26th of foot

It's a difficult choice. Listen to any number of Krauts assuring you they have no intention of ever invading Poland, again! or Listen to our Great Leader issue further assurances that he will never, ever take another slice from the dripping roast that is the Rangers support. The kaffee und kuchen is better in Berlin, you can claim you are a small doughnut, and you are closer to the panzer pope emotion. On reflection, it's a no brainer.

Oh, I have the same suspicion. Today's Herald carried a positive story on SDM's latest London property aquisition, in their financial pages. He has wriggle room again and I imagine will get quite bullish as the club AGM approaches.

Interestingly, Glenn Gibbons penned a similar pernicious take on Old Trafford events. Of course, the discredited journo(ra Bhoy in Corduroy) loves to lionise Gibbons by continually referring to him as, 'the Great Gibbo'. There is a growing raft of journos getting increasingly upset because our club and support do not know(accept) our place. Good.

If John McLellan wishes to bring parity to the sectarian debate, he can start with the publication that he Edits. An objective glimpse of the produce of Tom English, Martin Hannan, Aidan Smith, Simon Pia, Glenn Gibbons, ................................ etc over the last few years would lead to the conclusion that his fellow Bears should at least be allowed to participate in the debate. It seems the host of above writers are allowed to perpetuate their warped views of our club and support, with impunity. The Scotsman forums are particularly one sided in any debate involving Rangers. The fantasist, Phil McGillivan(BoscoBhoy in Letterkenny) is a daily contributor, often openly boasting about his contacts with fellow 'Irish'(Phil was born'n'bred in Baillieston) hacks on the publication. It's all about language, if you accept, or are forced to accept the language(ie terms and termonology) of your opponent, then you have lost said debate before participation.

Ah, horny handed son of the soil, Aidan Smith. Aidan spent a dozen years or more pumping out his working class credentials, the only thing more important to him was articulating his Rangers hating credentials. Then, three, four years past, we find out that Aidan was schooled at Fettes College; yep, the same Alma Mater as Tony Blair, General John de Chasterlain, ...................... and David Murray. Further, Aidan was a Sellik supporter as a bhoy, a teenager, an undergraduate, and WTF .................... he has been a Hibee fror the last couple of decades. The one constant in his fantasy ridden life(shades of Phil McGilliven) is his hatred of all things Rangers, and it's given him and his family a good living. Oh, I should mention, Aidan was a Jambo for a year, wrote a book about it and made a name and a fair amount of cash. Aidan used to be big on the corrolation between Rangers and the Establishment. He empathised with all Rangers opposition, he shared the feeling of perpetual vicTIMhood. Every Fettesian constantly complains about double vicTIMhood, first thing Monday morning carriculum! Aidan is a prick.

I agree. Nithsdale have carried the Rangers banner for all Bears. If, let's hope when this victory is confirmed; the doubters among our support will see the potential effect of the Rangers support flexing it's collective muscle. Nithsdale RSC have been pro-active on this matter and deserve all plaudits. Cheer them to the echo, I say.

Case is being continued next Wednesday. The word is that Dundee United's representation attempted to filibuster to ensure a continuance. Further, Nithsdale are winning on points by quite a margin, Dundee Hibs are on the ropes and are only postponing the inevitable.

An East Wing in the Lothians! Oh, HMP Saughton.

No, no, and thrice no. Save any home tie for the quarter finals.

