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On the morning of Monday December 7th, thousands of Rangers shareholders will again converge on Ibrox Stadium to find out the latest information about the club. Most directors will be there - including new chairman Alastair Johnston and alleged Lloyds Bank stooge Donald Muir - so this will be the supporters' chance to question them on recent events. Obviously there has been a lot of debate in the media about the current situation at the club. Why did Sir David Murray step down? Is Alastair Johnston really in control? What influence do the bank have on the business? What part does the bleak future of Murray International Holdings play? How will the next two transfer windows affect our team on the park? What happens if we don't qualify for the Champions' League next season? Can the fans own the club? Would Alastair Johnston consider an interim measure to give the support increased representative powers? We could go on all day here but we want to hear your suggestions... Get involved and post now. Or if preferred email to settingthestandard@gersnetonline.co.uk

Fifa's Sepp Blatter has revealed the Republic of Ireland have requested a spot in the 2010 World Cup finals as an extra team after their play-off defeat. The Republic lost to an extra-time goal against France when Thierry Henry handled the ball during the build-up. "I will bring it to the attention of the Executive Committee," said Blatter. The president of football's world governing body added that goal-line technology and extra referees would be considered for the South Africa finals. The executive committee will hold an emergency meeting in Cape Town on Wednesday, two days ahead of the draw for the finals, to assess the idea of extra match officials. If they recommend the proposal it will go before football's rule-making international board in Zurich in March for a final decision. "It's possible we will make additional officials for the World Cup but we have to see if it is feasible or realistic," added Blatter. "Something has to be done in terms of match control. "We have only one man on the field of play who shall intervene in this matter. He has two assistants for the time being, perhaps more in the future. He has to make an immediate decision. "He has only two eyes. So match control is now is on the agenda. How shall we avoid such situations as we have seen in this very specific match?" 606: DEBATE Even before the handball incident Ireland were still at 1-1 in extra time so how can they go through to the World Cup on the basis that it was still a draw ? Chelski-4-life Regarding the Republic's case, the president added that Costa Rica, who also believe they were unfairly denied a place in the finals - this time because of an offside goal from Uruguay - would also have to be acknowledged if extra places are discussed. The Republic originally asked for the play-off to be replayed but that request was immediately denied by Fifa officials. The man at the centre of the storm, Henry, released a statement two days after the infamous match in which he said a replay would have been "the fairest solution."

Just like HMV out of this time but still makes a noise.

Wonder what happened to the RST's pursuit of their 17 different plans for the future of Rangers? Last I heard from them there wasn't a minute to lose and everyone needed to check their bank accounts and climb on board NOW! D'you suppose someone told them that Mark Dingwall would never be a director of Rangers and they could take their ball to another park? Of course I'm only speculating but it has gone awfy quiet.

Travelling to last night's match, a mate remarked that the Stuttgart game could be the last CL match at Ibrox for a while. I replied - only half-jokingly - that it could be the last top level European match there forever. After all, even if we win the SPL title this season and beyond, Scottish clubs' continued poor performances in Europe will lead to the inevitability of more tough qualifying matches making it even more difficult to qualify for the Group Stage of UEFA's premier competition. Since the heady days of the Lisbon Lions, the Barcelona Bears and the, erm, Gothenburg Dons; our national game has fallen backwards to our current situation of being thrashed by Romanians and Slovakians every other year in between the odd point when we do manage to play half-decent. Meanwhile, our national side - once proud regular participants at the final stages of international competitions - is struggling to even finish 3rd in groups we should be qualifying from. Indeed, in less than 30 years, we've gone from competitive leagues and World Cup Finals, to a two team top division and national embarrassment. So where has it went wrong for Scottish football and, more importantly, who is going to fix our problems? I think the first aspect fans of most clubs (or Scotland) can agree on is that our basic abilities appear to be lacking. The simple virtues like passing and controlling a ball, heading accurately and hitting the target when shooting look to be in short supply. Meanwhile, our physical fitness looks as poor as ever meaning we lack strength and pace in a modern game where both these assets are essential. Mentally we also appear weak with confidence fragile and self-belief eradicated. Tactically we struggle to go beyond a counter attacking 4-5-1 where scoring goals to win matches is based more on hope than expectation. These basics are compounded with a lack of exciting, creative players as they're stifled by managers more interested in self-preservation than entertaining. The Jim Baxter's and Jimmy Johnstone's are no longer the staple diet of the Scottish football fan. Even the Graeme Souness' and Kenny Dalglish's are no longer found as manager's prefer headless chickens who work hard to intelligent players who can find space and dictate games. Stifled financially, the very best world players are no longer part of the Scottish Premier League and our home-grown talent struggle to be successful outwith these shores. Obviously, I'm trying my best not to be negative here but the more I write, the more depressed I become. Like the media vultures desperate to gorge on the latest poor display by a home side; it is easier to list faults than offer alternatives. After all why should I offer recommendations when I myself am targeted by our authorities for singing alleged nasty songs; blamed by the media while our safety abroad is ignored; or disrespected by highly paid players who can't even return back from international duty to play for their employer? Thus, how can I be sure my opinion is listened to as I return from another match having spent in excess of �£50? And that's where the blame game comes in. This new, modern culture of 'it's not my fault; what about them?' takes precedent over constructive debate about the future of our game. Scottish football needs huge improvement across the board but unfortunately I don't see much leadership from anyone. The media are only interested in the latest dozen fans singing 'offensive' songs; the authorities are held back by fans (and often directors) of each club complaining about each other; and failed politicians are appointed to chair think-tanks on how to fix the footballing problems. All a bit bizarre and counter-productive. But also the norm in modern Scotland. Ergo, the question remains unanswered - where has it went wrong for Scottish football and, more importantly, who is going to fix our problems? Well, this year this website (with the help of others in the community) concentrated on Rangers' specific problems by putting together and submitting our STS report (1) regarding our challenges. Acknowledged by the club hierarchy at the time; I can only assume it's gathering dust somewhere as the arguments reign over who runs the club and who is genuinely interested in buying it. In a more general attempt at improvement for our game, six months ago I also forwarded the report to Henry McLeish (yes, the failed politician mentioned earlier) for the latest 'think-tank' debating Scotland's national support (2). In his own words: ""I want this to be the biggest conversation on the future of football in this country. I want it to be the talk of the terraces, discussed in boardrooms at every club, talked about in the corridors of power, but I also want the rank and file supporters to be involved." Can you guess what reply I've had? Add in an ever-increasing finance gap then Scottish football participation at the group/final stages has arguably all but finished with Manchester, Seville and France for our club and national sides. That is a sobering thought that should worry us all - no matter which club we support. The current financial challenge facing our most successful club and the less fashionable ones further down the divisions are challenges we all share so it is vital we do so together. To be fair, McLeish's report on his review is not due until the end of January 2010 so perhaps the generic suggestions we put together will be mentioned then as I'm sure we wouldn't have been the only ones making certain recommendations. The pressure is certainly on but hopefully we can start to yield the improvement required to make us competitive again via positive debate instead of the gratuitous negativity we often read nowadays by people who hypocritically complain about our national sport while making a fast buck from its problems. What is for sure is that 2010 should be a water-shed in terms of giving us an indication of the long term future of Scottish football and how we can achieve improvement. As such, while the title of this article is somewhat polemic it isn't as far from the truth as we'd like it to be. Therefore, I challenge everyone mentioned in (and those reading) this article to prove it is wrong. (1) - http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/STS_short.pdf (2) - http://www.scottishfa.co.uk/scottish_fa_news.cfm?page=950&newsID=4643

