chancer
Gudni Bergsson
I guess this is honourable on their part.
Or am I being naive? Is there a selfish reason for 3rd and not 1st or 2nd?
-
Dear Guest, Please note that adult content is not permitted on this forum. We have had our Google ads disabled at times due to some posts that were found from some time ago. Please do not post adult content and if you see any already on the forum, please report the post so that we can deal with it. Adult content is allowed in the glory hole - you will have to request permission to access it. Thanks, scara
Glasgow Rangers
- Thread starter EJG
- Start date
I guess this is honourable on their part.
Or am I being naive? Is there a selfish reason for 3rd and not 1st or 2nd?
It's selfish. Don't know quite how to explain it, but basically they think SFA and SPL and all the other clubs are out to get them and want to take the full punishment to spite everyone. They probably think that the absence of Rangers will fudge everyone up financially. They will no longer go to away matches.
That's harsh!
To be fair, the Rangers fans haven't done anything wrong. They've just been royally shafted by the people who have owned and run their club.
I can understand why they'd rather start from the bottom, with a clean slate.
And that's why they think they shouldn't be punished at all, it was the owners that did it.
Rangers hopes of reprieve in SPL vote sunk by 'arrogant' Malcolm Murray
A presentation by the Rangers chairman, Malcolm Murray – described as “a disgrace” by one of those present – sank the last hopes of the newco club making a return to the Scottish Premier League at Hampden Park on Wednesday.
The expectation beforehand within the SPL – shared by the Scottish Football Association – was that the outcome would be another deferral, leaving it to the Scottish Football League clubs to accept Rangers into their ranks and sparing the top division chairmen from a decision they did not want to make.
There were also some who hoped that Rangers would be able to make sufficient case – coupled with a clear and evident change of attitude – for their admission to the SPL.
However – and not for the first time in this saga – Rangers utterly misread the mood of the other SPL clubs. The faux pas occurred despite the fact that Rangers had been briefed at a meeting on Sunday attended by two other SPL chairmen and a vice-chairman, who stressed the need for humility.
Murray, in blazer and club tie, arrived at the gathering on Wednesday with the frontman for the Sevco consortium, Charles Green – who did not sport the club’s uniform – and Ally McCoist, the Ibrox manager. A presentation brochure was distributed to the delegates.
The back page featured a photograph of a Rangers title win with the words “We Are Rangers” emblazoned across it.
“The arrogance was unbelievable,” said one chairman. “The atmosphere hardened immediately. Charles Green conducted himself well enough but the Rangers chairman was arrogant and dogmatic.”
Another who was present told The Daily Telegraph: “Some people in the room wanted a reason to make a case for Rangers but the standard of the presentation was woeful.
“Ally and Charles Green were not always on the same page but that was not damaging. The chairman was another matter entirely and the brochure was substandard – you could have easily knocked something better together given half an hour. It makes you wonder what kind of management team they have.”
Murray, Green and McCoist absented themselves from the meeting to allow discussion, then returned for the vote and cast theirs as a proxy for Duff & Phelps, administrators of the Rangers oldco.
Only Michael Johnston of Kilmarnock gave them any sort of support with an abstention, while the other 10 clubs – including those who had expressed a degree of willingness to help Rangers, voted ‘No’ to the newco’s admission.
The Rangers party departed and a further two-hour discussion ensued. “It was constructive,” said one who took part. “People actually listened to one another and respected the other positions. It was a huge leap of faith for integrity and it’s now up to the SFA and SFL to make their decision.”
Neil Doncaster, the SPL chief executive, said of the decision to refuse the newco entry: “Clearly there were discussions going on between the newco and the members and ultimately that could have led to a presentation and a proposal put to clubs that they might have said yes to.
“In the end the proposal put forward to the clubs was considered and they said no.”
He added: “I think [the vote] surprised a number of people. Money is important in professional football and I think what our chairmen have done today is put aside the short-term commercial considerations, that would ordinarily drive behaviour, ahead of the longer-term interests of their clubs – and supporter involvement has clearly been a huge part of that.
“Ultimately they believe they have made the right decision and one that brings a bit more clarity to an unclear world. Until we know where Rangers are playing next year we won’t be able to ascertain what the damage is to the Scottish game.
