ian1964

RANGERS are exploring the potential of a formal relationship with the Brazilian club, Corinthians. Gordon Smith, the Ibrox sideâ??s director of football, is currently part of a trade delegation visiting the South American country, and has already been involved in talks with team officials. Although British clubs are restricted by work permit regulations to signing only full internationalists, meaning that Rangers could not bring young players over from Brazil, the Ibrox side could benefit from shared commercial and scouting expertise. It is understood that Smith could announce the tie-up on Thursday, when he returns from the trip. He is Rangersâ?? representative on the trade mission, which was organised by the Scottish Council for Development and Industry. Along with Michael Moore, the Secretary of State for Scotland, delegates from the golf, banking, whisky, oil and legal industries, among others, are taking part in the four-day visit, which began in Sao Paolo, where Corinthians are based, and is currently in Rio de Janeiro. â??Like many football clubs, Rangers are looking to develop their global brand and enter into partnerships with Brazilian clubs, most notably Corinthians,â? said Moore. â??Theyâ??ve also been attending the Soccerex Global Convention, the biggest soccer expo in the world and an opportunity for Rangers to show their wares. â??Rangers have a lot of interesting plans and it shows the world that Scotland can produce not just whisky and golf, but a lot of other cultural wares, such as Rangers.â? Smithâ??s visit is part of an ongoing bid by Rangers to strengthen their fanbase and income potential abroad. Ally McCoist, the Ibrox manager, spent some time in Argentina during the summer to look at players, while Sunil Chhetri and Jeje Lalpekhlua, two Indian strikers, are currently on trial at Murray Park. The former was offered a contract two years ago by Queens Park Rangers â?? where Ali Russell, Rangersâ?? chief executive, was working at the time â?? but couldnâ??t sign for the club due to work permit issues. With the British government keen to strengthen trade relations with India, it is felt that Rangers could secure the necessary paperwork if they choose to sign either player now. It is more difficult for British sides to sign South American players, which Gordon Strachan criticised during his time in charge of Celtic. Yet Manchester United had a working relationship with Corinthians, and once sent youth players to Sao Paolo during the summer to train with the Brazilian side. In June 2001, John Rankin was one of two United youth players to go to Brazil for a two-week training camp, although the pair returned early because there was no translator provided. Smithâ??s time in Brazil may result in a similar relationship with Corinthians. The Sao Paolo side currently top Brasileiro Serie A, but only by two points from Vasco de Gama and tension is building in the championship race. â??Itâ??s a crunch moment in the Brazilian league and Iâ??m bumping into lots of football fans of differing rivalries,â? said Moore. â??A lot of it would seem similar to people from Glasgow.â? Rangers, meanwhile, have agreed to play cash strapped Crusaders in Belfast next year. The Irish outfit, who have just settled a £350,000 tax bill, urgently require funds and the Ibrox side, despite their own financial problems, will play a fixture between January and March. â??We are delighted Rangers have said yes to our invitation,â? said a club spokesman. â??Obviously, they are a massive draw and we expect a capacity crowd.â? Liverpool, too, will play Crusaders in their bid to finance a move from their current ground to a new stadium at North Foreshore within the next few years. http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/rangers/smith-scouting-possible-corinthians-tie-up-on-south-american-trade-visit-1.1137078