The game Rangers can't afford to lose Published Date: 22 November 2009 By Martin Hannan FOOTBALLERS, MANAGERS, fans and sportswriters alike would much rather talk about events on the pitch than off it. Ball control rather than balance sheets is usually the preferred topic of conversation, but with Rangers up for sale, you cannot ignore the latter. So let's get news of the Ibrox club's financial crisis out of the way first, with the simple statement that there is no news. Or at least there will be no official update from inside Rangers at the moment, not even on manager Walter Smith's future ââ?¬â?? "it's not the right time to make such decisions," he said. Every senior staff member has received a letter from the club's lawyers telling them in polite legalese to shut their traps as Rangers are now in a formal potential takeover situation and the stock market honchos don't like comment that could influence share prices. So now we can get on with the business of Rangers as a playing team and oops, there could be a bit of a crisis looming there, too. For on Tuesday night at Ibrox, Rangers play VfB Stuttgart in the Champions League. If they lose, they are out of the Champions League, and will also be unable to gain third place and the parachute drop into the Europa League. Victory is vital, therefore, as it is for Stuttgart who have also stuttered with their league and European form, being only a point ahead of Rangers in Group G. The omens for a home victory are good. On the two previous occasions that Rangers met Stuttgart at Ibrox in the Champions League, the score was 2-1 in favour of the Glasgow club who have only ever lost twice at home in Europe to German opposition. Indeed Rangers had only lost once in 20 home matches in Europe before this season's disasters against Sevilla and Unirea Urziceni. It's a case of getting back on track, then, for a side which showed in Stuttgart with a 1-1 draw that they are more than capable of competing. And the hero of that night, goalscorer Madjid Bougherra, has been given a passport to play against the Germans on Tuesday. Northern Ireland internationalist Steve Davis feels that Rangers can still qualify for the latter stages of European competition, but says they need to fix their home form. "I don't know how to explain it," said Davis, "but when the groups came out we were looking to our home form to push us through and we just haven't been capable of getting the results. "We played well for an hour against Sevilla but they opened us up after that and against Unirea the performance just wasn't there, and we didn't have any luck either. If we were to lose our first two home games and still qualify that would be a big achievement. It's a must-win game and it would be a big plus if the fans can get behind us. "It's hard for the fans to get behind you when you are getting beaten 4-1, but hopefully we can start well, the fans can get behind us and we can go on and get the right result. We have to win to give ourselves a chance of qualifying for either of the competitions. "We performed really well against them out there, and though it took ten or 15 minutes to get to grips, I thought we played really well after that, especially in the second half when we controlled the play." One probable source of danger to Rangers is Stuttgart's most influential player, captain and midfield general, Thomas Hitzlsperger. Davis played alongside Hitzlsperger at Aston Villa and remembers him well, comparing him with a Rangers hero of recent vintage, JÃ?¶rg Albertz, with whom Hitzlsperger shares a nickname ââ?¬â?? Der Hammer. "I had just arrived and Thomas was an established first-team player," said Davis. "He had a great left foot and could shoot from distance, and that was one of his main attributes, and since he has left Aston Villa (in 2005] he has gone on to do really well for Stuttgart and is quite a big part of the German national team as well. "There's not many can hit the ball as hard as he does, and obviously JÃ?¶rg Albertz was similar with a great left peg. As a midfielder, you have to be aware that he is capable of hitting one in from 30 or 40 yards into the top corner and you have to close him down quickly. At Villa, every time he got on the ball at that distance you could hear the crowd willing him to shoot." Smith agrees that Hitzlsperger is a major threat: "If you let him have a shot at goal he's just like JÃ?¶rg. When I was at Everton I saw him play in Aston Villa's reserve team and he scored two goals from about 30 yards." Though securing third spot and a place in the Europa League last 32 would be most people's idea of salvation for Rangers, Smith pointed out that both his team and Stuttgart still have a chance of qualifying for the next stage of the Champions League: "The motivation for either team is great because though the results have not been great, we find ourselves in a position where can still qualify, but we have to find a dramatic change in performance from our last home game." Rangers simply must not lose or they will be out of Europe, with all the budgetary devastation that will cause. There we go mentioning money again ââ?¬â?? perhaps the best thing Smith could do on Tuesday would be to tell everyone at Ibrox to forget about bad finances and play good football.

By Kenny MacDonald, 22/11/2009 MAJID BOUGHERRA is facing the chop from Rangers' Champions League clash with Stuttgart. The AWOL Algerian World Cup star again failed to turn up as expected before yesterday's 3-0 win over Kilmarnock. Walter Smith has dropped a massive hint he's set to DITCH Madjid Bougherra for Tuesday's make-or-break Champions League game against Stuttgart at Ibrox. The Rangers boss may well keep faith with defensive superkid Danny Wilson. Smith admitted he still hasn't seen or heard from Bougherra, below, following his late return from Algeria's World Cup qualification win against Egypt in Sudan on Wednesday. He expects to see the stopper, who hasn't played for Rangers since September 29, for training at Murray Park today. There was little indication last night that he was intending recalling the defender for the Germans' visit. He said: "He hasn't spoken to anyone but I imagine he's available for Tuesday night. "If he was injured I think he'd have let somebody know. "He'll be in training on Sunday so we'll see how he is then. "The situation as to who plays is a pleasure to deal with. "Danny's a young lad but when he's playing in the manner in which he has been, it's never a problem. "I'm the one who is charged with looking after his career at the present moment and I'll continue to do that. He handled the Champions League game he played in well and there's no great reason why he should not handle another one in exactly the same manner." Kris Boyd, who scored Rangers' opener against Killie, admitted he doesn't know if he'll get the nod for Tuesday despite scoring his eighth goal of the season. He also refused to rule out remaining in international isolation. Boyd said: "I don't know if I'll be part of it on Tuesday but the most important thing for me was to play well and score. If I start on Tuesday, great. If not, I'll prepare myself for hopefully starting against Aberdeen next week. "Like everyone else here, I want to be part of the big European nights and I want to play in big games but I've tasted the other side and I'm used to it. "The Scotland one is a decision I'll have to make in the next couple of months but it could depend on who gets the job. "The next guy might come in and not fancy me but it's not something that's really in my mind at present. "No player is bigger than their country and at the time, the decision I made was right for me. I feel as though I've reaped the benefits at club level. "I'm not ruling out coming back and I'm not ruling out staying retired. "It's a different situation to Barry Ferguson and Allan McGregor. They knew they were in the wrong but if they go back it will be to Scotland's benefit. In the meantime I'm enjoying my football for Rangers because I'm playing more or less every week." Kilmarnock manager Jim Jefferies admitted his side shot themselves in the foot. He said: "I don't think we've come to Ibrox and had as much possession as we had today, or worked their goalkeeper the way we did today but the defending in the first half was shocking." Killie captain Kevin Kyle is likely to be out for a couple of weeks after needing stitches in a face wound after being caught by Allan McGregor's boot. Meanwhile it was revealed that Rangers management team have been GAGGED from talking about the club's financial plight. Smith broke the bombshell news three weeks ago that the club was being run by the banks. Lloyds Bank subsequently issued a statement denying that but after Rangers' net debt rocketed to upwards of �£31million, senior management staff were sent letters to forbid them from speaking publicly about the club's financial position. One member of the coaching staff admitted: "We're now under the takeover panel's jurisdiction and we have all received letters from our legal people saying this inhibits us from making further comments." Smith says no decision will be made regarding his Rangers future until the club has a new owner. His current deal ends in January and he had an agreement with former chairman Sir David Murray that he would work on until the end of the season without a new deal. New chairman Alastair Johnston has said he wants Smith to stay but the Gers boss said: "The club is up for sale, so my view is quite simple. "When that takes place we'll be in a far better place to make a decision, not just in the short term but the longer term as well. "I don't think it's the right time to make any kind of decision. When my contract expires in January will be the first time. At that stage, if I'm asked to stay on I'm happy to do so. If I'm not I will leave. "The new chairman and the previous chairman have said they're happy with me being here to handle this situation until it finishes but circumstances at the club could change, that's why it's difficult for anybody to make a decision just now. "There are boys at the club who are out of contract and it has not been possible to make them offers. The management staff are the same. "You just want to wait and see what happens. If there are new owners they might clear the lot of us out. It's not a matter of speculation, that's just the way it's got to be. When the position is rectified will be the time to make a decision but now isn't the time to do that."

