site re tackling poor governance in Scottish football.’
    %%%%%%%%%%
    Well, we know that RIFC plc is living the biggest sporting lie in the history of Scottish football, courtesy of ‘poor governance’.
    That lie has to be kept in the forefront of our minds , however much other folk want to forget it and ‘move on’,
    if only to make it difficult for our Governance people to break the rules again if RIFC plc goes bust.
    We remember that it was only given ‘going concern’ status on the basis of verbal assurances that directors’ loans would be made available if needed.

  105. Rangers have a new boy in the door and he should be well rested based on Jingso.Jimsie post earlier. Also there’s much speculation on salary, even though the DR got some information from Italy on how the figures might be misconstrued. Highly unlikely he’ll be in the lineup tomorrow night and if so injury could not be far away. This looks like Celtic’s signing of Duffy last year. Could be a thirty year old footballer looking to pad his retirement fund and anticipating strolling through games in what me be perceived as an easier touch then the EPL.

  106. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/60190092

    Don’t panic. Clive Lindsay, (who he?) in the above piece tells us The rangers have “reserves” to dig into;

    “So far, though, Celtic have looked more able to delve deep into the depths of their squad and continue to produce free-flowing football.

    Which is no doubt part of the reason Rangers dug into their reserves to bring in two eye-catching loanees – £19m winger Amad Diallo from Manchester United and Ramsey from Juventus.”

    Maybe a consignment of teddy bears, (stuffed with cash) has arrived from somewhere. Shhh, nothing to see here…..

  108. John Clark 30th January 2022 At 23:06

    What a pity there were no enraged MPs or MSPs from any party in 2012 about tens of millions of tax being with held in order to finance on pitch success. Instead some even demanded that HMRC write it off, including the then First Minister…and in my opinion they would do it again.

  109. @A11 – happy to be corrected on the salary; 400k was widely reported down here when he moved from Arsenal but happy to accept that this was incorrect, although I think the figure you quote is net of tax – I trust no-one at TRFC has made the same mistake…

  110. Albertz11 — Jan 31/22 — 21:51

    With all the speculation surrounding Ramsey’s weekly salary, even if its closer to the $100,000, you mention I would think Ranger’s would be picking up a substantial portion of that. Juventus have some financial worries of their own and can’t be too generous with their out-goings for someone who was not well acquainted with the field during his time there. It will be interesting when those diligent reporters in the Scottish media do some digging and get the actual facts. (LOL).

  112. Dal Pino has resigned as president of Serie A. (Who’s president of the SFA? Rod Petrie.)

    His ‘day job’ is CEO & ED of a large telecommunications company with interests in the USA. It appears that he’s moved there for work reasons & is unable to fulfil his role with Serie A. There was some discontent over the current Italian media deal he brokered last year, with several clubs complaining about its set-up. I can’t see any allegations of naughtiness. What makes you think there is anything dubious going on?

  113. Jingso.Jimsie 2nd February 2022 At 11:28
    ”…What makes you think there is anything dubious going on?”
    %%%%%%%%%%%
    Oh, nothing in particular, I suppose. Just the fact that the world of football has seen a number instances of criminal/quasi-criminal episodes in high places where lots of money ( or dodgy opportunities to make money via bribes and such like] is swilling about.
    Relatively high-profile people suddenly demitting office /being asked to ‘step down’ is sometimes a sign that things are questionable.
    In our own wee backyard in recent times I believe dodgy stuff was done and lied about, and that , perhaps, has pre-disposed me to be suspicious and distrusting, ready to assume from the off that truth is not being told until I can be persuaded otherwise.
    There are many little borises in this wicked little world, may they be , sooner or later, punished for their lying.

  114. A reply to my complaint to the Complaints Commissioner came in yesterday afternoon.
    Not surprisingly, but still disappointingly, the Commissioner thinks my complaint is out of time and will not be looking at it, and the file will be put away.
    She also thinks that, even if it was not time-barred, my complaint is not one that she could deal with. As far as I can see it’s a complaint about the way the FCA allowed a misleading Prospectus to get through, which would seem to me to be very much a complaint about the exercise of the FCA’s statutory function! So I don’t know where she is coming from.
    I will of course write to acknowledge that answer. I’ll take a day or two to draft a snail-mail response so that there’s a bit of paper they will have to file away!
    Here is the reply I received:
    “complaints@frccommissioner.org.uk
    To:(me)
    Tue, 1 Feb at 15:48
    Dear …,
    Thank you for your further email explaining your complaint and your request that the Commissioner consider your complaint.
    Unfortunately, the Commissioner is not able to consider your complaint. The Complaints Commissioner’s role is to consider complaints about how the regulator (in your case the FCA) has carried out, or failed to carry out, its function.
    You raised a complaint with the FCA in April 2020 and the FCA responded in May 2020. In its decision letter the FCA informed you that if you were not happy with its decision you could refer your complaint to the Commissioner’s office within 3 months. After the FCA issued its decision letter you wrote again to the FCA and it responded with a further email to you on 30 July 2020 in relation to the issues you had raised.
    In both of these communications the FCA advised you that if you were unhappy with its decision you could contact the Complaints Commissioner, and that this should be done within three months of the date of the decision letter. You have not referred your complaint to the Commissioner within three months of the date of the FCA’s decision letter to you and you have not provided the Commissioner with a satisfactory reason for the delay in contacting her office. Consequently, the Commissioner considers that your complaint to her is out of time and will not be looking at your complaint.
    Also, as noted in our last email to you, in its correspondence to you on 30 July 2020, the FCA explained that your concerns about Rangers International Football Club were not something it could consider under the Complaints Scheme. The Scheme is in place to deal with complaints that arise from the exercise of, or failure to exercise, any of the FCA’s relevant functions. It is for this reason that even if you had lodged your complaint with the Commissioner in time, that she would still be unable to consider your complaint under the Complaint Scheme.
    I am sorry, as I know this will disappoint you but for the reasons set out above, the Commissioner will not be considering your complaint any further. Please note that any further correspondence received in relation to this matter will be filed but we will not send any response as we have now closed our file.

    R…. L….
    Investigator
    Office of the Complaints Commissioner
    Tower 42, 25 Old Broad Street, London, EC2N 1HN, United Kingdom

  115. My understanding of the Ramsay wages is his contract is a ridiculous £400k/week of which The rangers will pay 25%, or £100k/week. Defoe was allegedly on £60k/week, so his departure may have helped. Although why a team already running at huge losses choose to compound their financial stresses with such a transfer beggars belief.

    Still I suppose, as “rules” don’t apply to them so why would the normal rules of economics be considered???

  118. Amad Diallo, a 20 million pound man, sho is going to set Scottish football on fire, doesn’t make to the second half of either game he started and hasn’t apparently struck fear into his opponents. Matt O’Riley quietly lands at Celtic, no flapping of his gums on what he’s going to do but puts in three solid performances to date. Who do you want in your side. Ange’s Japanese signings, no where near the salary and pomp surrounding Ramsay, just keep playing and leading a Celtic charge. Aaron Ramsay must be wondering what have I got myself into, at least the pay cheque is good. And poor old Hugh Keevins not seeing the Rangers lose another game this season must have a most difficult night.

  120. Depending on what source you look at the winners of this year’s SPL will pick up maybe £40m from direct entry to the Champions League (assuming whoever finishes second doesn’t qualify via qualifying).
    In the Scottish context £40m is a corrupting amount of money. So here’s an idealistic thought. Why not socialise all payments received from UEFA and allocate across all clubs in the football pyramid such that the winners pick up more for their contribution but the competitive environment is not distorted by such windfalls falling to one club.
    At a stroke you would remove a huge incentive towards reckless gambles, make the football family more financially secure and maybe put more focus on to clubs playing football rather than scrambling for survival.
    There would even be a chance that with a healthier domestic competition our clubs would be more competitive internationally. Of course it will never come to pass due to the various vested interests.

  121. Nawlite

    Genuine (and non-agenda ) question …

    As someone who avoids the more vitriolic/bitter partisan fan sites, I’m struggling to comprehend your (confusing to my pea brain!) response to Vernallen. Can you help me here? What point(s) have I missed?
    His post seems quite innocuous, and indeed relevant, to me, but if your suggesting that it is ‘out of place’ on a broad ranging ‘family ‘ blog, then I must disagree.

    If I’ve misunderstood your point, then I ‘ll duly apologise.

  122. Best67 — 4th Feb 2022 — 12:44
    I too was somewhat puzzled at Nawlite’s comments. My comments were based on reports of the game and previous comments from the recent Ranger signing. No offence was intended. Perhaps if the club’s PR department ( and this includes all clubs) should have a sit down with in coming players and give them a brief session on being wary of the scottish media and how any comments can/will be misconstrued by the reporter and fans.

  123. Bect67 4th February 2022 At 12:44
    Vernallen 4th February 2022 At 14:39
    /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

    I suspect that Nawlite was implying that the subject matter of your post was more appropriate to a Celtic supporters forum, rather than SFM, whose aims are more focused on sporting integrity and the governance of all of Scottish football.

    Apologies to Nawlite if I’ve misrepresented him/her, but, for what it’s worth, I agree with Nawlite’s comment, however inoffensive and well intentioned your post may have been.

    It’s maybe worth reading ‘About SFM’ at the top of the page. Hope this helps.

  124. Just back in and saw the comments from Bect67 and Vernallen regarding my earlier short post. I accept my post could have been perceived as curt, so apologies if that’s how it came across – I should have perhaps gone into more detail as to why I thought it not relevant/appropriate for SFM. Highlander above is absolutely correct in his perception of my thinking. It seemed to be saying not much more than ‘Our new signings are better than your new signings….and we got them for less too, so nanananana’ (Not sure how to write that down!)

    I couldn’t see any more in V’s post than that, so posted accordingly. Unlike earlier posts re the Ramsay signing, which questioned how TRFC might be affording the signing (OR NOT!) and whether or not the SFA should be having a closer look at it, I felt V’s approach to it after the derby win wasn’t asking any questions about governance, corruption, cheating etc which is the focus of SFM.

    Hope that clarifies (and if I’ve misinterpreted V’s original post, I apologise).

  125. This is causing a wee bit of consternation in some places , and nowt to do with dying .
    Rangers supporting Conservative MSP, Murdo Fraser, tweeted his support for the motion.

    He said: “Delighted to add my name to this motion from my Scot Tories colleague, Sandesh Gulhane celebrating 150 years of the world’s 2nd most successful football club.”

    It has so far been supported by 13 MSPs including 11 Conservatives, one SNP, Fulton McGregor and one Labour, Glasgow MSP. Paul Sweeney.

  126. Nawlite
    Thanks for your reply – that helps me understand where you were coming from.

    Highlander
    On your wider point,I have read ‘About SFM’, and can agree with you that “the aims are more focused on sporting integrity …”.
    Challenging injustice in the form of the ‘Big Lie’, supported by the Scottish Football Authorities, the SMSM etc is certainly an integral part of that aim – indeed, to me, the real mission on here is never to lose sight of that. That’s one of the principle reasons that I maintain my interest in the SFM (note to self – donation due!). Although I also agree with you about a preponderance of Celtic-minded posters…

    Whit else dae we expect given the history and rivalry? (I’m still waiting for a follower of the former Govan club to come on here and openly agree/admit that they are in Liquidation!).

    Paddy
    What an irony it would be for the definitive liquidation announcement to be made around the time the present incumbents of Ibrox were celebrating a non-existent 150 years of history

  127. What has happened with that motion? I thought Rangers*/TRFC were always lauded by their fans as the world’s most successful club? Surely, they’re not acknowledging there’s a more successful club these days?

    Or am I reading it wrong grammatically and they’re actually admitting the new club thing after all this time i.e. they acknowledge Rangers as the world’s FIRST most successful club and talking about Sevco as the world’s SECOND most successful club! HaHa, that can’t be right, can it? Albertz?

    Of course, behind Real Madrid, Barca, Bayern and many many others either of the 2 Ibrox clubs is probably about the world’s 250th most successful.

  128. Paddy Malarkey 4th February 2022 At 18:59
    “””””””””””””””””””””””””
    ‘..That the Parliament congratulates Rangers Football Club, founded in March 1872, on its 150th anniversary; ‘
    %%%%%%%5
    A counter motion:
    “Presiding officer, I move that Murdo Fraser be censured for trying to mislead the Chamber in suggesting that The Rangers Football Club that was founded in 1872 is somehow celebrating 150 years of participation in Scottish professional football.
    Mr Fraser knows , or ought to know and admit, that, both in fact and in law, that football club suffered the insolvency event of Administration, was NOT brought out of Administration but entered LIQUIDATION in 2012, where it languishes under the name of RFC 2012 plc ; no longer entitled to participate in Scottish professional football, having been required to surrender its share in the then Scottish Premier league in virtue of which shareholding it had been entitled to membership of the Scottish Football Association.
    Presiding Officer, the following extracts from the Companies House records amply prove beyond any rational doubt, that The Rangers Football Club that was founded in 1872 and incorporated on 27 May 1899 died the death that many another insolvent football club has died.
    Mr Fraser should be embarrassed for his brass-necked disregard for actual facts, and should be made to apologise to the Chamber, and to the people represented by this Chamber, for his ridiculous , pernicious motion that makes light of Truth, and comforts men in football governance who also made and make light of Truth.”

    From Companies House records:
    “ TO: The Registrar of Companies
    Company Number: SC 004276
    name: RFC 2012 PLC , FORMERLY THE RANGERS FOOTBALL CLUB PLC [ incorporated 27 May 1899]
    I/We James Bernard Stephen Malcolm Cohen
    4 Atlantic Quay 55 Baker St
    70 York St London
    Glasgow W1U 7EU
    give notice that on 31 October 2012 a winding up order was made against the above named company by an order of the Court of Session dated 31 October 2012 and I attach a copy of the order.
    Signed…..”
    __________

    Application to register a company
    Certificate of Incorporation of a private limited company
    Company Number: 425159
    Company Name: SEVCOSCOTLAND LIMITED
    “ The Registrar of Companies for Scotland hereby certifies that SEVCO SCOTLAND LIMITED is this day incorporated under the Companies Act 2006 as a private company , that the company is limited by shares and its registered office is in Scotland.
    Given at Companies House Edinburgh on 29th May 2012.

    name of each subscriber:
    Mr Charles Alexander Green.
    ++========
    31 July 2012 Company name changed, certificate issued
    “ Certificate of Incorporation on Change of name
    Company Number 425159
    SEVCOSCOTLAND LIMITED a company incorporated as private limited by shares ; having its registered office situated in Scotland has changed its name to THE RANGERS FOOTBALL CLUB LIMITED.
    Given at Companies house on 31st July 2012.”

    That any honest, rational person should be so perverse as to deny the facts and the legalities of the Companies House records to the extent that Fraser does (with such irritating, sneering arrogance ] is a very worrying thing.
    There have been many like him in history, of course, but it’s a pity that one such as he should be so ridiculously and blindly unheeding of truth in a mere matter of sport!
    One wonders what he might be prepared to do to Truth in a really serious matter of state?

    As Dr Strabismus (whom God protect!) of Utrecht used to say , ‘Honest to God!”

  129. Paddy Malarkey 4th Feb 18.59

    In full
    ……………………

    Titled “Rangers Football Club 150th Anniversary”, it reads: “That the Parliament congratulates Rangers Football Club, founded in March 1872, on its 150th anniversary;
    “Understands that it is the second most successful club in world football in terms of trophies won; further understands that it is one of the 11 original members of the Scottish Football League;
    “Has been champion of Scottish league football 55 times, winner of the Scottish Cup 33 times, the Scottish League Cup a record 27 times, the domestic ‘treble’ on seven occasions, and the European Cup Winners Cup in 1972.
    The motion goes on to ask the parliament to applaud the work done by the lcub in supporting the Rangers Charity Foundation.
    Scottish Tory leader Murdo Fraser wrote: “Delighted to add my name to this motion ⁦@ScotParl⁩ from my ⁦@ScotTories⁩ colleague ⁦@Sandeshgulhane⁩ celebrating 150 years of the world’s 2nd most successful football club ⁦@RangersFC”
    The motion speaks of the second most successful club in world history, as the Gers have won 115 trophies, behind Al-Ahly’s 118.

    Nacional and Penarol, both of Uruguay, are next in the running with 113 and 108 – and then comes Celtic with 106.
    Barcelona and Real Madrid are next on the list with 91 apiece with Benfica on 82.
    Some of the charities supported by the Rangers Charity FOundation are UNICEF and Armed Forces veterans’ charity Erskine.

  130. Bect67 4th February 2022 At 20:07
    ‘..What an irony it would be for the definitive liquidation announcement to be made around the time the present incumbents of Ibrox were celebrating a non-existent 150 years of history’
    %%%%%%%%%%%%
    I think the ‘definitive liquidation announcement’ is the act of dissolution, when the liquidators BDO advise the Court that all that had to be done and all that could be done to maximise returns to creditors has been done.

    I haven’t recently looked for BDO’s most recent update, but there might still be a ‘ways to go’ before dissolution!
    I haven’t even been checking whether the D&P action v BDO is still live? Anyone?

  131. @Nawlite – well as my father would say, never mind the quality feel the width… By all accounts Al Ahly of Egypt have won most trophies. And Club Nacional de Football are closing in on their total. So RFC+TRFC might need to either win some trophies or buy some more history to hold on to second place.

  132. Bect67 4th February 2022 At 20:07
    ‘..I’m still waiting for a follower of the former Govan club to come on here and openly agree/admit that they are in Liquidation!).’
    %%%%%
    heh heh! Aren’t we all?
    One expects that fans of a club destroyed by a knight of the realm and a barra-boy spiv would have difficulty in making such admission.
    One does not expect an MSP to bloody well make an arse of himself by publicly declaring that a club in liquidation in its 140th year is somehow able to to celebrate its 150th birthday!
    What are we dealing with here?
    What distortion of truth, what pressures on the BBC and the SMSM generally, to lie and to foist the stupid, stupid lie on us that a new club created by cowardly barstewards in football governance could possibly be the very same club as a club that is in Liquidation?
    There are very, very bad people in this world.
    Let them be exposed as the liars that they are.

  135. From today’s Times. We can have complaints against members of the Judiciary regarding possible pro-Rangers bias, but not against the SFA!

    https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/rangers-raid-judge-accused-of-bias-lmz5f2clw

    The sheriff who granted an unlawful warrant during the botched police operation into the takeover of Rangers FC is set to be investigated after claims that his “vociferous” support for the club compromised his impartiality.

    An official complaint has been submitted against Sheriff Lindsay Wood, alleging that he disregarded the apparent conflict of interest created by his affiliation with the Scottish champions.

    Wood, who regularly appears at Rangers matches and social events, is said to have a framed photograph of Ibrox in his chambers.

    It has emerged that Detective Chief Inspector Jim Robertson, the senior investigating officer during the ill-fated fraud case, is also an ardent supporter. The saga has already triggered a public inquiry and cost the taxpayer tens of millions of pounds.

    When Rangers fell into administration in 2012 the finance experts David Grier, David Whitehouse and Paul Clark, of the consultancy firm Duff & Phelps, were appointed to manage the club’s affairs. All three were arrested two years later over allegations of fraud linked to the club’s collapse and sale.

    Although they were cleared of all charges many Rangers fans believe that they failed to do enough to prevent the club’s demise.

    During the fraud investigation Wood signed off a warrant that allowed officers to raid the London offices of Holman Fenwick Willan, the legal firm representing Duff & Phelps. The operation was later ruled to have been an abuse of state power. Grier has now submitted a formal complaint against Wood to the Judicial Office for Scotland, alleging that his close affinity to Rangers meant that he should not have been involved in issuing warrants to the investigating detectives.

    Wood was photographed in the Ibrox directors box in the year before Grier, Whitehouse and Clark were arrested. In 2018 he was a guest at the official Rangers Burns supper and chaired an event featuring the former club managers Graeme Souness and Ally McCoist.

    “Sheriff Wood is a lifelong and vociferous supporter of Rangers Football Club,” Grier claimed. “He was far too close to the club to be granting warrants to allow investigation into its demise.”

    Grier pointed to the code on judicial independence which says that judges will excuse themselves from hearing a case, known as a recusal, if they have a personal interest in it.

    One senior legal source with knowledge of the case said: “This shameful episode appears to demonstrate that tribalism is alive and well within Scotland’s criminal justice system. Ministers need to take action.”

    The source claimed that many supporters regarded Grier, Whitehouse and Clark as enemies of their club.

    “There was a feeling that these three guys had come up from England and wrecked their beloved Rangers,” the source said. “Many cheered on the legal action against them, seeing it as a form of payback.”

    The warrant to seize documents from the offices of Holman Fenwick Willan was requested by Robertson, who led the inquiry. In court he denied chanting The Billy Boys, a Rangers song with sectarian lyrics, during interviews with suspects and witnesses. He said he may have “referenced” it. It is alleged that Robertson wore Rangers cufflinks while conducting interviews.

    In a statement submitted in 2019, Robertson confirmed that he had met Wood on December 4, 2015, noting that the sheriff had “dealt with a number of the warrants sought in the case”.

    Robertson added: “Sheriff Wood was interested in the case. He told us that he was a season ticket holder at Ibrox and had a framed picture of Ibrox on the walls of his chamber.”

    Court aide criticised firm as threat to her club

    The Times has learnt that Christina Herriott, Wood’s court manager, declared her support for Rangers FC on social media and criticised the finance firm at the centre of the bungled fraud investigation into the club’s collapse and sale.

    Christina Herriott’s online CV states that she is a manager with the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service in Glasgow. Robertson submitted a statement in which he said he was told by Wood in 2015 that he and Herriott — who as his clerk was responsible for the administration of cases in the court — were both Rangers season ticket holders.

    Herriott’s Twitter profile states: “It’s Rangers for me” and features the club’s crest. In September 2014 she tweeted: “As soon as Duff & Phelps were appointed there was no hope of anything good for Rangers happening.”

    Two years earlier Herriott, who has no involvement in judicial decision-making, accused the financial consultancy firm of “making money out of the Rangers crisis”. She later gave evidence in a hearing where David Grier, a senior figure with Duff & Phelps, argued he had been arrested maliciously before being cleared of all charges.

    Herriott, who has now made her Twitter profile private, also shared tweets which referred to Nicola Sturgeon as “Scotland’s First Megalomaniac”, accused a high-profile referee of “cheating Rangers” and described the Crown Office as “not fit for purpose”.

    Asked to comment on behalf of Herriott, a spokeswoman for the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service stressed that clerks of court only provided administrative support. “They have no involvement in judicial decision-making,” she said. The service declined to comment on Herriott’s social media posts.

    ‘A Rangers fan officer, Rangers fan sheriff and Rangers fan clerk’
    Grier said: “This has the impression that a senior police officer who is a Rangers fan arranged for a Rangers fan sheriff, and his Rangers fan clerk, to grant a warrant to search the offices of my solicitors.” Grier insists that the warrant should have gone through the High Court, where proceedings against him had commenced, instead of being presented to a “sympathetic” sheriff.

    In 2016 judges at the High Court in London ruled that the search warrant which led to privileged documents being seized from Holman Fenwick Willan was of “excessive and unlawful width”. In a separate Scottish judgment Lord Carloway found that the warrant was “oppressive” and “executed without proper safeguards”.

    Grier and his legal team claim that Wood gave contradictory and misleading accounts in two explanatory reports submitted to Carloway. They allege that the latter was “more or less identical” to a warrant request which Robertson had previously submitted.

    In his statement Robertson confirmed that he had left a copy of the document with Wood.

    Grier said: “I have always been brought up to consider that the system of justice in Scotland is of the highest order. However, things appear to have gone badly wrong and there are significant and important questions which now need to be answered.”

    The Judicial Office for Scotland said: “If a conduct complaint were received in respect of any member of the judiciary, it would be dealt with thoroughly and rigorously on a confidential basis in accordance with the Judiciary (Scotland) Rules 2017. It would not be appropriate for a sheriff to comment on any case that has been dealt with through the court process.”

    The Scottish Police Federation did not answer a request for comment.

  136. Upthehoops 5th February 2022 At 18:56
    ‘..From today’s Times. We can have complaints against members of the Judiciary regarding possible pro-Rangers bias, but not against the SFA!’
    %%%%%%%
    Good spot, Uth. I’ve only just seen your post, and thank you for it.
    Marc Horne, the ‘ award winning’ journalist who wrote the article, is based in Scotland.
    Where the hell was he in terms of asking probing questions about the ‘5-Way Agreement’ or about how RIFC plc could get away with claiming falsely to be the holding company of RFC of !872 vintage, when the fact is that they were [and are] the holding company of The Rangers Football Club Ltd of 2012 foundation, while RFC of 1872 origin is in Liquidation?

    I note, though, that he has “Although they were cleared of all charges many Rangers fans believe that they failed to do enough to prevent the club’s demise”- so he’s brave enough to say that bit of Truth!