“A number of people have said the decision today has enhanced the reputation of the league but it’s not for me to say.”
Celtic released a statement in which they expressed the integrity of Scottish football as the main reason behind their opposition of newco Rangers entering the SPL.
It read: “Today’s decision to refuse access into the SPL was an overwhelming one and demonstrates the depth of feeling amongst everyone involved in Scottish football.
“Fundamentally, the Celtic Board has also been very mindful of the need to take what it believes to be the correct course of action in protecting the integrity of the game in Scotland.
“Throughout the whole sequence of events leading up to today’s decision the Celtic Board has been of the singular view that the integrity of the game in Scotland is of paramount importance.”
The Rangers Supporters’ Trust, meanwhile, accused other SPL clubs of acting out of “malice”.
Mark Dingwall, as spokesman for the Trust, said: “We are disappointed but not surprised by this decision which has been taken out of malice rather than for the greater good of the Scottish game.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/rangers/9376851/Rangers-hopes-of-reprieve-in-SPL-vote-sunk-by-arrogant-Malcolm-Murray.html
A presentation by the Rangers chairman, Malcolm Murray – described as “a disgrace” by one of those present – sank the last hopes of the newco club making a return to the Scottish Premier League at Hampden Park on Wednesday.
The expectation beforehand within the SPL – shared by the Scottish Football Association – was that the outcome would be another deferral, leaving it to the Scottish Football League clubs to accept Rangers into their ranks and sparing the top division chairmen from a decision they did not want to make.
There were also some who hoped that Rangers would be able to make sufficient case – coupled with a clear and evident change of attitude – for their admission to the SPL.
However – and not for the first time in this saga – Rangers utterly misread the mood of the other SPL clubs. The faux pas occurred despite the fact that Rangers had been briefed at a meeting on Sunday attended by two other SPL chairmen and a vice-chairman, who stressed the need for humility.
Murray, in blazer and club tie, arrived at the gathering on Wednesday with the frontman for the Sevco consortium, Charles Green – who did not sport the club’s uniform – and Ally McCoist, the Ibrox manager. A presentation brochure was distributed to the delegates.
The back page featured a photograph of a Rangers title win with the words “We Are Rangers” emblazoned across it.
“The arrogance was unbelievable,” said one chairman. “The atmosphere hardened immediately. Charles Green conducted himself well enough but the Rangers chairman was arrogant and dogmatic.”
Another who was present told The Daily Telegraph: “Some people in the room wanted a reason to make a case for Rangers but the standard of the presentation was woeful.
“Ally and Charles Green were not always on the same page but that was not damaging. The chairman was another matter entirely and the brochure was substandard – you could have easily knocked something better together given half an hour. It makes you wonder what kind of management team they have.”
Murray, Green and McCoist absented themselves from the meeting to allow discussion, then returned for the vote and cast theirs as a proxy for Duff & Phelps, administrators of the Rangers oldco.
Only Michael Johnston of Kilmarnock gave them any sort of support with an abstention, while the other 10 clubs – including those who had expressed a degree of willingness to help Rangers, voted ‘No’ to the newco’s admission.
The Rangers party departed and a further two-hour discussion ensued. “It was constructive,” said one who took part. “People actually listened to one another and respected the other positions. It was a huge leap of faith for integrity and it’s now up to the SFA and SFL to make their decision.”
Neil Doncaster, the SPL chief executive, said of the decision to refuse the newco entry: “Clearly there were discussions going on between the newco and the members and ultimately that could have led to a presentation and a proposal put to clubs that they might have said yes to.
“In the end the proposal put forward to the clubs was considered and they said no.”
He added: “I think [the vote] surprised a number of people. Money is important in professional football and I think what our chairmen have done today is put aside the short-term commercial considerations, that would ordinarily drive behaviour, ahead of the longer-term interests of their clubs – and supporter involvement has clearly been a huge part of that.
“Ultimately they believe they have made the right decision and one that brings a bit more clarity to an unclear world. Until we know where Rangers are playing next year we won’t be able to ascertain what the damage is to the Scottish game.
“A number of people have said the decision today has enhanced the reputation of the league but it’s not for me to say.”
Celtic released a statement in which they expressed the integrity of Scottish football as the main reason behind their opposition of newco Rangers entering the SPL.