There has been much hype and hysteria over our current financial situation and most of the information that comes our way is both contradictory and confusing. The media would have us believe that the club was days from going into administration, was now being run by the bank, and that we'd sell half our team in January. All of the statements by the club and bank completely deny this, so the question is "Who is lying?" And can we clarify the real position of the club? Since the start, I've found the hyperbole surrounding our financial situation totally unbelievable - banks have no interest in running football clubs, there is no way our finances could suddenly become so bad that we were about to go bust, and selling all our best players halfway through the season makes no business sense whatsoever. With the latest financial audit and statement from our chairman making far more sense than anything that has come before it, maybe we should calm down and analyse the situation even if itââ?¬â?¢s a laymanââ?¬â?¢s analysis. First let's deal with the administration threat. It appears there were no surprises in the accounts and the club while not looking on the steadiest of feet, still came out with a clean audit with the ability to trade for the foreseeable future. So why all the fuss? The answer to me seems to be that the club, with very lofty ambitious, was (as we know) being pretty badly run without proper budgeting for the spending on player transfers and wages. We were making large losses and increasing our debt for the second time at an alarming rate. This happened before but at that time, our owner had a very healthy and very large business which was underwriting our debts and eventually actually paid a huge chunk of them off. That put us in a pretty good credit rating bracket at a time when banks were not very discerning who they lent their money to. Now with the credit-crunch, huge bank losses due to bad debts, and a change of ownership of our creditors, there is a bit of a credit hangover. Mix in the fact that our owner's companies overstretched themselves with expansion using short term debt before their industry ground to a pretty serious go slow period, and you have a bitter tasting hair off the dog with the bank getting shaky about our position. It seems they wanted to renegotiate our 15M overdraft and using that leverage to make changes in the boardroom and business plan. This seemingly has led to SDM resigning from the board and the appointment of Muir. This is where we get to the second point about the bank running the club. I think the truth is closer to the bank being concerned about unsustainable spending especially when our income is hugely vulnerable to whether on not we qualify for the Champions League and made worse by an unforeseen, significant reduction in our media income. They therefore have pressured the club to change it's business plan to a far more conservative and parsimonious one, which has less chance of being disastrous if certain targets (like CL qualification) are not met. Our new chairman has emphasised this, and told us that after much negotiation, a new business plan has been agreed which in turn means that the bank has extended the provision of a 15M overdraft until a review in something like March 2011. The Rangers board are not entirely happy about the business plan as it restricts the ability of the club to achieve its ambitions and probably removes any ability to speculate to accumulate which can bring success in a highly competitive business like football. However, it allows us to have access to the cash we need to run as a going concern and trade our way out of our current position. Muir himself will have plenty to do in his day to day work than worrying about the running of a football club and will merely be attending board meetings to represent the interests of the bank, which I presume are about once a month. As far as I can tell as a layman, the debt is not good but is within manageable proportions with the biggest problem being a lack of cash at hand which restricts our cash-flow ââ?¬â?? the real killer of businesses. Ã?£20M of our debt is actually a long term mortgage to be paid over 20 years at Ã?£1M per year plus interest. This loan is secured on property and I think we can agree that Rangers should have no foreseeable problem in servicing this debt. That leaves a balance of liabilities minus liquid assets of about Ã?£11M. Even on our lower year turnovers of Ã?£44M, this doesn't exactly seem even slightly insolvent and as our chairman says, there doesn't seem a great need for a "fire sale" of players, especially when that could seriously harm our income in the next year. Not only will a smaller and less skilful squad harm us competitively on the pitch - which has a direct effect on income, it will seriously affect the uptake of season tickets in the summer. No creditor with any intelligence would deliberately harm a debtorââ?¬â?¢s ability to pay what they owe, for merely a short term reduction in the outstanding debt. That only happens as a last resort if it looks like the company will imminently go bust and so there is a chance that the bank could get very little back at all. If a seriously good offer comes in for one of our best players, then I think the board will probably not want to look a gift horse in the mouth, and the likes of Bougherra may be off. However, a business case could easily be made to replace him with a player of lesser value - and the cash need not necessary go directly to pay off the debt directly but may be used to improve the clubs ability to pay short term liabilities ie bills. Of course that cash at hand does affect the net debt. So the state of play seems that while Rangers are under pressure from the bank to have a more prudent and sustainable business plan while ensuring the current credit facilities are not exceeded. So in conclusion: our finance are not that bleak with no chance of administration, no chance of being run by the bank and no chance of a fire sale of players in January. "So why do we need a new owner?" one might ask. This will probably be mostly due to the financial state of Murray's companies and so their ability to guarantee any future investment into the team, stadium or other expenditures. The bank probably want to separate the club from his empire, as the football clubââ?¬â?¢s ability to pay back the debt to the bank is pretty assured, due to the nature of 50,000 loyal, paying customers which will keep the club a going concern for a long time to come. Murray's empire in contrast, looks like it could easily collapse with many creditors getting a fraction of what they are owed. From the club's and supporter's point of view, RFC's ambitions can only be realised by capital injection, to put the club on a better, more stable financial footing in which the playing budget is not so overly restricted as it is now. The future does look to be fan ownership but for this to happen, it seems an interim, cash rich investor is necessary to get the ball rolling - a la Fergus McCann.