    Personally, I don’t give a monkey’s damn about alleged ‘Rangers supporters’ in the Police or Judiciary trying to get revenge on people they think killed their club: they could be understood to have faced up to the reality of Liquidation and would be justified in their thirst for revenge!

    Unlike the very Governance body of Scottish football and supposed guardian of its Sporting Integrity, who to their eternal shame and disgrace created the nonsense that a club that THEY THEMSELVES permitted to enter Scottish football in 2012 should be allowed to claim now to be 150 years old.
    Honest to God, what double-dyed wretches and enemies of truth they are.

    PS, Do we know whether Marc Horne is related to the brilliant journalist Cyril Horne, who flourished in the 1950s at the Glasgow Herald?
    I remember our teacher of French -who was also a [hard!]Master of Discipline- stunning us all one day in class when he read to us a report of a match at Celtic Park ( in or about 1958/59?] by Cyril Horne, which began with the words ” Weeping grey skies over Parkhead ..” and , I think, went on to refer to Janefield cemetery , with some kind of reference to ‘Paradise’.

    He stunned us because we knew he wasn’t interested in football, being a cricket man , Cambridge graduate and what-not. We thought-or at least I thought- he was going to give us the task of putting that report into French!
    No. He just wanted us to savour the delight of good descriptive writing even in sports reports.

  138. “You’ll be the judge, but I believe I have a firm grasp of the profound challenges facing our healthcare system, and the difficulties faced by patients during the current pandemic and beyond”
    https://www.drsandeshgulhane.com/about-dr-gulhane
    Maybe so, but I reserve the right to question Dr Sandesh’s grasp of realities in the world of Scottish Football.
    He has made a farce of himself by buying into the lie that The Rangers Football Club of 2012 creation is the Rangers Football Club of 1872 foundation that went into Liquidation in 2012 and died aged 140!

    If there was ever a more egregious attempt by a politician to curry favour by disregarding unpleasant truth and using his position to propagate an untruth, I’ve yet to come across it.
    May he lose his seat at the first opportunity, for being so stupid.

  139. JC 5th Feb @ 23.15

    Scottish football is sick but the sickness is like alcoholism. Until the disease is admitted, no remedial measures can be taken. The administration – top heavy with lightweights intoxicated by power – is reluctant to admit the obvious, and is disturbingly complacent about the state of the game today.

    Anyone reading this far might think those words are mine – but they are not (as the better read among the community may have noticed!). In an act of mischief, I deliberately omitted quotation marks to give that initial impression. Mea culpa!

    Your reference to Cyril Horne had me delving in to the writings of Scottish football journalists, and the words above are from a publication (When Saturday Comes), and are attributed to John Rafferty – a highly respected football journalist from days of yore. They were, I believe, written ca 1971 – 50+ Years ago!
    (Readers may now add the quotation marks to the first paragraph!)

    How prophetically true of today – and eerily supportive of the SFM blog aims.

    Had Mr Rafferty be penning his thoughts in this day and age, he might just rephrase his words a bit e.g.

    “the administration (with the undying support of the SMSM and the Scottish Establishment)”.

    Plus la change, plus la meme chose etc etc

  140. Bect67 8th February 2022 At 16:13
    “…Had Mr Rafferty be penning his thoughts in this day and age, he might just rephrase his words a bit.”
    %%%%%%%%%%%%%
    In 1971 , Bect67, I lived in Pollokshields.
    I was, at the time, engaged in some occasional voluntary work in that general area.

    In geographical connection with that voluntary work I had occasion to phone John Rafferty on an ‘ad hoc’ basis, which turned out to be about once every four or five weeks:[on nothing to do with football]

    And I think you’re dead right: Rafferty would have been all over the ‘saga’ from at least the first mention of a MBMB, through the shambles of an Administration, and would not have suffered the nonsense of the ‘5-Way agreement’, or allow the untruth that RIFC plc was entitled to claim to be the holding company of RFC of 1872 to go unchallenged.
    I think Ian Archer would have been the same.
    Neither would have accepted at face value what anyone involved had to say, but each would have strained every journalistic sinew and followed every journalistic instinct in the direction of unearthing and exposing the truth- AND reporting it!
    If all of the SMSM brigade had been simply incompetent journalists or mere indolent, fearful, sponging ‘lamb eaters’ /swillers of fine wine from the kitchen/cellars of a despicably hubristic knight , that would have been bad enough.
    But it must be the case that some of our SMSM journalists knew at least some of the truth but chose not to report it,
    And, of course, any one of them even now can check for himself that RIFC plc is the holding company of a football cub that did not exist before 2012, a football club that could not possibly be 150 years old.
    [ That they choose not to do so betrays a want of journalistic integrity, which, as said before, is far more pernicious and dangerous than a similar want of integrity in those WRETCHES who claim to be guardians of the Integrity of Scottish Football !]
    May Rafferty and Archer and Turnbull Hutton rest in the peace of honest, decent human beings of great personal integrity.
    May others in the SMSM or in Football governance who die lacking that integrity lie as dishonourably in their graves as they lied in the exercise of their profession or offices.

  141. Further to my post of 22.18 this evening, I find this in my inbox :

    ” 2022 is a significant year for ICIJ because it marks the 25th anniversary of the news organization’s founding. So to kick off the Meet the Investigators series this year, we decided to take a quick trip down memory lane with one of our longest serving partners.

    Acclaimed Colombian journalist Maria Teresa Ronderos worked on ICIJ’s very first international collaboration. In the latest episode of our podcast, she talks about how the project sparked a passion for investigative journalism that informed the next two decades of her storied career.

    Maria Teresa went on to create Verdad Abierta — the “Open Truth” project — which specialized in reporting on war crimes. She’s now director of the Latin American Center for Investigative Journalism (CLIP), which she co-founded in 2019. And last year, she was honored with the prestigious Simón Bolívar National Journalism Award for her lifetime achievements.

    Maria Teresa and her team at CLIP joined forces with ICIJ once again for the Pandora Papers. She says that as international reporting collaborations have grown around the world, journalists in Latin America are facing ever-worsening dangers to press freedom. But she sees crossborder models like ICIJ’s as an important buffer against such threats.

    “When you feel you have a fraternity and it’s having your back, you become more courageous and you can have no fear in being really independent,” Maria Teresa says in the podcast. “I think that’s why it’s so important, these kinds of collaborations.”

    I’ve just emailed the ICIJ to ask whether there is a Scottish journalist in their ranks.
    Will I be surprised if the answer were to be in the affirmative?
    Much as I dislike ‘Americanisms’ , I gotta say ‘You bet!’
    And if there WERE to be any hack in Scotland who is a member of the ICIJ, then of course the credibility of the ICIJ would to my mind be called into question.
    And I would make the point to the ICIJ that wee local corruption needs to be investigated as well as the big international business and governmental corruption.
    Even if it were to be every bit as career-threatening .
    I’ll see what they reply.

  142. I note that Craig Whyte is being prosecuted at the instigation of the Financial Conduct Authority for allegedly failing to comply with a notice to disclose PIN passwords, and a provisional trial date has been set for September 13th in Manchester Crown Court.
    I was prompted by that bit of news to have a look at the list of those Scottish Court cases that are still subject to reporting restrictions and which relate in some way to the death of RFC of 1872 and the creation in 2012 of the new club TRFC and RIFC plc and subsequent wicked abandonment of Sporting integrity that is represented by the ‘5-Way Agreement’ cobbled up by unprincipled ,deceitful, frightened men in a blind panic.
    There are 5 such cases:
    HMA v CW [under Section 11 of the Contempt of Court Act 1981] Court of Session 12 December 2018
    Charles Green v RIFC plc, Court of Session 12 November 2016
    The Rangers FC Group Ltd re Adjudication of Claim , Court of Session 15 March 2016
    HMA v Whyte, Withey, Grier, Whitehouse, Clark, Green and Ahmad, High Court of Justiciary 16 October 2015
    HMA for restraint order re Craig Whyte , Court of Session 11 September 2015

  143. John Clark 10th February 2022 At 14:12

    EDIT
    “..I was prompted by that bit of news to have a look at the list of those Scottish Court cases that are still subject to reporting restrictions and which relate in some way to the death of RFC of 1872”
    ———————–

    Your post prompted me to look at why reporting restrictions have been imposed on the cases you highlight John.In truth I am at a loss as to why restrictions are extant, indeed I am further perplexed at the ban at all! According to the guide on reporting restrictions then there has to be a pressing and convincing case presented by the defendant as to why ‘open justice’ may not be applied. Are you aware of any way of discovering the reasoning for the restriction and whether the PF ,defence or sitting judge has requested such? The extract below is from guidance issued to England and Wales but I would be surprised if Scottish law was to differ in any meaningful way…maybe.

    “The open justice principle
    • The general rule is that the administration of justice must be done in public The public and the media have the right to attend all court hearings and the media is able to report those proceedings fully and contemporaneously
    •Any restriction on these usual rules will be exceptional. It must be based on necessity
    • The burden is on the party seeking the restriction to establish it is necessary on the basis of clear and cogent evidence
    • The terms of any order must be proportionate – going no further than is necessary to meet the relevant objective”
    https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/reporting-restrictions-guide-may-2016-2.pdf

  144. Gunnerb 10th February 2022 At 20:50
    “… I am at a loss as to why restrictions are extant……. Are you aware of any way of discovering the reasoning for the restriction and whether the PF ,defence or sitting judge has requested such? ”
    %%%%%%%%%%%%%
    I’m no expert, of course, Gunnerb, but as I understand it, in the kind of so civil cases in question , one or other of the parties must have asked the judge for reporting restrictions to be imposed for reasons of commercial confidentiality for matters that might have to be discussed but which are not in themselves germane to the action; and in the criminal case, the PF,or the Judge himself, might have had in mind that other prosecutions were or might be pending, that might be prejudiced.

    The fact that some time has elapsed might not of itself remove the possibility that publication of the judgments in the civil cases could still cause commercial harm to either party. I can understand that.

    However, I struggle to understand why the restrictions are still in force in the ‘contempt’ and ‘restraint order’ cases? I’m certainly not aware of any current criminal charges against CW? [ Or at least, not until today!]

    I suppose a member of the public may be free to ask, without himself being guilty of contempt?
    And don’t look at me, Ha, ha. I’m too feart!

  145. “The journalists who broke the story of Russian skater Kamila Valieva’s positive drugs test on Wednesday say they have faced death threats, abuse, and warnings they should check their tea”
    https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/other/british-journalists-receive-death-threats-from-russia-over-valieva-controversy/ar-AATK5rB?ocid=msedgntp

    Scottish journalists knew that it was safer/more profitable not only to refuse to question the Big Lie in Scottish Football in 2012 but actively to propagate it!

  148. Oh what a tangled web they weave…

    https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/sheriff-who-issued-22-warrants-in-rangers-inquiry-had-shares-in-club-jf8dd220t

    A sheriff who granted more than 20 warrants during the failed police investigation into the takeover of Rangers FC has been accused of a “glaring judicial conflict of interest” after it emerged he was a shareholder in the club.

    Last week The Times disclosed that Lindsay Wood is the subject of an official complaint relating to his close links to the Scottish champions.

    Wood regularly attends Rangers matches and social events and was said to have a framed photograph of Ibrox in his chambers.

    It has now come to light that he held shares in Rangers’ old parent company, which became worthless when the club went into administration in 2012. Records from 2008 confirm Wood owned 110 shares.

    Following the collapse of Rangers, David Grier, David Whitehouse and Paul Clark, of the consultancy firm Duff & Phelps, were appointed to manage the club’s affairs.

    All three were later arrested over allegations of fraud linked to the collapse and sale of Rangers. They were cleared of all charges but many of the club’s supporters believe they failed to do enough to prevent its demise.

    The saga has already triggered a public inquiry and cost the taxpayer tens of millions of pounds in payments to individuals who were prosecuted maliciously.

    Between 2013 and 2015 Wood signed off 22 warrants during the botched investigation. They included one which allowed officers to raid the London offices of Holman Fenwick Willan, the legal firm representing Duff & Phelps, which was later found to be unlawful and executed “without proper safeguards”.

    It was requested by Detective Chief Inspector Jim Robertson, the senior investigating officer, who is said to have worn Rangers cufflinks while conducting interviews.

    Russell Findlay, the Scottish Conservative spokesman on community safety, called on Lord Carloway, the lord justice general, to establish why Wood failed to recuse himself.

    “This represents a glaring judicial conflict of interest in the Rangers malicious prosecution scandal,” he said. “It seems there was a perfect storm of a Rangers-supporting police officer, a Rangers-supporting sheriff and Crown Office prosecutors who pursued innocent men with reckless disregard for the evidence, leaving taxpayers with a bill for tens of millions of pounds and no one being held to account.

    “A register of judicial recusals was introduced in Scotland seven years ago for circumstances such as these, and I would expect Lord Carloway to establish why there was no voluntary recusal by Sheriff Wood.”

    Grier, who has lodged a complaint with the Judicial Office for Scotland, added: “Sheriff Wood’s connections to Rangers are overwhelming and it was entirely inappropriate for him to be involved.”

    The code of Scottish judicial ethics states that it is not acceptable for a judge to adjudicate on a matter on which they or family members have a financial interest. It adds: “An example of such an interest might be the holding of shares in a public company.”

    In a statement submitted in 2019, Robertson said: “Sheriff Wood was interested in the case. He told us he was a season ticket holder and had a framed picture of Ibrox on the walls of his chamber.”

    The Times asked the Judicial Office for Scotland for a response from Wood but did not receive one.

    A spokeswoman said: “In making a judicial decision, sheriffs must carefully consider the facts before them and take full account of the unique circumstances of each individual case, applying the law without bias or prejudice.

    “Judges can recuse themselves from proceedings on certain grounds — or parties to a case can object to a judge’s involvement.

    “If a party is not satisfied with a judicial decision, it can be appealed to a higher court.”

  149. CFC’s financial statement seems to have startled the supporters of another club . They seem to veer between disbelief and anger on behalf of victims of historical abuse . A fatal blow to aspirations of dominance ?

  150. Upthehoops 12th February 2022 At 14:54
    ‘…It has now come to light that he held shares in Rangers’ old parent company,’
    %%%%%%%%
    There we have the BIG damned Lie again, Uth, in the barefaced, brazen assertion that it was some ‘parent company’ that went bust, while the football club survived !!

    The meanest intellect can easily discover that there WAS NO holding company of RFC of 1872.

    There was only ONE entity registered with Companies House, one Company number, and that entity was the Rangers Football Club of 1872, incorporated in 1889 with company number SC004276

    And it was that football club that went into Liquidation in 2012, renamed as RFC 2012 plc, having had
    to surrender its share in the Scottish Premier League Ltd, thereby losing entitlement to membership of the SFA, and therefore cessing to exist as a football club participating in Scottish professional Football.

    There is a diabolical perversity of mind in the SMSM which simply will not tell the incontestable truth.
    And the evil facilitators in Scottish football governance who abandoned all notion of integrity will have a lot to answer for, rot their bones in the fullness of time.

  151. Upthehoops 12th February 2022 At 14:54
    ‘..Oh what a tangled web they weave…’
    %%%%%%%%%%%
    We’ll have to wait and see what further nonsense may be foisted on us when/ if people in the Judiciary and COPFS have to scramble either to block the truth and/ or avoid personal blame.

    Do you remember this as a piece of utter journalistic failure? Is it worse or as bad as Marc Horne’s ( also of the London Times]
    “Judge blows final whistle on old Rangers
    Nick Drainey
    Thursday November 01 2012, 12.01am, The Times
    Lord Hodge ruled that the former club could be placed in the hands of liquidators
    Rangers, the club that once bestrode Scottish football, was consigned to history yesterday in the dry-as-dust, downbeat surroundings of an Edinburgh courtroom. [ed: so far,so truthful]
    In an atmosphere far removed from the roar of Ibrox, Lord Hodge ruled that the former club could be placed in the hands of liquidators.
    A new Rangers football club has been formed since administrators were called in in February over unpaid tax bills.[ ed: so far again, so truthful]
    It has inherited the honours of the past, but the history of the original club effectively ended in court yesterday.” [ ed: what a piece of absolutely contradictory nonsense! A new club cannot possibly ‘inherit’ the sporting successes of a club that died before ever the new club had kicked a ball!]
    Dear God, did neither of those two ‘journalists’ stop and think about what they were writing? If they did not that would in itself count them out as being any kind of reliable journalist.
    And if they had thought and had recognised the truth, but reported something other? What would that make them?
    Why, nothing more nor less than propagandists for a sporting untruth cobbled up by frightened little men in office as the guardians of the Integrity of Scottish Football!
    Which is the worse thing to be?
    At a time like this, when the integrity of persons in the very Courts of law is possibly being questioned?

  152. Paddy Malarkey 12th February 2022 At 15:05
    ‘… They seem to veer between disbelief and anger on behalf of victims of historical abuse.’
    %%%%%%%%%%
    I am an old man now.
    As a boy I read about Baden-Powell and the Boy Scouts. I wanted to be a Scout. My mum and dad (it seems to me now] thought it was the same as, or related ,to the Boys’ Brigade, so I was not allowed to try to join.
    Did they save me from being sexually abused?
    https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/10/boy-scouts-of-america-wins-key-support-for-sex-abuse-settlement.html
    Read what that link refers to .
    And we realise that the evil of sexual abuse of the young of any gender is to be found world-wide and at every level of society.
    These days, it would be a very rash company, or sports club, or political, academic, religious, secular, atheistic, or charitable institution that can guarantee that at all times past and present there has not been anyone among their paid staff or volunteers who has not been guilty of abuse against youngsters or other vulnerable people.
    Essentially, the point I make is that point-scoring by referencing a world-wide societal problem is meaningless, except perhaps that the attempt to do so is an indication of the spluttering inability of those who live the sporting lie that Sevco5088/SevcoScotland/TRFC is somehow the Rangers Football Club of 1872.
    Honest to God, what are they like?
    What else but deniers of Truth?
    And those in journalism who deny that RFC of 1872 died are ‘abusers’ of the rest of us , the everyday
    football club supporter?

  153. Paddy Malarkey 12th February 2022 At 15:05
    ‘… They seem to veer between disbelief and anger on behalf of victims of historical abuse.’

    PM – on the “disbelief” angle – why would they be surprised? It was entirely predictable that the interim results would be impressive, driven by 2 significant player sales ( Ajer / Eduoard), qualification for the group stages of the Europa League and the return of European crowds. The only reason for surprise would be that they were uninformed by the fourth estate ahead of times or arithmetic isn’t their strong point.

    Looking more closely at the numbers, Celtic fans should be in no doubt that their club is being run ( financially at least) by people with a good grasp of what their business model is. The conveyor belt of positive player trading is truly impressive. While dips in form and injuries can quickly change things, there are several recent additions to the playing squad who are clearly promising candidates to join that conveyor belt in the future.

    About the only thing that hasn’t gone right is that fringe players, some of whom will be high earners, didn’t get moved on in January. ( Ajeti, Barkas, Soro and Bolingoli). Whatever disappointment the Celtic Board might have felt about that will be minor relative to the excitement the acquisition of Abada, Kyogo, Hatate and O’Riley appear to have generated.

    As of December 31st Celtic had cash balances of £25.6m and net Equity of £93.3m ( Assets – Liabilities). They have maintained an undrawn Revolving Credit Facility of £13m adding further flexibility to their immediate cash position. This is a position all other clubs could only dream of.

  154. Westcoaster 13th February 2022 At 13:50
    ”… Celtic fans should be in no doubt that their club is being run ( financially at least) by people with a good grasp of what their business model is.”
    %%%%%%%%%
    I love the the “financially at least” qualification, Westcoaster!
    The Celtic Board certainly grasped that acting with integrity ( by insisting on an independent investigation into the ‘UEFA licence’ matter and by supporting Turnbull Hutton] would cost them money.

    In that respect, and in my opinion, that puts the Celtic Board of the saga era very broadly in the same category, if not to anything like the same extent, as the originators of the real villainy – SDM and the SFA/ SPFL.
    I am no anatomist, but I think we must now be aware that since 2012 an a.se can have more than two cheeks, and that ‘sporting integrity’ is an out-dated concept, as demonstrated most cogently by the SFA.

    And who could be a.sed with a ‘sport’ that can live with the moral doping that is signalled by the ready acceptance and propagation of untruths about sporting achievements and success?
    What would be the point?

  155. Quote of the saga: Paul Murray speaking about Craig Whyte
    “He came into the boardroom and I remember looking at him in disbelief. The pointy, plastic shoes. The ill-fitting suit. This should have been the biggest day of his life. This guy looked like he’d been dressed off the peg at M&S.”

    I think that quote says all that one needs to know about Paul Murray and his intellectual capacity and business nous.
    https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/craig-whyte-rangers-wolf-cheap-26219041

  157. John Clark 14th February 10.44

    “Quote of the saga: Paul Murray speaking about Craig Whyte
    “He came into the boardroom and I remember looking at him in disbelief. The pointy, plastic shoes. The ill-fitting suit. This should have been the biggest day of his life. This guy looked like he’d been dressed off the peg at M&S.”

    I think that quote says all that one needs to know about Paul Murray and his intellectual capacity and business nous.
    https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/craig-whyte-rangers-wolf-cheap-26219041 ”

    JC – Today is certainly a day that needs to be remembered – predictably, and regrettably, Keith Jackson chooses to indulge in revisionist nonsense with Paul Murray. Five minutes on Google were all that was required at the time to realise Craig Whyte wasn’t “The Bellshill Billionaire” that Jackson himself had served up to Daily Record readers. His shoes, as you point out, had hee haw to do with it.

  158. Westcoaster 14th February 2022 At 12:14
    You’d think he’d have said all this to his friends in the media (and the Ludge) at the time . It could have maybe prevented the rush to administration then liquidation .And he seems to have realised that liquidation was looming when talking to D Murray – “But I told him he’d just sealed the club’s fate – that there was no way back from this.”. His media pals weren’t hot on that either . And no mention of a holding company .

  159. @JC – I’ve been reflecting on the Nick Drainey report that you posted and specifically the word “inherited”. I think (although not 100% sure) that I am comfortable with “inherited”. It clearly is not the same by any stretch as winning the honours yourself or in its more regular meaning of building the wealth yourself. It also signifies a terminal event for the wealth creator – that is to say their death – which of course in the case of corporations is what liquidation equates to. To claim something which you inherit as your own creation is arrant nonsense, that much is clear. I think a narrative of “inherited honours” would not last long in the cold light of day – perhaps that is why there is no talk these days on the 54 inherited titles to take just one example.

    As an aside (and apologies if thought off-topic), whilst the Green Brigade fireworks at Celtic Park for the recent Glasgow derby were completely out of order and quite frightening, I did chuckle at their Pinocchio set-piece.

  160. Just read the Sons of Struth article on RFC’s descent into administration and even they say it was the club , not a holding company . What am I missing ?
    10 YEARS ON. LESSONS LEARNED?

    The 14th February 2012 will be etched in the DNA of every Rangers fan that was alive that day. Reality hit and the reality wasn’t palatable. Our club entered administration.

  163. Certainly a day to remember in the long saga of Ranger’s administration/liquidation. First we have the hindsight of the decade award for Paul Murray as he appeared to be the only person who saw through the self made billionaire with the plastic shoes. Perhaps if he had been more observant at the time he could have rescued the club/team/holding company/engine room whatever. If memory serves right he didn’t seem to have a problem accepting a board position. Stewart Robertson says they are in their best financial position since 2015 and might actually be in a profitable position with the sale of Patterson. He should have a look at the Celtic’s financials and see it takes more than one sale to achieve profitability. And, finally Barry steps down and casts eyes toward an Ibrox return. Now he can write his weekly/daily columns on Rangers without fear of interfering with his former managerial duties. Don’t wait on that phone all too long Barry.

  165. Well, in my inbox today there is this interesting [English]judgment; it would be absolutely ‘ off topic’ -except maybe to remind folk that those of us amateurs who may innocently enough write, or have written, about court hearings in perfect good faith are extremely conscious of ‘the Law’! And are careful to abide by any rules about not reporting what we hear and see, if there are reporting restrictions.

    It concerns the breaching of an embargo on publication of the draft of a judgment of the court.

    Apparently, the practice is for a Judge to let Counsel in a case see his written draft judgment in advance of publication so that they have an opportunity to correct any mistakes before publication.

    The ‘Chambers’ of Counsel for the parties are REQUIRED to have systems in place to prevent the POSSIBILITY that the judgment may be leaked before official publication date.

    In this case, the embargo was breached ( apparently this has happened only twice before!]
    What happened in this case.
    Well, have a read and see, on this link:
    https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/he-Queen-on-the-Application-of-The-Counsel-General-for-Wales-and-The-Secretary-of-State-for-Business-Energy-an.pdf
    Step for a hint, I was vaguely reminded of a certain contempt of court case.

