gaspard

Programme cover a disgrace IMO.

Should have been J Hubbard MBE featured, played for both clubs, regular at Ibrox to his last.

True Rangers and Ibrox Legend

but its all about SG nowadays.

Like the author of that statement words fail me.

I had to look up "concomitant" and I suspect the originator did as well (right click - synonyms) after he wrote associated.

It really is embarrassing, they could have at least waited until JT was semi-sober before letting him near the send button - I can just see him - Furrowed brow, squinting through those daft retro specs and thumping away on his keyboard like Vincent Price on a church organ.

I'll take a saw, there's a veritable forest at the bottom of the acreage. Might ask one of the servants or staff as you prefer to call them to do it in case I get stuck in the mud or topple down the septic tank.

.......Serfs actually

I was thinking of utilising Lodge 54 even though the proprietor will be erstwhile engaged.

 

I take it the recession hasn't bitten you too hard and it's still Champagne only in there ?

Lodge 54 is available for bookings for both sporting and cultural events and I may even offer a Scottish cup discount, it also goes without saying that Lodge 54 is long overdue a name change

Champagne reception comes as standard but guest are encouraged to bring their own firewood.

Yup he ran down the touchline and went straight to the dressing rooms and the Keith fans in the main stand stood an applauded him.

 

I remember the big conga by the Gers fans in the Richard Donald stand during the match.

 

I think Fraserburgh could have moved this one to Pittordrie its a good pay day for small clubs. Queens Park must be set up for a decade after playing us at home at Hampden getting 30000 a few times.

Not allowed to move nowadays unless there are safety concerns, Fraserburgh ground has safety cert so all the talk of venue change was moot, they had to play the game there.

Another example of Scottish football authorities ideas for improving the domestic product - don't allow small clubs to switch their home games to bigger ground so more people can go and watch football and club gets financial boost.

If it wasn't Scotland you wouldn't believe the contrary logic

Broch working hard to get the capacity up to nearer the 2K mark, will depend on Old Bill and Peelers how close they get.

FS has spare bedrooms and an overstocked drinks cabinet, but he is so excited about this game he can hardly think straight just now so has asked me to arrange the party and sleepovers at his gaff.

Regular Gernetters just drop me a PM and I'll forward you his address and get you booked in

Sash Bash and sausage rolls after game, bed-time and lights out 22:30

Good luck to the lad.

 

With wheelchair access and similar initiatives, I'd suspect it probably boils down to costs rather than discrimination. It's free to wear rainbow laces and the club has better recruitment opportunities if we can sign people regardless of religion or ethnicity. It costs money to provide facilities for some disabled fans. I'm not suggesting it is in any way correct or ethical not to do so - I'm just stating a reason for it not happening to the extent required. And I apologise if that bothers anyone - I'm trying to be reasonable but also sticking up for Rangers.

no need to apologise, what you say is spot on, but I would add that discrimination on the grounds of cost is still discrimination.

I have no doubt that those who opposed abolition of slavery did so on the grounds of costs rather than ethics.

where there's a will there's a way.

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Tomorrow Gordon Reid will compete in the wheelchair masters final in Loughborough, Gordon is a Wimbledon champion, Olympic medal winner and also a loyal Rangers fan and I’m sure we all wish him good luck on Sunday.

I’ve no idea if Gordon has an ST at Ibrox or indeed how many time his training and competition schedule allows him to see his team, but I will assume that at this stage in his career it would be difficult for him to find the time to regularly attend Ibrox.

And perhaps that’s not a bad thing. For I believe the current waiting list for wheelchair accessible ST’s at Rangers runs into the hundreds!

There is of course a long standing and respected member of this forum who can provide more accurate figures and is far more qualified than me to comment on this and perhaps even attempt to calculate how long in terms of years Gordon Reid would have to wait for an ST if he were to apply today.

Recently we have seen the rainbow laces and show racism the red card promotions at Ibrox and indeed in grounds throughout the land, worthy causes some may say, however I would ask the question do these prejudices and discriminations actually exist to any significant degree in 2017?

Does a black footballer raise even a curious eyebrow these days? Of course not.

Are RC players welcome at Ibrox? And are those that are, treated any differently from anyone else? Again, we all know that this has not been an issue for decades.

Homosexuals in Scotland have exactly the same rights as everyone else, they are proportionately overrepresented in the MSM, Politics and the Arts and are generally accepted in all walks of life as no different from anyone else and I’m sure a gay Rangers player would be judged on his playing performance alone.

I could go on, but my point here is we seem to be pandering to moral crusades railing against discriminations, that, as far as I can see don’t really exist.

Whilst at the same time there is real, tangible discrimination going on under our noses that gets no attention, high profile campaigns or celebrity endorsement.

Let’s be honest, banging the drum for more wheelchair accessible place at football isn’t cool or hip it won’t get you on TV or invited to glitzy charity balls but wearing a rainbow badge and exaggerating a discriminatory perception probably will.