As a lot of you know, I am secretary of the Nithsdale RSC. We are a member club of the Rangers Supporters Association, and through this membership we applied for tickets for the match at Dundee United, giving our named list of 66 members requesting tickets which then went directly to Dundee United, and we got back 66 tickets with our members names on it. Since Dundee United announced they were going to charge supporters again to see the replayed match, our chairman Monty, took them to task on this, and we sent an email to them asking, as we were entitled to do so within 14 days of the announcement of the new date of the match, for a refund of our original tickets. He also got onto Glasgow Trading Standards, and we have received great assistance from them, and they believe we have a case. Trading Standards have contacted the SPL, who have washed their hands of it as ticketing is down to individual clubs, but Trading Standards are suggesting they do something collectively for future reference as the cuurent position is challengable. We are more than willing to take this all the way, with a civil action against Dundee United if necessary, and we have taken the decision today to let our fellow bears know of this position, in the hope that other bears, who retain proof of their purchase of a ticket for the original match, will also make Dundee United aware of their intentions to take them to court if they continue with their current policy. The information we got from Trading Standards is that there is precedent with two cases involving the fans against Man United and Spurs. The Spurs one is most interesting to us, as it was about ticketing policy in light of postponement or abandonment. They had to back down, and have since changed their terms and conditions. Trading Standards in Glasgow and Dundee have both contacted the OFT (Office of Fair Trading), who are the UK wide ruling body on such matters and are really the level above local trading standards offices, and have had positive discussions with them on this also. It looks as if, if we can pressure United collectively through either a group action, or many hundreds of individual actions, we may have enough power to win this. The correct email address for Dundee United is communications@dundeeunitedfc.co.uk. Please keep your emails polite and to the point. For a hint, something like this would be suitable. "Dear Sir, I am contacting you to ask for a full refund of my ticket, purchased from you via Rangers FC, in accordance to your ticketing terms and conditions issued by you for this and every match. My contact details are as follows; Mr X 1 Main St Anytown G1 2BC I look forward to hearing from you in the near future. Regards Mr X" Good luck to anyone sending this in, and I will keep you updated on how we get on.

That Was The Week That Was This time last week we were waiting with bated breath on the outcome of three decisions that could have, and still could have, major impact on our immediate and long term future and stability. Firstly there was the long awaited and much anticipated release of our latest financial figures. As usual rumours were spreading like a wild bush fire regarding these figures and some profits of doom speculating that we would be close to doubling our debt. As the figures show, this was nowhere near the case as our debt rose to Ã?£31M. Now, this isnââ?¬â?¢t acceptable and is a direct consequence of gross mismanagement and the blame lies squarely at the door of SDM. However, it wasnââ?¬â?¢t as bad as predicted and whilst we still require urgent investment, a new owner and someone to stand up to the plate and ensure that Rangers have a rosy future to look forward to. Another announcement that had the media in Scotland choking on their words was UEFAââ?¬â?¢s decision to impose a small fine on Rangers for our fans part in the disturbance in Romania. It appears that instead of listening to the journalists with an agenda, UEFA looked at the facts, took eyewitness reports into account and handed out a fine and punishment that fitted the ââ?¬Ë?crimeââ?¬â?¢. Anyone who has followed Rangers abroad has their own tales of woe regarding entry into stadiums, over zealous policing and stewarding, unfit and unsafe stadiums etc. This is no excuse for the tiny minority who attach themselves to our club and travel abroad hell-bent on trouble, but there is always two sides to every story and mitigating circumstances. The only decision that you could label as having gone against us last week was the decision of the EPL to firmly close the door on our introduction to the English Premiership. I think it is safe to say that the majority of Rangers fans were hoping for some positive news or noises to emanate from this meeting but it appears that our route to the EPL is firmly closed for the time being. The renewal of the SKY contract in 3 years could see the door being wedged back open as if SKY want us in the EPL, theyââ?¬â?¢ll get us in the EPL. Otherwise weââ?¬â?¢ll just have to cut our cloth accordingly and make the best of the league that we are currently plying our trade in. So its back to business on Saturday as we welcome Kilmarnock to Ibrox and its high time we found a level of performance that is acceptable and a level of consistency that can propel us to another SPL title. Currently the top of the SPL is tight due to the terrible form of both halves of the OF. This is the stage of the season where we must take advantage and establish a lead in the title race. We have the players at our disposal but they have to show the greed, hunger and desire that is required. If they are sent out in the correct formation with the correct instructions (tactics) then they should be able to defeat everything that is put in front of them domestically. If the league is to be decided on the Old Firm meetings, then I am glad that we have Walter Smith in charge as despite his obvious and many failings, the silverfox knows how to defeat Celtc. Liars And Thieves Is there any other way to describe DUFC after their decision to force fans to pay for admission into the replayed SPL game? On leaving the initial game, it was announced (several times I may add) that all fans should keep their ticket stubs as this would gain them admission to the replayed game. DUFC have now gone back on their word and are charging Ã?£12 for a ticket. This is nothing short of despicable and should be used by the Rangers fans as our ââ?¬Ë?line in the sandââ?¬â?¢. A fully supported boycott should be called by all Rangers fans groups, Rangers Supporters Clubs and all Rangers fans. I would extend this boycott to all games against DUFC at Tannidice and any cup game against them where they receive 50% of the gate receipts. DUFC canââ?¬â?¢t be allowed to blatantly lie then rob more money from the fans. With this disgraceful turnaround they have shown that they are only interesting in our money, so lets deprive them of this income from now on. We fill their stadium twice a season and fill their coffers of we meet them in a cup tie. Depriving them over a period of time will be just rewards for them attempting to cash in on us on this occasion. Hopefully the appropriate fans groups will get together and make the necessary announcements and it would be nice to see Rangers FC backing a boycott and urging fans to stick together on this issue. As the replayed game is on SKY we wouldnââ?¬â?¢t be missing out as we all could tune in to the game. Again, with the game on SKY we should send, say 50 or so fans (Rangers paying for their tickets) to spread our huge banners letting the entire country know exactly what we think of DUFC and this greedy decision. The National Laughing Stock Long-term readers will know my feelings on international football and the reasons I no longer give a damn about the national team. However, being at a loose end on Saturday I decided to tune in and give the national team a viewing and see if I could get myself reconnected with them. This apparition on my part lasted all of 45 minutes when I decided to switch my allegiances to the national rugby team. I said a few years back that I wouldnââ?¬â?¢t watch Scotland if they were playing in my back garden. After Saturdays debacle I would add that if they were playing in my back garden Iââ?¬â?¢d not only not watch them, I close the fooking curtains. This may be my club loyalties here, but was it any coincidence that Scotlandââ?¬â?¢s back four contained three Celtc players? Wales looked likely to score every time they crossed the halfway line and Scotland offered the square-root of nothing. I wonââ?¬â?¢t drag this into a Tartan Army debate, but I canââ?¬â?¢t understand how any Rangers fan can give support to this anti-Rangers establishment and Rangers hating support. Given the recent performances it wasnââ?¬â?¢t a surprise that George Burley was relieved from his duties and the scramble for a new manager has begun. Itââ?¬â?¢s great listening to the Tartan Army (who made them spokesmen for the Scotland support) clamber to get their agenda approved by the media. It is no surprise that the names of Barry Ferguson, Allan McGregor and Kris Boyd are being brought to the fore and the three players receiving a verbal kicking from the Tartan Army (again). The names being banded about to replace Burley are hardly likely to get the pulses racing and if I were a betting man, Iââ?¬â?¢d put a sneaky fiver on Suntan Calderwood. This wouldnââ?¬â?¢t go down well with sections of the media or the sections of the Tartan Army as the last thing they want is another Rangers minded man at the helm. Their sights are currently on removing Gordon Smith from his post as heââ?¬â?¢s seen as just another ââ?¬Ë?hunââ?¬â?¢. Sections of the media are claiming that Scotland require and deserve (delusions of grandeur there) a ââ?¬Ë?big nameââ?¬â?¢ appointment and they are urging the SFA to stump up the cash to lure a ââ?¬Ë?big fishââ?¬â?¢. The prerequisite appears to be a manager who has a proven track record both domestically and internationally, someone who has managed both here in the UK and in Europe (and further a-field). I understand that my non-interest in the national team probably precludes me from suggesting a replacement, but the above describes one manger perfectly, step forward Dick Advocaat. Now if that doesnââ?¬â?¢t have the Tartan Army choking on their see-you-jimmy wigs then nothing will! Cammy F - We Are The People