  166. A reminder from The Scotsman and Football Scotland as to why SFM must keep challenging ‘The Big Lie’ …

    ‘Robbie Keane to play in Rangers 150th anniversary legends match’ (it galls me even to type that!).

    Anyone lacking knowledge of the real history of this ‘club’, severely cognitively challenged and/or totally deluded, may not have spotted the not so deliberate printing errors, so for these poor souls (including the SMSM), I offer the following ‘nugget’, selected from the words of renowned philosopher Leigh Griffiths:-

    ‘Yir club’s deid mate!’

    Whilst I’m on, someone was quite recently (with a moot point at best) whinging about this being a pro-Celtic site – which is, in itself an insult to posters who are supporters of clubs other that Celtic and TRFC. (That reminded of the time when I (a CFC fan) was mildly rebuked by BP for a pro- Celtic post!!).

    One of the main reasons for this paranoid, and IMHO false, claim is, simply, that posters on here regularly challenge inaccurate reporting about the Govan outfit’s history. so said whingers need to ‘wake up and smell the coffee’ by accepting the undeniable truth …

    ‘Rangers Football Club. Born 1872. Died 1912’ (The Herald headline).

    Nuff said? Certainly for me!

  167. Bect67 17th February 2022 At 11:39
    ‘..Nuff said? Certainly for me!’
    %%%%%%%%%%%
    Yes.
    You know, I wish I had the readies to get first rate legal advice on whether an action ( and the likelihood of being successful] could be brought against a PLC which, when it to the Market, were to have done so on the basis of a ‘Prospectus’ which clearly and misleadingly implied that it was the ‘holding’ company of a long established football club with a tremendous record of sporting success, when in fact it was only the ‘holding’ company of a new football club set up and admitted into professional football for the first time only very shortly before the plc was set up?[ The public records and the records of the professional football association are assumed to be available as evidence of the main facts giving rise to the action]
    It might be an interesting exam question for aspiring Insolvency Practitioners or would-be employees of the FCA?

  168. What a strange night for Scottish football , last night . Changes the narrative now on staying in Europe/winning the league . Hard to discern which team can’t play in front of crowds .

  169. Spot on Paddy!

    TRFC followers will (justifiably) fancy their chances of progression in Europe, and will certainly have had a morale booster from last night’s result(s) with regard to winning the league.

    Most CFC fans, on the other hand, would not bet on getting through to the next stage of the Conference League, but will be happy to be currently ‘leading the chase’ at home so to speak.

    Both have identified winning the domestic league as this season’s ‘Holy Grail’, in terms of financial rewards from direct entry to the Champions’ League (in spite of various caveats, I believe that the Scottish Champions will have achieved a strong enough co-efficient for this to materialise), and I would venture an opinion that, should TRFC advance and Celtic go out, then CFC, with what I feel is a stronger squad, might reasonably be considered as favourites for the title – perhaps especially with three of their final five games being at home, with one against their Govan rivals.

    n.b This is NOT a prediction – as I am wary of going down this route, having seen my expressed belief that Celtic would reach 10iar go ‘right down the tubes’.

    As you hinted at (e.g. a weeks a long time in politics!), there will surely be a few twists and turns between now and the end of the season!!

  172. Paddy Malarkey 18th February 2022 At 17:31
    %%%%%
    The link you provide, PM, has these comments:
    “Morton say they are “disappointed with the severity” of Imrie’s punishment and have asked for an explanation of the reasons.”
    and
    “BBC Scotland understands there are no suspicions of match fixing within the charges and the 14 cases, which were all made public at the same time, are not part of a coordinated investigation”

    I merely observe that a football club that for a decade evaded millions of pounds in tax by telling porkies to HMRC, and broke football rules by telling porkies to the SFA , was scarcely punished at all for such offences.
    I observe further that our Football Authorities are themselves a busted flush in terms of Integrity by countenancing the biggest act of sports cheatery ever carried out.
    I further wonder just how match-fixing
    by players ( so easy to miss a crucial penalty or to concede one],or
    by referees [ so easy for referees to make ‘honest ‘mistakes] or
    by managers [ less easy , but still possible to field an unnecessarily weak side to try to bring about a defeat]
    is prevented?
    Once your ‘ governance bodies’ lie about sporting achievements, the entire sport is suspect.
    And, sadly, we have a Big Lie at the very heart of our game, a lie created by our governance bodies- hell
    mend them if the entire sport goes down the plug-hole.

  173. John McLellan, ex-editor of ‘The Scotsman’ and current Edinburgh city councillor, expresses in today’s print edition of the paper, his fears that a recent judgment* of the Supreme Court threatens the basic principle that ‘truth is an absolute defence’
    * http://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKSC/2022/5.html

    His own denial of the truths that RFC of 1872 ceased to exist as a football club participating in Scottish professional football in 2012 when it entered Liquidation [in which state it currently remains] and that The Rangers Football Club of 2012 foundation cannot possibly be the club that was founded in 1872 surely disqualifies him as any defender of Truth
    The blind hypocrisy of those who practice ‘borisism’ when it comes to ‘truth-telling’ is frankly, disgusting.

  175. Bigboab1916 19th February 2022 At 19:16
    “….what was the name of the holding company?”
    %%%%%%%%%%%%
    Bigboab1916-nice to see you back!
    I got the definitive answer to that question just before Christmas.
    I had emailed the FCA to ask the question. They replied that it was a Companies House matter and passed my query on to them.
    Here is the relevant email chain:

    “enquiries@companieshouse.gov.uk
    To:[me]
    Mon, 20 Dec 2021 at 08:11
    Dear Customer,
    Thank you for your email.
    RFC 2012 P.L.C.
    Company number SC004276

    Free access to digital company data and images is available from the Companies House Service: https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/
    The above search facility will provide you with details of Directors and Shareholders of the company.
    Companies House acts primarily as a registry of company information, our statutory duty is to register documents in line with the Companies Act and make them available for public inspection.
    If you require any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.
    To get in touch you can email us at enquiries@companieshouse.gov.uk or call our Contact Centre on +44(0)303 1234 500
    Alternatively please visit our website at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/companies-house
    Yours faithfully,
    K. Richards
    Customer Advisor ”

    “To:enquiries@companieshouse.gov.uk
    Wed, 15 Dec 2021 at 12:55
    Dear Companies House,
    The FCA yesterday emailed me to say they had redirected a query I had made to them to you, as being more in your field.
    The query was simply: what is/was the holding company of Company number SC004276, which was a company that entered Liquidation in October 2012?
    Thanking you,
    [me]”

    “Freedom of Information
    To [me ]Sun, 12 Dec 2021 at 23:07
    Thank you for e-mailing the Financial Conduct Authority’s Information Disclosure Team. This is an automatic acknowledgement to tell you that we have received your email safely. Please do not reply to this email. We will be in touch in due course.”
    —
    We see clearly that all the nonsense about it being ” the holding company not the club, that was liquidated” was a lie from beginning to end- as we knew, of course.

    And, do you know, I think I can detect , from the curtness of the Companies House reply, that they’re not too happy having to acknowledge that truth! [I have an earlier email from CH which I must now dig out and re-read, because it was on the same lines as the utterance of that HMRC bloke who gave the false assurance that ‘Rangers’ would continue]
    I am ready to believe that CH may have realised that they allowed themselves to be conned and taken in by the Big Lie , a lie which was apparently authorised by the FCA when they allowed RIFC plc to claim in their Prospectus that they were actually continuity Rangers of 1872.
    I think that there are hard questions to be asked of Companies House and the FCA about allowing a plc to make untrue statements in their launching Prospectus.
    But given the complicity of the SMSM in accepting and promoting the Big Lie, those hard questions are not even being asked, never mind answered, because
    BBC Scotland in effect disciplines anyone who raises the subject on air, and the print media are too feart/too partisan to report Truth.
    as, of course, are our ‘politicos’.
    Which of them , of any party, had or now has the guts even to ask questions?
    To do so would in their view might cost them their seats- whether in Holyrood or Westminster-so they have all rolled over and chosen to live with the lie.
    And it is such an absurd lie, laughable even, if its consequences were not so destructive of belief in the Integrity of our national sport.
    Honest to God!

  176. Has there been any update or resolution on Ranger’s on-going dispute with Scottish football administrators an the Cinch sponsorship. It has been fairly quiet in that regard lately.
    Now that Barry Ferguson has surrendered ( could not help but use that phrase) his coaching duties will we now have a daily dose of his football insights in the DR.
    Is Derek McInnes quietly paving the way to an Ibrox return with his glowing columns in regards to Ranger’s performances.
    Why are ex Rangers players and fans so fixated on game results from 15 — 25 years ago. Of course this a comment that could be levelled at a number of teams.

  177. Vernallen 20th February 2022 At 14:43
    Trying to convince themselves that the club they support is the same one that played in those games . In the same way GVB is a link to the past . They’ll have to produce a few players from the youth set up to keep the notion of continuation extant .

  178. With regard to the dominance of the two big Glasgow teams, it seems that the last few weekends have demonstrated the ability of other sides to compete on a match by match basis.
    It is becoming obvious to me at any rate that football coaching is now very efficient at levelling things up on the field of play. Strategies to counter attacking threats of more gifted players are becoming more and more successful, garnished with no little skill in teams throughout the top league.
    Maybe the main reason the bigger clubs usually end up occupying the top six places in the Premiership is their depth of talent. Squads are more and more instrumental in that regard, and the ability to use five subs will most definitely not be a further step towards a level playing field.

  179. Big Pink 21st February 2022 At 09:08
    “…and the ability to use five subs will most definitely not be a further step towards a level playing field”
    %%%%%%%%
    I totally agree.
    For a sport to be a sport there has to be meaningful competition.

    ” Fishing” by using dynamite is not angling, a heavyweight against a featherweight is not boxing, men footballers against boys is not competition- and a team that is not resourced at a level to be able to match substitution with substitution would be at a sporting disadvantage against wealthier clubs that have many more bodies and fresh legs at their disposal.

    Substitution for any reason other than injury was always a bad idea. Increasing the permitted number of subs would make a nonsense of football as any kind of sport.
    In my opinion.

  180. It always causes me to smile when I read of a manager’s “stroke of genius/inspired substitution” when said substitute makes/scores the winner/equaliser. Seldom is the question asked “why wasn’t he in your starting 11…?” The big teams beyond our “wee league” will not countenance a reduction in subs as it would make keeping their bloated squads happy much more difficult with less game time to dish out. If the name of the game is to have a more level playing field how about:
    1. Any player that is subbed automatically suspended for the next match – would also cut down on those time-wasting substitutions.
    2. Have a max squad size (as they do in Europe) to mitigate the tendency of big clubs to warehouse players.
    3. Bring back (at least I think it disappeared) a minimum number of under 21/23 players in the listed squad.

    I am sure there are pros and cons to the points above and many other ideas. Maybe if we want to be the “best wee league in the world” then we lead on some innovation to make a more competitive environment.

  182. Westcoaster 22nd February 2022 At 11:21
    “.Another 4m of shares issued yesterday @ 25p raising £1m. ”
    %%%%%%%%%%
    This is getting to be ridiculous, issuing shares like confetti to meet immediate cash needs!
    Does any sensible business do this except in dire emergency?
    It seems to me that RIFC plc is regarded as too risky for any commercial lender to think of lending them a few bob.
    Will they go bust before season’s end?

  183. John Clark – 22nd February 11.41

    “This is getting to be ridiculous, issuing shares like confetti to meet immediate cash needs!
    Does any sensible business do this except in dire emergency?
    It seems to me that RIFC plc is regarded as too risky for any commercial lender to think of lending them a few bob.
    Will they go bust before season’s end?”

    JC – as long as someone steps up with further cash I don’t see an immediate risk. The Rangers website hasn’t been updated so we have no means of seeing whether one of the usual suspects has put their hand in their pocket again or it’s someone else.

  184. Surely the latest share issue must have set another world record for Rangers ( aren’t they always trumpeting some form of world record). Is this money to cover the salaries of the recent top drawer players brought in on loan, does it help finance their European travels, or was it cover a payment to a creditor who was knocking on the doors of the hallowed marble stair case. Is the money earned so far in European competitions already spent.
    So many questions, so few answers.

  186. The shareholder information on Rangers website has now been updated to reflect the additional 4m shares. The shareholder ( >3%) and Director summary totals have not changed therefore those who have bought the latest shares are a minority shareholder(s), who is/are not Directors, with a holding(s) less than 3% of the total. 3% of the issued shares now represents 12,969859 shares.

  187. Westcoaster 22nd February 2022 At 20:35
    ‘.. therefore those who have bought the latest shares are a minority shareholder(s), who is/are not Directors, with a holding(s) less than 3% of the total.”
    %%%%%%%%%
    I wonder which minority shareholders (or, perhaps, persons who were not already shareholders?] were quietly approached and invited to buy? Family members of existing directors, perhaps? The odd public official maybe, or newspaper editor/journalist, or propagandist of the Big Lie?

  188. Albertz, thanks for your usual positive outlook on all things Rangers/TRFC – your post of 22/2 @ 15.36 reads to me like ‘How dare anyone suggest that they needed new money, it’s just an old loan now being converted’. You always make these statements as if you’re well-informed, are you?

    IMO Westcoaster’s update that the quoted holdings haven’t changed suggests the new shares are indeed new money – and, presumably, much needed new money – given that if it was an old loan being converted, that would more likely be from one of the more established, higher-shareholding types, thereby increasing their notifiable holding. Do you think?

  189. A wee change of topic …

    ‘Rangers Fans For Change have now called for an end to the song Billy Boys’

    ‘It’s obvious to most that ‘Billy Boys’ has no place in any stadium and no defined link to Rangers Football Club’

    When I read the above extracts from the group’s ‘mission statement’, I initially thought , admittedly somewhat cynically, that it must be the 1st April – but no, it seems pretty genuine. Then they go and score a credibility own goal by declaring that …

    ‘Rangers is an institution of 150 years and counting’ (roughly translated as ‘Let’s airbrush the L word).

    The statement could be tokenism but, at face value, RFFC seems sincere in this aim (I’ve no idea what else they hope to change), but I can’t help thinking that they will be on a collision course with a ‘substantial minority’ of the more ‘entrenched’ elements at Ibrox.

    In short – I can’t see it succeeding (though TRFC could help by not playing the tune!).

  190. During a recent unforeseen few days in hospital I took the opportunity to read a book I had been given at Christmas called ‘The Ghosts of Cathkin Park’, which detailed the inside story of Third Lanark’s demise. It was a compelling read, and both sad and angering in equal measure how a reasonably well managed football club so easily fell into the wrong hands and was run into the ground, seemingly due to one man’s personal greed. I would thoroughly recommend it to anyone with an interest in Scottish football.

  192. Nawlite

    Thanks for that sobering info. Ah’ve been scammed – woe is me!

    In hindsight (ah that perfect science!), I probably should have gone with my first instincts!

  193. In other news RIFC seems to have dropped off the JP Jenkins share trading platform. I have no idea how the Jenkins business model works but it most likely is a periodic fee or commission basis.

    On the fee front it would suggest RIFC aren’t paying for the service anymore and may have defaulted.

    On the commission front it would suggest Jenkins can’t see any profitability. Last time I looked the last transactions were approaching 11 months ago and the shares have been so diluted since that the 19p value is out of touch with reality. Nobody is going to trade at that level even if the board can con(vince) diehard loanees to convert loans to new shares at 20-25p per new share.

    Of course there could be another plausible explanation for no more trading of existing shares.

  194. interesting, Tykebhoy. Perhaps someone more in the know might let us all know if they have indeed ‘dropped off’ and if so, what the reason is and what that might mean for TRFC. Albertz will be on before that to let us know they are in fact still on and merely choosing to hide their dealings because there are huge investments in the offing!!

  195. Upthehoops 23rd February 2022 At 16:58
    “..I had been given at Christmas called ‘The Ghosts of Cathkin Park’”
    %%%%%%%%
    Ach, Uth, I’m not that long back from a wee swally in Glasgow with two other auld men reminiscing about football as we experienced it in the late 1940s early 1950s.
    A time when I as a wee boy was allowed with my pal Tommy Thompson to sit in the open-backed wee Val de Travers lorry, driven by my pal’s dad , on our way to Cathkin Park.
    How powerful those memories are.

  197. SB – from the web – “From The nominal value, or book value, of a share, is usually assigned when the stock is issued. It’s the stated value of the security, as opposed to the market value of the security. The market value of a security reflects what the market is willing to pay for it.”

    In my experience nominal values are deliberately assigned to be a low value to attempt to avoid a scenario where the market value is below the nominal value. A penny is often used. Whatever value is used it is entirely arbitrary and has no link to market value.

  198. TB 23rd February – “RIFC seems to have dropped off the JP Jenkins share trading platform.”

    As of this morning – no change on the Rangers website.

    https://www.rangers.co.uk/investor-information

    “The Company’s ordinary shares of 1 pence each are admitted to trading on JP Jenkins’ matched bargain platform. JP Jenkins is the largest European platform exchange for unlisted securities and traces its roots back to the USM segment of the London Stock Exchange. “

  199. JP Jenkins made a statement that RIFC were no longer being traded on their platform but it didn’t state who made the decision . Shares are still being traded on Tifosy but I believe that is only for shares that were purchased through the Tifosy share issue . Some of these canny investors are asking for up to £10 per share but unsurprisingly there are no takers for them. As for nominal values a 1oz gold britannia coin has a nominal value of £100 but a true value of over £1500 , it is given a nominal value so it qualifies as legal tender . The real concern over at Ibrox may not be can they afford a demand from Ashley but with rising power bills can they afford to switch on the floodlights .

  200. Given that Ashley may be due a large cash sum before the new season gets underway. Will the club from ibrox suffer an administration event if they can’t pay? Will they find the money to pay if any bill lands on the door step? How many would stick around for a club starting the season on -25 points

  201. Delighted to see that Tavenier can score a goal without going to the penalty spot. This should now unleash a round of stories about him being sought by major clubs across Europe and a financial bonanza awaiting the powers that be at Ibrox. Having two penalties awarded in this competition should fan the flames for VAR and the conspiracy on referees assisting Celtic. Funny there was many complaints a few years back when they were awarded 4 (four) in one game. Possibly another world record.

  202. Cluster One 24th February 2022 At 12:41
    EDIT
    “How many would stick around for a club starting the season on -25 points”
    ————————————————————-
    It is now an initial fifteen point deduction Cluster. It has been more than five years since the last insolvency event concerning a member club playing at Ibrox and as we know, that was not the same one as currently being discussed in any case. Extract below from current SPFL rules listed at https://spfl.co.uk/pages/rules-and-regulations. Whatever the purse situation is the team last night managed a result that such be recognised and commended. Not easy to defeat a team of Dortmund quality.

    E3
    Where a Club takes, suffers or is subject to a Deductible Insolvency Event during a Close Season the 15 points deduction shall be applied in the immediately following Season, such that the relevant Club shall commence that immediately following Season in the relevant Division on minus 15 points, with the 5 points deduction being applied in the Season next following the immediately following Season, such that the relevant Club shall commence that next following Season in the relevant Division on minus 5 points.
    E4
    Where a Club, whether owned and operated by the same or a different person and whether such person or persons is or was a Member, has taken, suffered or been subject to an Insolvency Event which resulted in a deduction of points in terms of these Rules, whether a Deductible Insolvency Event or not, or in terms of the SFL Rules and within 5 years of the date of such Insolvency Event which resulted in a deduction of points takes, suffers or is subject to a Deductible Insolvency Event the 15 and 5 points deductions applicable in terms of Rules E2 or E3, in respect of such a Deductible Insolvency Event shall instead be 25 and 15 points respectively

  204. John Clark 23rd February 2022 At 23:05

    Ach, Uth, I’m not that long back from a wee swally in Glasgow with two other auld men reminiscing about football as we experienced it in the late 1940s early 1950s.
    A time when I as a wee boy was allowed with my pal Tommy Thompson to sit in the open-backed wee Val de Travers lorry, driven by my pal’s dad , on our way to Cathkin Park.
    How powerful those memories are.

    +++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    That’s a wee bit before my time John, but having read the book, and having visited Cathkin Park itself about three years ago, I find it very sad I never attended a game there. I stood on the terracing for a while trying to imagine. I doubt there are any other former grounds of that size in the UK where so much of it is still intact.

  206. Fair play to TRFC last night and all good for the Scottish coefficient. Imagine a scenario whereby TRFC win the Europa thus gaining automatic entry to the Champions League. Celtic winning the SPL with automatic CL qualification and the (likely) 3rd placed team getting into CL qualifying…and CL TV revenues split 3 ways… I remain an advocate of socialising European monies but that scenario had never crossed my mind!!!
    And maybe with Gazprom income curtailed the money pot might be a tad reduced. What could be the implications?

  207. I find the amount of stats generated in regards to football interesting although somewhat over the top at times. You’ll have a team completing 700 passes in a game but how many are difficult and how many are just the tippy tappy back and forth over a couple of yards. Another is the distance travelled, how much is actual running, some jogging or just walking. What stat I would like to see is how much Aaron Ramsay has earned per minute of playing time for Rangers. That could make for interesting reading.

  208. I will say this:
    there is an infinity of difference between the effects and consequences of the lying words of a national Government and the lying words of a sports governance body in a small nation.

    What they do have in common is untruth.

    In my opinion, Scottish football governance is , in its own wee, petty way as far removed from truth and honesty as yer Putins of this world.
    The fact that their untruths do not have the murderous consequences of Putin’s lies does not excuse their lies.

  209. IF GVB is soset on having VAR implemented in Scotland, perhaps he could have a word with the Ibrox board and have a share issue put forward to such an end. Ibrox/TFRC could then donate the funds to the Scottish football suits and have the VAR in place for the league run in. Celtic may also look at throwing money at the project. If this isn’t possible, have GVB stop the moaning about the lack of VAR and get on with the game. Mistakes will be made as those involved in making those decisions are only human and they only have a split second to make the calls. Maybe GVB would be better suited to be an official than a manager as he seems to have difficulty sorting out the second half of recent league games. Also the DR trumpeting the fact that Dortmund has amassed a squad worth some where near 200 million. If you were to take the alleged value of the Rangers team, with numbers of 20 — 25 million for a number of players that gap would narrow sharpish. The only problem with these alleged values nobody has stepped up with offers to match.

  210. Vernallen 27th February 2022 At 22:53
    You don’t seem to understand . There was a referee’s assistant working at Ibrox today , who didn’t give the decisions required , and who also sported an Irish-sounding name .That’s why VAR is necessary .

  211. Paddy Malarkey 28th February 2022– 01:30
    How negligent of me. I forgot how much impact that someone with an Irish sounding name can be induced into missing calls. Perhaps if the constant moaning was to be wound back some of those 50/50 calls might go their way. Is it possible that the first chapter of the Rangers’ manager handbook is titled “blame the Refs”. There was an interesting post on another site yesterday indicating where the teams are point wise since GVB took over ( only including the games played since then) and it reveals a sizeable gap. Could this be an underlying cause for the constant cry for VAR.

  212. I haven’t seen anywhere else the substance of the story in the ‘ Mirror ‘ which I have just come across, on this link

    https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/companies-house-failed-probe-bosses-26277263

    I wonder would the Mirror be interested in looking at what I think is a far more important question: how thoroughly does the FCA/Nomad vet the Prospectus issued by any new would-be public company in its IPO?

    Ach, my hopes are dashed, and silly me!
    It’s owned by the same putins as own the DR!

    The ‘Mirror’ must therefore be presumed to be staffed by pseudo-journalists who are prepared to peddle untruths for the sake of a dishonest buck rather than report the truth.
    Not a hope in hell of it investigating the integrity of the authorisation by the FCA of the prospectus of RIFC plc!

  214. How long does it take for an international footballer to get into game shape. I see where Aaron Ramsay is not in the line up or on the bench again tomorrow. Based on the 94 minutes of game time actually played since his well trumpeted arrival in January, and, based on the reported loan figure involved, 2.5 million, he has cost Rangers just over 26,000 per minute, and, that doesn’t include any salary they maybe on the hook for. And, people wonder why there financials are so dismal. The other loanee from Man U hasn’t made much of an impact either.

  215. Paddy Malarkey 1st March 2022 At 15:21:
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-60570893

    I’m sure it does PM but there are many more clubs who will be now open to the same type of litigation. It is a subject that seems to ‘arm’ some people without actually thinking through the consequences of their faux advocacy. Personally I hope that every single sufferer of abuse gets their day in court and all football clubs should be willing to accept a lack of care and diligence did indeed exist for many years. When looking at the number of pro players who graduated from boys clubs then it is hard to distance the benefits from the responsibility. This whole process is dragging Scottish football and ,just now, Celtic through a dark period of reflection. Hopefully most fans and supporters are mature enough to recognise mistakes were made and need to be accommodated.

