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.....for the Premiership title in 2015-16 Ally McCoist last night declared that anything less than Rangers challenging for the Premiership title in season 2015-16 will be unacceptable. The Ibrox club will compete in the Championship next season having won back-to-back titles and are hot favourites to pave their way back to the big time with a third successive crown. However, the source of the club’s long-term financing remains shrouded in uncertainty, with would-be investor Dave King so far being kept at arms’ length by the board. King’s willingness to underwrite the £50million he believes is needed to compete with Celtic has chimed with a fan base who are behind his plan to only release season-ticket money to the board if certain conditions are met. McCoist yesterday expressed his hope that dialogue could yet see all parties arrive at a satisfactory solution. But, come what may, the Rangers manager refutes the notion that the aim of a first season back in the top flight could be consolidation. ‘No, it’s not an option,’ he stated. ‘We know it goes with the territory here, you are expected to win the vast majority of games and you’re expected to get promoted and get back in the top league as quickly as possible. ‘So far, these boxes are getting ticked although there have been one or two hiccups along the way, which we always said there would be.’ Asked if he intended building a team capable of challenging at the first time of asking, McCoist continued: ‘Yes, it’s important. We’ve never made up the numbers at all. No matter what league we’ve played in or where we’ve played, we’ve always believed we’ve had a chance of winning the competition and I don’t see any reason why that should change. ‘In fact, it shouldn’t change and it can’t change.' On Thursday, Rangers chairman David Somers issued a stern warning that the proposed season ticket stand-off could cause untold damage to the club. Speaking after the publication of the interim financial results, Somers said the withholding of money could risk the club’s ability to ‘continue as a going concern.’ McCoist has repeatedly taken a neutral stance in the ongoing spat between the board, King and the fans, but yesterday he admitted to having serious concerns about what Somers had said. ‘Of course that would worry me, as a supporter and as a manager,’ he added. ‘That would be a concern for everybody who has anything to do with the club. If the chairman feels that has to be said, it is probably an unpleasant reminder to everybody involved at the club that we have a long, long way to go.’ Notwithstanding the possible return of King to Ibrox, McCoist believes he and the board are on the same page as far as a shared vision for the future of the club is concerned. ‘I’ve said all along that we need investment to get back, there’s no doubt about that,’ he continued. ‘Graham (Wallace, the chief executive) and the board have said that, too, so it’s good that everybody feels like that and shares that opinion. ‘Where the investment comes from we will have to wait and see. ‘In the meantime, it’s good everybody agrees investment is needed. ‘For us to get back to where we want to eventually be, we will need investment. ‘We lost millions when we lost all those players. To get back to the standard of where we were, investment is needed.’ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2591972/McCoist-sights-set-challenging-Celtic-Premiership-title-2015-16.html

King: My father was so anti-football he didn't want me to be a Rangers fan Dave King can afford to laugh now. About the round of golf with Arnold Palmer which ended up costing him £20million. His investment in Rangers was never planned. Travelling with Gary Player from South Africa to a pro-am event in Hawaii early in 2000, the intention was to spend some time holing putts. ‘I played with Gary in the pro-am on the Tuesday,’ King recalls. ‘But on the Wednesday he was going to look at a golf course he was designing. So he arranged for me to play with Jack Nicklaus instead. ‘After that round we then had dinner with Alistair Johnston, the future Rangers chairman. He was a good mate of David Murray. ‘He was a big Rangers man like myself and was telling me how the club needed cash and so on. He was trying to sell it to me. Asking what it might take. ‘So I said to him: “You know what would be really nice? I’ve played with Gary on Tuesday, I’ve played with Jack on Wednesday, could you fix it for me to play with Arnold Palmer tomorrow in the pro am?” ‘Alistair could do that. He arranged the pro-am. So I played golf with Gary Player on the Tuesday, Jack Nicklaus on the Wednesday and Arnold Palmer on the Thursday. I might be the only amateur golfer in the world who has ever done that. But golfing with the big three was a costly business. It ended up costing me a £20m investment in Rangers.’ Some still suspect King got most of his money back. Amongst those opposed to his plans for a proposed new Ibrox investment of between £30m and £50m, a report from a South African business journal in November 2008 has now become gospel. Unverified, the report claimed King received £18m in income from Rangers over the 12 years of his previous involvement. It was seized on by the PR man once paid to do the bidding of the current board. Indignant, King tells Sportsmail: ‘Listen, I did not get one penny of that money back. SARS taxed me on my total income. And obviously your income includes what you spent it on. ‘When I invested that £20m I didn’t even have a tax problem. That came later. ‘There was some mischief put out there about me getting £18m back or something. Nonsense. ‘That PR guy Jack Irvine was putting out some stories to discredit me for whatever reason. It was absolute rubbish. The truth is that I put in £20m and lost it all. ‘I didn’t even get my 3p in the pound or whatever I was due back. So when people say I don’t put my money where my mouth is I point to that. ‘I genuinely put in £20m, I genuinely lost it. And I am still coming back for more.’ That first investment finally disappeared down a black hole when Rangers entered administration in February 2012. He threatened afterwards to sue Murray for the loss on the grounds of ‘non disclosure’ over the club’s true financial state. Asked if he is still pursuing the cash, he says: ‘I continue to work on that for myself and for all the fans who lost money.’ Despite it all, he now wants to invest more money in Rangers. This newspaper first broke the news of King’s plans for a fresh investment last April. A year later he is still trying, saying this week the club need up to £50m over the next four seasons and that he would underwrite a new share issue himself if he had to. The sums involved are eye-watering; a world removed from a modest childhood in Castlemilk. One of seven children – four boys and three girls – his policeman father Tom King witnessed the corrosive, disproportionate impact football had on Saturday nights in Glasgow. ‘My father wasn’t at all keen on me becoming a Rangers supporter. He was a Glasgow policeman and because of that he resented the whole football scene in Glasgow. ‘He was actually very anti-football. When we were kids growing up he was very vocal on his dislike of the bigotry in football. The police in Glasgow at that time saw it as a basis for thuggery. ‘He saw what it did from a crime and disorder point of view in Glasgow. And as a family we were taught to reject the whole bigotry aspect surrounding football. That has stayed with me through the years. ‘My father took me to that first game reluctantly, but I clearly remember seeing Ritchie, Shearer and Caldow in the classic Scot Symon team. It would have been 1965 or so and I was 10. ‘Thereafter there were so many players I admired. Greig, McKinnon, Ralph Brand, Jimmy Millar. But it was never about individuals. It was more about the club. ‘If you are a Rangers fan you go beyond players. It’s about the club, the institution – it’s what you are brought up with. It’s just in your blood. It’s in your DNA.” The Kings were amongst the first inhabitants of the new tenement flats in Castlemilk, the south side housing scheme developed by the old Glasgow Corporation to provide affordable overspill housing for the Gorbals. The homes were new, the amenities non existent. ‘I don’t think we ever regarded ourselves as well off in any way. You understand when you are a kid that a lot of kids are better off than you. That becomes a motivation in a way. ‘I wanted to do something different with my life. I didn’t want to feel like that. ‘It would be easy to say growing up in Castlemilk as one of seven in modest circumstances drove me on in life. But it was there within me anyway. ‘Of course, there was a certain sense of growing up and thinking: “I don’t want my kids to live like this.” There certainly was an ambition in me and in everything I did to progress from humble origins, if you want to put it like that.’ Uniquely for a boy growing up in Castlemilk, King attended a private, fee-paying school. ‘I was certainly helped by going to Allan Glen’s,’ he admits. ‘Everyone around me went to the local schools and I suppose I was unusual. ‘The view of my mum at the time was that she would do anything to get me in. ‘But I was lucky because I got a bursary. I sat an exam and after being awarded the bursary I was excused fees. But my parents thought it was so important that even if I hadn’t got a bursary, I would have been sent in any event.’ He left school and started his working life with Glasgow’s Weir Pumps. He was transferred to South Africa with very little cash in 1976. ‘I planned to spend a few years here, make some money and return to Scotland. But one thing led to another.’ He married wife Ladina and the couple had four children. After spells with the Post Office Reserve Bank, King set up a management consultancy and took a golf membership at the Dainfern Country Club. His tax problems began when he established Specialised Outsourcing in 1993/94 to efficiently handle funds on behalf of the government for a share of the profits. He acquired conspicuous wealth and in 2000 – the year he also invested in Rangers – he bought a painting by artist Irma Stern at auction for £100,000. Reading of the purchase, Mr Charles Chipps, a special investigator of the South African Revenue Service, decided to check on King’s tax payments and discovered a declared taxable income of just £4,000. His discovery triggered an infamous 13-year battle between King and SARS. One which placed him on the front pages of South African newspapers and saw his overseas assets frozen. When Rangers entered administration two years ago, he could barely buy a bus pass in the UK, let alone a football club. The damaging dispute finally ended last year with a £39.3m settlement. Shares in King’s company Micromega immediately rose in value by 500 per cent and – on paper at least – he has made all his money back. Regretful he allowed things to drag on so long, he admits the settlement is a weight off his mind. He can now focus his attentions – and cash - back on Rangers. ‘The SARS business was a huge burden - one that has finally been removed. It was onerous. Very onerous given the extended time and the tying up of most of my capital during this period.’ There remains one lingering stain. As part of the plea bargain, King accepted culpability for 41 breaches of section 75 of the South Africa Income Tax Act. Each charge offered the choice of paying a £5,000 fine or spending two years in custody. King opted to pay the total fine of £210,000 rather than spend 82 years in jail and maintains the offences are not serious enough to breach the SFA’s fit and proper person regulations. He remains ‘certain’ he will pass the test, but before he reaches that stage King must find a route back into the Rangers boardroom. He rejects criticism that he has yet to put his money where his mouth is. That he has talked a good game without buying any shares. ‘It’s not unfair to say I haven’t put my money where my mouth is,’ he insists, ‘it’s just plain wrong. ‘I repeat, I’m the man who put £20m in and didn’t get a penny back. ‘I don’t even want to put new money in. If the Rangers board can raise £20m without me than that’s the first prize. ‘I would prefer it and my family would certainly prefer it – because that’s the trust funds for my four kids taken care of. ‘But what I am saying is that if there is a fresh share issue I am willing to do it. ‘It’s quite simple really. Where Rangers are concerned, I am the last resort guy. No more than that.’ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2591251/Dave-King-My-father-anti-football-didnt-want-Rangers-fan.html#ixzz2xDdtF8hl

“We note today’s interim results which show a drop in revenue excluding the Sports Direct deal, a failure to address operating costs during the period to December 2013 and doubts over the cash position of the club going forward. The most important issue, and one which highlights the obvious need for substantial investment, surrounds the cash position of the club both at this present moment and at the AGM last December. The CEO, Graham Wallace, stated at the AGM that there was “sufficient cash in the business to fund the ongoing needs of the club in the near term”. It appears from both these interim results and the recent loan of £1.5m from shareholders that this statement at the AGM may have been somewhat misleading. It is unclear exactly how it could have been stated by the board at that time, with any confidence, that there was sufficient cash even for the short term and we would like Mr Wallace and Mr Somers to explain this as a matter of urgency. We would also like to address Mr Somers comments on the consequences of the possible withholding of season ticket money. We are certain that not a single one of the 6500 fans, and counting, who have so far shown interest in the idea of a season ticket trust, have any wish to withhold any money from the club. However, it would be foolhardy for fans to once again commit their money without any kind of transparency or security. The fans have shown outstanding loyalty and commitment in the past two years, both via the IPO and two sets of unprecedented season ticket sales, but we have seen that loyalty thrown back in our faces as money has been squandered. Mr Somers acknowledges how vital season ticket cash is and the need for the board to build trust