Just out of interest, I had a natter yesterday with someone from the Newcastle United Supporters Trust ..... NUST Those folks have some severe problems with their club regime and have been trying hard to mobilise supporters to challenge some of the woes afflicting their club. Anyway, I asked how successful they had been in attracting members to NUST, thinking it might show an interesting comparison with our own hapless RST. The first thing I got was a clear impression that the NUST guys are delighted to speak about their membership numbers. Contrast this with the RSTââ?¬â?¢s veil of secrecy and embarrassment. The reason for this quickly became apparent when he revealed that NUST has collected 3,500 paid up members in less than five month. They charge exactly the same membership fees as RST but have plans to introduce a free junior membership. Not only that, NUST have also amassed the details of about 25,000 non-members, who they actively inform and consult. In five months thatââ?¬â?¢s three times as many members as the RST has after five years of mid-firing and a working relationship with almost 30,000 fans. If anyone needs evidence of just how big a mess certain people have made of running our Supporters Trust, surely this supplies it. That these same incompetents should now be strutting around in the guise of ââ?¬Å?fansââ?¬â?¢ leadersââ?¬Â and demanding our support for fan ownership plans that no one can release details of ââ?¬â?? well it honestly defies all description. The hijackers of the RST are in no position to organise a piss up in a brewery, let alone the future ownership of Rangers. Personally, Iââ?¬â?¢d advise everyone to give their latest nonsense a very wide berth.

Sky Sports News understands it is increasingly unlikely George Burley will continue as Scotland manager. More...

Published Date: 15 November 2009 The Scottish Football Association will meet later in the week to discuss the future of Scotland manager George Burley. And Press Association Sport understands the meeting is likely to spell the end of his tenure as national team boss. Burley managed to hold onto his job in the wake of his failure to steer Scotland to a play-off spot for the World Cup finals but his position has come under intense scrutiny again following Saturday's 3-0 defeat to Wales. With a record of just three wins in 14 matches, the defeat in Cardiff now looks set to be the match which finally brings an end to a difficult reign. Furious travelling fans in the Cardiff City Stadium turned on the manager after Scotland found themselves trailing by three goals after just 35 minutes, demanding his dismissal and directing verbal abuse towards the beleaguered boss. Burley himself then attempted to dodge questions about his future in his post-match press conference before eventually conceding it would not be his decision whether he would still be in charge for the next game against the Czech Republic in March. SFA vice-president Alan McRae is unable to meet with the rest of the board on Monday but a meeting will be convened in the coming days, with Burley unlikely to gain a second vote of confidence from his employers after remaining in the role following the failure to qualify for the World Cup. http://sport.scotsman.com/latest-national-sport/SFA-to-discuss-Burley-future.5825992.jp

Nov 15 2009 Mark Guidi, Sunday Mail LUBO MORAVCIK reckons Celtic should take advantage of an untapped market in several European countries. Moravcik insists there are excellent young players in his homeland Slovakia and other places such as Slovenia, Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Hungary. But in order to find another 'Lubo' he believes the Hoops must invest heavily in scouting on the continent. And the way to find the money to do that is to reduce the first-team squad wage budget and plough that into finding the foreign stars of the future. Hoops hero Moravcik, 44, said: "Less than 10 years ago Celtic were paying out �£6million for players. But the days are over of buying in quality like Henrik Larsson, Chris Sutton and John Hartson. "So there has to be investment in developing top players of your own. "Celtic do put a fair amount of their budget into their youth academy but there is more they can do. "There is no perfect solution. Nothing can be 100 per cent. But maybe the strategic planning has to be looked at. "It's not what the first-team manager would want but I would take money out of the top-team salary budget to use as an investment for scouting in Europe. "In my opinion it would be better to spend an extra �£500,000 or �£1m a year to bring through your own kids rather than give it to a player to come to Celtic who is only a squad player in the Premiership. Is there not more satisfaction in producing your own? Finding entertainers, stars who excite the supporters? "Recruiting players doesn't necessarily mean signing a 16-year-old kid out of school. "There are guys playing at a lower league level in countries all over Europe - in France, Slovakia, Czech Republic and other countries. "To get these players you need a proper structure abroad. "You need one guy to oversee Europe, delegating the work and with scouts and contacts working for him. The players are out there - you just need to find them or be told about them. "Would I be interested in something like that for Celtic? Of course I would. "Another thing that Celtic would have in their favour is that kids may well prefer to go to them rather than the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool. "Kids and their parents would know they would get a better chance to play first-team football at Celtic than in the Premiership because those clubs can spend �£50m every year on transfers. "I don't have all the answers, I only have some ideas. Maybe my ideas are good, maybe some people will think not. But I believe in them." Moravcik recently quit as Slovakia Under-17 national boss. According to him he now spends too much time on the golf course and has a handicap of 29. He misses being involved in football. Back in Glasgow this weekend for a charity function, Lubo told MailSport: "It was a pleasure to play for Celtic and to have had the career in football I enjoyed. "But I'm old now. Unfortunately my time in the dressing-room has gone. "I hope the players of tomorrow at Celtic can taste the pleasure I had in Glasgow. "However, they must work hard and be able to cope mentally with the pressure. It's not all about being good with the ball at your feet. "You have to be a strong character to be successful at Celtic. That is so important." Moravcik is sad the Old Firm won't be playing in the English Premiership in the near future. The move was booted out last week and he said: "It was a nice dream. Now it must be put to one side and other ways found to advance the club. The �£20m or �£30m in television payments are not going to happen. "Other ways must be found to help bring success to the club. It will be a difficult job but it must happen." Meanwhile, Lorenzo Amoruso admits he's shocked at Rangers' cash woes - but hopes it spurs the club into restructuring it's scouting network to unearth some gems. During Amo's time at Ibrox a young Rino Gattuso was brought to the club for nothing from Italy and sold on four years later for �£4million. And the former defender now wants to see his old club focus on finding the stars of tomorrow to ensure Rangers have a bright future on the park and financial stability off it. Amoruso - who skippered Gers to the treble in 1999 - told MailSport: "I still keep in touch with what's happening at Rangers and things are quite scary at the moment. "There have been financial problems for too long now and it saddens me the club is �£31m in debt and unable to buy a player. I hope things are resolved quickly and Rangers can move on as it can't go on like this. "Whatever happens though Rangers should be planning for the future right now and reorganising the club. "Rangers have to employ more scouts. "Not only that, they must pay good wages for the right kind of scouts. "It's important to pay good salaries to get the best people in this department of the club. "And not just have people in Scotland and the rest of the UK. They should be looking all over, increasing their contacts abroad and building a global network. "You have to work really hard to get young players now. "Many clubs in Italy didn't pay much attention to scouting and youth development in the past but that has changed. "For example, AC Milan are now investing a lot of money in it as they know it's the right way to go. "Other clubs are doing the same and Udinese employ a minimum of 150 scouts. It has been a good strategy for them because they recently found a young striker from Chile called Alexis Sanchez. "He is top quality and they could sell him for millions of Euros if they wanted. "It's all about having the right people working for you. People with good contacts and a knowledge of young players. "Rangers managed to get Gattuso a few years ago and he was great. Profile "They must find more like him. But players like that will not drop out of the sky and land on the doorstep. "They have to be found and be persuaded that Rangers is the right club for them." Amoruso, 38, was back in Glasgow last week for a charity function. The Italian still has a strong affection for Rangers and wants to see them thriving again as soon as possible. And he'd welcome the chance to playa role in the future of the club. He said: "I hope a new buyer is found and things improve. "Rangers are the champions and will battle it out with Celtic again this season for the title and it is important Walter Smith and the players win it again. "Maybe time is running out but they'd like to have a new buyer in for January so they can bring in one or two quality players for the second half of the season. "But that won't happen until someone comes forward. We know people don't buy football clubs to make money. They usually buy it for the publicity and to increase their profile "But when the new owner comes in and everything settles down I'd be happy to work for Rangers and try to help them continue to move forward. "It's changed days from when I played for Rangers and the club were spending lots of money on players. "However, not spending millions and millions in the transfer market shouldn't be a reason for not doing well." http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/football/spl/2009/11/15/celtic-and-rangers-need-to-restructure-scouting-network-if-they-want-success-say-old-firm-legends-86908-21823378/