After the sacking of Bitter Martin as Radio Snyde's Head of Sport, Jim Delahunt has taken over and he is as seriously Sellik-minded as his predecessor. Anxious to prove his credentials, he was the proverbial rabid Yahoo with a bone on Friday evening in the wake of the CL draw, ensuring another visit to Manchester for the Bears. Jim wondered aloud if the Manchester authorities would want Rangers back, the Police, the emergency services, would Rangers be better not taking any tickets. A Bear takes the bait and calls, reprimands Delahunt's portrayal, asks how many convictions from a 200,000 travelling support? It descends into a shouting match and Delahunt plays his ace by highlighting a police officer being set upon and a woman dragged from her vehicle by a baying mob. Of course, the caller was cut-off and no comeback allowed. If Delahunt is articulating the principle that the actions of a few dragging a lady from her car, should ensure a no-go for the Rangers support? Then, Radio Snyde will no longer send correspondents to ra Stydome, on a matter of principle you understand. Let me explain, the same season that initiated this thread, sawra Sellik clinch the league title on the last day of the season by beating St Johnstone 2-zip at ra Stadde de Gadd. Radio Snyde's correspondent that day was Jim White. Over an hour after the festivities had concluded, he walked out to his car in the car park. He was driving down Kerrydale Street on to London Road when he was recognised and his car was surrounded. He was dragged out his car, beaten up, and hospitalised. He was detained in hospital overnight for observation. Now, as Radio Snyde Head of Sport, the principled Jim Delahunt will ensure his employees' safety by NOT sending them to ra Stydome, won't he? Paul Cooney was Head of Sport then and he could not even bring himself to mention the incident, well Paul was Sellik's PRO for a couple of years and he never stopped doing the job. Bitter Martin took over and Jim White moved to Sky, still never mentioned it. I wonder if Jim is aware? Radio Snyde and principles, truly odd bedfellows.

Bluedell, Why have you posted a picture of Arthur Askey?

In the last four days, they have entered a vortex of depression. The Erskine Bridge administration should be alerted as they lurch from ludicrous claims to vivid reality. On Sunday evening, James Forrest was the new AidenBhoy, Benny Lemmon was getting it right(again), and Robbie Keane was once again in the bowels of ra Stydome having another medical. Today, it all sounds like quadruple Dutch! Oh, and how about Aiden's vow to learn Russian? See, AidenBhoy is pyoor roots an'at kno', like the rest of his family, born, bred, and educated in aul Ireland. A practical broth of a Bhoy to be sure, Aiden's first request was how to say, 'be sure and bygorra, whur can I purchase ten pounds of potatoes'?

It was the season of our failed attempt at ten-in-a-row, we lost a CL qualifier to Gothenburg in August, then lost a UEFA Cup tie to Strasburg in late September. By the Ne'rday game at ra Stydome, we were off the pace in the league championship to Vim ra Tim's green'n'grey hooped horrors. By Spring a faltering Sellik and a re-energised Rangers saw a double header old firm match-up in both the Scottish Cup and the League. At the neutral Stydome, Rangers wiped the floor with ra Yahoos, Jorg Albertz running more than half the pitch before slotting home the clincher in the semi-final. The following week at Ibrox, Jorg replicated the feat. Rangers edged ahead on goal difference and ra Sellik faithfull in both broadcast and print media went into meltdown. As usual in those days, Radio Snyde was at the forefront in articulating Yahoo hurt. Chief Executive, Paul Cooney hosted the phone-in in the immediate wake of the Ibrox victory. A Bear came on and celebrated the two victories on successive Saturdays, eulogising Albertz's goals. He added that if the two teams were to meet next weekend, Jorg would do the same again. Cooney lost it, let himself down by accusing the Bear of gloating! Cooney recovered enough to ask Nuremburg Hugh for his reaction to the caller? Ra Shugster cleared his throat and spat venom, "all this from a Rangers supporter whose team was knocked out of Europe twice before the nights got dark". Cooney congratulated Nuremburg on his, "fantasTIC retort". What goes around, comes around and last evening saw Hugh's beloved Sellik equal that feat. Out of Europe twice before the nights got dark, in fact out of Europe twice before the transfer window has closed. Further, out of Europe on four(yep FOUR) seperate occasions in a calendar year. Knocked out by Arsenal on 260809 at 21.45hrs and succumbed last evening(260810) at 21.15hrs. Hey Nuremburg, GIRFUY.