It read: “Today’s decision to refuse access into the SPL was an overwhelming one and demonstrates the depth of feeling amongst everyone involved in Scottish football.
“Fundamentally, the Celtic Board has also been very mindful of the need to take what it believes to be the correct course of action in protecting the integrity of the game in Scotland.
“Throughout the whole sequence of events leading up to today’s decision the Celtic Board has been of the singular view that the integrity of the game in Scotland is of paramount importance.”
The Rangers Supporters’ Trust, meanwhile, accused other SPL clubs of acting out of “malice”.
Mark Dingwall, as spokesman for the Trust, said: “We are disappointed but not surprised by this decision which has been taken out of malice rather than for the greater good of the Scottish game.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/rangers/9376851/Rangers-hopes-of-reprieve-in-SPL-vote-sunk-by-arrogant-Malcolm-Murray.html
Scottish football is in danger of a 'slow, lingering death' if newco Rangers enter the Scottish Football League at the third division, according to Scottish Football Association chief executive Stewart Regan.
In the immediate aftermath of Scottish Premier League clubs rejecting Charles Green's application for top-flight entry, Regan also made a stark claim that depriving Rangers fans of their team would spark "social unrest".
Regan made it clear the SFA could not allow the Ibrox club to start at the bottom, meaning Scottish Football League clubs face the prospect of an SPL2 breakaway if they reject a plan to put them in the First Division.
Regan said: "The only solution for the game now is that Rangers come into the Scottish Football League and they come into it in the First Division.
"If Rangers were to go anywhere other than the First Division, then there would something in the region of £15.7million worth of losses to the game.
"For the bigger clubs at the top of the league, that's half their annual distributions. For clubs at the bottom it is basically wiping out their entire distributions, for some of the smaller clubs it's a huge proportion of their annual turnover.
"Even if Rangers end up in the First Division, there is still going to be a £5million loss of income to the SPL clubs.
"The game is not sustainable so there would be a slow lingering death for the game in Scotland.
"It would then trickle down to the SFL. From our perspective as the governing body, we cannot allow that to happen."
The SFA chief executive also confirmed a real threat to television contracts.
"We have had dialogue with the broadcasters and we understand what the various stakeholders from Sky television, ESPN, Sport Five and a number of the SPL's other commercial partners are likely to do in the event Rangers are not in either of the top two tiers," he said. "It's not pretty.
"That's why we cannot sit back and let that happen without trying to get all parties to accept this is the only solution which can keep the game afloat.
"Without Old Firm games, the value drops, the overseas deals are almost exclusively about the Old Firm derby and that would go immediately.
"It is fair to say the broadcasters would live with a year without Rangers in the SPL, because it could be a fantastic story for them, which is why I think First Division rights will be an interest as people will want to see how this club is going to bounce back."
Sevco Scotland's application to assume Rangers' membership of the SFA is also outstanding and it is believed not all relevant information was received in the company's application pack on Friday.
Rangers faced possible suspension and termination of membership if they did not accept a transfer embargo but Regan believes there would be dire consequences if there was no football at Ibrox.
"Without Rangers, there is social unrest and a big problem for Scottish society," said the Englishman.
"There are thousands of Rangers fans whose fathers and parents and grandfathers have been Rangers fans. You can't contemplate a situation without that and if Rangers weren't to exist that could have real dire consequences."
But the SFA will not allow the new Rangers to start with a clean slate.
"The membership cannot be transferred on financial grounds alone," he said. "It has to have a degree of sporting integrity and that means sporting sanctions."
http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11788/7869515/Regan-fears-for-Scottish-game
Is anyone outside Rangers buying this crap?
In the immediate aftermath of Scottish Premier League clubs rejecting Charles Green's application for top-flight entry, Regan also made a stark claim that depriving Rangers fans of their team would spark "social unrest".
Regan made it clear the SFA could not allow the Ibrox club to start at the bottom, meaning Scottish Football League clubs face the prospect of an SPL2 breakaway if they reject a plan to put them in the First Division.
Regan said: "The only solution for the game now is that Rangers come into the Scottish Football League and they come into it in the First Division.
"If Rangers were to go anywhere other than the First Division, then there would something in the region of £15.7million worth of losses to the game.