Was having a wee discussion last night at work with a few fellow bears about the usual , state of the club , what the future holds etc etc , when one guy started on about how we as a support were worse than celtic ( this came when we were discussing the minute's silence disgrace at Falkirk ), when I asked him to explain what he meant he just said that in his opinion all our songs were worse than theirs , the billy boys , the add on's at the end of songs etc etc . Now what I was wondering and I dont want a slagging match about his opinions were as that is pointless , has anyone else came across this type of opinion and what arguements did you put up to counter them . We did debate it for a good couple of hours and in the end he did admit to a change of mind , however I couldn't fathom out his arguement initially ,it does seem to be that they are much more street wise and sly when it comes to this subject , ie the old " it's an old irish folk song " blah blah looking forward to your thoughts

The Return Of The Rant Itââ?¬â?¢s been a while since I last vented my frustration on you poor souls, so this is long overdue! The reasons for the lack of rantings are many and varied, starting a new career which is eating into my time, lack of new and meaningful Rangers related topics (I know, more of that later) and a general malaise in what is happening in and around our club. So enough of the excuses and on with the ranting, but where to start! Our esteemed Chairman has gone AWOL and taken Boogie with him and the bank appear to be pulling the (purse) strings within Ibrox. Iââ?¬â?¢ll leave you to decide if the two are related. This disturbing turn of events have been predicted for a while from those described as ââ?¬Ë?doom-mongersââ?¬â?¢ but it appears that SDM has taken us to the brink and we are in serious financial trouble and in freefall. Tomorrow sees our latest financial results published and theyââ?¬â?¢ll make for interesting reading. It is predicated that the debt will have risen to over the Ã?£30M mark (again) and with little or no sign of this improving. This financial meltdown has gotten the hopes of a takeover heightened but there appears to be no-one willing to show their cards and place a firm offer to SDM for Rangers. The recent ââ?¬Ë?riot in Romaniaââ?¬â?¢ and inconsistent form, especially in Europe and the continued speculation of whether further staff cuts (including players and management) donââ?¬â?¢t exactly make Rangers attractive to potential buyers. However, the recent happenings must have finally opened the eyes of even the most ardent SDM supporters. He has overseen the most irresponsible overspending in our entire history and has taken us to the brink and into the hands of the bank ââ?¬â?? we are at their mercy. Despite SDMââ?¬â?¢s and the banks protestations, there are likely to be wholesale changes at Ibrox come January if a buyer doesnââ?¬â?¢t come forward. This will mean players sold and not replaced and the enforced promotion of young players (not necessarily a bad thing if managed correctly) and a change in the management of the club (again, not necessarily a bad thing). All this at a time where our bitterest rivals are struggling on the pitch and at a time where even a half-decent Rangers team would have had the title all but wrapped up. Tony Mowbry has a worse record than John Barnes and are still 2 points clear of us in the title race (we do have a game in hand). Our recent form has rightly raised concerns and the usual excuses of injuries and suspensions have been trotted out. Neither explains the lack of basic footballing ability constantly displayed by our players. We have decent players, that is unquestionable, but they appear to be unable to consistently turn in acceptable performances. This leads to the question of whether they are being coached properly. If all of the above is overtly depressing, have some sympathy for your author, I am sitting here typing this listening to The Smiths and Joy Division and with tomorrow being the day we hear about finances, UEFA sanctions and the EPL decision, the mood isnââ?¬â?¢t going to lighten any time soon. In the dark and distant days of the early to mid eighties, I used to think that there was never a dull moment following Rangers and despite the lack of success and decent players, I always believed that there was light at the end of the tunnel. In retrospect, I believe that this was youthful exuberance and the naivety of youth ââ?¬â?? no matter what it was, the sleeping giant that was The Rangers were awakened and we went to dominate domestically for over a decade. Maybe itââ?¬â?¢s my age, but there is little or no optimism when looking at the future of The Rangers unless we can convince the EPL to adopt us and attract substantial financial investment. Without this, and being resigned to a life in the SPL, The Rangers that we know and love will continue on a road to ruin and will be the death of The Rangers. No One Likes Us? At times it certainly feels this way and at the moment its open season on Rangers and especially us, the fans. The Scottish media who are never slow in putting the boot in, are having a field day with the off-field issues and the ââ?¬Ë?riot in Romaniaââ?¬â?¢. UEFA will have their say tomorrow. Domestically we have to suffer sectarian abuse on a weekly basis with no mention of this in the unbiased media. It even appears that the weather is conspiring against us with the postponement of the game at Tannidice due to a pitch that was no worse at half-time than it was a kick-off. Sitting in the Fair Play Stand watching the officials run round the pitch with a ball under their arms (which was never used to test the surface), watching the DUFC subââ?¬â?¢s deliberately kicking balls into puddles in both halves of the pitch whilst the officials were out, then kicking water at their backs, you just knew that the game was being cancelled. On leaving Tannidice, you couldnââ?¬â?¢t fail to notice the ire emanating from the Rangers support, at last the sleeping giant had awoken. Like a wounded animal, the Rangers support can only take so much ââ?¬Ë?pokingââ?¬â?¢ before it bites back. It appears the recent happenings have finally witnessed a snarling, biting response for the Rangers fans. Lets make sure we direct our ire in the right direction as people will start to take notice, and long may it continue. So given this, wasnââ?¬â?¢t it heartening to hear and see the welcome Hamburg SV had prepared for the Tims? You know, The Tims who are loved by every club they play against? Who have ââ?¬Ë?specialââ?¬â?¢ relationships all over Europe? I just wonder if the Hamburg boys would loan us their display for The Piggery on January 3rd? After all Rangers allowed Celtc to set up a display last season, surely John Reid will return the favour (if h isnââ?¬â?¢t too busy insulting us as a way to deflect from his own troubles). More power to the HSV fans who, with a quick search of Youtube, a fantastic fan-base who add colour and noise to every ground they visit. Some Poor Monkey Has A Tony Mowbry Heid The Blue Order are rightly praised for their continued contribution to the atmosphere at Ibrox and have been behind some memorable displays, banners and songs. Recently, probably due to the lack of support they receive from the rest of the ground on match-days whilst trying to get the singing going, they have resorted some old school (or should it be skool?) classics like ââ?¬Ë?Frank McGarvieââ?¬â?¢s wife is off ill reputeââ?¬â?¢, ââ?¬Ë?Jorge Cadette and his hair like spaghettiââ?¬â?¢, ââ?¬Ë?If I had the wings of a sparrow (if I had the arse of a crow, Iââ?¬â?¢d fly over parkhead tomorrow and shite on the barstewards below)ââ?¬â?¢. However, surely nothing can beat The Blue Orders homage to the new Celtc manager. Some Poor Monkey Has Got A Tony Mowbry Heid must rank amongst the funniest footballing songs ever. Lest We Forget Iââ?¬â?¢d like to finish on a serious note and take this opportunity to pay tribute to all those brave servicemen and woman who have paid the ultimate sacrifice and also to all those who have served ââ?¬â?? we will NEVER forget. Cammy F