The solution to this is in the clubs own hands all they have to do is create more spaces, simple, it may be technically challenging and indeed expensive but it must be done, and done sooner rather than later, come on Rangers FC if you are going to endorse make-believe discrimination, do the decent thing and address the real ones as well.

RANGERS have emerged as shock contenders to land Northern Ireland star Niall McGinn.

 

The ex-Celtic ace will leave Aberdeen after their Scottish Cup final against his former club and *several English clubs have been chasing him.

 

But SunSport can reveal McGinn’s name has been mentioned at Ibrox in the past week, though no official contact has been made by the Light Blues.

 

McGinn has made it clear he has no intentions of deciding his future until after the Scottish Cup final on May 27.

 

But the 29-year-old is one of several players Pedro Caixinha is now monitoring.

McGinn has been a *target for Oxford United and Ipswich Town in recent months but Bolton had jumped to the front of the queue.

 

Trotters boss Phil Parkinson has instructed his club to make a significant offer to McGinn in the hope of completing a deal after Aberdeen take on Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic.

The news that *Rangers have expressed a tentative interest could change everything.

 

The smart money is still on McGinn starting the new season in English football, as he is keen to try his luck there. But Rangers could give him a difficult choice to make.

Haw, Forlanssister, next Linfield game we can go to Niall's restaurant "fáilte" for our supper, its on the Falls Rd. Yum Yum.

Discount for Bears if he signs?

Well written and considered article Frankie and looking at C1872 as an outsider a lot of what you say makes sense and makes one wonder how many of the points you highlight were not addressed as default at conception.

As I said, I am an outsider (not a member of C1872) and will therefor not delve into the current or past dispute's around the formation and governance of the collective and neither will I become embroiled in the personal attributes of C1872 board members (past or present) I do not know them and have had no personal exposure to them so I'm unqualified to comment and not entitled to do so.

I will add to the debate though and address my own situation as a non member.

On the face of things I would be an ideal membership target for the organisation, ST holder, Interested in the Club and its affairs both on and off the park and most importantly I am fortunately in a financial position to contribute.

But I have never considered becoming a member, not for a second - I remember getting one of the first leaflets promoting the venture, It was at NARSA last year and was passed to me by a long term member of this forum, I dismissed it instantly.

Did I think it was doomed to fail? well I certainly had doubts on any long term viability.

Did I mistrust some of the characters involved in the formation? perhaps, but I also thought they would be found out and eventually side lined.

Did I find the way 1 group managed to effectively undermine another in the jostle for position pre C1872 somewhat unethical? Yup.

Did I doubt the collectives claim of independence? only a fool would not.

I could go on, but in fact none of the above are the reason I have declined joining,

for me I simply do not agree that fan ownership would be of material benefit to either the club or the members, as you alluded to when we were at our lowest ebb the RST and RF were attractive concepts, fans were desperate to help and wanted to ensure the club was in safe hands for future generations, the 2 collectives were conduits for fan frustration and uptake was brisk.

It was always inevitable that stability would bring security and that fans collective uptake would wane.

Rangers fans are notoriously fickle, we passionately love our club and perhaps this is why we hardly ever seem to agree on anything, each and every one of us have opinions how Rangers should be governed and I could never envisage a harmonious fan base, best answer wins with us, but alas there always seems to be a thousand best answers.

Additionally, and perhaps its just because I'm an old fashioned capitalist, I cannot reconcile myself with the concept of buying shares and not owning them (at least RSC share could be personally redeemed)

Nevertheless I fully agree with the sentiment that anyone willing to give up there own time and volunteer (without ulterior motive) for roles within C1872 deserve our respect and the support of the membership, sticking ones head above the parapet and becoming a board member of the club was always going to come with significant risk and I wish the genuine folks involved in the club all the very best and hope they can go forward prove folk like me wrong.

Was at the launch today, quite a decent set up which I'm sure will be invaluable to those who need it.

Looks good, didn't realise the space was so deep and narrow so I suspect it must have been quite a challenge to optimise the area available whilst fulfilling all the requirements of the remit.

Well done to all concerned.

Tanner hosting NARSA this year

No disrespect to you or your source - but that makes little sense to me.

 

Billy Gilmour is still a part of the Academy and I know for FACT that Craig Mulholland is a GREAT believer that education is paramount at the Academy - so much so that he fought tooth and nail and was, thankfully, successful in convincing the RFC hierarchy that they needed to offer an educational aspect at Rangers and in the past year have partnered with one of the local schools so that Academy players can be schooled together in the same school. I don't believe that Billy is a part of that as I think he is still at Grange Academy in Ayrshire - but the fact remains that the leader of the Academy greatly believes in the educational aspect of an Academy player.

 

Admittedly his 1st team mentor (assuming it is someone on the 1st team playing staff) will have a different perspective - but if what you say is so then the family are making a little bit of a mountain out of a molehill - all they needed to do the 1st time Billy told them what he was told was to request a meeting with Mulholland and it would have been sorted to the family's satisfaction.

 

Either way, hopefully the lad stays as he could gain invaluable experience in our 1st team within the next 12-18 months which would stand him in far better stead than heading to Chelsea's Academy and being loaned out to numerous outposts where the football on show will be very poor.