  219. Paddy Malarkey 2nd March 2022 At 18:46
    %%%%%%%%%

    The link given in your post tells us that ‘..the FCA have now dropped the charges, after it emerged Whyte hadn’t been contacted by his previous lawyers about the statutory notice to hand over the passwords.’
    Honest to God!
    Shoddy bloody work about which I think hard questions ought to be asked.

  220. PM

    So… no accountability for said Philadelphia Lawyers????

    It stinks tae high heaven this diz, and the whole shambles reminds cynical old me of (part of?) a line from a Tom Leonard poem:-

    ‘Another wan up fur the ludge’

    I wonder why.

  222. David Grier’s actions continue:

    From the Rolls of Court:
    LORD TYRE – TBC, Clerk
    Thursday 10th March
    Starred Motions
    between 9.00am and 10.30am

    CA86/19 David Grier v The Chief Constable of Police Scotland

    CA72/20 David Grier v The Lord Advocate &c Kennedys Scotland SGLD Ledingham Chalmers LLP

  224. Only 9 x SPL Premiership fixtures remain and it would appear panic stations setting in as the SFA look to their “trusted” MIB.

    Brothers Walsh and Madden handed key roles in the Livi v Celtic game while “safe pair of hands” Brother Beaton takes charge at Ibrox to ensure a smooth passage to 3 points for the home team.

    I await a weekend of “honest mistake” overload….

  225. Alistair Grant is , I believe, Political Editor of ‘The Scotsman’ and, presumably, an intellectual cut above your average sports hack.
    How then, one wonders, can he come out with the assertion that
    ” Few things get journalists more exercised than a secrecy row” [ [see page 2 of today’s issue of ‘The Scotsman’]
    when he must KNOW that neither he nor any of the sports hacks on ”The Scotsman” was or is in the least interested in the secrecy and deceit underlying the ‘5-Way Agreement”, never mind being ‘exercised’ about that distortion of Truth?

    Further, what trust can we put in ANYTHING he may have to say as a political analyst of weighty, serious matters of great consequence when , for reasons best known to itself, ‘The Scotsman’ had and has nothing to say about the relatively trivial matter of the cheap, disgusting and shameful betrayal of Scottish Football ( a mere sport!] by its weak, cowardly ‘governance’ bodies?
    Truth is indivisible:
    And Scottish Football as a Sport is badly distorted by the pretence that TRFC is RFC of 1872, and the genuine sporting efforts and achievements of honest clubs run by honest men and governance bodies are debased by the nonsense that a 10 year old club can claim honours for which it did not exist even to compete for let alone win!

  226. Paradisebhoy 4th March 2022 At 09:37
    re the Australian ‘friendly’:
    %%%
    I think I must write to Stewart Ayres, the Minister for Tourism and umpteen other things in the New South Wales government about his statement about the ‘ Sydney tournament’ and the way he has bought into the ‘Big Lie’, rabbiting on about the ‘Old firm’ .
    Either he was a supporter of Rangers of 1872 ( and is very Putinesque in respect of Truth] or he’s an asshole of an eejit politician.
    I have tried to email.
    His constituency email address refers me to his Ministerial address: and on that, you have to specify which Australian state you live in, and it seems, blocks you if you are not in Australia. [ But that might just be my incompetence and lack of patience]
    Snail mail to Australia takes an age! But I’ll write to him anyway.
    And give him the basic facts:
    that TRFC is not 150 years old,
    that there is no ‘old firm’ history with it,
    that Putin himself could not have any less regard for truth than our football governance bodies
    that the Scottish ‘Press’ peddles the Big Lie as willingly and knowingly as the Russian press peddles Putin’s pernicious lies
    that , sadly, the Celtic board have shamefully shown themselves to be ready to be the other cheek of a grafted-on ten year old transplant of a cheek!
    Oh, that it should come to this!

  227. Why didn’t the media pose a question to GVB today in regards to VAR. He is quite ready to hark on the virtues of VAR when calls apparently don’t suit him. Reports today indicate the winning goal may have been called back if VAR was available. Strange the silence that emulates from Ibrox when things fall in their favor. It’s easy to understand how Ibrox got themselves in the financial situation they are in if they believe that from 2012 to 2022 represents 150 years. What sham to put on a show celebrating a non existent anniversary.

  228. My post of 4th March 2022 At 23:37 refers
    I found an idle hour in which to try to find how to email the Minister for Tourism etc etc in New South Wales about the proposed Sydney Soccer Tournament. I found what I hope is his constituency address, in Penrith a suburb of Sydney.
    I fired this off to
    To:
    penrith@parliament.nsw.gov.au

    Sat, 5 Mar at 23:05

    Dear Constituency Secretary,

    For Minister Ayre’s information:
    The proposed Sydney Soccer Tournament about which Mr Ayres recently waxed eloquent will NOT feature the historic Glasgow Rangers, because that club ceased to exist in 2012.

    The present Rangers Football Club started life only in 2012 and therefore cannot legitimately claim to be 150 years old or to be the other cheek of the backside that historically constituted the ‘Old Firm’.

    A check with Companies House, London, will show that on 14 February 2012 Rangers Football Club plc , company number SC004276, entered Administration with huge debts outstanding.
    It shows further that the club changed its name to RFC 2012 plc on 31 July 2012, while still in Administration.

    The Administrators signally failed to find a buyer or to achieve a Creditors Voluntary Arrangement. They sold off the bulk of the remaining assets to a new company set up 29 May 2012 by one Charles Green- SevcoScotland, company number SC 425159, which changed its name on 31 July 2012 to ‘The Rangers Football Club Limited’.

    On 31 October 2012 the Court ordered that company number SC 004276 in Administration should be wound up, the Administrators to pass control of its affairs to the appointed Liquidators.

    On suffering this final Insolvency event, Rangers Football Club plc that had been founded in 1872 had to surrender its share in the then Scottish Premier League(‘SPL’). In consequence, it lost its entitlement to membership of the Scottish Football Association, and thereby ceased to exist as a professional football club participating in Scottish football.

    It is absolutely the case that the Rangers of 1872 was NOT brought out of Administration as a going concern, merely suffering another change in ownership, with all debts paid etc.

    The new ‘The Rangers Football Club’ ( company number SC 425159) had to apply for a share in a recognised League. It applied to the SPL. That application was categorically refused.
    It then applied for a share in the then Scottish Football League (‘SFL’). This was eventually granted this and it was accepted, as a new club, into the lowest division in that league.

    The old club ( company number SC 004276, RFC 2012 plc, formerly Rangers Football Club plc) is still in Liquidation, awaiting the finalisation of that process, at which stage it will be dissolved.

    It is a monstrous deceit, therefore, on the part of the new club to claim the record of sporting success that was held by the now dead club as belonging to the new club , when it did not exist even to compete over the 140 years when those successes were achieved.

    It is even more disgraceful that the SFA countenanced and permits such a lie in a matter of Sport!

    And I have to say to Mr Ayres that, by referring to the ‘Old Firm’ and to today’s ‘Rangers’ as being 150 years old, he is aligning himself with men as guilty of abuse of office and of the re-writing of history ( in a matter of Sport, for heaven’s sake!) as a certain Mr Putin is in much more grave and serious matters.

    I do not imagine that Mr Ayres has any more moral courage than the board of the SFA or of the Scottish Press, or any interest in proving me wrong.
    However, in fairness, I have to let him know that I will be posting this email tonight on a popular football blog here in Scotland; and, of course I would post any reply he might choose to make.

    Yours sincerely,
    John Clark
    Edinburgh,
    Scotland ‘

    Clearly, I send the email not in expectation that Truth , or the seeking of truth, is any more his bag than it is of any politico when acknowledging truth might be costly in votes or whatever. Just so that he knows the facts, as do the SMSM and the SFA.

  229. I saw the Livi manager’s interview after today’s game where he mentioned the ‘controversial’ corner decision that led to Celtic’s first goal. He claimed that both the linesman and the 4th official told him they told the referee at the time that it was a goal kick. Is that likely, that an official when challenged would grass the referee up like that? I feel the referee should have the final say on decisions anyway, but surely a colleague wouldn’t pile all the potential blame onto the referee like that?

  230. @Nawlite – I also found the comment odd, in particular with regard to the fourth official – who given his role would have been about 60 yards away with a not very clear view. The assistant referee is there to (in the words of the FA manual for refereeing) “assist not insist”. Clearly the wrong decision was made but not one that VAR would ordinarily get involved in methinks.
    I suspect that both officials were giving a view after seeing the incident on replay after the match that the wrong decision was made – I am sure the referee if asked would put his hand up and accept he got it wrong.
    But of course referees are not accountable to the public as they refuse to explain their decisions. My personal view is that this is an “own goal” from the refs as their silence let’s the pundits take centre stage with their dated interpretations of the rules. The phrase “that’s not a foul in my book” really gets my goat. It might not be a foul in the book of said ex pro who played when football was more thuggish, but it invariably is a foul is this day and age in the one book that matters – the Laws of the Game!

  231. Nawlite 6th March 2022 At 21:30
    ‘..surely a colleague wouldn’t pile all the potential blame onto the referee like that?’
    %%%%%%%%
    And surely, if either or both of the officials in question did in fact tell the manager that the referee got it wrong, they would be in breach of the disciplinary code?
    Presumably the linesman flagged for a goal kick, so HE should and would know that he had no need to explain himself in any way, post-match.
    And what business was it of the 4th Official, whose functions, as I understand things, do not relate to the on-field action [other than keeping the ref right about who was booked and such like] who ought to know NOT to discuss his personal view of the referee’s decisions.
    If they were unwise enough to speak ‘confidentially’ then they will have learned a lesson- not to!
    I think we need to hear something more about this, because never in all my puff have I heard of linesmen/fourth officials undermining the authority of the referee in such a way.
    Shurely shome mishtake!

  232. If the Livingstone manager’s comments on the officials are correct it places the SPFL in a difficult position. If you recall there was a similar situation in the NHL last year where a comment by a referee was picked up on a microphone about a call he made. He was fired the next day. Surely the SFPL and the SFA will have a long hard look at these allegations as it reflects poorly on the game, and, there has been more than enough moaning about the standard of officiating this year.

  233. My post of 5 March 23.28 refers.
    As I half-expected, the email address to which I sent my message to Minister Ayres in New South Wales was not the appropriate one.
    Nevertheless, I got this courteous reply:
    ” Dear Mr Clark
    You have forwarded your email to the Minister’s Penrith electorate office which deals with local constituent matters only and does not handle the Minister’s portfolio’s.
    The Ministerial office is a totally separate office and I forward your email onto the Ministerial office for their attention.
    Kind regards
    Rhonda
    Penrith Electorate Office of Stuart Ayres MP ”
    We’ll see if Mr Ayres’ staff will respond in substance. Odds, anyone?

  234. It’s well seen that we’re coming to the tickly bit of the season , given the differing coverage of the two cheeks on Sportscene .The host and panellists were very vocal about the legitimacy of decisions that they deemed had helped Celtic , but no mention of the fact that the ball clearly struck Aribo’s arm and deflected it off Roofe , who looked offside , for the goal . No mention either of Ferguson of Aberdeen being booked for preventing a quick free kick being taken , only to see Tavernier escape punishment for the same offence only minutes later , despite protestations to the referee PS the host and panellists had all previously played for one of the cheeks .

    • I don’t know what the role of the 4th official is in cases like the corner kick incident at Livi on Sunday, but I am pretty sure that the ref always has the final say. I am aware that officials speak to managers off the record during and after matches. Ordinarily those conversations are kept confidential, although occasionally I’ve heard managers break that accord. However there is no doubt that the ref got that one wrong. Quite how the 4th official is in a place to second guess the ref, I don’t know. I can also see how the linesman could have believed it was a corner (from his foreshortened viewpoint), and at the time, I assumed he had agreed with the ref for that reason.

      Perhaps it is my status as a Celtic supporter but it does seem to me that there is far greater scrutiny (and apportioning of blame on refs) when it is Celtic who benefit from decisions.
      My apologies if that is my own bias slipping through.

      I do think VAR is important and I really hope it is introduced, but I simply don’t trust the current regime to carry it out fairly and squarely. Along with VAR, there needs to be the appointment of of personnel who can carry the trust of all clubs. Otherwise, it will solve the square root of diddly-squat.

  236. @Big Pink – a fairly simple (and cost effective) way of implementing VAR would be to outsource the assessment element to the (English) team at Stockley Park who have a couple of years experience of using VAR. The infrastructure is all in place, the officials know what they are doing and (after a sticky start) have improved no end this season. I am sure that sharing the infrastructure costs would make it a cheaper option (for both parties – not that with the Sky largesse England need to save the pennies). What’s not to like?
    Oh wait I hear the Blazers saying it will threaten our right to compete at the Euros and World Cups (although they never explain how those wholly independent footballing nations San Marino and Andorra get to compete…). They couldn’t be afraid of the bright light of scrutiny on their competence could they?

  237. One thing I haven’t been able to check is how the linesman flagged at the ‘corner’. Haven’t seen a clip that shows whether he pointed for the corner or to the goal kick.

  238. One complaint I’ve seen about VAR is that there seems to be the ability to make the offside lines thicker or thinner, meaning you would be able to influence close decisions .

  239. Paddy Malarkey 7th March 2022 At 21:01
    ‘… the ability to make the offside lines thicker or thinner, meaning you would be able to influence close decisions .’
    %%%%%%%%%%
    Not sure about that, PM.
    Remember, the width of any pitch includes the width of the lines drawn.( That’s why the whole ball has to be over the line for a goal, and before it can be declared out of play for a throw-in.
    The same applies to the VAR line, thick or thin: if a player is in an off-side position some part of him must be further advanced over the Goal-Side-Edge of the line than the furthest advanced bit of the defender’s body.
    The width of the VAR line however thick or thin would always clearly show that
    a) no part of either player’s body was further advanced than the other player’s[ therefore no offside]
    or
    b) that some part of the defender’s body was further advanced than the attacker’s [again, no offside]
    or
    c) that some part of the attacker’s body was more advanced over the line than any part of the defender’s[ therefore offside]
    I think I’m right in that, but, as ever, I am open to correction.

  240. Big Pink 7th March 2022 At 18:25
    EDIT
    “..I do think VAR is important and I really hope it is introduced, but I simply don’t trust the current regime to carry it out fairly and squarely. ”
    ____________________________________________________

    As a trade unionist I have never been one to champion ‘outsourcing’ or Pfi. Seeing it as a way of abrogating responsibility and making it far more difficult for the general public( now referred to commonly as stakeholder ffs) to hold elected officials to account. In this instance however, I will advocate the capitalist approach of supposed value for money. Let the English/Italians/French monitor the game. Personally I don’t believe referees are anything but honestly incompetent ..at times. They are involved at a high level due to their love of the game and VAR will surely cut them some slack. The blazers will indubitably hide behind the refuge of patriotic duty.

  241. With the potential for VAR in the future why not go a step further. Give each team a manager’s challenge on questionable calls. That avenue is in use in most major sports in North America and has proved to be fairly effective. If the call is overturned there is no penalty, but, if the original call is correct that team that challenged, especially in hockey, is assessed a penalty with that team playing a man short for two minutes. It’s easy to kill two minutes in soccer but is the penalty was for a longer period it might rein in the complaints of the manager/referees on the sidelines. Also would it not be interesting to ask the reporters to answer a written quiz on the laws of the game, without benefit of a rule book at their side, to determine their alleged knowledge of the game.

  242. Big Pink 7th March 2022 At 18:25
    ‘..there needs to be the appointment of of personnel who can carry the trust of all clubs. ‘
    %%%%%%%%
    Sadly, we cannot look to the SFA for ‘governance’ that engenders Trust.

    In 2012, the SFA board sacrificed principle and honour and sold their very souls by adopting a policy of ‘appeasement’ (to use a word now being used again in the context of war,] to create the myth that TRFC is in fact Rangers of 1872.

    Rather than insist that TRFC be admitted into Scottish Football only on condition that it could not and would not claim to be RFC of 1872 and that the records would show that it had no sporting history prior to 2012, they sold Scottish Football by cobbling up the ‘5-Way Agreement’ with all kinds of specious nonsense about RFC of 1872’s share in the SPL simply being transferred to a new owner.
    And, most strikingly, they have never yet been able to explain how a club, as Liquidated as Third Lanark and Gretna, can be in existence 12 years after entering Liquidation?
    Doncaster and Regan always ducked the issue with weasel words, and the SMSM happily carry on propagating the lie, and asked and still ask no hard questions. ( they would slot in well in Moscow currently]
    Honest to God.
    And thank God it is only ( at the moment] ‘Sport’ that we are talking about. Because, n my view, if guys can lie about mere sport, what would they not be prepared to lie about to earn a few bob?

  243. Vernallen 7th March 2022 At 22:50
    ‘..would it not be interesting to ask the reporters to answer a written quiz on the laws of the game, without benefit of a rule book at their side, to determine their alleged knowledge of the game.’
    %%%%%%%%%
    It would indeed!
    Heaven knows, I’m no expert myself, but then I am not paid as an expert, and don’t have a privileged platform on BBC TV or BBC Radio Scotland to pose as if I were an expert!
    And I would say that, given that the majority of the SMSM football hacks do not tell the truth about TRFC etc, I would insist on a body search of those competing in such a quiz, to eliminate the possibility of cheating; because, by jingo, they sure as hell would cheat if it suited their barra.
    In my opinion.

  244. With regards to the laws of the game and the pundits I would like to see their fulminations in the following circumstance:
    Team A awarded a free kick due to a foul by team B in team A’s defensive third. Team A defender passes ball back to keeper who is out of position/misses the ball and ball ends up in back of the net. The referee correctly awards a corner to the attacking team. I think the ignorance in the commentary boxes and studios would be overwhelming (especially if a favoured team was considered to have been robbed of a goal!)

  246. John Clark 7th March 2022 At 22:21
    Well seen that you’re one of the good guys ! They can adjudicate on gaps that are mere millimetres , but can expand the lines to centimetres . You can take something that was marginally offside to being inconclusive . Control of the medium !

  247. @Ballyargus – Law 13, you can’t score an own goal directly from a free kick whether direct or indirect (and you can’t score an own goal from your own throw-in either).

  248. In my inbox at 20.49 tonight

    “MEDIA RELEASE
    For further information related to the CAS activity and procedures in general, please contact either Matthieu Reeb, CAS Director General, or Katy Hogg,
    Communications Officer. Palais de Beaulieu, avenue de Bergières 10, 1004 Lausanne, Switzerland. media@tas-cas.org, http://www.tas-cas.org
    FOOTBALL
    THE COURT OF ARBITRATION FOR SPORT (CAS) REGISTERS THE APPEALS
    FILED BY THE FOOTBALL UNION OF RUSSIA AGAINST THE DECISIONS
    TAKEN BY FIFA AND UEFA TO SUSPEND RUSSIAN TEAMS AND CLUBS
    FROM THEIR COMPETITIONS
    Lausanne, 8 March 2022 – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) registered earlier today the appeals
    filed by the Football Union of Russia (FUR) against the decisions taken on 28 February 2022 by the
    Bureau of the FIFA Council (the FIFA appeal) and the UEFA Executive Committee (the UEFA appeal)
    (collectively, the Challenged Decisions) to suspend all Russian teams and clubs from participation in
    their respective competitions until further notice.
    The FIFA appeal has been filed against Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the
    Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the Polish Football Association, the Swedish Football
    Association, the Czech Football Association, the Football Association of Montenegro and the Malta
    Football Association.
    The UEFA appeal has been filed against UEFA, the Hellenic Football Federation, the Belarus Football
    Federation, the Danish Football Association, the Luxembourgish Football Association, the Austrian
    Football Association, the Malta Football Association, the Portuguese Football Federation, the English
    Football Association, the Spanish Football Association, the Irish Football Association and the French
    Football Association.
    In its appeals, the FUR requests CAS to set aside the Challenged Decisions and to reinstate all Russian
    teams and clubs for participation in FIFA and UEFA competitions. Together with each statement of
    appeal, the FUR has also filed a request to stay the execution of each challenged decision.
    The CAS Court Office has initiated two separate arbitration procedures and, in accordance with the Code
    of Sports-related Arbitration (the arbitration rules governing CAS procedures), will seek the position of
    the respondent parties with respect to the FUR’s requests to stay the execution of the Challenged
    Decisions and as to the organization and planning of each arbitration procedure.
    The CAS anticipates being able to share further information on the proceedings through a media release
    in a few days’ time, once a decision has been issued with respect to the requests for a stay.”

    Interesting not to see the SFA involved?

  249. Thanks WC, that’s clear enough, pardon my ignorance.
    JC, maybe it’s because there are no Scottish teams involved in playing against ones from Russia including the nation team. Just a guess without looking into the fixture lists.

    • WC
      Every day is a school day. Didn’t know that free kick/shy/own goal rule.
      John C
      I believe the thickness of the lines in VAR are predetermined at the start of the season. I think the English guys thickened the lines at the start of this season to avoid the millimetre offsides. Given that TV frame rate is 30fps, one frame could involve a distance the length of a school ruler.
      Technology/schmology

  250. Paddy Malarkey 8th March 2022 At 20:51
    ‘…but can expand the lines to centimetres . You can take something that was marginally offside to being inconclusive . Control of the medium !’
    Big Pink 9th March 2022 At 08:27
    ‘.. I think the English guys thickened the lines at the start of this season to avoid the millimetre offsides. ‘
    %%%%%%%%%%%
    Thank you for those observations.
    I suppose if there is an AGREEMENT that fractional ‘off-sides’ don’t count, that’s fair enough- provided always that the same measurement of what constitutes a ‘fractional’ offside is used in every match!
    One would hope that the SFA website will in due course explain in detail how they intend VAR to be operated in Scotland?

  251. There was much speculation on Nathan Patterson’s transfer to Everton with the media wildly guessing at the fee going to Ibrox. I believe someone posted at that time Everton’s financials were due out soon and that could possibly clarify the amount of money involved. Far be it from anyone in the Scottish media to follow up, but, perhaps someone who is a regular on here may have heard of seen something.

  252. Vernallen 11th March 2022 At 19:06
    ‘.. I believe someone posted at that time Everton’s financials were due out soon..’
    %%%%%%%
    yes, Companies House page for Everton show “Next accounts made up to 30 June 2021 are due by 31 March 2022”
    So they have another couple of weeks.
    But since the financial year to be reported on is the year 2020/June 2021 and the transfer was in January2022 (ie. in financial year ending June 2022) there might not be any way to assess from the accounts what the transfer fee was, until we see the accounts for 2021/22?
    I’m no accountant, of course, and may be hopelessly mistaken!

  253. A Court of Session judgment in an Appeal hearing was published today.
    On one level I found it an entertaining read for anyone: I could hardly believe what was reported as having been said and written by the appellant about the people who had brought the initial action against him.
    The case was not at all about a football matter and I was going to post a link to it merely to share the fun of it with readers of SFM.
    But I thought for a minute, and realised that in fact, the judgment touches on the very heart and substance of why I bang on with my repetitive denunciations of the SFA and the Big Lie.
    How so?
    Well, the judgment slaps the face of the Statutory body against whose decision the appellant was appealing.
    Why so?
    Well, the Court of Session concluded that the Standards Commission for Scotland abused its powers by including an element of punishment in its decision, when it does not have the legal power to do so.

    And what did the SFA do by cobbling up the 5-Way Agreement?
    What else but abuse their authority, by ignoring their own Rules , by manufacturing without authority new ones, and by presuming to use powers that they did NOT have to declare that a football club that they themselves had newly admitted into the SFA was the very same club that had, under the SFA’s own rules, ceased to exist as a football club entitled to membership of the SFA!

    Oh, Lord: how I wish I had the financial resources to take the SFA to Court.

    The link to the judgment is
    https://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/docs/default-source/cos-general-docs/pdf-docs-for-opinions/2022csih15.pdf?sfvrsn=56e29906_1

    The case number is
    [2022] CSIH 15
    XA63/21

  254. JC I think you may be confusing public and statutory bodies with private ones.

    Of course the SFA can be subject to judicial review or what ever we call it in Scotland.

    In essence you would be suing a private company. That’s a very narrow path and highly unlikely to succeed.

  255. Dom16 12th March 2022 At 17:25
    ‘…In essence you would be suing a private company..’
    %%%%%%
    Yes, Dom16, I appreciate the difference: but I’d love to be able to have the whole question explored of whether RIFC plc’s ‘prospectus’ [which I think made misleading claims] might have been by nod and wink ‘supported’ by the fact that the ‘football authorities’ were ready to allow a brand new club to claim the sporting history of the still existing entity ( now in liquidation’] that was the football club that created that history!
    If I were ever to win the lottery, I’d be happy to throw few million at the question!

