chilledbear

TELLY sports host Raman Bhardwaj called in cops over a “serious threat” after being caught up in a bitter race row with Rangers fans. The STV presenter sparked fury among Ibrox supporters when he questioned their loyalty to former England captain John Terry. Raman, 38, posted a series of tweets after Terry announced his retirement from international football in the wake of accusations he made a racist slur towards Anton Ferdinand. He wrote: “Rangers fans — and only Rangers fans on my timeline — are so quick to defend John Terry. Jeez. I wonder why.” But his comments were met with claims that he was implying Gers fans are racist. And he was forced to shut down his account last night. He said: “I’ve decided to come off Twitter whilst a serious threat I received is investigated by police.” Raman’s followers had hit out following his initial tweet. Some even called for STV bosses to launch a probe. Murray Hay said: “That was a silly thing to say clearly showing ur true colours #Unprofessional.” When Raman was asked to explain his tweet in a bid to avoid confusion, he wrote: “No misinterpretation. “The only people defending him are Rangers fans and I asked why.” Later a Gers supporter suggested to Raman: “Clearly some RFC fans also follow Chelsea so I suppose that the most likely reason. Why do you think this is the case?” Raman replied: “At last, some sanity. “I was questioning why and people started suggesting a load of nonsense.” He told his 22,700 followers later: “Happy to make it clear, I was asking a question and wasn’t implying Rangers fans are racist.” Last night an STV spokeswoman said: “Following Raman being subjected to very threatening messages over social media, we have made representations to the police and they are investigating.”

elfideldo With McLeod, McKay, Aird and Crawford all on the park on Sunday, and looking promising. Can Sinclair not point to them and say, look what we in the youth department are producing. We may dispute this, and point to the younger age groups, but until these lads come of age, how can anyone say at this point he is a failure? I am not supporting Sinclair, but looking at it from the point of view, of an outsider looking in.

In light of the recent statement issued by the SPL citing the terms of reference of the Commission appointed to explore the activities of Rangers Football Club, let me, at the outset, emphasize that I am not concerned about the impartiality of the learned gentlemen who will adjudicate on this matter. I am, however, more wary as to the directives that have been provided to them by the SPL which in itself is constituted by competitors of the Club who have a vested interest in the outcome of the proceedings. By convening a Commission composed of eminent members of the legal profession, it is no surprise that formalities are being expounded upon which would make the eyes of the average Rangers stakeholder glaze over. The ponderous tone alternating the focus between “Oldco” and “Newco” are, in my opinion, a distraction from what really matters. “Rangers” are “Rangers” notwithstanding the legal nuances caused by the application of various bankruptcy laws. The heritage and records of the Club rest with the institution that is “Rangers,” and no amount of self-serving diatribe to the contrary, no matter how relentlessly pursued, can rewrite history. However, I still remain bothered by the fact that the focus and isolation of Rangers and its adoption of EBT’s conveniently avoids exposing and evaluating a much broader principle embraced by the SPL rules and regulations. If the fundamental issue is a deficiency in furnishing information about overall player compensation, the Commission’s mandate should allow it to investigate and extract testimony under oath as to the utilization by all clubs of the concept of multi-contracts separating wages for playing football from other services. Compensation in a variety of forms whereby players participate financially in the license of their image rights to the club should especially be investigated as “image rights” come in a variety of guises. For example, a player can be given proceeds from the sale of the club top featuring his name, often under a separate negotiation with the kit supplier, or be provided with a car by a sponsor for appearing in an advertisement. Anyone with any knowledge of the process would testify to the fact that agents representing a foreign player joining a club in the UK will usually introduce the possibility of this segregation which is designed to mitigate the income tax liability of his client. The dilemma in these circumstances replicates that of the adoption of EBT’s. If the club files notification of this arrangement to the SPL, then it strongly suggests that it directly relates to signing with the club in order to play football for its team, thereby nullifying to a greater extent the theory behind an “image rights” contract designed to avoid standard taxes. If it doesn’t supply this information to the authorities, it finds itself in the predicament that has befallen Rangers because of its use of EBT’s. The principle is the same. I also remain apprehensive that the guidance with respect to the penalties that could be applied on Rangers will be imposed on the Commission by vested interests in the SPL. Transparency here is fundamental. Justice must be served, but the punishment must fit the crime. Use of EBT schemes were broadly adopted by a variety of businesses during the era prior to them being specifically outlawed by designated legislation introduced only a couple of years ago. Also, as has been widely reported, Rangers made absolutely no attempt to disguise or deny their adoption, and they were fully disclosed in the annual reports and independently certified financial statements. What is galling, however, is the fact that it was not unusual for representatives of Rangers to openly discuss activation of EBT’s with their opposite numbers at other clubs during the era under investigation. I suspect that the Commission will not pursue this avenue of investigation, but it would be interesting whether or not “selective amnesia” would be exhibited by those Executives/Directors called to testify under oath about their ongoing familiarity with the Rangers scheme. It is ironic to reflect on the fact that the longer they maintained strategic silence on these conversations, the more extensive the number of titles that could be stripped if and when the opportunity arose subsequently to neutralize the successes that were earned by Rangers on the pitch. At the end of the day, whatever misdemeanor could be validly charged to Rangers, surely it was a breach of procedure, not “cheating” or financial doping. The eminent members of the Commission must ask themselves – what were the real, not fabricated, consequences of Rangers not registering the information on EBT’s directly with the SPL. On the contrary, what actions would have been taken by the SPL at the time if all the detail of the EBTS, the total of which was reported annually in public accounts, had been submitted in a timely form. I genuinely suspect that the compliance officer would have reviewed the documents, ticked the important boxes that dealt with the players status and then routinely filed them for posterity. The Commission hearing this case must consider the real impact of any default. A verdict that Rangers essentially did not in fact adhere to stipulated procedures, does not warrant capital punishment. http://t.co/HomJFqoa