with the fans. What better way to do that than to give security over vital club assets - Ibrox and Auchenhowie - to the fans in return for that much needed income? The board have publicly stated that they have no plans to use these assets for any other security, or a sale and leaseback, and so there is no impediment to them agreeing to the terms of release. For the avoidance of doubt, there is no plan to drip feed season ticket money on a game by game basis. The proposal is simply that season ticket money is paid in a lump sum, prior to the start of the season, in return for security over club assets. This will allow fans to be safe in the knowledge that no matter what happens the club’s assets will be in good hands. We also note Mr Somers statement about fan engagement but, since announcing the trust, we have had no contact from the board. Given the obvious and urgent need for investment, we would once again urge the board to accept Dave King’s offer of £30m so that both the fans and the club can move forward in harmony.” http://www.unionoffans.org/statements/ctbbhmeyvnm6jucnohohhbl3jce9ay

There are real doubts about Rangers' ability to continue as a going concern THE chairman issued the dire warning, which he claims is a direct result of fan proposals to drip-feed season-ticket money to the club via a trust fund. RANGERS chairman David Somers has admitted that "material uncertainty" over season ticket income may cast doubt about the club's ability to continue as a going concern, as the Ibrox outfit announced its cash reserves fell by more than £17.5million last year. Rangers announced a loss of £3.7million in the seven months up to the end of 2013, an improvement of 50 per cent on the same period 12 months earlier. But they had just £3.5million cash on December 31, despite bringing in £22million in an initial public offering (IPO) share issue just over a year earlier. The main Rangers supporters' groups recently raised the possibility of drip-feeding season-ticket money to the club via a trust fund amid continuing distrust over the board's ability and intentions. And the club, who recently arranged loans totalling £1.5million from two shareholders, admits that casts a shadow over the club's immediate future. In the interim report, Somers said: "This possibility results in the existence of a material uncertainty which may cast doubt about Rangers' ability to continue as a going concern and therefore that the company may be unable to realise its assets and discharge its liabilities in the normal course of business. "Nevertheless, after making the appropriate enquiries and considering the uncertainties referred to above, the directors have concluded that there is a reasonable expectation that the company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, the directors continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the interim results." Earlier this month, the Union of Fans, which incorporates all of the main Rangers supporters' groups, urged fans to put season ticket money into a trust, from which it would only be released to the club when assurances were met, including security over Ibrox and the Murray Park training ground. The club's independent auditor, Deloitte, stated the uncertainty might cast "significant" doubt over the club's ability to continue as a going concern. The club have made assumptions including that they "modestly" increase their season-ticket numbers, which stood at 36,000 in League One, next season and beyond. The improvement in financial performance is in large part down to increased retail sales with the club reporting its partnership with Sports Direct was worth £4.8million in the seven months, up from £900,000. Revenue was up 38 per cent to £13.2million, however operating expenses also increased slightly to £16.8million. Staff costs were down £800,000 to £7.5million but the club pointed out that £500,000 was spent on severance payments. Somers and chief executive Graham Wallace came in towards the end of the period and the latter is conducting a 120-day review of the business, and they explained some of the spending that meant cash reserves fell from £21.2million in a year. Somers said: "The majority of the money raised from the IPO in December 2012 had been spent by June 2013 on IPO related fees and commissions, severance payments, the purchases of the Albion car park and Edmiston House and to fund ongoing operating losses. "The club incurred a further £7.7m of cash expenditure in the six months to 31 December 2013, funding additional fixed asset purchases and operating losses. In total the club has spent over £4m on fixed assets since the IPO that are not yet generating incremental revenue." Somers admitted operating costs had been unsustainable. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/fears-future-ibrox-chairman-david-3290753