  256. I’ve been fiddling about on the web trying to get to grips with the Chelsea FC situation.
    It seems that the ‘special licence’ has been amended :
    “Under section 4.7 of the licence imposed on the club, Chelsea will be permitted to spend up to £900,000 when hosting games at Stamford Bridge. Previously, that had been set at £500,000.
    A limit of £20,000 to spend on away fixtures, however, remains and that raises serious questions as to whether or not Chelsea will be able to fulfill their Champions League round-of-16 fixture away at Lille later this month…”
    https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/chelsea-fc-uk-goverment-licence-roman-abramovich-sanctions-premier-league-2022-b987681.html

    Now, as you might imagine, my interest in the matter is in the question of what the FA will do if Chelsea goes into Administration and if toss-pot Administrators fail to find a Candy-striped buyer to bring them out of Administration, but instead sell off the assets dirt cheap.. and liquidate the club
    Would the FA behave as the SFA did?
    Allow the purchaser of the ‘ assets’ [who did not pay all the debts] to claim to be the owner of the historic Chelsea FC?
    I hold my breath!

  257. Followed the Ranger game today on the DR’s update to reports. I cam across one item that seemed to show the bias of the DR. It involved the half time subs due to tactical reasons. That should have been more than ample for those following but the reporter had to add no injuries involved, thankfully. It should have been enough to clarify injuries weren’t the cause of subs, but to add the word “thankfully” was a little over the top.

  258. Vernallen 13th March 2022 At 21:42
    Same omerta wrt racist and sectarian chanting as other msm sites ? Acceptance of it is normalising it . It’s not even commented on , let alone raise an apology for transmitting it .

  259. Vernallen 13th 21.42

    With a potential last eight place in the Europa League at stake for a Scottish club then perhaps the comment is understandable.

  261. Paddy Malarkey 13th March 2022 At 22:30
    ‘..Big black mark on my tongue..’
    %%%%%%%%%
    There are bigger, more culpable black marks on the tongues of Pattullo and his counterparts in the SMSM who refuse to call the the Big Lie for what it is: the big LIE, cobbled up as blatantly and as nonsensically as any lie that the hound of hell in Russia has cobbled up so far.
    By geez, what those heroic reporters of the Ukrainian war must think of ‘journalists’ of the kind WE have in the SMSM who are afraid to say ‘boo’ to a lying football club and a lying football governance body!

  262. Based on last night’s performance, televised live to a global audience (ok, a small “g” for global), it’s not only the pundits that don’t have an up to date version of the laws of the game. Everyone makes mistakes and things can be missed, offside calls can be marginal either way and sliding tackles can be viewed as yellow or red depending also on fine margins. But not applying the handball rule as it is written in the Laws of the Game and making a rule up is another level. Fortunately for Mr Beaton his error didn’t affect the result as they say (although if Celtic had been 2 up at the break Utd may have thrown caution to the wind, so who knows). However regardless of consequence such an error must have ramifications on the referee? At the very least he should be called to account and asked why he was not applying the Laws of the Game. I won’t hold my breath…

  263. How pitifully cowardly must our SMSM football hacks and editors feel, who are either afraid to state the simple truth that TRFC is NOT RFC of 1872, or (perhaps worse] are willing propagandists for the biggest sporting lie in Scottish football’s history. Lying in a matter of Sport?
    What shame those who claim to be journalists must feel in their souls when they compare themselves with people like Marina Ovsyannikova who face imprisonment or worse for speaking the truth not to a mere provincial ‘ sports governance body’ or to the board of directors of a ten- year-old football club, but to a tyrannous government that will imprison them for years, if not quietly ‘disappear’ them.

  264. John Clark 15th March 2022 At 13:57
    I think they will continue to confuse the two clubs until the original entity is finally liquidated . While still in limbo , it can have its 150th birthday , and it was nice of the new club to host a party for them at the ground they used to play .

  265. In my inbox at 19.49 this evening:

    “Lausanne, 15 March 2022 – The President of the Appeals Arbitration Division of the Court of Arbitration
    for Sport (CAS) has denied the request filed by the Football Union of Russia (FUR) to stay, for the
    duration of the CAS proceedings, the execution of the UEFA Executive Committee’s decision to suspend
    all Russian teams and clubs from its competitions until further notice (the Challenged Decision).
    Consequently, the Challenged Decision remains in force and all Russian teams and clubs continue to be
    suspended from participation in UEFA competitions.
    The CAS arbitration proceedings continue. The parties did not agree to an expedited procedure and a
    hearing has not yet been fixed.
    In the arbitration proceedings brought by the FUR against the FIFA Council’s decisions:
    1) to suspend all Russian teams and clubs from participation in its competitions until further notice, and
    2) to give a “bye” to the team of Poland to the final of “Path B” of the European play-offs for the 2022
    FIFA World Cup, due to take place on 29 March 2022,
    the CAS decisions on the FUR’s requests to stay the execution of the FIFA decisions for the duration of
    the CAS proceedings are likely to be issued at the end of this week “

  266. Paddy Malarkey 15th March 2022 At 18:13
    ‘..While still in limbo , it can have its 150th birthday , and it was nice of the new club to host a party for them at the ground they used to play .’
    %%%%%%%%%
    Heh, heh, PM: that’s an interesting and entertaining take on the matter.
    And, technically, until RFC of 1872 is dissolved it has indeed been hanging around around like a bad smell in ‘legal’ existence since 2012: but not, of course, in any kind of football -playing capacity, having had to surrender its share in the SPL and losing thereby its membership of the SFA.

  267. ‘The Scotsman’s second leader today is a light-hearted piece about the ‘new’ job ,presumably to be known as FRO (Football Replay Operator) , working in the ‘VOR'( video operations room) of a football stadium.
    Apparently, this job will attract a starting salary of £22,280. So far, so innocent,
    However, it will attract a bonus of up to 10%.
    The Scotsman does not go so far as to indicate on what basis a bonus will be earned.
    Will it be the normal – based on ‘results’?

  268. What price real, honest, investigative journalism?
    From my inbox this morning:

    “As companies around the world distance themselves from doing business in Russia, the ‘professional enablers’ who have served powerful entities tied to the Kremlin are facing pressure to do the same.

    Today, American legal giant Baker McKenzie told ICIJ it’s leaving Russia and dropping Russian clients in response to sweeping new sanctions aimed at weakening the country’s war against Ukraine.

    Baker McKenzie was the focus of a major Pandora Papers exposé — which found that the prestigious international law firm had represented at least six sanctioned companies controlled by the Russian government.

    New global sanctions and overwhelming solidarity against the invasion have been “a public relations nightmare for big Western law firms that have acted as gatekeepers\facilitators for big Russian money,” says AML RightSource adviser Timothy White.

    ICIJ’s investigation on how Baker McKenzie served Vladimir Putin’s business interests around the globe was the latest chapter in our years of reporting on the powerful entities and enablers key to supporting the Russian president.

    Reporter Sydney Freedberg and ICIJ media partners discovered that Baker McKenzie had found lucrative work over the years with Russia’s largest state-controlled companies, winning a dozen contracts with sanctioned firms, including a military weapons maker, banks and an energy giant.

    You can find this story and ongoing reporting on the hidden wealth of Russian elites in ICIJ’s newly launched Russia Archive.”

  269. John Clark 16th March 2022 At 11:53

    ‘The Scotsman’s second leader today is a light-hearted piece about the ‘new’ job ,presumably to be known as FRO (Football Replay Operator) , working in the ‘VOR'( video operations room) of a football stadium.
    Apparently, this job will attract a starting salary of £22,280. So far, so innocent,
    However, it will attract a bonus of up to 10%.
    The Scotsman does not go so far as to indicate on what basis a bonus will be earned.
    Will it be the normal – based on ‘results’?

    ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    Although the post will not be the ‘decision maker’ in terms of VAR, it is a pretty poor salary given what a VAR decision could cost a club in terms of finance, although I’m not sure how many hours per week the salary is for.

  270. Upthehoops 16th March 2022 At 15:28
    ‘ ,, it is a pretty poor salary given what a VAR decision could cost a club in terms of finance, ‘
    %%%%%%%
    Aye. I haven’t seen anything much about the whole business of operating VAR and the set-up,
    I assume the techies will be employees of the company engaged to provide the camera work and such.
    But will it be the match referee who, looking at a pitchside monitor, alone will interpret what the video seems to say, or will it be a separate referee ( or two or three!) sitting in the operations room who will give the football ruling on what decision is to be awarded?
    Has anything been handily published for the information of supporters?

  271. John Clark 16th March 2022 At 15:59

    Has anything been handily published for the information of supporters?

    +++++++++++++++++++++++++

    I saw a video feature on the BBC website with none other than John Beaton explaining the process. I think what supporters need more than anything is a clear explanation of exactly what will and what will not be subject to VAR review, because our game is already plagued by Refereeing inconsistency.

  272. Upthehoops 16th March 2022 At 21:39
    ‘..what supporters need more than anything is a clear explanation of exactly what will and what will not be subject to VAR review.’
    %%%%%%%
    Well, that is the question.
    Foul tackles, shirt-pulling and shoving at corner kicks, elbows into the eye-socket in midfield headers…?

    When it comes to integrity in sport and sports governance, and attempts to ensure that we as punters who fund the feckin game get Truth in sporting competition we can hardly rely on what a lying SFA might introduce!
    God almighty, the SFA lie.
    Can we trust anything they introduce?
    Not in my opinion, because they sold their very soul in a base act of betrayal of truth and sporting principle by the stupid , stupid nonsense of ‘continuity’ RFC of 1872.
    There is no Zelensky in Scottish football governance.

  273. Braga v TRFC . Could be a wee bit of a culture clash . From Wiki
    Braga’s emblem is the city of Braga’s shield with Mother Mary and baby Jesus with the blue from the city’s shield changed to red. On the top of the emblem is the golden Mural Crown of Braga, with the name “Sporting Clube de Braga” on it. Many Braga fans have said that Mother Mary gives them luck.

  274. Interesting to note this in the ‘Scottish Sun’ today (online update at 9.28 a.m.]
    “TICKETS for the controversial Sydney Super Cup Old Firm clash went on sale at 3am last night – as a report claimed Rangers could be pondering an 11th hour withdrawal from the event.”
    I hope TRFC do pull out so that the whole feckin lying nonsense of them being continuity Rangers will not get an airing and no one makes money out the pretence that they are!
    And bloody Celtic need their arse kicked for having been ready to sign up to the very idea of TRFC taking part!

  275. It’s difficult to understand how the DR keeps referring to the Rangers reaching the final 8 for the first time since 2008. Once could be understood as a simple mistake as their reporters have a colored version of history. To repeat the same assertion a second time in really a show incompetence. And one other point why is it that Kris Boyd only seems to comment when Rangers win and hardly a peep when they lose. Is there an update on the potential injury to Morelos last night.

  276. Passing through St Enoch’s Square the other day I noticed The Rangers shop had closed down. A small notice in the window confirmed its closure. Has anyone any information?

  279. Ballyargus 18th March 22.25.

    Shop was operated by Elite/Hummel.

    No Castore merchandise and not endorsed by the club. Litigation is ongoing.

    Official Rangers shop in the city centre is at the top of Buchanan Street.

  280. I’ve just been reading the nonsense about TRFC being RFC of 1872 at this link

    https://sydneysupercup.com.au/#about

    It irritated me.
    I therefore visited the website of ABC Australia ( TV news] and I’ve sent to their ‘Check facts’ email
    address a copy of my recent email to Minister Ayres, suggesting that they might want to check the actual facts about the Liquidation of RFC of 1872 and its cessation of existence as a football club entitled to play etc etc. (and et bloody cetera]
    Surely to God, whatever else about the ABC, it cannot be staffed by hacks such as we have in the BBC, who fed for many years on the succulent lamb of a shamed knight and had a vested interest in propagating the Big Lie?
    In which connection, there has not ever to my knowledge , been any hack prepared to go into print to show the reasons why he argues that a 10 year old creation can possibly be considered as being entitled to claim to be a much older club.
    Perhaps that is only to be expected; because when a QC can tie himself in knots blathering on (to the mild amusement of the Court] about the ‘whatness ‘ of what makes a football club: the fans! the history! the what-it’s-all-about-ness!, I imagine that the kind of SMSM hacks we have would make even bigger ars.s of themselves!

  281. Albertz11 19th March 2022 At 07:29
    ‘..Shop was operated by Elite/Hummel. No Castore merchandise and not endorsed by the club. Litigation is ongoing.’
    %%%%%%%%%%
    When you say ‘ litigation is ongoing’ , Albertz11, are you able to give details of when an actual Court action was raised, and if any actual hearing in that action has already taken place in ( I suppose] the English Commercial Court ?
    Or are parties still simply discussing/negotiating to try to avoid the expense of Court action?
    From the outside, it looks to me that all three parties were actually at the madam, or at least very, very casual in their approach to checking the legitimacy of what they signed up to.
    I would imagine that none of the parties wants to risk having to pay legal expenses, if they were to lose on the merits. Better to cut a deal.

  283. John Clark 19th March 2022 At 22:41

    I’ve just been reading the nonsense about TRFC being RFC of 1872 at this link

    https://sydneysupercup.com.au/#about

    That url link https://sydneysupercup.com.au/# about this tournament and the printed contents within are the biggest load of shite i have read for a long while. 55 is a lie for obvious reasons. same team as old is a lie for obvious reasons , demoted is another lie as the club never existed after liquidation to be demoted unless it achieved a CVA.
    If this was world war 2 and German propaganda you could understand the reason for the lies and the need for morale; but it’s not it’s peactime and this is simply football and the death of an incorporated football club, They died end of and the evidence is easily obtainable for anyone interested.

  284. “Rangers set for controversial post-split Premiership benefit …The Scottish Premiership split looks set to hand Rangers a controversial boost and Celtic given the opposite … (George Overhill – Ibrox News).

    IMHO -Naw it’s no!

    This inane drivel is nothing short of a pathetic plea/invitation to the football authorities to ‘pockle’ the fixture list in favour of a 10 year old club which has inherited entitlement DNA from its predecessor.

    Here’s what must happen:-

    Post-split, Celtic should play 3 home games (including one against TRFC) and 2 away games, with TRFC having 2 home games and three away (including one v Celtic). This equates to 19 home and 19 away games for each team. If this does not happen , there will be some ‘stooshie’!

    Admittedly, there may be some imbalance for other clubs, who may feel ‘hard done by’ – but not as argued by Mr Overhill

    Against whom they will play, other than each other and Hearts, is, right now a matter of exciting conjecture – leading, no doubt, to some (wild?) speculation in the next few weeks – so for the record, and with apologies to St Johnstone and Dundee who cannot make the top six, on completion of the first 33 fixtures, Celtic will have played TRFC, Hearts, Hibs, Livi, Motherwell, and Aberdeen twice away, whilst TRFC will have travelled to Dundee United, Ross County, and St Mirren twice.

    Go conject!!

  288. Could Rangers face disciplinary action for the toilet roll/tennis ball farce at Dundee. What happens if this occurs at Ibrox or the Sottish Cup semi final. Should the board be in front of this rather than facing another hit to their pocketbook. Keith Jackson takes a subtle shot at Rangers and the return to their infamous songbook. He doesn’t outright criticize or call for action but does highlight it and its about time someone in the media brought the issue to the forefront.

  289. The other day it was being reported that
    “The governor of the Bank of England has been accused of falling asleep in meetings about a serious pensions mis-selling scandal.
    Andrew Bailey, who was then boss of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), allegedly nodded off in 2019 discussions with advocates for the victims of the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS) debacle. ”

    He certainly , in my opinion, was sleeping on the job at the FCA when his people allowed RIFC plc to issue what to my mind was a wholly misleading Prospectus!
    There’s something not right about the FCA, what with Bailey’s successor Charles Randell having handed in his resignation ( to demit office in June 2022.

  290. I was watching golf and curling on the weekend and marveled at the precision required to make a successful shot. Inches or millimeters can substantially change the flow of the game and outcome. I then went back to the memory bank and the 3 goals chalked off for off-side in Rangers home game recently (EL game). Since the players can’t hear a flag being raised and have minimal chances of seeing it being raised, the question is did the Rangers players play through waiting for a whistle, or, did they pull up anticipating the off=side call. If its the latter case that could be a reckless attitude to develop especially when the majority of off-side calls aren’t that easy to detect. NHL games, played at a much quicker pace, and linesmen are responsible for off-side calls. In order to keep the game flowing the linesmen will holler out to both teams that an off-side has taken place enabling the offending team to tag up and re-group in the on side position, while the defending team also gets to re-group and offer a counter attack. Coaches can challenge what they believe was missed off-side call, if, they aren’t successful the team is assessed a minor penalty.

  291. Vernallen 21st March 2022 At 21:48
    ‘..Since the players can’t hear a flag being raised and have minimal chances of seeing it being raised, the question is did the Rangers players play through waiting for a whistle, or, did they pull up anticipating the off=side call.’
    %%%%%%%%%%
    That made me smile, Vernallen.
    I have maybe lost touch with some of what is happening in football generally, but surely it cannot be the case ( or maybe it can , these days) that the maxim ‘play to the whistle’ has been abandoned?
    Or that players are on ‘their honour’ to declare that they know themselves to be offside?

    Apart from the universally recognised ‘moral’ requirement that an opposition player should put the ball out of play as soon as he realises that a player on the other team might have been badly injured, it would, I think, be too much to expect players to referee themselves.
    And if they did, their manager would have a fit!

  292. My post of 20.16 refers.
    I revisited the site where the story about Andrew Bailey allegedly sleeping on the job was reported
    I noticed that the report asked what readers thought.
    Oh, how I wrestled with temptation! But in the words of the old song ” my resistance was low”
    And I sent a wee email to the FT.
    “john clark
    To:
    FTAletters@ft.com

    Mon, 21 Mar at 22:07

    Dear FT,
    I have just come across Sonia Rach’s ‘ Andrew Bailey’ story.

    I invite you/her? to have a wee look at this post that I’ve put on the football blog sfm.scot/blogs [look for ‘questions, questions, questions’ and scroll to today’s date and a post at 20.16 by John Clark].
    Therein you/she will find what I think!

    If you want anything further, let me know, and I’ll be happy to explain.

    Yours in a spirit of truth ,
    John Clark,
    Edinburgh.”

  295. Interesting commentary on Twitter from Jason Boyd. According to him

    Duff and Phelps have paid BDO the £4.3m awarded by Lord Tyre for failing to consider a fire sale where in his words “the company would have been liquidated, the team disbanded, and Ibrox and Murray Park sold for alternative uses” Neither party is appealing the ruling……….

    In Jason’s world that means Rangers FC Ltd aren’t being liquidated.

    If you want to read more @Jas72Boyd

    Anyone seen anything about this?

  296. Like buses –
    2021/22 UEFA Europa League
    Rangers FC vs. Borussia Dortmund (2:2), 24 February 2022
    Rangers FC
    Incident and decision:
    • Invasions of the field of play, Art. 16(2)(a) DR
     Fine: €5,000

  297. Paddy M, with King back in the picture more visibly, do you think this might be Club1872 agitating on his behalf, or more likely at his instigation? The fact that they specifically mention their aim to buy his shares among the other scattergun issues raises my suspicion. And the fact that the board see fit to respond so quickly and quite vehemently with wording like ‘people who wanted to be on the board’ makes me think they know it’s him as well. I hope it is more infighting that splits the board like the last time King was around.

  298. Nawlite 22nd March 2022 At 14:53
    I think Mr King is looking to get out of Dodge with his saddlebags full at the earliest opportunity and never look back .He isn’t concerned about any collateral damage inflicted on the 12 year old club – remember , he knows where the original club languishes and even spoke about resurrecting it .
    Wrt the disruption of the game at Dens on Sunday , strange that it seems to have affected only one group of players .

  300. Paddy Malarkey 22nd March 2022 At 13:58:

    You can almost taste the staunchness -TRFC statement .

    https://www.rangers.co.uk/Article/club-statement-220322/2h9XppImmXcboZdN8fF4kX

    Paddy Malarkey 22nd March 2022 At 14:05

    Apparently in response to this –
    https://club1872.co.uk/news/club-1872-concerns-over-rangers-executive-management/
    ————————————————————-
    PM ,I thought the staunchy statement was aimed at the coterie known as union bears rather than club1872 . are they one and the same ?

  301. Gunnerb, Judean People’s Front versus People’s Front of Judea. Aaah, it’s been a while since we’ve had the Monty Python discussions relating to ‘Rangers’! Brilliant if we can now have it regarding their supporters groups, too!!!!

  302. Paddy Malarkey 22nd March 2022 At 13:58:

    ‘..You can almost taste the staunchness -TRFC statement .’
    %%%%%%%%%
    ‘Staunchness’? You’re too kind, PM.
    Bone-headed , unintelligent , nasty belligerence from some thicko thug is perhaps a better description!
    Was there ever a board of directors so quick to issue veiled threats
    ” Rest assured, we will address the disruptors and their propaganda war at the end of this season”
    ( Rangers statement at
    https://www.rangers.co.uk/Article/club-statement-220322/2h9XppImmXcboZdN8fF4kX ]
    It reads to my eye like something a mad thug like Putin would write .
    The Club 1872 statement by contrast is very nearly a model of reasoned peaceful and almost conciliatory protest.
    Let’s hope that TRFC dies at the hands of it own Board ,just as RFC of 19872 did in 2012

  303. Just in the passing, let me mention that I’ve had a pleasant time over the last half-hour so , reading over Lord Tyre’s judgment of 6 October 2021 in the BDO v D&P case.

    Now, I appreciate that reading judgments of the Court is not everybody’s bag.

    Nevertheless , I think that besides giving a link to the judgment, it might be helpful if I give a short extract which states the facts on which I base my oft-repeated assertions that TRFC is not and cannot possibly be the Rangers of 1872.
    The extract is the whole of paragraphs 30 and 31, as Lord Tyre wrote them.
    It’s a bit of a nuisance that I can’t on this blog highlight in bold, or in italics , or by underlining, the particularly interesting facts, but can only do that by using capital letters which I don’t like using except sparingly [ note to BP: we used to be have those kinds of editorial/presentation facilities. Could they possibly be restored?]

    Here are the paragraphs.
    “[30] On 29 May the respondents issued their formal proposal for a CVA to the company’s
    creditors. The proposal was that Sevco would make £8,250,000 available for creditors, as a
    loan to the Company, and pay a non-refundable exclusivity fee of £250,000. After the costs of
    the administration, there would be a fund of around £5 million for the creditors, in addition
    to other assets as outlined in the proposal. A meeting of creditors was fixed for 14 June. On
    8 June, HMRC gave notice to the respondents that they would vote against a CVA. As HMRC were by far the Company’s largest creditor, this meant that the CVA proposal could not succeed.
    The business and assets of the company were, accordingly, sold to Sevco for £5,500,000 in terms
    of the 12 May agreement. Sevco Scotland Limited subsequently changed its name to The
    Rangers Football Club Limited.
    [31] After the sale of the business and assets, a number of players declined to transfer to
    Sevco and instead registered with other clubs, in England and elsewhere. Sevco sought to
    argue that it retained the players’ registrations and was entitled to transfer fees. Certain
    clubs made payments to Sevco to avoid litigation, including Southampton (for Steven Davis)
    and Coventry (for John Fleck). No transfer fee for any of the players was payable to the
    company. ON 4 July 2012, THE SPL MEMBER CLUBS VOTED TO REFUSE TO ALLOW RANGERS’ SPL SHARE TO BE TRANSFERRED TO SEVCO. The club was accepted instead into the third division of the
    Scottish Football League for the season 2012-13”
    The learned Judge was savvy enough, perhaps disappointingly so, not to mention that, of course, the non-transfer of the RFC of 1872 share in the SPL meant that RFC of 1872 had automatically lost its membership of the SFA;
    and that the new Sevco/TRFC had to apply AS A BRAND NEW FOOTBALL CLUB only just become a member of the SPL , for membership of the SFA.
    A link to the full judgment is
    https://scotcourts.gov.uk/docs/default-source/cos-general-docs/pdf-docs-for-opinions/2021csoh994db16e7faaf44562b70dd717109201c0.pdf?sfvrsn=b8f1694d_1&msclkid=1e42019aaa2611ecba2c90f6eb39f554

    [2021] CSOH 99 seems to be its court of session outer house number.

    [I have not thus far found it on BAILLII, and I did not find on the ‘Court of Session judgments’ page either. But that’s maybe just me]

    • Been out of commission lately, largely due to a broken leg, and some SFM housekeeping has been put on the back burner, including making the site ad-free, catching up on some podcast action, and updating the news on the recent fundraiser.

      After four weeks laid up, I am now almost pain-free and ready to get mobile again. I will look at John Clark’s request for some formatting improvements, and reconvene an SFM get-together in Glasgow sometime in April.

      The dog, who is responsible for my injuries due to the inhospitable areas where she chooses to do her business (and where owners work poo-bags fear to tread), is in the , er, doghouse. She’s won’t be out of there until my recovery is complete.