Tuesday, 29 November 2011 NEW CELTIC BACKING FOR GREEN BRIGADE-Exclusive PETER LAWWELL and Joe O’Rourke have joined forces to sing the praises of the Green Brigade. The Celtic chief executive decided to make his first public statement about the Green Brigade for weeks, after staying silent during the recent news that UEFA and the SPL were investigating Celtic due to allegations by Parkhead match commander, superintendent Eddie Smith of IRA songs and chants from the Green Brigade. Throughout this period there was not a word of condemnation from Lawwell, the man who speaks with the official voice of Celtic. But he chose to speak out in the wake of Celtic’s win over St Mirren at Parkhead on Saturday and lavish praise on what he described as the Green Brigade’s support for the team Of course there was no mention of their support for the IRA’s ethnic cleansing campaign, celebrated in the Boys of the Old Brigade. Once again I draw attention to Lawwell’s only previous statement this season about the IRA element in the Celtic support, notably the Green Brigade, when he called for them to stop singing songs in praise of the PROVISIONAL IRA. The ethnic cleansing of the old IRA pre dates the Provos. Does Lawwell think that’s all right? It is difficult to know just exactly what was important about the statement from Peter Lawwell which was posted on the official Celtic web site and whether he had to consult owner Dermot Desmond before his words appeared on the web. One thing we do know is that the senior police officer whose dedication to duty has put Celtic in the UEFA and SPL docks, superintendent Eddie Smith, was not the match commander at the St Mirren game. That absence came just a couple of days after the Official Celtic Supporters Association – that’s the one headed by Joe O’Rourke - had a feisty meeting with assistant chief constable Campbell Corrigan, at which O’Rourke and his cronies spewed bile on superintendent Smith. Some people may grow suspicious that Dublin trained Corrigan is losing his bottle. Surely not? But it is a fact that the time scale shows a meeting between O’Rourke and Corrigan, at which there were complaints about Smith, which is immediately followed by Smith’s absence from his usual role as matchday commander at Parkhead. We know Smith was not there because none other than Joe O’Rourke has told us on the Official web site of the Official Celtic Supporters’ Association, of which he is the senior official. You can’t get more official than that. O’Rourke also took the chance to spell out his thanks to the Green Brigade for helping create a great atmosphere inside Parkhead during the game against St Mirren, echoing his master’s voice twenty four hours after Lawwell’s statement appeared on the Celtic Official site, making Lawwell’s verdict even more official. As for Smith’s absence? O’Rourke, possibly making mischief, or perhaps even gloating over a victory over the police, pondered that may have been due to shift patterns, which is no doubt how Corrigan may chose to explain it. However, if that is the case then Corrigan should have been aware of the appearance of a victory that would hand Celtic fans, coming hard on the heels of the meeting he had with them, and so ensured Smith was in his normal matchday commander position inside Parkhead last Saturday. As for Lawwell? Surely his statement had nothing to do with what appeared here last week when I urged Celtic supporters to examine the agents representing the players who have been signed during the management eras Gordon Strachan, Tony Mowbray and Neil Lennon and compare them with the agents of players wanted by various managers, but who did not sign for Celtic? Of course it didn’t. Did it? http://leggoland2.blogspot.com/2011/11/new-celtic-backing-for-green-brigade.html

RANGERS defender Kirk Broadfoot was targeted by his own yob fans when they surrounded his motor as he headed home from a game. Scotland star Broadfoot had stopped at traffic lights close to Kilmarnock's Rugby Park ground when the thugs pounced. He had just played in his team's 1-0 defeat on Sunday — and had his mum, dad and nine-year-old nephew in his Audi. Broadfoot's father got out of the vehicle to confront the louts as one of them started bashing the windows. The player then got out to try and calm things down before cops arrived on the scene. Broadfoot — who had been abused by Rangers fans during the lunchtime match — managed to drive off with his family. Last night a source said: "Kirk was getting trouble from fans during the game. "They were shouting abuse at him for what they thought was a poor performance. He'd been getting pelters. They just don't seem to take to Kirk. "After the game, at about 3pm, three so-called fans got in front of his car at traffic lights when he was driving his family home. "Kirk's dad got out of the car first to have it out with them, but Kirk followed quickly to make sure everything was ok. "There were police in the area and they came over to deal with the situation. They made sure the Broadfoots were okay. "Kirk and his dad were able to get back into their car and drive off while the police dealt with the supporters." Tensions between the star and fans rose during the SPL champions' first league defeat of the season. During the second half, a group of fans were involved in a war of words with Broadfoot at a corner kick. But the problems continued for the Gers star as the match ended in defeat for the Ibrox side. It's believed Broadfoot did not get the club coach back to Glasgow as he lives near Catrine, Ayrshire. He was instead driving his own car home with his family when the terrifying incident took place. Last night Rangers confirmed that chiefs at the club have spoken to their defender about the incident. We told yesterday how team-mate Kyle Lafferty had his motor trashed by yobs at a petrol station in Johnstone, Renfrewshire. Sources claim the 24-year-old striker was hassled in the shop before the windows in his car were smashed in what cops are treating as a sectarian attack on November 21. And just days earlier we told how thugs smashed a window at 23-year-old Celtic star Anthony Stokes' home in West Lothian, while his pregnant girlfriend Debbie Lawlor, 24, was alone inside. In May, Broadfoot was cleared of assaulting a businessman during a 3am scrap. A Strathclyde Police spokesman said they were aware of Sunday'a incident — but insisted no complaint was made. A cops source said: "There were three fans involved and they were giving him pelters, but there was no violence involved." Broadfoot refused to comment last night. Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/news/3965954/Rangers-star-ambushed-by-his-own-fans.html#ixzz1f33lhReW