Tims couldn't do a better job at trying to split the Support.

Well done the SFL, they are playing a blinder.

Almost impossible for Green to get rid of Ally at this time. We can still get promotion by drawing every away game....... Don't worry!!!

Does Green care about Rangers past? I would say, he will play it so the support will rally round the Club and himself. I just hope, he doesn't think that the SPL stripping titles, is the best way to garner this support.

Ally should act as a Manager, he isn't the joker anymore. My advice would be, stay away from the training ground. My worry when he took over was his ability to take a step back, he needs to crack the whip, and having a laugh with the players is not the best idea.

I'm sure he will take the credit.

Daniel Stoney Rangers Was Man of the Match in Scotland U17's 3-1 win over Sweden yesterday. Also scored one and made one.

My money is on Black. Very impressed so far, wish he had signed years ago.

I read this on FF yesterday, and thought it cut to the heart of the matter. I hope the poster Disco Dee Jay doesn't mind. ''As long as an organisations rules are strictly followed and in themselves are not unlawful, the Courts do not have the power to overturn them. The judge in the SFA Transfer Embargo punishment, did not have the power to overrule the guilty decision, only the punishment, as it was not an option available to the tribunal. He confirmed this in his explanation as to his final decision, when he told the SFA to reconsider the punishment. He also stated that he had no power over whether the next punishment should be more or less severe than the original punishment, purely that it should come from the list of options available and not be one that they made up on a whim. However, withholding or withdrawing titles is an option available to the SPL, as is an unlimited fine and unlimited compensation to other clubs and they have no doubt learned from the SFA's errors, so won't make the same mistake of using a punishment not available to them. Unless they feck it up, our only line of appeal will be, in the 1st instance, to the SFA (no laughing please) and then the Court of Arbitration for Sport''

According to the BBC Will the verdict be known by the main participants? Rangers tax tribunal verdict to be announced 'in October' Rangers applied for insolvency in July BBC Scotland has learned that a verdict on the First Tier Tax tribunal between Rangers and HM Revenue & Customs is expected in October. In 2010, the previous owners of Rangers contested an unpaid tax relating to the use of Employee Benefit Trusts, believed to be in the region on £49m. The club entered administration in February 2012 over a separate tax issue and applied for insolvency in July. The Scottish Courts Service said an announcement will be made next month.

I can never understand why we need a full-time International Manager. If you are going to the expense of hiring one to do nothing, for 300 odd days of the year. At least get somebody who has experience against European opposition.

Sounds like a control freak. Not the kind I would like working with kids.

Sounds good, and it will go down well with the fans, I just hope we know what we are doing.

Surely someone in authority at Ibrox can see this.