  305. Big Pink 22nd March 2022 At 23:21
    ‘..Been out of commission lately, largely due to a broken leg,.’
    %%%%%%%
    Dear Lord, BP!
    I’m very sorry to hear that, and hope that you are on the mend.
    And that you accept that my post was not any kind of criticism of the blog operators, more an indication that I am just a baby when it comes to the technicalities of how blogs work.
    I wish you a very speedy recovery to full fitness.
    And how I wish that, after dislocating my shoulder in a fall last time I visited Australia, I had followed the exercise prog of the physio at the Edinburgh Royal infirmary: my left arm is noticeably thinner than my right!
    But then, of course, I’m an auld man!

  306. Hope you recover soon BP.

    I’m doing some dog walking for a friend who broke her wrist walking her dog.

    Occupational hazard for dog owners it would seem.

  308. I was surprised yesterday to see that the ‘Scotsman’s letters page carried a letter which contained this:
    ” Another weekend, another mysterious Rangers penalty in a domestic match whenever they are behind and look like they’ve zero chance of equalising-and right after half-time too! By Jove, it’s almost as if someone’s had a wee word with the match officials…..”
    Very brave, the letters editor!
    For the avoidance of doubt, I was not the letter writer. [ I hope he doesn’t mind me quoting him without naming him ]

  309. LORD BRAID – C Stark, Clerk
    Friday 25th March

    Procedural Hearing
    between 9.00am and 9.30am

    CA71/20 Duff & Phelps Ltd v The Lord Advocate
    A & W M Urquhart SGLD

    I imagine this is D&P [the firm] trying to sue for compensation for the damage allegedly done world-wide to the good name of the firm by the wrongful arrest and detention of Whitehouse and Clark..
    As said before, I think it’s likely that the proven incompetence of the pair in their handling of the Administration was likely to be far more damaging than any proven-to-be- wrongful arrest/detention.

  310. Big Pink 23rd March 2022 At 21:15
    My mate broke his ankle in November while walking his dog . Unfortunately he was in the wilds and he was lying in the rain for 4 hours before they could get an ambulance to him . He then spent the night in a hospital corridor before they could find him a bed , and his op was postponed twice due to staff covid infections . And he still has the dog !

  311. So the CEO of P&O can sit cynically and calmly before a Parliamentary Committee and say that he chose deliberately to break the Law. And it seems that nothing can be done in terms of prosecuting him personally or
    the Company!
    So it’s not just football club shysters who can get away with untruths in matters of business due to the incompetence of Regulatory authorities.
    One wonders why there is any legislation whatsoever in the field of business failures, insolvency, administration and liquidation when there is little serious intent on the part of authorities to nail crooked, lying , contemptuous ‘businessmen’

  314. Paradisebhoy 24th March 2022 At 14:38
    ‘..There may be trouble ahead.’
    %%%%%%%%%
    The most recent Court action I’ve seen , Paradisebhoy, was the hearing on 3 December 2021, judgment deemed handed down on 13 December2021 ( [2021] EWHC 3364 (Comm)). The judge ,Peter MacDonald Eggers QC (acting as Deputy Judge of the High Court (England)) concluded as follows:

    “For the reasons explained above, I allow SDIR’s application for an order under paragraph 18 of CPR PD51U for the disclosure of the Castore Agreement, as well as the Castore Quarterly Statements (to include documents containing the accompanying information within the meaning discussed above) for the 2020-2021 season, but not the Quarterly Statement for the first quarter of the 2021-2022 season.
    In my judgment, an order for specific disclosure within the meaning of the second sentence of paragraph 18.1 of CPR PD51U is justified given that the documents sought are specifically identified or fall within a narrow compass and relate to Issues for Disclosure, even if they do not fall within the date range within the Court’s order for Extended Disclosure dated 16th February 2021. Insofar as it is relevant, I would alternatively have been prepared to make an order varying the Court’s order for Extended Disclosure to embrace these documents.”
    If the videocelts speculation has legs, the assumption has to be that TRFC decided not to appeal, has , complied with the court order and provide are the Castore info, and are trying to negotiate a damages figure with Ashley.
    I doubt if TRFC/RIFC plc have the wherewithal to pay even a few million let alone anything like £10 million. Squeaky-bum time again, I imagine!

  315. The D&P business this morning;
    Lord Braid, after the morning greetings, acknowledged Mr Moynihan QC as appearing for the defender[the Lord Advocate] and asked whether the Dean of Faculty was expected? He wasn’t
    Lord Braid said he understood that Parties were in agreement that mediation would possibly be best way forward with a date in August in mind?
    There was then a very brief discussion around the need for an August date – further document disclosure and time for adjustments, but with an eye to the possibility of mediation in July, was required
    Mr Moynihan QC said he had asked for a guaranteed date for delivery of documents, so the beginning of June is the earliest date for release, then a period for adjustment-earliest is July, but no date fixed as yet for mediation…and no certainty of availability of the mediator.
    Judge agreed continuation to 20 August suggested by Clerk as being free
    The proceedings took only about 10 minutes, and the line wasn’t very clear.

  316. I think the Rangers board, who have enough troubles at this time, should be wary of a South African businessman bearing gifts. The offer to pay the penalty should they opt out of the Sydney Cup has somewhat of an odor about it. What is required in return. It may carry more weight with the board if he offers to pay the potential multi million pound settlement with Sports Direct since he appears to be the person who caused the problem in the first place

  317. Vernallen 25th March 2022 At 21:42
    ‘..should be wary of a South African businessman bearing gifts. ‘
    %%%%%%%
    As Ally would say: “Absolutely!”
    The man who would be King has grievances as deep as any that Putin has.
    SDM’s actions seem to be at the root of those grievances: he put one over King, no mistake.

    In a fight between those two, do I take sides?
    Naw.
    Not any more than I would have taken sides between Mussolini or Hitler.
    Each as bad as the other, although to the SMSM , SDM seems to smell of roses [ I’m told that eating succulent lamb too often affects one’s sense of smell] while , despite Jim White, the King boy still reeks a little of the stench of criminal conviction.

    But who am I to judge?
    judgment is for the people who paid their money to fund a cheating sports club that died because of its cheating, but who continue to fund a club that lies about its history but which also treats them like dirt.
    Honest to God.
    What ARE they like?

  318. So, ex-MP Brian Wilson, referring to the Ferguson ferries debacle, has the gall to write in today’s ‘ The Scotsman’,
    ” This scandal cries out for a public inquiry to get at still -concealed evidence” and calls for government action to ” charter the vessels required to relieve the hardship this cocktail of political chicanery, utter incompetence and disregard for consequences has created”
    As an islander, Wilson may be justified in getting his Harris tweeds in a twist.
    I would have thought that, as a Celtic plc non-exec director, he had a duty to shout out loud on behalf of the shareholders for an independent review of the award in dubious circumstances of a UEFA competitions licence to CW’s RFC of 1872 .
    When guys like Wilson bump their very selective gums a feeling of nausea comes over me.

  319. On a lighter note, let me give credit to Aidan Smith of ‘the Scotsman’ for his reportage [today] of his interview with the admirable Leanne Crichton, for whom I have both the highest appreciation of her undoubted talents as a football pundit and tremendous respect for her down-to-earth forthrightness in her observations.
    Speaking about ex-player pundits who are now old men who played in a different era e.g. Sounness and Roy Keane ,Leanne remarks that they (and others) are ” speaking from a place of opinion which no longer exists”.[a very neat turn of phrase]

    Leeanne goes on to say that some other ‘pundits’ “are just not educated enough so they ‘ll go flippantly off track to deflect from the fact they don’t know how to dissect or understand”

    Smith writes very well and entertainingly on a variety of topics not necessarily related to football, and Leanne is head and shoulders above many of the male pundits in her ability to make and convey to the listener the kind of analysis that the later Sportscene people can show on the freeze-frame screen.
    But, sadly, both Leanne [at least now] and Aidan [from old] are of the SMSM. Neither has made a journalistic/pundit challenge to the Big Lie.
    They keep schtum… and by their silence endorse and propagate the untruth at the very heart of our game.
    ———
    It is grotesquely ironic that the SFA arranged an international friendly the proceeds of which will go to help refugees from Ukraine fleeing from the lying Russian invaders, when it has destroyed its own credibility by having created the stupid, stupid, lie that TRFC is the very same RFC of 1872 which they themselves stripped of its membership in 2012!
    The canting hypocrisy of those who are selective of which ‘truths’ they will adhere to is utterly repulsive.

  320. Have the SFA or SPFL, or indeed any Scottish Football Club taken the time to congratulate ‘Rangers’ on their 150th anniversary? I’ve had a quick look, certainly not a detailed one, and can see no evidence of this. I think it would be normal to expect the authorities and at least some clubs to congratulate another club in this way. Why has it not happened if we are told incessantly by the media that it is beyond doubt they are the same club, and are regarded as such by the authorities and other clubs? I may of course have missed it.

  321. Upthehoops 27th March 2022 At 15:10
    ‘..Have the SFA or SPFL, or indeed any Scottish Football Club taken the time to congratulate ‘Rangers’ on their 150th anniversary?..’
    %%%%%%%%%%%
    Ha, ha! I haven’t seen anything here, UTH, but a quick google came up with a birthday greetings message from Hamburg’
    This annoyed the hell out of me so I fired off this email:

    “john clark
    To:
    info@hsv.de

    Sun, 27 Mar at 16:23

    Dear HSV,
    I refer to your birthday greetings message to The Rangers Football Club, which I found on this link
    http://www.hsv.de/en/hsv-congratulates-rangers-on-150th-birthday

    Sadly, you have been misinformed.
    Rangers Football Club that was founded in 1872 went into Administration in 2012. The Administrators were unable to find a buyer willing and able to rescue the club by paying all its huge debt. The club consequently entered Liquidation with millions of pounds of unpaid debt outstanding.

    Some of the major assets were bought in what some people describe as a ‘fire sale’ by Mr Charles Green. He did not buy ‘Rangers of 1872’
    Instead, he had to set up a new football club. Before it could apply for membership of Scottish Football Association(‘SFA), the new club had to apply for a shareholding in a recognised football league.

    It applied for share in the then Scottish Premier League Ltd(‘SPL’)
    The other Premier League clubs voted against that application.

    It applied for a share in the then Scottish Football League Ltd. It was granted a share and was admitted into that League’s bottom-most position as ‘The Rangers Football Club Ltd’, a brand new club.
    Only then did it become entitled to membership of the SFA and gained thereby entitlement to participate in Scottish professional football.

    It is therefore an absolute untruth that the new The Rangers Football Club that was created in 2012 is the same club that was born in 1872 because that club ceased to exist as a club in 2012 when it had to surrender its share in the SPL, and lost its entitlement to membership of the SFA: there is no continuity of sporting existence once a football club has entered Liquidation.

    Your message of ‘ congratulation’ is therefore ill-founded and merely encourages untruthful men to keep propagating a fiction, and brings shame on HSV.

    Yours sincerely,
    JC”

  322. UTH

    Not to my knowledge – for to do so, OVERTLY, would be tamtamount to claiming the impossible – that the ‘Big Lie’ is truth and reality. Most of the allusions to continuity that I’ve come across, have been subtly suggestive, inviting people to believe the myth (not on SFM they don’t!). The SFA, SPFL and other clubs are too ‘feart’ to use the ‘L’ word, but their silence speaks volumes and tells you all you need to know – that the mighty, corrupt Glasgow Rangers ‘died’ in 2012. Those cowards know, but will not openly admit, this.

    ( In fairness – aye right! – I guess claiming that it is 150 years since (the original) Rangers ( now TRFC) was founded has some veracity – in a 150 minus 10 kind of a way).

    The twisted wishful thinking , campaigning, and lying will only be dispelled when the final dissolution comes around (how will that be covered by the SMSM I wonder) – and even then … .

    This must not be allowed to happen, and is the main reason why I continue to contribute to the SFM – and so, a final acknowledgement to you, JC, for your admirable, and unrelenting focus on the ‘Big Lie’!

  323. Bect67 27th March 2022 At 20:45
    ‘..I guess claiming that it is 150 years since (the original) Rangers ( now TRFC) was founded has some veracity .’
    %%%%%%%%%
    It is an absolute fact, Bect67, that it is 150 years since the year in which one of my grandfather’s was born. He was born in 1872.
    It is also an absolute fact that the Rangers of the four young men was founded in 1872, and that it’s been 150 years since then.
    It is also absolutely the case that that grandfather of mine died in 1951, aged 79 and that it’s 71 years since then.
    My grandfather was loved and is remembered (by me anyway] for his magnificently imposing white moustache and his mock-serious frown when his daughter-in-law [my mammy],partnering him at whist, played the wrong card.
    But, of course ,all the wishing in the world, all the emotion, all the remembrances , cannot bring my grandfather back. He is dead.
    In like manner, the Rangers of 1872 foundation, having had to surrender its share in the SPL on being Liquidated, died as a football club in 2012.
    And all the grief and sense of loss so deeply felt by supporters of that 1872 club is perfectly understandable : they truly suffered a bereavement .
    And to make matters worse, it was a bereavement brought about , first, by the hubristic David Murray’s vainglorious boasting and tax cheating , and secondly, by his desperate readiness to be ‘duped’ by the likes of CW-touted by Keith Jackson to be a Motherwell-born multi-millionaire!
    But the fact remains: the Rangers of 1872 ceased , on entering Liquidation, to be a recognised football club entitled to membership of the SFA.
    And all the understandable emotion in the world does NOT permit the SFA, as a governance body, to manufacture a fiction that a club whose membership of the SFA was withdrawn by the SFA itself, is somehow still alive and operating 10 years after its death.
    The Rangers of 1872 is dead.
    Its tremendous record of sporting achievement died with it, and cannot possibly be attributed to the new entity that did not exist to kick a ball until 2012.
    And it is quite, quite wrong that the SFA should have been prepared to lie and continue to lie.
    And it was and is utterly unacceptable that the BBC and the SMSM should support and propagate that lie.
    Like most people, I never thought for a moment that the Rangers of my street pals in the early 1950s would not be bought out of Administration! Someone would surely buy them, for heaven’s sake, I thought.
    But none, NONE, of the big-talking chancers did so, so great were the debts.
    And the jackals are still disgustingly sniffing about, looking to cash in, while the genuine supporters, the members of Club 1872, whose donations give them, individually, NOTHING get nothing but abuse and threats!

  324. Has there been any update on the dispute between Rangers, the SFA and the cinch promotion. Or are two of the parties using a Ranger’s tactic of dealing with it at the end of the season. Its hard to resolve disputes when you keep pushing them down the table.

  325. Vernallen 28th March 2022 At 13:59

    Has there been any update on the dispute between Rangers, the SFA and the cinch promotion. Or are two of the parties using a Ranger’s tactic of dealing with it at the end of the season. Its hard to resolve disputes when you keep pushing them down the table.

    +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    The SFA found they had a case to answer over the 2011 European Licence, then just decided to drop it without an explanation. I don’t expect anything will come of the Cinch matter and it will also be dropped without explanation.

  327. After all the news about the questionable EBY scheme you would have thought a recipient of such a program would tread carefully when dealing with the taxman. I believe the taxman would have a long and unforgiving memory when it comes to those who played fast and loose with the rules regarding taxes. Will McCann now follow the route another recipient took and transfer any assets to his partner or declare bankruptcy. Will SKY stilll want to employ him and will the DR still favor its readership with his slanted views of the game.

  328. Vernallen 28th March 2022 At 13:59
    “..Has there been any update on the dispute between Rangers, the SFA and the cinch promotion. ..”
    Upthehoops 28th March 2022 At 18:14
    ‘.. don’t expect anything will come of the Cinch matter and it will also be dropped without explanation.’
    %%%%%%%%
    I haven’t seen anything since the judgment of 20 October 2021.
    I think the SFA cannot be blamed for thinking that Arbitration between TRFC and the SPFL was the proper way to go.
    But I think they ought not to have sought judicial review of the lower Court’s decision that was based on a quite different interpretation of the ‘rules’.
    That review by 3 judges of the Inner House ( 20 October 2021] upheld the right of Park’s (Holdings] to be regarded as an ‘interested party’ to any Arbitration proceedings between TRFC and the SPFL. [and, apparently, cinch could also claim to be an ‘interested party’ if they so desired]

    So, the SFA cannot set up an Arbitration Tribunal unless they invite [Park’s Holdings] and cinch to be represented. For all I know, they might be going down that road even as I speak.
    I suspect that, AT BEST, TRFC are just acting the madam for the sake of it. Like the scorpion in the fable, it’s just what they do!
    I say that because if TRFC did/do have a contract with Park’s [Holdings] signed and dated[ or otherwise attested] before ever the SPFL negotiated and signed a contract with cinch, all they had/have to do was/is to produce it, with evidence that they had told the SPFL of their Park’s sponsorship deal before the SPFL committed itself to cinch.
    At worst?
    Well they might not have a signed contract with Park’s of Hamilton that pre-dates the cinch contract!
    I mean, if a 10 year old club can claim with clenched teeth and out-thrust jaw to be 150 years old…what would they not be ready to assert?

  329. Vernallen 28th March 2022 At 22:50
    ‘..Will McCann now follow the route another recipient took..’
    %%%%%%%%
    Apparently , Vernallen, the taxman is not seeking to impose penalties on McCann, so, as with the BBC high-roller presenters who set themselves up as ‘companies’ and were paid by the BBC as companies providing services for a fee and not as salaried employees of the BBC, he is not deemed to be a tax evader, just as having misunderstood /been misinformed of his taxable status.
    He, like they, will have to pay the tax due , but without penalty, and possibly by some not too onerous arrangement.
    He will no doubt want to kick the ar.e of his tax adviser. Might it have been the porn film star of EBT notoriety? What was his name again ?

  330. John Clark 28th March 22.58

    ” if TRFC did/do have a contract with Park’s [Holdings] signed and dated[ or otherwise attested]”
    ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
    A written contract has been in existence since June 2015. It was
    renewed on 17 May 2021.

    https://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/docs/default-source/cos-general-docs/pdf-docs-for-opinions/2021csih61.pdf?sfvrsn=f0711814_1

    No obligation on Rangers behalf to disclose sensitive contractual information, especially given the relationship, or non relationship, between both parties.

  331. Albertz11 29th March 2022 At 07:51
    01Rate This

    John Clark 28th March 22.58

    ” if TRFC did/do have a contract with Park’s [Holdings] signed and dated[ or otherwise attested]”
    ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
    A written contract has been in existence since June 2015. It was
    renewed on 17 May 2021.
    ,………………….

    It’s interesting that Rangers has made a submission to the court that a contract has existed with Parks since 2015.

    What has not been submitted, is that the contract included such terms that Parks should expect exclusivity in relation to Rangers commercial relationships with the motor trade.

    The image in the following article (from 2019) suggests no such exclusivity rights exist.

    https://dailybusinessgroup.co.uk/2019/08/rangers-punished-again-by-uefa-for-more-sectarian-singing/amp/

  332. Albertz11 29th March 2022 At 07:51
    “..A written contract has been in existence since June 2015. It was renewed on 17 May 2021.’
    %%%%%%%%%%
    I expressed myself badly when I wrote ‘ if TRFC did/do have a contract with Park’s [Holdings] signed and dated[ or otherwise attested] before ever the SPFL negotiated and signed a contract with cinch, all they had/have to do was/is to produce it, with evidence that they had told the SPFL of their Park’s sponsorship deal before the SPFL committed itself to cinch.’ I had, of course, already read the judgment an should not have used a ‘hypothetical’.
    And it was important that you made it clear that the Court was satisfied of the bona fides of the contract with Park’s Holdings.
    As regards there being no obligation to disclose sensitive contractual information , it is surely arguable that TRFC as a shareholder club in the SPFL should have been ready to prove to the SPFL board , in absolute commercial confidentiality, that they were contractually bound to Park’s Holdings and therefore could not comply with the terms of the cinch contract?
    Or did TRFC not know that the SPFL was looking to cinch for sponsorship of the SPFL and forewarn them that TRFRC would not be able to be part of that?
    Or was it against SPFL rules for an individual member club to do its own thing sponsorship-wise, and that made TRFC reluctant to show the contract?
    It’s been a piece of unnecessary nonsense and expense at all events, in my opinion, with the SFA not being too clever either.

  335. HirsutePursuit 29th March 2022 At 21:57
    “..What has not been submitted, is that the contract included such terms that Parks should expect exclusivity in relation to Rangers commercial relationships with the motor trade.

    The image in the following article (from 2019) suggests no such exclusivity rights exist.”
    %%%%%%%%%
    That’s a very interesting observation, HP.
    I have to say that I took it for granted that the Court both saw the original contract, and checked that when it was renewed in 2021, the terms of renewal were the same as those of the original, and if the terms were in any way materially different they would not simply have used the word ‘renewa’l but would have adverted to
    any change.
    The presence in the stadium of adverts for Central Car Auctions in 2019 seems to indicate that the 2015 contract with Park’s did NOT confer ‘exclusivity’ on Park’s Holdings.
    It would follow that if the 2021 ‘renewal’ was indeed simply a renewal of the 2015 contract in the same terms, then clearly Park’s Holdings still had no exclusive rights to the advertising of second-hand car sales, and the SPFL rights to secure sponsorship on behalf of the whole SPFL could properly be exercised and the contract with cinch would be binding on TRFC.
    There must be a whole lot more to this than meets the eye: for it’s unthinkable that the Court of Session would accept that Park’s had ‘exclusivity ‘ that had not been part of the contract between TRC and Park’s.

    Will we ever hear the full story, unabridged, unvarnished story?

  336. So these accounts won’t cover Patterson’s January transfer, BigBoab1916. Still interesting to see how they present detail of transfers, though. By the looks of it, they won’t break down individual transfers sufficiently to allow us to see the actual amount paid by Everton, even if t was only a first tranche. Shame.

  339. Thanks PM – I’m trying to get my head around the “tournament organisers were unwilling to fulfil their commitments”. Would these be contractual commitments? I will be curious to see what happens next here.

  340. Wokingcelt 31st March 2022 At 17:30
    I don’t think they could come out and say that it was because their fans were revolting , so putting the blame on the organisers is a no-brainer . Out of court settlement ?

  341. Paddy Malarkey 31st March 2022 At 15:56
    “..https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/60946014”
    %%%%%%%%
    Good spot, PM!
    And what a gutless , useless reason TRFC give for ‘pulling out’ of the Sydney tournament.
    “After it became clear the tournament organisers were unwilling to fulfil their commitments to Rangers, we have, with immediate effect, terminated the club’s agreement with the organisers.”
    They blame the organisers? No, I think they were too feart of the power of Club 1872 to admit that it was Club 1872’s objections that forced them to withdraw, but couldn’t admit that, without strengthening Club 1872!
    But of course that’s exactly what they have done.
    They must be the most inept board of directors in Scottish Football.
    May their stupidities and general attitude have the same ultimate result as SDM’s hubristic cheating did in relation to the dead RFC of 1872.The Tournament organisers will have no bother finding a more notable club to invite than a ten year-old facsimile of a club.

  342. John Clark 31st March 17.40

    You vastly overestimate the power of Club 1872 John. With a membership of around 6-7000 and falling, having no relationship with the Club due to their own failings and no hope of buying DKs shareholding in the timeframe set out they are a busted flush.
    Rangers participation in the Sydney tournament actually united the Rangers support in their opposition to playing any part in it. The reasons for the withdrawal will become apparent in time.
    You may change your viewpoint if early indications behind this decision are proved to be correct.

  343. PM, WC and JC

    “Unwilling to fulfil their commitment to *Rangers blah, blah”.

    Good God in Govan – No wonder their follow, followers were throwing toilet rolls at Dens Park – what a load of s****!

    (As for their demand (for that’s, in essence, what it was) to have the Old Firm branding included, there is no Old Firm. It has already been clearly stated, by CFC supporters , that their club is not half of anything).

    TRFC also simply don’t want to be playing ‘second fiddle’ at AP’s coming home party and were looking for an ‘out’.

    Logic would tell you that this 10 year old Govan outfit were presented with a heaven sent opportunity to help ‘grow’ an international brand (not many clubs as young as this one will get such an opening), but, once again, we have, in this farce, been presented with an example of the WATP, entitled, self-appointed elite (in their eyes) mentality. (can someone remind me how many trophies they’e won?)

    If things don’t go their way, the go into a strop and take a severe ‘cream puff’. They also play the ‘victim card’ and …

    … that summarises their moralistic ‘stance’ for me!

  344. Bect67 31st March 2022 At 20:18

    I wonder when the organisers got/get the info that TRFC have aborted ? Most folk in Oz would be a-bed at the time of the announcement .

  345. Paddy Malarkey 31st March 2022 At 21:11
    ‘..I wonder when the organisers got/get the info that TRFC have aborted ? ‘
    %%%%%%
    PM. I emailed ABC Australia Radio at 18.40 this evening to ask if they had reported the story. Nothing there.
    I had earlier scanned ABC TV Australia all-night news live, but had seen/heard no mention of it on their ( Sydney] frequency about twenty minutes after reading your post.
    It will be interesting to see how they report it, as they surely will?