Unlike you I don't think I have the power to decide how a forum should be run!,maybe you should take it up with the moderators?. Again don't read the thread if you're not interested,simples.

Rangers shamefully make money from Poppy campaign Poppygate rumbles on and so does Rangers shameful attempt to cash in. While the site was down the usual poppy debates found their way on to Celtic cyberspace. Ever since a group of Celtic fans exercised their right to freedom of expression poppygate has been a hot topic in Scotland. It has been a stick to beat us with from the media and its been yet another attempt by Rangers to shape the very foundation of their club by reacting to and opposing themselves to the actions of the Celtic support. Rangers were formed in unspectacular circumstances. They had a pretty boring and mundane existence until we came along. The family rowing club up until the formation of Glasgow Celtic were a club with very little prejudices. When Celtic were formed and quickly became a force in Scotland things changed. As we all know Irish Catholics were shunned and treated like third class citizens when they came across the water to find a better quality of life in Glasgow. Catholics need not apply signs were in a plenty as our ancestors searched for employment to keep their family fed and give them a roof over their head. Celtic were formed because of this, you all know the story. Rangers football club very quickly became a voice for the protestants who were unhappy at the arrival of so many catholics and the rapid growth and popularity of Celtic football club. If it wasnt for the formation of Celtic, Rangers wouldn’t be the hate filled club they are today. Its sad to say that we are partly responsible for the sectarian beast that plagues this country. On a brighter note its also amusing to explain to an uneducated bear that Celtic made their club what it is today. This usually wipes the smile from their face. Throughout history Rangers fans have gained identity and added certain politics to their support in direct opposition to the identity and politics of the Celtic support. From singing British anthems as a defence mechanism to our Irish ballads to the hijacking of the Poppy. Ever since the protest at Celtic park against the wearing of the poppy Rangers Football club have aligned themselves with the Poppy and have suddenly become a club that is the brother of the soldier. With service men and women constantly invited to Ibrox for the masses to see. Now if Rangers didn’t have history with this sort of thing I would be happy to praise them for their stance. Even if I didn’t agree with it. We all know however that everything Rangers have done since then has been in direct opposition to what a section of our support protested against. There are Rangers fans who wear the poppy on their top all year round and no one in their right mind believes these fools are doing so to show support for the British army. They are wearing the poppy on their top all year round because they want to ‘get it right up timmy’ They have hijacked a political symbol to assist in their eternal game of ‘lets do the exaclty the opposite of what Celtic fans do’ The funny thing about this is there are plenty of Celtic fans who do wear the poppy and who do support the armed forces. All around the stadium on the day of the protest their were Celtic supporters who wore poppies and did so freely and without comment. That is the beauty of the Celtic support. Rangers fans cant see past their own hate to see this and they have embarrassingly hijacked a political symbol in the hope that it makes our support feel more alienated. Let’s be honest because the alienation of our support is the goal here, its no different than the alienation of the Irish who came to Scotland in the hope of a better life. Its no different from the singing of Sectarian songs, The famine song and the imperialistic ‘we arra people’ mindset they harbour. If you thought Scotland had grown up then you only have to read the article on Phil Macs website recently re the Celtic fan who was treated like a threat to National security at Glasgow airport purely because he was a member of the Green Brigade. One Scotland many cultures. I digress. Rangers hijacking of the poppy up until recently was no more than an attempt to differentiate themselves from Celtic and this has been their get up since the beginning. Recently though this took a new turn when Rangers football club sold Poppy embroidered Rangers strips in an attempt to make money from the Poppy. I have tried to find out how much of the sale of each top goes to the poppy campaign but lone behold no one cold tell me. Only in Scotland would the media not pick up on the fact that Rangers were using a political campaign designed to raise money for the armed forces and injured soldiers to make money for themselves. Shameful and embarrassing Typical Rangers Scotland will only begin to change once the very root of the sectarian problem is challenged. The Orange Walks that plague our streets in celebration at the mass killing of a Catholic army is the main issue in my opinion. Once this is banned and it will be eventually only then will Scotland begin to move on. With a child on the way I pray that is sooner rather than later. Winner67 http://celtic-hub.com/main/2011/11/25/rangers-shamefully-make-money-from-poppy-campaign/