"For the bigger clubs at the top of the league, that's half their annual distributions. For clubs at the bottom it is basically wiping out their entire distributions, for some of the smaller clubs it's a huge proportion of their annual turnover.
"Even if Rangers end up in the First Division, there is still going to be a £5million loss of income to the SPL clubs.
"The game is not sustainable so there would be a slow lingering death for the game in Scotland.
"It would then trickle down to the SFL. From our perspective as the governing body, we cannot allow that to happen."
The SFA chief executive also confirmed a real threat to television contracts.
"We have had dialogue with the broadcasters and we understand what the various stakeholders from Sky television, ESPN, Sport Five and a number of the SPL's other commercial partners are likely to do in the event Rangers are not in either of the top two tiers," he said. "It's not pretty.
"That's why we cannot sit back and let that happen without trying to get all parties to accept this is the only solution which can keep the game afloat.
"Without Old Firm games, the value drops, the overseas deals are almost exclusively about the Old Firm derby and that would go immediately.
"It is fair to say the broadcasters would live with a year without Rangers in the SPL, because it could be a fantastic story for them, which is why I think First Division rights will be an interest as people will want to see how this club is going to bounce back."
Sevco Scotland's application to assume Rangers' membership of the SFA is also outstanding and it is believed not all relevant information was received in the company's application pack on Friday.
Rangers faced possible suspension and termination of membership if they did not accept a transfer embargo but Regan believes there would be dire consequences if there was no football at Ibrox.
"Without Rangers, there is social unrest and a big problem for Scottish society," said the Englishman.
"There are thousands of Rangers fans whose fathers and parents and grandfathers have been Rangers fans. You can't contemplate a situation without that and if Rangers weren't to exist that could have real dire consequences."
But the SFA will not allow the new Rangers to start with a clean slate.
"The membership cannot be transferred on financial grounds alone," he said. "It has to have a degree of sporting integrity and that means sporting sanctions."
http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11788/7869515/Regan-fears-for-Scottish-game
Is anyone outside Rangers buying this crap?
jaysea67
Erik Edman
Rangers face pre-season chaos after Germany tour is cancelled
• Tour organisers call off German trip
• Southampton and Le Havre had also pulled out of fixtures
Rangers have been left without any pre-season matches after organisers of their tour of Germany cancelled the trip.
The "newco" Rangers suffered further rejection a day after being denied entry to the Scottish Premier League. A statement on the club's website read: "The Rangers Football Club has been informed by the organisers of our pre-season trip to Germany that they can no longer offer us a place on the tour.
"The team was due to play three games in Germany between 18-25 July, but the trip will now not take place at their request."
Southampton and Le Havre had previously withdrawn invitations to Ally McCoist's team to play pre-season fixtures.
More at http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/jul/05/rangers-germany-tour-cancelled
The Guardian report also says Rangers currently only have 13 senior players confirmed in their squad.
• Tour organisers call off German trip
• Southampton and Le Havre had also pulled out of fixtures
Rangers have been left without any pre-season matches after organisers of their tour of Germany cancelled the trip.
The "newco" Rangers suffered further rejection a day after being denied entry to the Scottish Premier League. A statement on the club's website read: "The Rangers Football Club has been informed by the organisers of our pre-season trip to Germany that they can no longer offer us a place on the tour.
"The team was due to play three games in Germany between 18-25 July, but the trip will now not take place at their request."
Southampton and Le Havre had previously withdrawn invitations to Ally McCoist's team to play pre-season fixtures.
More at http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/jul/05/rangers-germany-tour-cancelled
The Guardian report also says Rangers currently only have 13 senior players confirmed in their squad.
greatwhitenorf
Dean Richards
If they really want to punish Rangers, they must be made to pay their tax debts in full. So wouldn't HMRC move in to seize tangible assets. Ibrox stadium would top my list. Is the stadium in jeopardy of being seized and sold? If so, where would the Newco Rangers play out of?
Rangers in crisis: Friday the 13th could be particularly unlucky for Ibrox newco
No twist has yet proved too bizarre or improbable to be incorporated into the melodrama which unfolds daily – and sometimes by the minute – at Rangers.