He wants fans to come to football. But we are dim-witted for filling Ibrox every game. http://t.co/D20yiDXO RANGERS fans canâ??t stop going to Ibrox in their tens of thousands to watch one-sided matches against wee teams who regard it a privilege to be ritually slaughtered. NOBODY ever lost money underestimating the gullibility of Celtic and Rangers supporters. But now the pair of them are locked into the worst recorded case yet of my dadâ??s bigger than your dad dim-wittedness. Rangers fans canâ??t stop going to Ibrox in their tens of thousands to watch one-sided matches against wee teams who regard it a privilege to be ritually slaughtered. If they do theyâ??ll be mocked by Celtic supporters whoâ??ll accuse them of betraying Ally McCoistâ??s memorable sound bite about â??We donâ??t do walking away.â? And Hoops fans canâ??t leave their team to walk alone either or else theyâ??ll be laughed at for failing to draw a bigger crowd than a Third Division team in the same city, as Gers did against Elgin last week. But if the pair of them are daft enough to pay good money just to avoid losing face in front of the other lot then hell mend them for their unthinking adherence to a rivalry that doesnâ??t even make sense now. They donâ??t play in the same league and they both swear the other is an irrelevance to them, but they canâ??t move on because they still canâ??t live without each other. And in the absence of an Old Firm match theyâ??ll just need to pack their respective grounds in an empty-headed show of defiance. Rangers must keep up the pretence that they feel a sense of competition against players whoâ??re taking photographs of each other on the pitch at Ibrox before games begin because they canâ??t believe theyâ??re standing there. Celtic are finding it hard to fill the void Rangers have left and are stuttering against inferior sides because they know theyâ??ll eventually win the league. But the problem is Rangers are filling Ibrox on cut-price season tickets and Celtic are experiencing the difficulties associated with Scottish football being too expensive for whatâ??s on offer. A parent and child could have gone to Ibrox last Sunday and both got seats for a total of £20. The same combination at Celtic Park for the game against Hibs 24 hours earlier would have been charged, if they werenâ??t season ticket holders, a total of £46. In other words, an impressionable kid could have been introduced to Ibrox at a price you understand. But a £17 charge for a so-called concession ticket at Celtic Park throws up a serious question. Celticâ??s Under-19s could play Sporting Lisbon in the NextGen Series on Thursday night but what about the next generation of supporters? Complaints have been made about St Johnstone charging between £26 to £30 for Celticâ??s visit to McDiarmid Park on Saturday for a lunch-time kick-off game thatâ??s live on TV. But the argument is severely weakened when non-season book holders are being charged £29 and £17 for concessions at Celtic Park to see Hibs. And even the season ticket prices have gone up slightly for a championship that doesnâ??t include two home games against Rangers. Celtic have to be applauded for a Champions League package that comes in at £28 per game to see Barcelona, Benfica and Spartak Moscow. But if youâ??re not a season ticket holder then the price averages out at £35 a game for adults and £25 for children. How can families of Celtic supporters afford those prices and the rest of the inflated admission charges affecting crowds in this country? We pay lip service to the idea that pricing is prohibitive and we do nothing about trying to sort the problem out. But people have clearly started to vote with their feet. Next weekend, when Celtic are in Perth and Rangers go to Annan, count up the attendances in the SPL and it wonâ??t reach above 40,000 fans. The bottom line is that the working-class game has started to move outwith the reach of the ordinary man and woman. And thatâ??s because of the cost of tickets, as well as stadium catering thatâ??s eye watering in price before you find out if itâ??s mouth watering in flavour. If parents canâ??t afford to take their kids to the football any more then the children will quickly find something else to do and then the game really will be in big bother. The obligation must be to attract, and hold on to, supporters. Television is making it too easy for them to stay at home but I donâ??t hear of any movement to address the problem. Thereâ??s a statue of Jock Stein outside Celtic Park which carries the inscription, â??Football without fans is nothing.â? Lots of people would have passed it last weekend on their way into the ground. Lots didnâ??t because the ground was 25 per cent under capacity.

Don't understand his move, or McCabes. Shows Agents aren't the best advisors.

Stoke City Charlie Adam, Asmir Begovic, Geoff Cameron, Peter Crouch, Rory Delap, Maurice Edu, Matthew Etherington, Robert Huth, Cameron Jerome, Kenwyne Jones, Michael Kightly, Carlo Nash, Steven Nâ??Zonzi, Michael Owen, Wilson Palacios, Jermaine Pennant, Ryan Shawcross, Ryan Shotton, Thomas Sorensen, Matthew Upson, Jonathan Walters, Glenn Whelan, Dean Whitehead, Andy Wilkinson, Marc Wilson. You should have stayed where you were Jamie. Perhaps better for us that he moved, saved a wage.

Not had a chance to be on much lately due to work and life in general. Clarke got back to me this week and the upshot is he is still waiting on a reply from Paul, he's been told Elliot is away and Elliots people are not sure for how long. I've expressed my concern that it looks like Elliot is avoiding this (I think we all know he definately is) so i'm going to give it another week and then take the storys exposure as far as it will go. Got to be honest though and I won't name names but i've been a wee bit disappointed by some people who write or comment on Rangers who just do not want to comment on this, seems we're a Rangers family when it suits them, one employee of the Rangers even told me he 'couldn't comment on stuff like that'!!! Although in the same measure I have to give thanks to The Rangers Standard guys, Copland Road Org, Rangers media, King Bill McMurdo & everybody on here for the continued support on this. thanks again for everything bears truly humbling. the bluenosebear

I don't want anyone to tell lies if they fight our corner. Just being fair minded in modern Scotland when reporting on Rangers, would do.

It always amazes me, that we have by far the biggest fan base in Scotland, proved by every game we play, whether by actual attendances or viewing figures. Yet when it comes to the Scottish Media, there is hardly anyone that fights our corner. The anti Rangers journalists and commentators from all parts of the Media, is out of all proportion to their actual numbers. We have been asleep for too long.

A bit off the subject, but anyone know how much of the gate money Elgin got on Sunday?

It's called 'Third Division' hamstring. There will be a few of them going about this season. Ian Black just has 'Third Division' It only strikes in Govan.