The correct tone. Humility expressed whilst restoring dignity to one our teenage gallant pioneers. Well done to all involved.

Three years past, BBC Radio Scotland did a half hour documentary on the derivation of the song, 'You'll Never Walk Alone'. Fair enough; however, it was scheduled for broadcast at 11.30am on a Sunday morning. The particular Sunday morning utilised was immediately before their live commentary broadcast from Ibrox, of an old firm game(kick-off 12.30pm). I listened to the ducumentary whilst travelling to the match, it was much as expected. After exploring it's stage and screen musical beginnings and glossing over Liverpool's ownership of the song in the 50's and 60's, we got into the real meat for twenty minutes, ra Sellik's obsession. Richard Gordon told how the hairs on the back of his neck would react during a Stydome rendition, Spiers proclaimed it as the greatest football anthem, and Begg told of the inability of hearing oneself during it's singing. All of this over a background of the song in constant refrain. The best bit was two Sellik supporters(that is how they were presented) eulogised the song, one stating he thought of his dead mother whilst singing it at ra Stydome. I noted both Sellik supporters names and Googled them the next day, here's the surprise, both of them were/are senior Producers at BBC Scotland. This was during the scandal of BBC Producers in the rest of the country falling on their swords because they were posing as ordinary members of the public whilst telephoning shows they were producing. You couldn't make it up!

'And if you know your history' is Tom Devine's title, one word away from a line in ra Sellik Song. Even the Alternative History thing is derivitive of former Sellik View columnist, Matt McGloan's 'zine, 'the Alternative View'. Who is the Producer?

Well said, good warning. Last evening, I sat down and attempted to watch Brendan O'Hara's take on season 98/99. The Football Years contains lots of good footage, but the intervening commentary provided by the likes of Spiers, ensured it was turned over after several minutes. Spiers summing up on the arrival of Advocaat, "immediately, we took to calling him wee Dick". Accompanied by a wry smile. Seriously, anything done by BBC Scotland these last twenty years, is dominated absolutely by a Not the View mindset.

I am bereft. We are two months from our first CL match and we are selling Thomson on the cheap!

There is, and always has been a sizeable element of ra Sellik support, right across their demongraphic that have/had a problem with the Disaster. Let's go back twenty years to the twentieth anniversary of the event, another old firm match at Ibrox. We won 2-0, goals by Walters and Robertson. I was working in the south of England, a window of opportunity allowed me to travel up, and secure a ticket for the west enclosure 45 minutes before kick-off. As the referee called the skipers together, the PA bellowed there would be a minute's silence in memory of the 66 supporters who perished 20 years previously. Both sets of players gathered around the centre circle, the referee blow the whistle, there was silence. I stood in the west enclosure with my Walkman headphones over my ears, tuned to Radio Clyde. Clyde's host broadcaster that day was former Sellik PRO, Paul Cooney. They left the microphones open but pulled the plug several seconds later. You see a sizeable section of the Broomloan began a chant, 'what a helluva way to die, to die an orange bastard'. It grew, Paul McStay brook ranks in the cenre circle, turned to the Broomloan and gesticulated for them to stop. Partly, it worked as several dozen kept it going and the last dozen seconds of a clearly shortened minute saw 400-500 take the chant back up. Bears around me had maintained their discipline, but the ref's whistle saw a surge towards the walll, in aqn attempt to get at a grouping of Yahoos continuing the chant a dozen yards away. Older will remember sways and we were moved down 3-4 steps by the emotion. As Bears chanted, 'Scum', Paul Cooney came back on and said the following, "the silence was well observed on all sides, you could have heard a pin drop" It's worth repeating what Clyde's Head of Sport and soon to be Chief Executive said, "the silence was well observed on all sides, you could have heard a pin drop". Why did Cooney tell such a blatent lie? The Sun's front page headline the next day was 'SCUM' and contained another two pages condemning the callousness of a sizeable section of the Celtic support. Radio Clyde REFUSED to take one call on the incident. Five years late, Fergus McCann attempted to atone for his club's supports' behaviour by taking the microphone on the pitch before the New Year's old firm game. He began to explain the circumstances of a request he wanted to make, and again a sizeable section of the support drowned him out by continuous booing. One thing is certain, both Lawwell and Reid wil NOT do anything to improve matters.