  347. Just noticed this on ABC Australia TV news:

    Rangers back out of Celtic match in Sydney
    Rangers won’t play their planned Sydney Super Cup clash with Celtic after claiming organisers were “unwilling to fulfil their commitments” to the Ibrox club.
    Digital Staff / Soccer / Updated 4 hours ago [Sydney time]
    Rangers have pulled out of their contentious Sydney Super Cup clash with Celtic, saying organisers were “unwilling to fulfil their commitments”.
    Fans of both Glasgow giants had protested against their clubs’ decision to sign up to play a friendly in Australia during the break in domestic football for November’s World Cup.
    Rangers have now announced they will not take part – three days before Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side visit Ibrox in a top-of-the-table Old Firm clash in the
    A statement on Thursday read: “Rangers can confirm the club will not be participating in the Sydney Super Cup in November 2022.
    After it became clear the tournament organisers were unwilling to fulfil their commitments to Rangers, we have, with immediate effect, terminated the club’s agreement with the organisers.”

    It is understood Rangers cited issues over branding and payments, plus the timing and manner of the initial announcement.

    A number of Rangers supporters were unhappy at the perception they would be playing support act to a homecoming jamboree for Celtic’s Australian boss Postecoglou.

    Rangers supporters disrupted the Premiership win at Dundee several times before the international break by throwing toilet rolls and tennis balls on to the pitch.

    Club 1872, a fans’ group which owns about five per cent of the shares in Rangers, had also criticised the Australia tournament amid other concerns with the Ibrox hierarchy.

    The withdrawal comes ahead of a crucial period in Rangers’ season, with their Europa League quarter-final against Braga and a Scottish Cup semi-final against Celtic to come in April.

    Some Celtic supporters had also criticised their club’s decision to sign up to a friendly against their city rivals.

    The Glasgow teams had been due to meet on November 20 at the 83,500-seat Accor Stadium as part of a tournament also featuring A-League teams Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers.

    Rangers commercial director James Bisgrove had claimed his club would earn the equivalent of a season’s worth of domestic broadcast revenue by featuring in the competition.
    “So it is something that the board have unanimously seen as a positive opportunity for Rangers Football Club,” he added in early March.
    Rangers are now believed to be exploring other commercial opportunities for the World Cup break.”

    Ha, ha: ” Rangers cited issues over branding and payments, plus the timing and MANNER of the initial announcement.”
    Honest to God, what are they like?

  348. Timing is everything and the thought of Sunday’s game being disrupted must surely have been of major concern to them. What will be interesting is if Dave King’s offer to foot the bill was accepted or as unconfirmed reports have said was rejected by the Ibrox Board . Up to 3m participation fee will now not be forthcoming but a bill for a similar amount could be making its way to Mr Park’s inbox. Park and Co will claim they listened to the fans concerns , King will claim he forced them to back down and the lawyers will claim another healthy fee trying to defend a threadbare case but as always it will kick the compensation demand down the road . Unfortunately the fans will believe that their actions prompted the decision and they could be right but it will just encourage them to resort to this behaviour again when things are not to their liking. If they want a good chance to recoup their losses then they should nip down to Ladbrokes and put a hefty wedge on a penalty to Rangers* for Sunday.

  349. I agree with Timtim that fears of another Dundee debacle was upper most in the board’s mind when it came to cancellation. Why risk such a display with a world wide audience watching on tv, what would potential investors think, what would casual fans think, and what if this audience was treated to the usual sing song. The Scottish media which is quite willing to dig into world wide sources to celebrate a Rangers win in Europe may want to reach out to those in Australia and find out what caused the withdrawal, or, will that responsibility fall to someone who does a lot of digging into the matters the mainstream media tend to sweep under the carpet. Law firms must have Rangers on speed dial hoping to feast on another misstep. Does anyone on the board read or understand contracts, seems like they might have another Sports Direct situation coming down the pipe.

  351. I had a nice wee laugh when I read this piece in this morning’s ‘The Scotsman’:
    ” There will be other ways to generate revenue , but after being accused of putting ‘money before morals’ by one fans’ banner this is the first step in healing the rift that has developed between the Ibrox board and the disenfranchised element of the ‘Rangers’ support over this most controversial issue-the Old Firm Down Under.”
    David Oliver , who wrote the piece, seems to believe that by withdrawing from the Tournament the board are taking the first step in ‘healing the rift’ between fans and club.
    Is he not aware that TRFC have done little else but ‘put money before morals’?
    They lie about how they came into existence, and lie about their sporting history, claiming to be 150 years old, and to be entitled to the sporting successes of a quite separate, truly historic, club which has been in Liquidation since 2012.
    As said before, the lies of a football club are bad enough.
    Poor , self-protective or partisan ‘journalism’ such as denies the Liquidation of RFC of 1872 and its death as a football club in face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, makes me glad that we do not have a military invasion to contend with.
    What stories would we get then, I wonder?

  352. Albertz11 31st March 2022 At 18:41

    John Clark 31st March 17.40

    You vastly overestimate the power of Club 1872 John. With a membership of around 6-7000 and falling,
    ———–
    Maybe so, but they claim to have documentary evidence of some serious wrong-doing. ….In Sevconia that is the currency of power. …..I doubt those allegations will be tested now.

  354. From the Sydney Morning Herald :
    “The decision to withdraw from the Sydney Super Cup will come at a hefty cost for Rangers, with overseas reports indicating they would be hit with a legal bill for breach of contract in the event of a withdrawal”

    Didn’t King pledge to make up the loss of revenue if the Board withdrew,?
    Will he also pay the costs if breach of contract action is taken and the organisers of the Tournament win?
    How many instances have there been of RIFC plc/TRFC taking legal action only to lose?
    I suspect that they must get very poor legal advice generally.

  355. How long will Bisgrove remain at Ibrox, I wonder?
    I’m astonished that he hasn’t got off his mark before the Board get rid of him for his mis-judgment that caused a world-wide PR disaster, loss of £3 M and potential Court room embarrassment and further loss.
    Oor Keef will have a field day and I look forward to him venting his rage and calling for Bisgrove to go!

  356. Happened to catch Mark wilson on a football podcast discussing referees and their approach to the game with particular reference to this weekend. Very disappointed to hear him say that referees should mibbees let a few early clashes go until the game settles down and then in the same breath to mention consistency!. A yellow card offence is a yellow card offence either in the first minute or the last and that is why supporters are so frustrated with ‘consistency’. This from a former pro.

  357. @JC
    King’s offer of compensation if they withdrew was reported to have been rejected by the Ibrox board (the red top that reported it is of low quality and has a history of misinformation) If they did accept it then I hope they got it in writing as he has a habit of making promises he doesn’t keep. The last time he put money into the club* he had to charge a large interest rate which he blamed on Sth African authorities and I doubt regulations have changed . The last thing Park wants is for King to come back with any sort of clout in the boardroom . I think his cold shoulder is still active but even on expiry he has been tainted by that terminally in the business world. I can only surmise that King wants his shares bought out asap and club* 1872 won’t have the funds for a long time which leaves the board as the only other option . King can and will cause problems but will the board pay up to be shot of him , can they afford to?

  358. Timtim 1st April 2022 At 22:25
    ‘…King can and will cause problems but will the board pay up to be shot of him , can they afford to?’
    %%%%%%
    I’m beginning to wonder whether my long ago view can be correct ,that King is motivated solely by his rage at having been stung for millions ( in his view) by that wretch of a human being , David Murray, and that King’s desire is simply to get his lost millions back, pure and simple.
    But perhaps, after all, King aims to be King of TRFC and be another David Murray, working his way to majority shareholding?
    Perhaps fanciful, but if King were to buy Club 1872’s shares ? ..and it’s roon about there that I get lost!
    But it’s great fun to speculate.
    And there’s something very satisfying when baddies fall out, and their Board is divided and there’s rancour and blame – and a useless Commercial director and even more utterly useless PR chief who cannot find a way to make the baddies smell good!
    Honest to God! The sheer bloody incompetence of it all!
    Who would invest in or be interested in a 10 year old football club that is so badly directed by such an overall incompetent board?
    I will write to Minister Ayres in the New South Wales Parliament to say something like ‘ There you are, cobber: that’s yer ‘Rangers’ for ya.’
    Or words to that effect!

  359. Enjoying a lazy Saturday morning and saw on the Sky Sports ticker that the EPL had reported that £272.6m had been paid to agents between the 2nd Feb 21 and the 31st Jan 22. Nearly spilled my coffee…… No wonder the games finances ( and sporting integrity) are going to Hell in a handcart.

  360. Gunnerb 1st April
    ‘Happened to catch Mark wilson on a football podcast discussing referees and their approach to the game with particular reference to this weekend. Very disappointed to hear him say that referees should mibbees let a few early clashes go until the game settles down and then in the same breath to mention consistency!. A yellow card offence is a yellow card offence either in the first minute or the last and that is why supporters are so frustrated with ‘consistency’. This from a former pro.’

    Few who saw Kyle Lafferty’s head high kick on Morton’s Lewis Strapp with 90 secs on the clock last night would disagree.

    On a positive note it was great to see Killie’s away support arrive in such numbers. It makes a pleasant change from looking at a near empty Wee Dublin end at Cappielow.

  362. Corrupt Official 2nd April 2022 At 11:45
    “…Is that where we are now in Govan?..’
    %%%%%%%%%
    Yes, CO, I’m inclined to believe so.
    TRFC/RIFC plc are in as dark a place of lies and deceit as the now liquidated RFC of 1872 were in the days when David Murray hid from the SFA (if you believe the SFA) the true wages being paid to players and the truth about the EBT scheme.
    I would suggest that they are possibly in an even darker place. I believe that they claimed ,and continue to claim, in the wider world of business and commerce, to be the Rangers of 1872 foundation, and that TRFC was floated as a public company on that basis of factual untruth.
    It would be no surprise to me that there may be the odd e-mail or recording in the possession of persons who were privy to damning conversations and who carefully kept little reminders, just in case..?

  363. John Clark 2nd April 2022 At 12:36

    Yes, CO, I’m inclined to believe so.
    xxxx

    A dark place right enough John. I believe every fan-base on the planet would be demanding the release of documentary evidence supporting such allegations, whether they went to Australia or not. It’s the casual acceptance of the fan-base, that this is the normal way of things in the Sevco boardroom that gets me.
    Albertz may point out that there is a falling membership, but for a while it was large, and stocking it with vast sums of hard earned cash…..However they appear to have lost their tongues.
    It really is a sad indictment of those fans that they are not demanding, “Get it oot anyway!”

  364. Would the Club 1872 evidence of serious wrong doing by the board have similar weight to the dossier assembled by the Rangers in regards to the SFPL/SFA a while back. We know how that ended. Lay your cards on the table and if is there sufficient evidence call for an emergency meeting to discuss.

  365. Vernallen 2nd April 2022 At 16:30
    10Rate This

    Would the Club 1872 evidence of serious wrong doing by the board have similar weight to the dossier assembled by the Rangers in regards to the SFPL/SFA a while back
    XXXXX
    That is always a possibility Vernallen, but there is one subtle difference. One set of allegations did not achieve its objective, whereas the other did.

  366. In my post of 1st April 2022 At 23:28 I wrote ” I will write to Minister Ayres in the New South Wales Parliament to say something like ‘ There you are, cobber: that’s yer ‘Rangers’ for ya.’”
    I have just this very minute sent this to him on his Parliament email address
    “Dear Minister,
    I refer to an earlier email of mine which , I believe, was forwarded to you by your constituency office. I had, in mistaken ignorance, directed it to them and I pay tribute to them for their ‘politesse’ in dealing with a non-Australian voter!
    In that email I pointed out that to refer to ‘Rangers’ as if it were the Rangers that was founded in 1872 is quite, quite wrong, as is any reference to there now being an ‘Old Firm’ .
    That Rangers club is in Liquidation.
    The present ‘The Rangers Football Club'(TRFC) has been in existence only since 2012: ask the SFA when it was that TRFC was admitted into membership if you want to check that.
    You get the measure of that new club by its readiness to tell the world ( before it told the very organisers of the tournament!) that it had pulled out of the Sydney Tournament .
    I think you were ill-advised to signal any kind of endorsement of their invitation and the false nonsense of ‘the Old Firm’.
    But now that they have pulled out, it doesn’t matter.
    All they have done is disgrace themselves as badly as David Murray disgraced the now Liquidated-in-2012 original ‘Rangers’ of my grandfather’s day by his EBT scheme ( hidden from the SFA and the taxman) and the ultimate cause of the death by Liquidation of that football cheating club.
    I will say nothing about the organisers of the Tournament except, perhaps, to say that they might be a wee bit out of touch with reality.
    Anyway, all’s well that ends well. I’m sure the organisers will find another British/European club of some standing to replace the false ‘Rangers’.
    And I wish the Tournament well -and would love to be able ( might possibly be able, on a hoped for visit to my son and his family in Brisbane) to be with him and his pals, who have their tickets bought and paid for!)”
    —
    Well, Mrs C and I hope to be able to visit Brisbane sometime this year and it may as well be in November, running into Christmas.
    But will Mrs C wish to a) come with me to Sydney? or
    b) allow me masel to go down with son and pals ?
    I’ll wait till we get there (if we do, of course] before I ask!

  367. Will the SFA address the second incident in recent weeks where Ranger fans have caused a delay in a game, and, look into the incident where someone from Celtic was struck and required stitches. How many more similar displays will occur prior to the end of the season. Will the Scottish media be digging into reports from around the world regarding Celtic’s win, it doesn’t take them long to find such stories on the back of a Rangers win.

  368. My goodness me!
    I have , in what I believe is computer-speak, ‘refreshed’: and what do I see as the most recent post but my own at 3rd April 2022 At 01:44.
    Where is everybody?
    I missed today’s [yesterday’s now , I note as I write] proceedings at Ibrox because I was in Edinburgh Royal Infirmary visiting Mrs C [there are , as we all know, more important things than football].
    But I did catch on radio the utterly unbelievable , the criminal, the f..king Putin-like insanity of the truly evil sods who threw, in the half-time interval, shards of broken glass into what was to be the goal-mouth area of Hart .
    God Almighty , that there should be such people!
    Honest to God!
    From childhood I remember bottles being thrown: easily seen and not likely to shatter when they hit the turf.
    But individual bits of glass being thrown in quantity in what must have been a planned operation? ,
    Now, that is evil , criminal , and lunatic. intent there
    No question!
    I make no comment other than that the TRFC/RIFC plc boards are in no position to cast a stone , they themselves being beyond the Pale in living ,and presumably profiting from ,a sporting lie, and only too ready therefore to placate the howling mob and yield to the basest sections of their ‘support’
    Dear God Almighty , that our game, our national sport, should have been so corrupted by the very governance bodies who…., ach, words fail me!
    How to describe those who allow a club that they admitted as a new club in 2012 to claim to be what they are not?
    Dirty work at the crossroads,, no mistake, with a dirty wee ‘5-Way Agreement’ to bind the liars together in an unholy ‘legal’ conspiracy.
    And , here’s the thing: the individual members of the SFA board and the SPL and SFL boards of the time, KNOW, they KNOW, that they have no defence against the charge that they were party to a stupid, stupid fraud.
    They know it.
    And they KNOW that they have no defence against the charge that they behaved dishonourably, for filthy lucre’s sake, and that they will go to their graves in what? less than , for the youngest of them, say 50 years? KNOWING that they are despised on that account.
    [Note: I’ve just this minute seen Vernallen 4th April 2022 At 01:22.]

    • John C
      The character and recidivism of the Rangers* support apart, there is a quite separate and serious point about this violent behaviour (see also recent laser pen attacks) which, if not adequately dealt with by the authorities will lead to a real tragedy.
      It’s a well known fact amongst the Casual community that “life bans” from stadia are non-enforceable. Even those criminally convicted of offences are only required to attend police stations on certain occasions.
      Punishment, such as it is, of offenders is no deterrent whatsoever. It leads one to the conclusion that Strict Liability is perhaps the only solution.
      Whatever the rights and wrongs of that, we can say with some certainty that it is the only mechanism that has not been tried, and that the violence is getting worse, despite the other mechanisms currently in place.

  369. What I don’t get with Strict Liability is the accepted difference from our clubs on the rules for domestic games versus European matches.
    UEFA has not been slow to penalise clubs for fan misbehaviour, regardless of the local rules and laws. When you look at the repeat offences though it does question whether the bampots who cause the problems pay any attention – the use of flares and pyrotechnics would appear to being worse. Said fans are clearly not supporters of the clubs they purport to support given the penalties and costs they impose on their club. Would closing stands and playing games behind closed doors provide sufficient deterrence? I’m not so sure. Maybe the clubs putting in place comprehensive CCTV and the Courts really coming down hard on hooligan behaviour with big fines and match day community service might have more impact.

  370. I see strict liability rearing its head again. My view has always been that Scotland is not a fit nation to have such a system. You only need to take a look at how arbitrary the application of the disciplinary process is to fear that the application of punishment under strict liability would be exactly the same. We can’t have the media deciding which incidents deserve punishment and which don’t by choosing what they highlight and what they ignore. Strict liability is also wide open to abuse by rival fans. It’s not for me.

  372. Big Pink 4th April 2022 At 12:03
    ‘..It leads one to the conclusion that Strict Liability is perhaps the only solution.’
    +++++++++++++
    I have the greatest difficulty in accepting the principle that any company or business in the entertainment/sports industry can be held responsible for the criminal actions of its customers/patrons.

    They are of course responsible for the safety of their patrons by taking all the legally required measures relating to the physical safety of their premises , crowd control , fire prevention ,first aid facilities, stewarding and all that important stuff.
    And it is right that they be called to account if they are remiss in any of that and people sustain injury or loss on that account
    But it seems to me to be very questionable whether a company of any kind ( a cinema or theatre or football, rugby club or other such ] which has done all that is statutorily required in relation to the control and safety of its patrons should be held responsible for the criminal actions of any its patrons simply because those actions happen on their premises!
    If some lunatic in a theatre stands up and yells ‘Fire! Fire!’ as a wicked act of malice and causes a stampede that results in injury or death, no rational , reasonable person could possibly argue that the theatre company was liable [except for things like inadequate emergency exits or lack of training of their staff]
    Some sad soul[s] / psycho bast.rd[s] clearly waited until half-time at Ibrox yesterday to throw either a bottle which broke on impact (or perhaps, pre-prepared handfuls of broken glass?] into the goal-mouth area that would be occupied not by TRFC’s goalie, but by Hart.
    Now, unless I’m gravely mistaken, stewards at football grounds do not have powers of body search ( nor do the Polis, I think].
    If some nutter has a shiv up his sleeve and runs on to the Ibrox pitch to stab a Morelos/ Tavernier or a Kyogo/ Jota, in what possible way could it be’ just’ that RIFCplc/TRFC be held responsible? ( Who was responsible for killing Abraham Lincoln? the guy that did it, not the owners of the feckin theatre where it happened]
    No.
    If Parliament ( question: does the Scottish Parliament have pre-eminence in this area?] wants to apply ‘strict liability’ in spectator sports, it would have to give greater legal powers to clubs and impose obligations on them that would cost them money to comply with. To do what is the job of the Polis-prevention of crime!
    Responsibility for criminal actions lies with the criminal[s].
    But sadly, even sophisticated CCTV coverage seems not really able to make identification of the particular hooligan basta.ds involved in any particular incident.
    However, I am no politician or lawyer or businessman. Just an individual whose very soul recoils at the idea of anyone or any organisation being held criminally/civilly responsible for the crimes they do not commit and could not prevent.

  373. Was it a penalty or was it not a penalty. The shirt tug in Sunday’s game is open for debate. It appears in a picture in the DR that the Ranger player also had a hold of the Celtic player’s jersey. Might have been a good no call.

  375. John Clark 5th April 2022 At 00:29
    I have the greatest difficulty in accepting the principle that any company or business in the entertainment/sports industry can be held responsible for the criminal actions of its customers/patrons.
    ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
    While I fully understand your point of view and have some difficulty in arguing against it, I think that there comes a point when drastic problems require drastic solutions.

    Your theatre analogy illustrates the problem perfectly, but it doesn’t take a massive leap to imagine the site of that theatre instead housing a raucous nightclub filled with noisy, over-exuberant, drink and/or drug-fuelled patrons fighting, smashing bottles and glasses and damaging the property before spilling out onto the surrounding streets and debasing the neighbourhood.

    Any such law-abiding club (or its operating company) could hardly be blamed for the actions of its clientele, yet it would be in danger of having curbs and restrictions imposed and, ultimately, facing closure. Why should football clubs be any different, particularly clubs with decades-long histories of trouble?

    The problem is that strict liability can only be introduced in Scottish football if there is a will among the clubs to bring it in, but that would be like turkeys voting for Christmas, particularly for the bigger clubs. The alternative involves political intervention, which itself is fraught with danger as UEFA and FIFA don’t take kindly to political interference in the game.

    Finally, while recognising they’re not quite comparable, the other minor problem I have with the argument that the club/company did all that it could and can’t be held responsible for the actions of individuals, is that it could be claimed, for example, that a rogue individual such as Craig Whyte was entirely to blame for the demise of Rangers Football Club, while the club itself was blameless. Spurious nonsense on many levels of course, but the kind of verbal diarrhoea that emanates from Govan and the Scottish media nonetheless.

  376. @Vernallen – being based in England I find it difficult to watch any match without having VAR in mind. From how VAR is applied in England (based on available TV footage -coverage is more comprehensive in EPL) then my tuppennies worth:
    1. MacGregor on Maeda – clear penalty on VAR as keeper got none of ball and brought down the player (no card)
    2. CCV shirt pull – clear penalty based on tv pictures (yellow card as competing for ball)
    3. Giakoumakis on Jack – yellow card correct but VAR would have looked hard at Jack’s reaction – forceful hand to face and suggest red card.
    4. Lundstrum on Giakoumakis – I have seen the ref asked to look at the monitor for similar down here and the card being upgraded to red.

    In all of the above it is completely understandable that the ref didn’t see as blindsided/speed of play (although I think Lundstrum may have seen red if he had tackled a smaller/slighter player in same way)

  377. @Highlander

    You raise some interesting questions regarding behaviour at a night club and a football stadium.

    The night club is subject to the Licensing Scotland Act 2005 and the features of this Act are quite heavy for any licensed premises.

    They are responsible for behaviour of patrons outside the premises. Regular police activity at the premises will result in a hearing at the licensing Board.

    Certainly behaviour inside the premises is part of the license. It’s illegal to serve a drunk person. They must be refused. Staff must be trained. CCTV must be available. Police have right of entry as do licensing standards officers.

    As with outside problems, any breach of license discovered by police or LSO results in report to Board.

    I’m aware of premises in Falkirk being required to ticket and have door stewards for football games on TV.

    Why similar requirements can’t be imposed on football stadia is a question that the Scottish govt needs to answer.

  379. Highlander 5th April 2022 At 10:10
    ‘.. I think that there comes a point when drastic problems require drastic solutions.’
    Dom16 5th April 2022 At 17:33
    ‘..Certainly behaviour inside the premises is part of the license. .’
    ++++++++
    Good points all in what you both say.

    But I speak about these things kind of from an emotional stance, remembering the days of the ‘belt’ when, against every notion of ‘justice’ everyone in the class got the belt ( geez! how did our Local Authorities and Government, never mind our parents/grandparents, happily allow teachers to assault their kids with a leather strap?!] because the actual ‘baddy’ or ‘baddies’ couldn’t be identified?
    Oh, for the happy days when , as a wee boy, ( and , I think, as an adult still into the nineteen nineties?] I was fascinated by the steady , evenly spaced and evenly paced tread of the polis round the track, and the sudden burst of activity as half a dozen bobbies would get right into the terracing and haul out one or two punters, and march them round the track, arm up the back, to wherever .
    No question of ‘stewards’ with no legal powers (and possibly no inclination either] getting in there among bottle-throwing or pyrotechnic lunatics , as well as not being able to get to them because of the seating!
    But I digress.
    We can see that the preferred option of the Boards of RIFC plc/TRFC and Celtic plc is to save each other expense in stewarding by reducing the number of ‘away’ fans.
    And possibly, they themselves would ask, might have asked, the ‘licensing board of Glasgow city Council’ to MAKE it a condition of their licences that they do not permit ‘away fans’ at all, to any match between 1888 Celtic and 2012 Rangers, so as to be able to shrug their shoulders and say ‘it’s the law’.
    I wouldn’t be surprised by anything the Boards of each club did, after that disgraceful Sydney Tournament nonsense, when Celtic were prepared to play in an ‘Old Firm’-billed match, again putting financial gain above sporting truth, in the same way as they refused to insist on an investigation into the Rangers UEFA licence.

  380. On VAR proposals:
    I am given to understand that current proposals to introduce VAR to the professional game in Scotland will be voted upon by all members of the SPFL. VAR is not mandatory outside of the EPL in England and I presume the same would apply in Scotland. Begs the question, with no dog in the fight, why votes outside the SPL and the Championship would carry such weight?