So, hypothetically, whoever is running our club these days passes the buck over to the good bears on RM to decide what we should do regarding our match in Seville next month. Now it is your job to put the interests of the club first and foremost to secure our European future. Dont just answer because you are already booked up, this is only hypothetical remember. Here is the situation I want you all to answer. UEFA fine us for the events in Bucharest, and warn us that we are on our last warning, and any further problems WILL result in our expulsion from UEFA competitions for the next 2 seasons. So, you have a decision to make regarding our game in Seville. Do you; 1. Refuse to take any allocation for the match, knowing it will badly let down decent Rangers fans who have already made bookings, and will affect the team by having no support for what could be the match that decides our last 16 fate. 2. Take the tickets, but only enough for official day trip Thomas Cook charter flight travel club members, with no independants, and herd them about all day. 3. Take the full allocation, but only distribute tickets at the ground 2 hours before kick off, and not to anyone who has been drinking heavily. 4. Take the full allocation, distribute as usual and hope this game passes off as peacefully as the vast majority of games. In addition to the above 4 options, if you believe there is a better alternative, please vote for 5. Other option, and put your preferred option on this post. I am just interested in the views of fellow bears, especially the ones who travel to European away games as to what we all think should happen, given the problem the club now has with UEFA.

JOINT PRESS RELEASE RANGERS FANS UNITE FOR CHANGE AND PROGRESS The Rangers Supporters Assembly, Rangers Worldwide Alliance, Rangers Supporters' Trust and Rangers Supporters Association united today to urge Rangers fans around the world to consider playing their part in changing the ownership of the club. The organisations are considering the options open to fans to invest in the club on a massive scale and on an accountable basis. We are considering various options for this - whether on our own or in partnership with others. We intend that the future of the club will never again be reliant on the goodwill of a bank or any individual. One option we are currently discussing with advisors is the changes necessary to turn the Trust�s Gersave scheme into a suitable vehicle for the gathering in of funds. However, any form of investment will only take place on the basis of the suitability of the terms gained in negotiations. Rangers as a club cannot continue in the current state of limbo with the threat of being run by the Lloyds Banking Group. To move things on before the January transfer window we are formally inviting any potential credible investors to discuss their plans for the club with us. Rangers fans are by far the biggest financial investors in the club. We are determined that the club will continue to flourish and never again will it run the risk of falling into the hands of a bank. We call on fans to be patient but to unite behind sensible proposals we hope to recommend to them over the coming months. John McMillan - General Secretary, Rangers Supporters Association Andy Kerr - President, Rangers Supporters Assembly & Rangers Worldwide Alliance Stephen Smith - Chairman, Rangers Supporters Trust http://www.thebluenose.co.uk/rangers-fans-unite-for-change-and-progress/ --------- copied from FF.........

http://www.thebluenose.co.uk/rangers-fans-unite-for-change-and-progress/ JOINT PRESS RELEASE RANGERS FANS UNITE FOR CHANGE AND PROGRESS The Rangers Supporters Assembly, Rangers Worldwide Alliance, Rangers Supporters' Trust and Rangers Supporters Association united today to urge Rangers fans around the world to consider playing their part in changing the ownership of the club. The organisations are considering the options open to fans to invest in the club on a massive scale and on an accountable basis. We are considering various options for this - whether on our own or in partnership with others. We intend that the future of the club will never again be reliant on the goodwill of a bank or any individual. One option we are currently discussing with advisors is the changes necessary to turn the Trust�s Gersave scheme into a suitable vehicle for the gathering in of funds. However, any form of investment will only take place on the basis of the suitability of the terms gained in negotiations. Rangers as a club cannot continue in the current state of limbo with the threat of being run by the Lloyds Banking Group. To move things on before the January transfer window we are formally inviting any potential credible investors to discuss their plans for the club with us. Rangers fans are by far the biggest financial investors in the club. We are determined that the club will continue to flourish and never again will it run the risk of falling into the hands of a bank. We call on fans to be patient but to unite behind sensible proposals we hope to recommend to them over the coming months. John McMillan - General Secretary, Rangers Supporters Association Andy Kerr - President, Rangers Supporters Assembly & Rangers Worldwide Alliance Stephen Smith - Chairman, Rangers Supporters Trust

He posted the following twitter update after yesterday's game... "Thanks to everyone, wish I could write everyone back! Means a lot! Hopefully its not the last time on the pitch at ibrox! Enjoy ure weekend!" http://twitter.com/DaMarcusBeasley

F@ckin' ridiculous name for a stadium!