http://leggoland2.blogspot.com/

Published on Sunday 27 November 2011 00:52 SEVENTY-Five years after Celtic brought the first Indian player to Europe to play professional football, two others have arrived at Rangers. No doubt the trialists at Murray Park, Sunil Chhetri and Jeje Lalpekhlua, are well-versed on the story of their predecessor in Glasgow, Mohammed Salim, a talented winger who never quite made it, remembered in places as the Barefoot Indian of Celtic Park or The Juggler of Calcutta as one Scottish paper called him in 1936. Salimâ??s time here was short-lived. Homesickness got to him. Truth be told, we donâ??t know how long his countrymen are going to be around either. For the players, and for the club, their arrival is like a journey into the unknown. What chance have these guys? Long odds against, you have to say. Chhetri, more experienced and a proven international goalscorer, is considered the best bet, but then he failed to impress when at the Kansas City Wizards last year and didnâ??t hack it during a trial at Coventry a few years earlier. There are also work permit issues. QPR wanted to sign him in 2009 but he was turned down for a permit because India are miles outside the top-70 nations in the world rankings. They still are. And that is still a huge issue. Even if Rangers wanted to sign these players, they might not be able to under the rules. We shall see. Somesh Upadhyay writes about football in his homeland and has waited a lifetime to see an Indian player have an impact abroad. In the beginning there was Salim. The Bangalore-born Paul Wilson flourished at Celtic in the 1970s, but he was raised in Scotland and came through the traditional Scottish route. More recently there was Bhaichung Bhuta, a star at home but one who couldnâ??t cut it at Bury. In between there was Harpal Singh at Leeds and not much else. There are some players of Indian origin â?? Michael Chopra, for instance, and the French international Vikash Dhorasoo â?? but to claim them as Indian would be clutching at straws. In these parts the best known Indian player is probably Jesminder â??Jessâ? Bhamra, a fictional female footballer in the film Bend It Like Beckham. â??If even one of Chhetri or Lalpeklua make it to SPL, the popularity of the SPL in general and Rangers in particular will scale new heights,â? says Upadhyay. â??It has a potential to add 50 million new fans at least. The fact that the SPL is telecast in India will only hasten the process. It is one of the most discussed topics among youths in India. Even in smaller towns, people keep up late at night to watch the matches.â? India is very much on the radar of the established football nations. Sometime today, Raymond Farrelly, head of business development at Rangers, is going to jump on a plane bound for India, heâ??s going to spend the next week moving between cities and meetings, from Mumbai to Delhi to Kolkata, all in the name of establishing links, building relationships that will, it is hoped, lead to a commercial result down the line. Last weekend, Rangers set up a Twitter page delivering Hindi text commentary of their game against St Johnstone. They have plans to provide future commentaries in Punjabi and Urdu. They have met members of the Indian community in Glasgow, will meet some heavy hitters from the football world this week and now they have two international footballers at Murray Park and an expectant audience in India wondering if either of them will be offered a deal to stay. â??My agenda is fact-finding,â? says Farrelly. â??I have a lot of a meetings and part of that is sitting down with members of the Indian media. The news of the two players coming across on trial has provoked a lot of media attention. Itâ??s unbelievable, the