  381. ‘Pinch of salt , I suppose, but worrying’

    Objects being thrown at Celtic players at Ibrox (taking corners for example) has been a regular occurrence in recent years – although, given the relative lack of coverage by the SMSM, you might not have thought so.
    Sunday’s incidents (assault on CFC physio resulting in cut head, smashed bottle, and coins thrown at Jota) were symptomatic of progressively more sinister, violent and dangerous behaviour at Ibrox – fueled, quite simply, by hatred and desperation (that he league title might be slipping away).

    Some theories have emerged that the bottle first hit the crossbar, and, on smashing, scattered over a considerable part of the penalty box – a view that I don’t find credible, given the area covered by the splintered/broken glass.

    Regardless of the ‘steward source’, to me, the idea of a pre-smashed is more likely – and alarming.

    If this had happened in a European game, UEFA would have come down heavily on the club, and I have found Doncaster’s feeble response pathetic.

    I realise some (many?) might disagree, but the club must, in some way, be held accountable here.

    p.s How did all those ‘buckie’ bottles get smuggled in?

  382. Big Pink 6th April 2022 At 09:31
    “Guy on Twitter claiming to be a steward at Ibrox says bottle thrown on to pitch at half time was pre-smashed.
    Pinch of salt I suppose, but worrying.”
    +++++++++
    The Glasgow Times had this:
    BY EWAN PATON
    @epates_22
    SPORTS WRITER
    “SPFL address Rangers bottle throwing incidents during Celtic clash
    THE SPFL have issued their response to yesterday’s events at Ibrox in the derby clash between Rangers and Celtic.

    League chiefs are urging supporters to contact Police Scotland after a number of crowd-related incidents at the game.

    Broken glass was thrown from the Copland Road end of the stadium onto the pitch before the re-start of the game at half-time, as Celtic keeper Joe Hart alerted referee Willie Collum and his officials to the situation. … ”
    And I heard on the radio one of the commentators say ‘broken glass’ not ‘bottle’.
    A further advance into savagery.”

  384. MercDoc 6th April 2022 At 19:00
    “Instead, I argue that the social reality of Rangers Football Club continued, and this continuity should be the test we use to decide how many titles Rangers has won.”
    +++++++++
    I wonder was it Dr Hardman who briefed the QC who wittered in Court a few years ago about it being the ‘what-ness’ of a football club, the ‘what-it-stands-for’ , the ethereal essence ,the passion and belief of its the supporters, that make a football club?
    We laughed in Court at such blethering nonsense!
    And I laugh, now, at Hardman’s meaningless phrase ” the social reality of Rangers Football Club continued”
    He really is playing silly buggers – disgracefully so ,in my opinion.

    He knows damned fine that, as a matter of law, Rangers Football Club plc entered Liquidation in 2012:there was no holding company:-the football club was the company, and the company was the football club.
    The kudos of having the capitalisation to admit of ‘going public ‘ did NOT create another entity: the same football club that had been Rangers Football Club Ltd simply changed its status in the market place, not its identity.
    Hardman knows equally well that in consequence of suffering the insolvency event of liquidation, that same Rangers Football Club, now a plc, had to surrender its share in the SPL in 2012.

    And he KNOWS or should know, that a football club that is no longer a member of a recognised Football League ceases, ipso facto, to be entitled to membership of the SFA, and therefore ceases to exist as a professional football club entitled to play in any League recognised by the SFA.

    And he knows , or should know, that under the rules and constitution obtaining at the time, such a club is DEAD and unable to add one little bit of sporting success to the tally of such successes it had already earned by its sporting efforts when alive.

    HE FURTHER KNOWS THAT Charles Green did NOT buy RFC plc out of Administration, and therefore did not own RFC plc, . but merely a bunch of human assets ( all of whom, whether player or admin etc staff, were legally entitled to break their contracts and walk away) and some real estate.

    It follows that Hardman knows, or should know, that there was NO transfer of RFC plc shares to the new RIFC plc: that new entity was created by the one-for-one swap of the SevcoScotland/TRFC shares for shares in the new RIFC plc.
    SevcoScotland /TRFC became a football club only when it was admitted as a new club to the SFL , and to the very bottom end of the bottom division- just as every successful new applicant for admission has had to do.

    ‘Social reality’, if it means anything at all, means that thousands of people so wish that RFC of 1872 had not died that they live in a fantasy world, aided and abetted by people like Hardman and the cynical , or partisan, or self-deluded ‘journalists’ of the BBC and print SMSM.
    Reality is, however, no matter what any liar in football governance may say, and no matter what fantasy any ‘bereaved’ and suffering supporter of the dead RFC plc may create to comfort himself, TRFC is not, and cannot possibly be the Rangers Football Club that was founded in 1872.
    And I’m sure that there are still plenty of creditors who would very much like them to be, so that they could get all of the money owed to them by the liquidated club!
    Now, it’s bad enough that ‘businessmen’ should play fast and loose with truth and reality to make money.
    And it is unacceptable that ‘journalists’ should play loosely with objective fact.
    But It is unforgiveable that an academic lawyer should join their ranks.

    I will copy this post to Dr Hardman just as it is. I couldn’t be arsed creating an email specially addressed to him.

  385. “Incidentally, Celtic undertook a corporate reorganisation in 2002.
    “So if we used such a narrow technical legal reading, Celtic has won 14 titles rather than 51.
    “This reorganisation was within the same corporate group, rather than to a totally new ownership structure, but shows the danger of relying too closely on this technically narrow test.”

    Is this guy high?

  387. Nawlite 6th April 2022 At 23:15
    ‘..That lucky, but perfectly honest, Mr Murray/……’
    +++++++++
    Would there ever have been any doubt that that wretch who killed the Rangers football club of my grandfather’s day wouldn’t get his way?
    I don’t think so.
    He and his like are too powerful behind the scenes, as witnessed by the fact that he , whose stupid, arrogant loud-mouthed ,hubristic tax -evading nonsense was the ultimate cause of the death of RFC of 1872, walked away unscathed and uncriticised by fans or by the succulent lamb eaters!
    Never was there such a phoney ‘ I was duped’.
    As if !

  388. Referring to my post of 6th April 2022 At 22:10, in which I said
    ‘.I will copy this post to Dr Hardman just as it is. I couldn’t be arsed creating an email specially addressed to him.’
    I did email that post to him, but with a word to explain that, having put my opinions in print on a football blog which has a considerable readership, but which he himself may not be aware of, I felt obliged to let him know; so that he may, if he chooses to do so, ‘defend’ himself by showing how exactly , in terms of the Law, TRFC can be the liquidated RFC of 1872,
    If he replies, I will of course-as I told him- post his replies.

  389. JC 7th April @ 23.05

    If you do get a response JC (I’m a bit dubious if you will), he will ignore the indisputable legal fact and go down the ‘hearts and minds’ route as justification for his argument (?!).

  390. Bect67 8th April 2022 At 10:36
    ‘… he will ignore the indisputable legal fact and go down the ‘hearts and minds’ route as justification for his argument (?!).’
    ++++++++++
    Heh, heh: I think you’re .
    I’ve some abstract sympathy for the supporters of any club that dies, of course.
    But I cannot pretend to them or to myself that RFC of 1872 did not die, and say encouraging things like ‘it’s all right, don’t greet ,son, we’ll all kid on that they’re still alive and well and that it’s no really them that are in the morgue of Liquidation,”
    Supporters can think what they like if it eases the ache,
    But the SFA and SPL/SFL have no power to award the titles and trophies won by a dead club over its 140 year life span to a brand new club that did not exist over that time.
    The whole idea that the sporting successes of one club can be transferred to another club makes a nonsense of sporting competition and sporting success.
    Most of us know that instinctively.
    Our SFA betrayed its office as Guardian of the sporting ethos of our game, They are as despicable in my eyes as any blowhard of a cheating knight of the realm ,
    Their allowing TRFC to claim 54 titles etc has made liars of them and truly brought the game into disrepute as being governed by persons unfit for their office.

  391. Nicely summed up by Dermot Desmond
    “We do not want the club to get into a financial state where the club goes into liquidation and there is going to be a new Celtic. We want our history to be continuous, not to be curtailed through financial mismanagement.”

  392. Well spotted Paradiseboy – I just wished he had been a tad more specific with his ‘dig’ i.e :-

    “…where the club goes into liquidation – just like the erstwhile other half of the so called ‘Old Firm’ did in 2012”

  393. My post of 8th April 2022 At 14:50 is missing the word ‘right’ in the first sentence, which I am sure most people will have understood, Apologies.

  394. Paradisebhoy 8th April 2022 At 15:52
    ‘..Nicely summed up by Dermot Desmond..’
    +++++++++<#.
    I hadn't been aware of that remark by DD, Paradisebhoy. The man has gone up a notch or two in my estimation for saying as much.
    But words are cheap, and I think he ought to have insisted on the Celtic plc board forcing an independent investigation into the Res 12 matter , because bad and all as it is for a club to false information, it would be very much serious if the SFA or one of its officer connived in deceit.

  395. John Clark 8th April 2022 At 17:31
    My take on it is that he’s saying that it’s a dead club and can’t be sanctioned . Once it died , CFC’s interest in their alleged misdemeanours died too .

  396. Paddy Malarkey 10th April 2022 At 18:19
    ‘..My take on it is that he’s saying that it’s a dead club and can’t be sanctioned . Once it died , CFC’s interest in their alleged misdemeanours died too .’
    ++++++++++
    At least, PM, Dermot Desmond is( I would say] the highest placed board member of any club to say out loud that RFC of 1872 is dead, and its history dead with it; so I give him some credit for that.
    But he was quite wrong if he thought that the main point was that sanctions could not be applied to a dead club.
    The much more universally important question was/is whether the SFA board may have been party to a deceit that cost Celtic shareholders a few million quid.
    That is still a question that needs a definitive answer after independent investigation.
    And in my opinion ,the SFA showed that they had something to hide by refusing to allow such investigation.

    Celtic, for the good of Scottish football should have pursued that question regardless of whether RFC of 1872 could, as a dead football club, be sanctioned.
    NO, a strong enough possibility existed that a crime may have been committed, possibly even warranting criminal investigation.
    So, demerits to DD on account of not going down that path.

  397. If it was revealed that the SFA decieved the public which in turn had implications for shareholders, would DD not been in breach of his duties to his and the clubs shareholders, which would make DD gulty, IMO, within the companies acts regulations.

  399. So Dave King finally gets his “lost” cash back…. wonder if he will now do walking away and leave the club in peace. His attack dogs have served their purpose then.

  403. Bigboab1916 11th April 2022 At 21:14
    ‘…If it was revealed that the SFA decieved the public which in turn had implications for shareholders,’
    Paddy Malarkey 12th April 2022 At 17:22
    Your reference to https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/6108678 gives this “..Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini to go on trial in June to face corruption charges”
    +++++++++
    As ever, we have to remember that the fact that they have been charged does not mean they are guilty of the charges.
    What it does mean is that ‘suspicions’ were INVESTIGATED, and that people think there is a case to answer.
    If we look in our own backyard, the award of a UEFA licence to CW’s RFC of 1872 threw up some facts that gave rise to suspicion about how they could have been perceived to be entitled to that licence.
    Quite properly, an independent investigation was sought.
    Farcically, it was the very governance body on whose ok the licence was granted who refused to have an independent investigation carried out.
    Now in a society in which not even the Prime Minister of the UK can block an investigation into his alleged personal breaches of the law, I find it extraordinary that the governance body of Scottish Football can be allowed to do so.
    How very convenient!
    But how damaging to trust in the integrity of the SFA that refusal was and remains.
    The charges against Blatter and Platini seem not even to be related to interference in immediate football matters , matters affecting the actual sport of football and football competitions!
    Whereas , in the case of the SFA, the suspicion is that one football club was awarded a competition licence to which it was not entitled, bilking the shareholders of another club of some guaranteed millions of pounds and the possibility of many more millions.
    In years to come, of course , the truth will out.
    It always does, even if only after the deaths of the people involved!

  404. Today we are treated to another world reacts to Rangers win. It was somewhat disappointing to see the Guardian of London lending credence to the continuity myth with their statement of reaching their first European SF since 2008. Either they don’t follow Scottish football that close and aren’t aware of the events of 2012 and the birth of a new Rangers/Sevco/TRFC or whatever name they choose to attach to their operation. Now we have concerns being raised about a jammed schedule. What’s next, repealing the rule regarding goal difference.

  405. If my memory serves me well , RFC asked for rescheduling help in 2008 , and managed to get one game delayed/postponed . I would imagine TRFC will be asking the same , but their fans all say that no help was given to the old club . False memory on my part ?

  406. I am not so naive as to believe that taking one for the team doesn’t happen as a method of defence but for this quote from the Fulham manager to go unquestioned in the media and apparently not draw a charge of disrepute is sad. Maybe a difficulty with translation? Straight out of the special one’s playbook.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/61033751

    “Back-to-back defeats for the first time this season, that is not a matter of focus. Tonight we needed to be more aggressive. We had to stop attacks with tactical fouls.”

  407. Gunnerb 16th April 2022 At 01:49
    ‘.. We had to stop attacks with tactical fouls.’
    +++++++++++++
    At least that was only the manager of a club demonstrating his lack of belief in the sporting ethic.
    Our very GOVERNANCE body demonstrated their personal moral weakness, their corporate venality and their utter contempt for the concept of sporting integrity by creating the monstrous lie that TRFC is RFC of 1872, and by aiding and abetting the Board of RIFC plc to trade (possibly illegally] on the sporting successes of a club that is in Liquidation.
    The FA might well ‘do’ Marco Silva, the Fulham manager, for bringing the game into disrepute or some such. I hope so.
    But who is going to ‘do’ the lying, cheating SFA?
    That’s what we are up against: a Boris/Putin sort of SFA-absolutely without principle when it really matters.

  409. Paddy Malarkey 16th April 2022 At 18:57
    ‘Prescient or what ?!
    https://www.thenational.scot/sport/20073638.giovanni-van-bronckhorst-rangers-fixture-plea-club-appeal-spfl-europa-league-schedule/
    +++++++++++
    As if, PM, there could be any doubt that the bully boys at Ibrox would not get what they demand-at any time!
    Their very club lives on a LIE of monumental proportions, claiming as it does, with the blessing of the governance body, to be 150 years old when that very self-same governance body admitted it into Scottish football only in 2012!
    A lie supported and propagated by the sports hacks and sports editors of the SMSM- all of whom who would get a job with Putin’s press with no bother at all as deniers of actual truth and fact!
    Clearly, if one lies in order to sell newspapers, or for partisan reasons, in a matter of Sport, what might one not lie about in really serious matters of life and death when it is a matter of war?
    There are no Orla Guerins in the SMSM when it comes to reporting the truth in relation to the death of RFC of 1872.
    No, we expect nothing from the SMSM except propagation of the Big Lie.
    The one or two journalists who attempted to report truthfully [honour to them] suffered for attempting to do so.

  410. I’m on holiday at the moment and was wearing a Thistle top down the beach and enjoying the usual banter with the fans of the cheeks , especially given the score yesterday . We did , however , reach consensus that today’s game and others between them should be referred to as “The Scum Game” , as that’s how they often reference each other.

  413. What an odd weekend.

    Matt Lyndsey writing drivel on how VAR would have The Rangers 1 point ahead simultaneously avoiding any scrutiny of other controversial decisions in matches with Motherwell and Aberdeen.

    I wonder how VAR would have impacted yesterdays semi final match where some “robust” challenges went unpunished?

  414. Dom16, answer is ‘Not at all’ as VAR doesn’t look at challenges other than for penalties. It might have looked at offside for the winning goal, though I personally feel that was so close that it should have stood.

  415. I think VAR is used for serious foul play review such as red card incidents. Given that the referee yesterday was erhm….relaxed about many robust challenges then again, VAR would not have been employed outside of the third goal and I agree with Nawlite on that.

  416. Nawlite 18th April @ 14.53

    As I understand things, the 4 categories are:-

    1. Goal/no goal
    2. Penalty/no penalty
    3. Direct red card
    4. Mistaken identity

    Are you saying that, with VAR, a direct red card is only associated with a penalty kick incident? If so, my humble apologies for questioning, in my ignorance, your reply to Dom16

    I’m thinking particularly about Goldson’s tackle on Kyogo – so does that mean that VAR would not look at the incident?

  417. Didn’t see the game, so not sure what the Goldson incident was, Bect67. I’m no expert, but I think if the ref misses an OBVIOUS red card anywhere on the pitch, VAR might intervene, but from what I’ve read, I don’t think there were any individual tackles that might have fitted the bill. Most complaints seem to be that Lundstram or Aribo had so many ‘bad’ ones that they should have eventually seen red.

  418. Thanks nawlite

    I take your point about that haven’t read about Goldson’s tackle. This is probably due to the fact that it was not widely reported on (this is not sour grapes btw!).

    However, I witnessed the tackle, and there are images of it to be found, which make it look very much like Goldson deliberately targetted Kyogo’s ankle (I accept that this is my version!).

    I have opined before that such a tackle deserves a red card (irrespective of who commits it – from any team (e.g Starfelt should have seen red for his season ending tackle on Scott Nisbet at Easter Road), and I would hope that such behaviour would warrant a look by VAR – regardless of where it occurred on the pitch.

    It’s one of the most dangerous, and increasingly widespread, fouls in the game.

    Anyway – rant over – and thanks again for your post.

  420. Well by all accounts VAR should be voted in today. I didn’t see either semi-final other than brief BBC highlights. The decision that truly baffled me was the booking for McGregor. The commentary (and suggestion from Madden’s gesture) was that it was for a failed attempt from McGregor to trip the TRFC player where ref played advantage. This being the case the booking was. Issued in error as in such a circumstance the laws of the game are quite clear: law 12, section 3 – where advantage is played and foul was an attempt to stop a promising attack the player is not cautioned. Now you might not agree with the laws of the game, but they are what we play to. I completely get marginal offside calls being made/not made as at the pace of play it’s completely understandable. But for a FIFA referee to go back and make a decision that is contrary to the laws as stated in the Laws of the Game is a new level of incompetence.
    What VAR does bring is a wider critique of the referee’s performance than of the narrow areas of its application – using it to support decisions in some areas but not others gives an after-match “compare and contrast” session for the pundits – and it should “encourage” referees to raise their game.

  421. Just seen that VAR has been voted in favour. Picking up on earlier posts of when it will be used, of the seven areas listed on BBC website, I think #4 is somewhat open-ended:
    “For serious misapplication of the laws – such as a goal scored direct from a dropped ball or throw in.”

    Who defines what is a serious misapplication? I would argue booking a player against the explicit laws of the game is a serious misapplication. I would also suggest stopping the game to allow a player treatment when not a head injury (as happened with Jota earlier in the season against (I think) Hearts was a serious misapplication.
    With the levels of refereeing incompetence on show on a regular basis, games could take forever to complete with VAR checks…

  422. Wokingcelt 19th April 2022 At 12:38
    ————————————————————-

    Well I will go to the foot of our stairs! The number of times I have witnessed a referee being lauded for allowing the game to flow and then hearing the commentary team state that the referee will book that player when the ball goes out. I never knew about law 12, section 3 .Thanks Wokingcelt .As they say everyday is..etc

  424. UTH – the obvious answer would be to take advantage of the experienced VAR refs from some of the leagues that implemented earlier. I am sure the setup / experience at Stockley Park could be used at least for next season to upskill our refs in the application of VAR (and the Laws of the Game!)

  425. How long will it take for managers to complain about the rulings from VAR. How long will it take for one set of fans see another team benefitting from VAR decisions, while they moan about decisions not going their way. Will VAR put to rest the notion of one club getting all the decisions. VAR could possibly open another can of worms. Will the SFA provide full instruction to the operators and will some of the head strong referees fall into line when they are consistently overruled. Interesting times ahead.

  426. Vernallen 19th April 2022 At 22:44
    ‘…Will the SFA provide full instruction to the operators .’
    ++++++++++
    Short answer: the SFA will do SWFA to defend the integrity of the game if push comes to shove.
    By ‘recognising’ the new 2012 TRFC as being the undead RFC of 1872 they lost any credibility as a sports governance body.
    We may be sure that honesty and integrity are concepts as foreign to them as they are to Putin.
    Truth is indivisible.
    The SFA lie about RIFC plc/TRFC.
    They will lie when it suits them.

  428. Dom16 20th April 2022 At 12:54
    ‘…Does make me wonder why people on such significant income levels seek ways to avoid paying tax.’
    +++++++++++++
    I think the word ‘greed’ comes into it somewhere, Dom16!
    BUT in saying that , I have reminded myself of two famous sayings:
    “Any one may so arrange his affairs that his taxes shall be as low as possible; he is not bound to choose that pattern which will best pay the Treasury; there is not even a patriotic duty to increase one’s taxes”
    Gregory v. Helvering, 69 F.2d 809, 810 (2d Cir. 1934)
    and
    ” Over and over again courts have said that there is nothing sinister in so arranging one’s affairs as to keep taxes as low as possible. Everybody does so, rich or poor; and all do right, for nobody owes any public duty to pay more than the law demands: taxes are enforced exactions, not voluntary contributions. To demand more in the name of morals is mere cant.”
    Commissioner v. Newman, 159 F.2d 848, 851 (2d Cir. 1947) – dissenting opinion’

    The problem with SDM’s EBT scheme was that it was such a try-on that he had to disguise the truth from the taxman and the Football Authorities; the problem for McCann [ who , I am ready to believe, was not deliberately trying it on] was that he simply could not show that he was ‘in business on his own account’ rather than just a paid employee.
    Unlike the very smart Kaye Adams ( or her smarter lawyers] who found a legal way of demonstrating that she was not an employee of the BBC, to the satisfaction of the Upper Tier Tax Tribunal.
    She herself is not paid by the BBC: it is the company of which she and her life- partner are the sole shareholders that has the contract with the BBC, and it may have contracts with other businesses to which it offers its services.
    It is that company that is paid.
    But of course, as she and her partner own the company, they get the dosh!
    Legally.

  429. From the DR:
    Robbie Copeland Live Sports Writer
    20:02, 21 APR 2022 UPDATED20:54, 21 APR 2022
    “Gerrard led Rangers to a famous 55th league title last season but after only adding to the championship-winning squad with free transfers he voiced his frustrations in a thinly-veiled press conference jab – complaining that the club “hadn’t spent a penny.”
    And while he takes responsibility for the club failing to qualify for the Champions League, the Aston Villa boss admits he was frustrated and “wanted a bit more” from the board.”
    There goes the good old lying DR!
    Completely dependable in the matter of propagating untruth!
    Kind of reminds me of the Pravda of former times- a messenger and propagator of lies, denying as it does the death of RFC of 1872 in 2012 and therefore denying the truth that the in no way did RFC of 1872 even exist to make it possible that it won 55 titles!
    Really and truly, I see no distinction between the ‘journalists’ who propagate the Big Lie and the really , really evil sods of ‘journalists’ who report the lies of madman Putin.
    The fact that the DR lies do not have the same terrible consequences as those of madman Putin does not change the fact that the DR guys are propagandists of an untruth.
    They know it.
    But put their pay cheques and/or personal bias first and foremost.
    To their eternal shame.

  430. Today’s leader in ‘The Scotsman’ has this:
    “ MPs’ decision yesterday to ask the Privileges Committee to investigate whether Johnson misled them over Partygate is a welcome sign of hope that a Prime Minister who lies blatantly and breaks the law will ultimately not be allowed to stay in office”

    What a perfect example of ‘holier than thou’ hypocritical cant!

    ‘The Scotsman’ [ along with the rest of the SMSM] sedulously fosters and propagates the absurd LIE that a 10 year-old football club named The Rangers Football Club is the self-same club as the football club named the Rangers Football Club that died the death of Liquidation [aged 140 years] in 2012 , and is somehow entitled to claim the sporting history of that liquidated club!

    A newspaper that lies in the relatively [ peace to the shade of Shankly!] trivial matter of football is in no position to throw stones at any other liar.

    The editor of ‘The Scotsman’ should face up to his journalistic/editorial duty to honour the promise made by the ‘Conductors’ of the newspaper in 1816 who ‘pledge[d] themselves for impartiality, firmness and independence…their first desire is to be honest….’

    Truth is indivisible.
    If the ‘The Scotsman’ wants lying Prime Ministers to be called out, it should also want lying sports clubs/governance bodies to be called out, exercising the requisite impartiality and ‘courage and industry’ for the task.

  431. I had to chuckle at Barry Ferguson’s comment on Celtic bottling the title run in. What team enjoyed a six point lead earlier this year and all the chat surrounded the title staying at Ibrox and the club rolling in the riches of the CL. What team is now six points behind. And, is there not pressure on them to win on Saturday to stay within touching distance of first place.