MARCH 25, 2014 UNION OF FANS STATEMENT 25TH MARCH 2014 by Union of Fans The Union of Fans (UoF) is delighted that Dave King has publicly stated his impressive plans for Rangers via a number of newspaper interviews. His vision for the club is extremely welcome as is the personal financial commitment he is willing to make. Like all Rangers fans, Dave King and UoF want to see the club back operating to high standards on and off the pitch and in the boardroom. We firmly believe that the involvement of Dave King is the best chance of those standards being attained in the short, medium and long term. It was clear from our discussions with him last week that the £30m+ Mr King is willing to invest is crucial to take the club back to a competitive level and improve the infrastructure and facilities. The club has been neglected, that cannot continue. Only once this investment has been made will Rangers be able to live within its means, something we all want for the longer term future. Until then Dave King has made it clear he will do what is necessary to get Rangers back to where we belong and where we can be self-sustainable. It is also important that Dave King chose to make his views public to the widest possible range of Rangers supporters by conducting interviews with four different newspapers with a combined readership of over 2M people. There can no longer be any criticism of him only speaking privately to supporters groups, though he has pledged to continue that important dialogue in order that the Union of Fans can keep people updated on events. We would now ask the board to indicate publicly, as a matter of urgency, whether they are prepared to accept Dave King’s offer of massive investment. The ball is firmly with the Rangers PLC board, in particular with Chief Executive Officer, Graham Wallace and Chairman, David Somers. Dave King has put a figure on what Rangers need and has shown his commitment to, and ambition for, the club he has supported all his life. Do Mr Wallace and Mr Somers agree with his figures and if they do, how do they propose to raise this large sum of money without Dave King? These are extremely serious corporate matters, therefore they are matters for the PLC board and not for any small, minority shareholder who is not a member of that board and who has no such high level corporate experience. The corporate reputations of Mr Wallace and Mr Somers now rest on their next move. We also note with dismay that Rangers director Sandy Easdale is continuing to pursue what we consider to be a confrontational and frivolous course of legal action against Sons of Struth. We would ask him to remember what it means to be a Rangers director and act accordingly if he wishes to enjoy the privileges of that position.

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/keith-jackson-its-check-mate-3286265#.UzKOhg6Tggg.twitter

http://www.vanguardbears.co.uk/a-shameful-state-of-play.html

Exclusive Dave King interview in @TheEveningTimes and @TheHeraldPaper tomorrow. A must read for #Rangers fans Can't give too much away mate sorry. £m are mentioned for the first time and good stuff on his motivation for getting involved. From Chris Jack on twitter. For those interested.

http://www.gersnet.co.uk/index.php/latest-news/230-markers-and-moonbeams If there is one aspect of the Sir David Murray era that perhaps defines his time in control, it was that of the moonbeam. From the infamous 'for every fiver Celtic spend, we'll spend a tenner’ line to belated and failed promises in terms of investment as his custodianship stumbled towards being ‘duped’ by Craig Whyte; over time Rangers fans gradually realised that the success Murray brought to the club came at a great price. A cost we’re still paying for now. However, if there’s been one positive of the awful last few years, it’s that more and more Rangers fans have become cynical of the bolder claims made by the long line of chancers that attach themselves to the club. Sure, we all want to believe tall tales about tie ups with successful American sports franchises or argue we can secure impressive sponsorship deals with mobile-phone companies but I genuinely think, deep down, we now appreciate modern day Scottish football just doesn’t bring such opportunities. Of course European football may occasionally raise our profile via Champions League participation but the ‘big fish, small pond’ metaphor has never been more accurate – as much as our rivals across the Clyde may pretend otherwise. Nevertheless Rangers remain a big draw for its supporters. Incredible numbers of fans have stayed with the club through administration and our journey back from the (old) Third Division. Indeed to retain 36,000 season ticket holders during this period is something our usual critics must