scope of it. The circulations of some papers over there blows you away. Thereâ??s a huge amount of interest in what weâ??re doing. â??You only have to look at the financial position of our game and where the club sits right now to know that itâ??s absolutely incumbent on us to explore opportunities around the world. If you look at the growth opportunities for Scottish businesses, a lot of them exist in Asia and in particular in India, where there is a real need for infrastructure and a lot of Scottish companies can provide that. So, yeah, weâ??re looking at commercial opportunities, trying to build an audience. Itâ??s a long-term vision.â? The challenge for Rangers is that plenty of others share the same vision. It is a paradoxical football landscape. There is little money in the domestic league and yet massive crowds at the biggest games, upwards of 120,000 for the elite fixtures. And Indian businesses are in acquisition mode abroad. Venkyâ??s, the poultry giant, owns Blackburn Rovers. An Indian group has long been linked with a takeover at Everton. QPR have had Indian backers. Huge sums are paid out to the English Premier League to screen their games in India. Everton just did a lucrative deal to show their games on mobile phones in the country. Rangers are exploring, but others are well ahead of them. Liverpool run a training camp there already. Manchester United have a presence also. It is said that there are 17 million United fans in India â?? and seven United cafes and bars. Bayern Munich are doing more than anybody, making regular visits while also laying down roots with the Bayern Munich Youth Cup for under-16s in Delhi, held last month. The whole shooting match was organised not by some coaching junior, some inexperienced wannabe but by Werner Kern who was an assistant coach at Bayern in their golden era in the 1970s and who has been instrumental in the coaching of recent stars such as Bastian Schweinsteiger, Philipp Lahm and Thomas Muller. Bayern have even sent a Legends side to play in India. It was captained by somebody called Paul Breitner. Bayern have played to crowds of 120,000 in India. Recently, Argentina played Venezuela in a friendly in Calcutta and they got 90,000 â?? and were pretty disappointed it wasnâ??t a lot higher. The place came to a standstill for Lionel Messi in the same way it was brought to a halt when Pele played there in 1977. â??You see the opportunities out there and it can be overwhelming,â? says Farrelly. â??Thereâ??s something like a 60 per cent growth in football advertising and there is a lot of large multi-national companies who are linked with football in India. Thereâ??s an appetite to work with a club with the history Rangers has. We donâ??t have the world class superstars other clubs have but we have a strategy that is about more than a player walking into a hospital and disappearing for the rest of the year. We have a strategy for a long-term legacy and if we can find the right business partners to develop it then creating an Indian powerhouse is a tangible goal.â? All eyes on Chhetri and Lalpekhlua, then. Not just Rangers eyes, but the eyes of the growing number of football obsessives in a nation of 1.2 billion. http://www.scotsman.com/scotland-on-sunday/sport-columnists/aidan-smith/tom_english_rangers_seek_indian_sign_1_1987329

Another good win for McInnes today,2-0.

Aye,for a while it was only Rangers fans being targeted,in fact I find it strange that at the piggery it was only four pars fans lifted considering the IRAoke from the home fans!. Paranoid Rangers fans?,nah I don't think so.

Why do you tediously come into the Leggoland thread to complain about it?,you don't have to read them:) A lot of other guys,me included,enjoy reading his blog.