A misconception gained currency this week that the Scottish FootballLeague had fixed next Thursday as the day upon which the Rangers newco’s fate would be determined, either as a parachuted entry into the first division or through the third and lowest tier.
“Do you seriously think we would choose the 12th of July as the day to relaunch Rangers?” one SFL luminary asked rhetorically, in an unsubtle reference to a date which – with its specific reference to Irish history – has been commemorated in more than one ballad from the Ibrox songbook over the years.
Having chosen to avoid that particular niche in the calendar, the SFL board on Thursday fixed upon the equally resonant Friday the 13th, a day dear to the hearts of fans of the slasher movie genre.
In this instance, the tension in the plot arises from the desire of many Rangers fans – egged on by some SFL chairmen – to start again in the basement, in contrast to a horrified audience of administrators and SPL chairmen (including some who voted to sling them out of the top league) who are screaming: “Don’t go down to the cellar!”
More prosaically, David Longmuir – chief executive of the SFL – confirmed the date after the league’s directors met at Hampden Park.
Longmuir said: “A specially convened meeting of all clubs is planned for next Friday.”
Longmuir asked for the 30 clubs to be afforded time and space to come to a decision after some claimed they had been “bullied” into accepting the newco club into the first division. The Scottish Football Association chief executive, Stewart Regan, warned that the game in Scotland faced a “slow, lingering death” if the Ibrox club has to restart in the third division.
Regan claimed that Scottish Premier League clubs, who rejected the new company’s top-flight application, stand to lose £15.7 million if Rangers go to the bottom division. In that case, the cascade effect would tip some SPL clubs – by their own admission – into administration, with several lower league clubs in similar peril.
Longmuir said: “The time has come for all outside influences and pressures to stop. So I ask all other bodies to leave it to those who have been put in this invidious position to make a decision in the best possible interests of the game.
“I have every faith in the judgment of those clubs and their boards to make a decision, considered and reasoned, which will be in the best interests of the game, how it’s structured, how it’s governed and how it’s financed.”
Longmuir also revealed details of the voting process that will be applied. The first vote will decide if the SFL can accept Rangers, with a simple majority required.
If that ballot is in favour of a Rangers application, it will be, according to Longmuir, “supplemented by further resolutions that we would have to implement to change our rules.
“The SFL clubs clearly have choices but what we plan to do is make the choices very, very clear to them by giving them the right information and to work over the next week to pull together the plan that’s going to take the game forward through this mini crisis. I believe that with proper collaboration we can get everybody onside with this.”
Meanwhile, more details of the SPL special general meeting – at which the Rangers newco was denied entry – have emerged. The Daily Telegraph has obtained a copy of the document distributed to the delegates by Rangers, a five-page paper item composed by Charles Green, frontman for the Sevco consortium which assumed control last month.
One key section of the document was headed ‘To satisfy SFA’ and contained the following points:
“Pay fines of £195,000 to SFA including court costs; Voluntary sanctions of undertaking not to sign players for one year; Accepting Carloway judgment/rejecting Lord Glennie judgment/Newco would vote in favour of voting reform; Newco prepared to pay certain oldco debts/Full amounts outstanding – SFA clubs £856k, European clubs €3.1 million.”
An SPL chairman who was present at the meeting said last night: “The brochure was very unimpressive and even more so because the wee diddy clubs got copies that were stapled together, but Celtic’s was spiral bound.
“It was also more than unfortunate that they were open at the page which referred to the voluntary transfer embargo when somebody got an alert on their Blackberry to say that Ian Black had announced he would sign for Rangers if they were accepted into the SPL.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/rangers/9379754/Rangers-in-crisis-Friday-the-13th-could-be-particularly-unlucky-for-Ibrox-newco.html
No twist has yet proved too bizarre or improbable to be incorporated into the melodrama which unfolds daily – and sometimes by the minute – at Rangers.
A misconception gained currency this week that the Scottish FootballLeague had fixed next Thursday as the day upon which the Rangers newco’s fate would be determined, either as a parachuted entry into the first division or through the third and lowest tier.
“Do you seriously think we would choose the 12th of July as the day to relaunch Rangers?” one SFL luminary asked rhetorically, in an unsubtle reference to a date which – with its specific reference to Irish history – has been commemorated in more than one ballad from the Ibrox songbook over the years.