I have no doubt my source is well connected to the family, on his mobile he showed me umpteen pics of Billy and messages from the laddies dad.

He told me the issue was particularly concerning as the advice from his mentor to forget about schooling (and yes he is a first team member and a senior on at that) was unsettling the kid and compromising his academic results.

Now guys I'm only reporting what I've been told , I have no axe to grind either way in this debate, and there is always 2 sides to every tale. and it could very well be the case that his family are making something out of a throwaway remark or even Billy is just deflecting from disappointing exam results.

Personally I have no doubt that our club have given him the best opportunity to develop and coaching possible and hope he goes on to fulfil his potential.

I have from a close friend of the family, that their motivation and aspirations for Billy at this stage in his career as based purely on Development. Nothing to do with money......yet.

Also told me that whilst the laddie comes from good stock, the family are most upset at some of the advice his 1st team mentor has been giving him "never mind school and exams, concentrate on football" type of thing.

To such a degree they felt strongly enough to call a meeting and bring it to the attention of the management team at Auchenhowie.

Maybe a minor issue, but any negatives come into play when the kid and his family are making decisions on Billy's future.

Kevin Muscat in the frame according to The Sun.....

I'd rather have Deputy Dawg than Musky

May as well ask how long is a piece of string or how long does it take a parcel from Belfast to reach Fraserburgh?

I had a parcel delivered to me from Belfast just last week, it took 8 weeks and 1 day to make the journey

unfortunately it was empty

I wouldn't put money on all the criminal cases being over after Whytes mate. I think there will be more to come.

desperately hope you are right Boabie but why were all the charges dropped on everyone bar Whyte? I believe some quite critical errors were made by the authorities when collecting the evidence.

Last year there has the dis-application resolution passed there was a strong possibility that Ashley could have launched a legal action against it which would have at the very least severely delayed it's implementation or even negated it completely. This time what they've done with a 2/3 pre-emptive 1/3 non pre-emptive split is actually the investment industry best practice recommendation which means it would be pretty nigh impossible to get a court to stop.

 

It also puts what was known as the "Easdale Bloc" under a bit of pressure as even if the were to take up their rights they'll probably still be diluted, not certain if those 10.4% shares which are subject to the S.793 notice can even participate but think it'll make little difference anyway.

oh! the S.793 notice, right that's all clear now thanks for that

think I'll stick to colouring-in books and watching tipping point

Thanks for attempting to address some of my points FS alas some of your answers are just more questions and others are "who knows" and perhaps,s.

anyway seems the resolution always appears to be around some corner or other.

but to get back on point, are you saying the people who formulated the JV deal, who you and I both know were not working in the best interests of the company they were representing at that time - are going to be found guilty and the contract can then be terminated - given that other criminal charges were dropped how long will the civil case drag on and then how long could SD appeals and counter cases take?

oh BTW had a look at the Rangers Megastore online today - what a load of tat, cheap transfer printed generic fodder - hope none of the boycotters think they are martyrs cos they are denying themselves very little of worth.

The optimist in me says that we may deem it necessary to get money in to buy better players?

less assume you are correct in that optimism - then, do you think club 1872 will elect to support resolution 11 ?

A guess (sic!): everything was safe and sound finance-wise last season, so the share issue was no immediate concern. They tested the resolution last time around to see how it would end up, now they will try to push it through with some real effort.

Cheers DB but the pessimist in me is say that if "everything was safe and sound finance-wise last season" and they weren't pushing it - then does that mean everything isn't safe and sound now?

for me, in my simplified world - the only circumstances the board would have to push it would be if they had other investors lined up to take the options and we are looking at significant here isn't the resolution to release 80M ordinary shares which would be a 50% dilution to any non participant.

no definitive proof....just my understanding (which may be wrong)

I believe anyone can sell official merchandise, but only licensed organisations can produce it. RR were licensed to produce the merchandise until the club withdrew that license. At the time of the Puma order, RR were licensed to issue that order - the result being that several thousand strips were produced in accordance with that order. Puma then argued that they have every right to sell those units (as they WERE produced under license, at the time).

ok, including strips everything currently for sale online and in the shops is stock to go - when its gone its gone and nothing can be manufactured to replace.

that would be ok if the club had leave to release a license to someone other than RR which it doesn't - stalemate.

I honestly didn't realise that RR/SD JV had stopped producing merchandise, every days a school day

My understanding was that Rangers have cut out Rangers Retail completely. Not only can RR not produce branded goods, they can't even sell them.

That's what I hoped would happen - however a quick visit to the rangers megastore will tell another story

I would assume that they will be old stock. Rangers Retail are unable to produce ANYTHING with official club references.

that's interesting Darthter, new one on me must confess.

so you are saying that under the terms of the contract Rangers Retail can sell RFC branded goods but cannot produce RFC branded goods.

Can you tell me where you sourced this please I would be interested to research further.

Board have been quite cute here, explains why they weren't too concerned last years dis-application just fell short.

sorry that's above my heid FS, can you elaborate please?