Every Rangers fan should have a pet BHEAST fan:tongue:

Killie 0 The Champions 2 Jelavic 2 :spl:

http://leggoland2.blogspot.com/2011/11/nutty-neils-old-firm-blunder.html

RANGERS boss Ally McCoist last night slammed claims Sone Alukoâ??s family raided their savings to make his dream move to Ibrox happen. As Aluko distanced himself from quotes attributed to him in other newspapers, McCoist blasted reports the Nigerian winger was made to fork out a small fortune to former club Aberdeen in compensation. Alukoâ??s family and friends were alleged to have paid up to £150,000 to land him a six-month deal at Rangers with an option for a further two years. McCoist said: â??Someone has come out and said he is paying £150,000, which is really poor. â??He is paying absolutely nothing like that. If itâ??s a tenth of that, maybe. I know Aberdeen are a little bit upset and I can totally understand where they are coming from. â??They are reading that the compensation they feel is due to them is coming from his familyâ??s life savings. Iâ??m not sure that makes good reading for Aberdeen or Rangers â?? or if it makes fair reading, when itâ??s not true. ì Someone has come out and said he is paying £150,000, which is really poor î Ally McCoist â??There has been talk about the ladâ??s family and all that stuff, which is absolute nonsense. â??What the lad has done is make a contribution to the compensation, which is not really unusual in this day and age.â? McCoist, however, was unable to offer any figures in terms of the percentage Rangers had paid and what Aluko coughed up. And he made a confusing story even murkier when asked directly whether Rangers had paid more than the player and his camp. He said: â??You could argue â??yesâ?? and you could argue â??noâ??. â??The fact we are paying him a wage would determine the money is coming from somewhere, so you could argue for it and against it.â? Asked about Aluko stating his friends and family had coughed up cash, McCoist said: â??If he said that, he hasnâ??t said it to me. He has told me something completely opposite.â? Aluko was last night asked to explain quotes in other newspapers stating that he owed a debt to friends and family who had helped him out financially. He remarked: â??I said this? No. It is not a case of my family getting their savings and paying Aberdeen. That doesnâ??t happen in football. â??But I have taken cuts and sacrifices from what we agreed before. I donâ??t want to discuss my contract, but people have to compromise in any negotiations and I did that to make sure it didnâ??t fall through.â? Meanwhile, Rangersâ?? trip to Arbroath in the Scottish Cup will be live on Sky Sports. The Light Blues were due to head to Gayfield on January 7 but the match will now kick off on Sunday, January 8 at 12.45pm. Rangers were last at Gayfield in Scottish Cup action in 2003 when they won 3-0 thanks to goals from Barry Ferguson, Craig Moore and Shota Arveladze. http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/286092/Ally-McCoist-raps-Sone-cash-claims

I see you managed to scare of Cyril :tongue:

Absolutely,if he gets a chance hopefully he will take it,I think he may get a chance soon enough even if it is as a sub with the way we have been flat now for a couple of games,time will tell I suppose.

I'm pretty confident he will turn out to be a good aquisition,the guy has speed,a good touch, bags of SPL experience and has a driving desire to succeed.

I know what your saying,but I don't think it will have any affect on the attendance?,there are only so many fans that will get in. Also when you are taking TV money then you have to play when they say,it's not only us that happens to as plenty of the top EPL teams have to oblige as well.

I don't think anyone is getting excited to be fair,however for long enough Rangers were always being accused of not searching the lower footballing nations for players and now they are doing that they get a hard time for doing it.If players have natural raw ability then good coaching will/should enhance that ability,I see nothing wrong with having a close look at any player,you never know you might just unearth a wee cracker!

Thick?,maybe,but I think they are blinded by their bigoted/sectarian hatred to see anything other than what they want,I mean they really do believe all the shit they go on about!

Need to go for now,keep it going Zappa,I'll try and get back on tonight:thup: Everybody else feel free to join in:tongue:

Cyrilstardust:D:thup:

Brilliant:fish:,hook line and sinker:tongue:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/scotland/15874515.stm

Don't tell me!!,they find it offensive?,MOPES/BHEASTS