Having chosen to avoid that particular niche in the calendar, the SFL board on Thursday fixed upon the equally resonant Friday the 13th, a day dear to the hearts of fans of the slasher movie genre.
In this instance, the tension in the plot arises from the desire of many Rangers fans – egged on by some SFL chairmen – to start again in the basement, in contrast to a horrified audience of administrators and SPL chairmen (including some who voted to sling them out of the top league) who are screaming: “Don’t go down to the cellar!”
More prosaically, David Longmuir – chief executive of the SFL – confirmed the date after the league’s directors met at Hampden Park.
Longmuir said: “A specially convened meeting of all clubs is planned for next Friday.”
Longmuir asked for the 30 clubs to be afforded time and space to come to a decision after some claimed they had been “bullied” into accepting the newco club into the first division. The Scottish Football Association chief executive, Stewart Regan, warned that the game in Scotland faced a “slow, lingering death” if the Ibrox club has to restart in the third division.
Regan claimed that Scottish Premier League clubs, who rejected the new company’s top-flight application, stand to lose £15.7 million if Rangers go to the bottom division. In that case, the cascade effect would tip some SPL clubs – by their own admission – into administration, with several lower league clubs in similar peril.
Longmuir said: “The time has come for all outside influences and pressures to stop. So I ask all other bodies to leave it to those who have been put in this invidious position to make a decision in the best possible interests of the game.
“I have every faith in the judgment of those clubs and their boards to make a decision, considered and reasoned, which will be in the best interests of the game, how it’s structured, how it’s governed and how it’s financed.”
Longmuir also revealed details of the voting process that will be applied. The first vote will decide if the SFL can accept Rangers, with a simple majority required.
If that ballot is in favour of a Rangers application, it will be, according to Longmuir, “supplemented by further resolutions that we would have to implement to change our rules.
“The SFL clubs clearly have choices but what we plan to do is make the choices very, very clear to them by giving them the right information and to work over the next week to pull together the plan that’s going to take the game forward through this mini crisis. I believe that with proper collaboration we can get everybody onside with this.”
Meanwhile, more details of the SPL special general meeting – at which the Rangers newco was denied entry – have emerged. The Daily Telegraph has obtained a copy of the document distributed to the delegates by Rangers, a five-page paper item composed by Charles Green, frontman for the Sevco consortium which assumed control last month.
One key section of the document was headed ‘To satisfy SFA’ and contained the following points:
“Pay fines of £195,000 to SFA including court costs; Voluntary sanctions of undertaking not to sign players for one year; Accepting Carloway judgment/rejecting Lord Glennie judgment/Newco would vote in favour of voting reform; Newco prepared to pay certain oldco debts/Full amounts outstanding – SFA clubs £856k, European clubs €3.1 million.”
An SPL chairman who was present at the meeting said last night: “The brochure was very unimpressive and even more so because the wee diddy clubs got copies that were stapled together, but Celtic’s was spiral bound.
“It was also more than unfortunate that they were open at the page which referred to the voluntary transfer embargo when somebody got an alert on their Blackberry to say that Ian Black had announced he would sign for Rangers if they were accepted into the SPL.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/rangers/9379754/Rangers-in-crisis-Friday-the-13th-could-be-particularly-unlucky-for-Ibrox-newco.html
SFL Special General Meeting – Friday 13th July 2012
The club has this evening received the notice of resolutions to be voted on next Friday and we are told to expect an information pack at some time next week. We hope that this pack will present a more balanced report to SFL member clubs than they have so far received.
At last Tuesday’s meeting, financial information provided by Neil Doncaster showed an unrealistic worst case scenario. It showed the impact of potential total loss of 3 TV contracts, all of which had been inexplicably agreed on the basis that the broadcaster could walk away if either Rangers or Celtic were not in the SPL. His information did not, however, set out the potentially positive impact of negotiating replacement contracts with other broadcasters or alternatively the much mentioned possibility of launching SPL TV (which we understand could have been launched within a matter of months).