Vincent Doherty has articulated HATE from a perceived position of moral superiority. My old man always left games early, we walked down Stairway 13 two to three minutes before the end of the match. We crossed Harrison Drive as a section of the crowd roared, another roar lifted as we navigated Ibroxholm Oval. The goals had nothing to do with events; open access, a stairway dog leg, towering blackened railway sleepers, and a poorly angled exit were the causes. A thirty minute walk to the car, followed by a forty-five minute drive to Lanarkshire, only when arriving home did we hear there had been an incident. My parents attended a neighbour's New Years party, my best friend sat in our house watching regular news bulletins during the evening, the death toll climbed continuously. A Vincent Price film, 'the Mask of the Red Death' was on, another bullentin announced the total had reached 66. The next days the newspapers carried photos of buckled metal and hundreds of discarded shoes on grey concrete. Both the deceased and the survivors were swpt out of their shoes by the force. Maybe we should all send Vincent Doherty a discarded shoe to elicit some human decency?

Ra Sellik player you refer to is Liam Miller. Currently starring in Hibs midfield. Miller was slightly different to Wilson, he had experienced several years of constant injury whilst a Sellik youth/reserve player and was 23(I think) when he left for Old Trafford. I attended the NARSA AGM last month and the steller aray of Rangers worthies at the top table did ninety minute Q and A. Wilson's situation was a direct question, "is he being badly advised"? Walter was most open, the lad wants to leave, I want him to stay, he will only leave when Rangers receive the required remuneration. Martin Bain chipped in with the fact he had been offered the best deal the club had ever made to an 18 year old. I watched Wilson come through the youth set-up, saw him play on a dozen-15 occasions. Sometimes, he was less than impressive, that happens with young players, consistency is hard to achieve. However, Rangers gave him every opportunity, and you could see clear improvement. The most heard comparrison at the games from those of a certain vintage(myself included) was, 'he is Hansen-esque'. Elegant, sweet left foot, mostly always in the right position, commanding in the air, .....etc. It's only an opinion, but I think he could make it down south in the upper echelon. I am disappointed in his attitude, signing another contract would protect both his and the club's interests. As a matter of interest, I believe Alan Hansen was 22-23 when he moved from Thistle to Liverpool.

Captain Robert Nairac was abducted by PIRA in the car park of the Three Steps Pub in Drumintee, South Armagh. The Grenadier Guards officer was tortured before being shot dead across the border in County Lough. PIRA member Terry McCormick posed as a priest and took the rc soldier's last confession, immediately before shooting him dead. Robert Nairac's body has NEVER been found, PIRA have NEVER revealed the true location. A strange choice of Username?

John Fleck MUST be allowed to play centrally, behind the main striker. He is comfortable with his back to goal and can drop either shoulder. We will see the best of him in that position. I liked Charlie Adam, watched him coming through our youth ranks, always a heads up player. The vast majority of his first team games were wide left of the midfield. John Fleck is mostly starting in this position too. I understand every player has to submit to the overall benefit of the team, but we risk exposing Fleck to the same pressures that broke Adam. I hope Fleck does not have to leave Rangers to realise his true potential.

Currently, in Santa Barbara and not knowingly ever met Alan Walker, he sounds like my type of Bear. I will raise a glass or three of Sonoma Chardonnay this evening to a man that pioneered al Fresco chanting in the Marseille night air.

I do not have a DVD player; however, I will purchase the disc and dangle it from my rearview mirror in the Muslim fashion with CD version of the Koran. Having it in perpetual peritheral vision awards me a feeling of immense well being. I urge other Gersnetters to do likewise.