The MIH accounts have been delayed until towards the middle of next year, so I thought I would take a quick look at a couple of major problems that they may be having, based on the last set of accounts that they issued as at January 2008. Property values/net assets Net assets (total assets less total liabilities) in the accounts were shown as �£157m. Included in this is property of �£545m. Commercial property values have fallen 30% since the start of 2008, which would equate to �£163m. If this new valuation was applied to the 2008 accounts then the Murray group would have net liabilities and would be technically insolvent. It is perfectly possible to be technically insolvent, while still being able to repay debt. This is the next area to be looked at. Repayment of debt The accounts show that MIH had �£4m of cash, but had loans of �£26m to repay in the year to 31 January 2009. Perhaps not the biggest problem in the world. However in the current year, MIH had a whacking �£406m of loans to repay, with no apparent way of doing so. Given the current banking crisis, it is not thought that MIH would have been able to renegotiate the payment terms of these loans, and must have resulted in MIH defaulting on some of its repayments and perhaps some related banking covenants. This would be what has allowed the bank to insist on the appointment of Donald Muir to the board of both Rangers and the Premier Property Group, and is apparantly giving him the power to over-rule the other Rangers board members. Lloyds obviously want to recoup as much of this cash as quickly as possible, and has them forcing changes on Rangers who had a managable financial situation, at least in the short term of the next 12-18 months. When people buy a house it is viewed a long term asset and they pay for it with a long term mortgage. Why MIH decided to finance the purchase of commercial property with short term loans is unexplainable and is possibly the biggest mistake David Murray has made in his career, and could ultimately result in MIH being wiped out. It has certainly put Rangers under threat but it must be hoped that Rangers emerge unscathed and looking forward to a bright future if a new owner can be found. Caveat - This is a very simplistic view and there are a number of assumptions made. I have not gone into technical details to make it easier for the reader to understand. Property values are said to have fallen 22.5% during 2008 and have fallen a further 7.5% in the 9 months to Sept 2010 (source IPD UK balanced Monthly Funds). However a well-respected fund manager told me that it was nearer 43%. MIH's property may be of a higher quality and may not have fallen by as much, but Ibrox is overvalued and as such I don't think 30% is unreasonable, although I am no expert on commercial property.

THE flames have been licking around his feet for the past two weeks. His revelation that the banks are running Rangers placed him at the eye of a ferocious financial storm. Yet this crisis management lark is nothing new to 61-year-old Walter Smith. The Gers gaffer reckons he's been fighting the fires which threaten to engulf the Ibrox club for the past TEN MONTHS. By his reckoning, nothing has changed since January. Every player in his squad remains up for sale. And that's why Smith reckons his side's participation in this season's Champions League is all the more remarkable. In an emotional meeting with his players last Christmas Smith warned them of the financial crisis looming large. He told them they all faced an uncertain future. If they'd let the title slip on that last day at Tannadice Smith could not have blamed them. But instead the boss watched in awe as his players put their woes to one side and summoned the spirit to deliver Rangers' first championship in four years. That's why Smith is backing those same players to restore some pride in Bucharest tonight. The Ibrox chief said: "In the last few games we've certainly been brighter than we have been. We've been inconsistent but the signs are there. "The players are handling things better than they were. "But I don't think it has anything to do with what is going on off the field. "People seem to think the circumstances that have been documented in the past two weeks just happened a fortnight ago. "That's rubbish, all this happened last January and the players have handled that. "They've done brilliantly to handle that. "It's not easy to sit down with a group of players and tell every one of them that they're up for transfer. You still then expect them, as they did, to go on and win a championship. "The players have done really well. We've not lost a domestic game this season. "They have been inconsistent and while the circumstances surrounding the club don't help, they certainly haven't hindered the players. "They've handled all of this for six months prior to the start of this season. We did well but we have dipped this season, that's something we're working hard to rectify." Pride, and more importantly Champions League points, are at stake for Gers tonight. Advertisement Humiliated at home by Dan Petrescu's Euro rookies a fortnight ago, they must put the shame of that crushing defeat behind them. Yet Smith knows his side will face another tough test in front of 25,000 baying Unirea fans. He said: "We have set out to win all of our games but we haven't managed to do so. "It's now up to us to acquit ourselves a bit better than we have done so far, even if we feel a little aggrieved at losing the last two games 4-1. "We still have three games to go and we have an opportunity to qualify from the group. It's down to us to turn it around, starting with this game. "We've had some terrific away performances before but we achieved them through hard work. We'll need to replicate that over here. "There has been an edge missing from our game. There is no doubt about that - and now we have to get it back." Smith slammed his side's defending two weeks ago and insisted last night: "The one thing we do need to do, regardless of overall play, is defend set pieces better than we did in the last game. "We lost three goals from straight forward set plays and a fourth from a quickly taken free-kick which caught us out. "We have to show we can handle those situations better. "It's not very often you lose a game from three deflected set plays but it happened." Away from home Smith has stuck rigidly to his tried and tested 4-5-1 formation. The tactics have delivered success, but prompted criticism by those who want to see a more attacking approach, and Smith hinted that he may go with two up front tonight. He grinned: "We will play forward players although I must admit, I'm frightened if I do play a lot of attacking players that people will say 'There's Smith attacking now' I'd hate to lose my image! "But the most important thing will be the attitude of the players that we use. We need to rediscover that edge to get a good result." http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/spl/2712288/I-can-bank-on-my-boys.html

I hope admin don't mind me posting this news. However I believe it's something all Bears should be aware of and feel proud to be part of this venture. Please remove if unappropriate content for Gersnet. It is with great pride and much humility, that Vanguardbears are pleased to announce that we have purchased, on behalf of Rangers fans throughout the world, a 50 year Lease on the burial plot of William McBeath. William, you will know, was one of the young founders of our Club, one of the "Gallant Pioneers". The recent book on the founders of the club highlighted that William sadly died aged 55 and was buried in an unmarked grave in Lincoln. There were no surviving family members and the site had fallen into disrepair. Regretfully, the Club has chosen not to do the right thing by this great man. Without him, and his three friends, there would have been no Rangers Football Club. Following discussions with Lincolnshire Council, a 50 year lease has been purchased for the upkeep and maintenance of the final burial place by Vanguard Bears and we will, in the very near future, mark it by erecting a suitable headstone, with an appropriate message worthy of the man. Vanguard Bears behind the scenes team gives special thanks to three of its members "Arisesir", "davesmith", and "Thomas Lord Cochrane" for their initiative in paying the ultimate tribute to William McBeath; for their tireless hard work down in Lincoln, and their financial assistance which along with others helped get this project off the ground, and would like to say "William, you were never forgotten by some. Now, you will be remembered by many." Donations will be gratefully received for the completing of the stone. To donate to this worthy cause, a Paypal link has been set up on VB's home page. Once costs have been estimated for the work, the Paypal will be made live, the estimate (s) chosen and a target figure to meet the costs published. When the target cost has been met, the paypal link will be frozen. If you had it Brethren would you give it? http://www.vanguardbears.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=217&Itemid=1 Vanguardbears.co.uk

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