Mr Doncaster warned SFL members that if these contracts were indeed lost, this would mean the annual payment to the SFL under the Settlement Agreement would either be greatly reduced or not paid at all. Raith Rovers FC believes this not to be the case, and that the SPL would remain both contractually obliged and able to pay the £1.9m – £2m annual sum, even in that worst case scenario. We call upon the SFL Board to clarify its view on this vital point urgently, before club boards finalise their positions on these important votes.
We are also concerned that there has not as yet been an opportunity for clubs to receive legal advice from the SFL and/or debate the potential consequences on the smooth running of our league in the event that the Courts are asked to annull/strike down any of the corporate transactions that have led to the current position of Sevco Scotland Ltd as owners of certain assets of the Rangers oldco. Indeed, the position as regards the potential sanctions to be applied by the Scottish FA via its Appellate Tribunal has also still to be bottomed out. In summary, we remain concerned that the SPL clubs have overwhelmingly voted to pass on this potential time bomb, which may yet explode once passed to the SFL’s jurisdiction, and we are being asked to accept this new company into membership, worse still in our top division.
Without all of this information, and the opportunity for clubs to further discuss these issues on a fully informed basis amongst themselves before the formal SGM, in a similar format to last Tuesday’s meeting, we are concerned that the fairness and transparency of the process itself is at risk of being compromised.
Raith Rovers FC will consider its stance with regard to attendance at this meeting once we receive the information from the SFL.
http://www.raithrovers.net/3998/sfl-special-general-meeting-friday-13th-july-2012.htm
The club has this evening received the notice of resolutions to be voted on next Friday and we are told to expect an information pack at some time next week. We hope that this pack will present a more balanced report to SFL member clubs than they have so far received.
At last Tuesday’s meeting, financial information provided by Neil Doncaster showed an unrealistic worst case scenario. It showed the impact of potential total loss of 3 TV contracts, all of which had been inexplicably agreed on the basis that the broadcaster could walk away if either Rangers or Celtic were not in the SPL. His information did not, however, set out the potentially positive impact of negotiating replacement contracts with other broadcasters or alternatively the much mentioned possibility of launching SPL TV (which we understand could have been launched within a matter of months).
Mr Doncaster warned SFL members that if these contracts were indeed lost, this would mean the annual payment to the SFL under the Settlement Agreement would either be greatly reduced or not paid at all. Raith Rovers FC believes this not to be the case, and that the SPL would remain both contractually obliged and able to pay the £1.9m – £2m annual sum, even in that worst case scenario. We call upon the SFL Board to clarify its view on this vital point urgently, before club boards finalise their positions on these important votes.
We are also concerned that there has not as yet been an opportunity for clubs to receive legal advice from the SFL and/or debate the potential consequences on the smooth running of our league in the event that the Courts are asked to annull/strike down any of the corporate transactions that have led to the current position of Sevco Scotland Ltd as owners of certain assets of the Rangers oldco. Indeed, the position as regards the potential sanctions to be applied by the Scottish FA via its Appellate Tribunal has also still to be bottomed out. In summary, we remain concerned that the SPL clubs have overwhelmingly voted to pass on this potential time bomb, which may yet explode once passed to the SFL’s jurisdiction, and we are being asked to accept this new company into membership, worse still in our top division.
Without all of this information, and the opportunity for clubs to further discuss these issues on a fully informed basis amongst themselves before the formal SGM, in a similar format to last Tuesday’s meeting, we are concerned that the fairness and transparency of the process itself is at risk of being compromised.
Raith Rovers FC will consider its stance with regard to attendance at this meeting once we receive the information from the SFL.
http://www.raithrovers.net/3998/sfl-special-general-meeting-friday-13th-july-2012.htm
Howard Webb
Clive Wilson
"The broadcaster could walk away if celtic or rangers were not involved" - astounding.
DubaiSpur
Ian Walker
I suppose people would feel much better if there was instead a big banner that read 'Clydesdale Bank Premier League; Saved by absolute lack of sporting integrity, hurrah!'
And as for being 'saved', that in itself is highly debatable. Scottish football was dying slowly for years before this anyway. This could be a chance for some real reform that benefits all of the clubs, not just the odd couple at the top. An opportunity to end the Celtic-Rangers duopoly, and implement an equal TV deal that gives other clubs a fighting chance. To wash away the mold, and start afresh, and to hell with the financial hit.
I hope they take it.
Scottish Football League clubs will be asked on Friday to allow Rangers into their structure and leave their board to decide which division they play in.
This is revealed in the resolution, obtained by BBC Scotland, on which they will vote as they consider the new Rangers' application for membership.
Rangers could enter Division One or the bottom tier, Division Three.
Approval of the resignation of the club moving to the top flight - Dundee or Dunfermline - will also be sought.
Rangers, who are being relaunched by a new company after the former incarnation could not be saved from liquidation, had their application to replace the old Ibrox club in the Scottish Premier League formally rejected on Wednesday.
Later that day, chief executive Charles Green confirmed that Rangers had applied to join the SFL and would enter whichever division the organisation deemed fit.
Scottish Football Association chief executive feels Rangers should enter Division One - the league below the SPL - as he fears placing the club in the bottom Third Division would cause financial difficulty for clubs.
However, several SFL clubs, who will meet at Hampden for Friday's vote, have already stated their preference for Rangers to start in Division Three.
The notice of the special general meeting proposes "that Rangers FC shall play in the Third Division of the Scottish Football League during Season 2012/13 unless the board shall have to its satisfaction negotiated and reached agreement with The Scottish Premier League and The Scottish Football Association on a series of measures which the board shall consider to be in the best interests of the game...
"How it is structured, how it is governed and how it is financed, whereupon the board shall be authorised to provide that Rangers FC shall play in the First Division of the Scottish Football League during season 2012/13".
The document adds: "Details of the series of measures referred to...shall be made available to the members in advance of the meeting and an opportunity for full discussion of those measures will be given prior to the proposals being put to the meeting."
It is not known when the issue of whether Dundee or Dunfermline replace the old Rangers in the SPL will be decided, with the former finishing runners-up to promoted Ross County in last season's First Division and the Pars being relegated from the top flight.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18754479
This is revealed in the resolution, obtained by BBC Scotland, on which they will vote as they consider the new Rangers' application for membership.
Rangers could enter Division One or the bottom tier, Division Three.
Approval of the resignation of the club moving to the top flight - Dundee or Dunfermline - will also be sought.
Rangers, who are being relaunched by a new company after the former incarnation could not be saved from liquidation, had their application to replace the old Ibrox club in the Scottish Premier League formally rejected on Wednesday.
Later that day, chief executive Charles Green confirmed that Rangers had applied to join the SFL and would enter whichever division the organisation deemed fit.
Scottish Football Association chief executive feels Rangers should enter Division One - the league below the SPL - as he fears placing the club in the bottom Third Division would cause financial difficulty for clubs.
However, several SFL clubs, who will meet at Hampden for Friday's vote, have already stated their preference for Rangers to start in Division Three.
The notice of the special general meeting proposes "that Rangers FC shall play in the Third Division of the Scottish Football League during Season 2012/13 unless the board shall have to its satisfaction negotiated and reached agreement with The Scottish Premier League and The Scottish Football Association on a series of measures which the board shall consider to be in the best interests of the game...
"How it is structured, how it is governed and how it is financed, whereupon the board shall be authorised to provide that Rangers FC shall play in the First Division of the Scottish Football League during season 2012/13".
The document adds: "Details of the series of measures referred to...shall be made available to the members in advance of the meeting and an opportunity for full discussion of those measures will be given prior to the proposals being put to the meeting."
It is not known when the issue of whether Dundee or Dunfermline replace the old Rangers in the SPL will be decided, with the former finishing runners-up to promoted Ross County in last season's First Division and the Pars being relegated from the top flight.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18754479
chancer
Gudni Bergsson
The Dundee/Dunfermline situation is interesting. Hard to say where natural justice lies, but my feeling is that giving the relegated team a reprieve seems correct.
On Rangers, the essential problem seems to be that they are having to simply rip up existing rules and contracts and hope everyone goes along with an essentially illegitimate and arbitrary fix. A total mess, but it's hard to see that they have any other choice but to crow-bar Rangers in somewhere and hope it all goes smoothly.
On Rangers, the essential problem seems to be that they are having to simply rip up existing rules and contracts and hope everyone goes along with an essentially illegitimate and arbitrary fix. A total mess, but it's hard to see that they have any other choice but to crow-bar Rangers in somewhere and hope it all goes smoothly.