lose sleep over and it’s this annual loyalty which will always form the back-bone of the club’s financial future. This is why the art of the moonbeam became important as SDM started to realise his ambitions soon outweighed his ability; not just in terms of running the business successfully but being able to fund it. Quite simply our season money is the only substantial financial given each year for the club. Ticketus and Charles Green certainly knew this – even if both may have suffered somewhat since. Unfortunately, despite this seasonal show of fiscal fan passion, it remains clear the club will continue to struggle to be viable without the correct business plan and properly qualified directors. That’s why Whyte quickly failed, Green and Ahmad soon departed while other periphery figures also moved on; leaving us with the current stand- off we have now. In one corner we have the incumbent board defending itself from criticism via a rather over-long four month buffers while in the other we have Dave King applying pressure via a £50million media marker. Or is it a moonbeam? The last sentence is a bit harsh of course. After all, if anyone suffered more than most from SDM’s charismatic efforts to raise investment, it was Dave King who didn’t see much return for his £20million investment nearly 14 years ago. Ergo, when people like King talk about such matters, we need to listen and there’s no doubt his suggestions of investment levels are probably correct if Rangers are to ever genuinely challenge Celtic again at the top of Scottish football. With that in mind, I’m certainly glad he’s applying pressure to Graham Wallace ahead of his much-vaunted 120-day plan. Anything less than the £30-50million King speaks of would now look insufficient so the buck is definitely with the existing board over the coming weeks. Their overdue April reaction will be fascinating. However, all this should and must go beyond superficial sound-bites about ‘war-chests’ and/or budget cuts. We’ve heard all this before. What Rangers fans need, more than anything, are demonstrable plans of action. I, for one, don’t doubt the intentions of someone like Dave King but just because he’s a Rangers man or that he’s invested previously doesn’t mean we can have blind faith in his ideals. To obtain that faith, we need as much from him as we’re asking of Graham Wallace: namely a sound business plan which enables to club to be successful but self-sufficient in the longer term. Clearly, an element of risk and initial investment will be required to compete with Celtic in the coming years but how does this square with ensuring the club remains secure for the future? For example, wouldn’t it be dangerous to invest tens of millions into the playing squad if there are doubts over the management team and the lack of scouting? At what level is this risk acceptable without compromising the club’s ongoing progress? Now, all these questions are as valid for the current board as they are for Dave King. Yet, a couple of weeks since my two similar articles on TRS, we’re no closer to seeing genuine answers – widespread media Q&A’s or not. That remains a source of concern so we can only hope all these figureheads are aware of what we expect ahead of the next few weeks. Rangers fans undeniably want to invest in our future but not if it’s just repeating the same old mistakes of the past. It isn’t a surprise that some fans are considering their options so who will be the first to show that they have learned the lessons of the last 15 years? Markers may well be fine but moonbeams certainly are not.

Ally McCoist has been to Brechin and back on a journey that he accepts has some distance yet to go, so he has asked to be forgiven if he cannot get exercised about a spat over ticket allocation for a Scottish Cup semi-final. The Rangers manager yesterday looked ahead to Sunday’s League 1 return to Brechin, where his side came perhaps closest to surrendering their unbeaten league record in a see-sawing 4-3 victory in October. It is also the ground where Rangers’ journey back up the Scottish leagues began in July 2012, when they travelled to face Brechin City in a Ramsdens Cup tie that the Ibrox side eventually won after extra-time. He remembers sending former ITV punditry colleague Andy Townsend a photograph of the much-loved hedge at Brechin on his phone. “He just sent me back a reply, saying: ‘what?!’” recalled McCoist. “But that’s the beauty of the journey we have been on, some of the places we have been to.” It hasn’t always been so fulfilling, however. Continued off-the-field financial struggles and boardroom dramas mean McCoist believes he is in a good position to apply some perspective to the issue that has dominated the back pages this week. “In the grand scheme of things in the last two years it’s been a very, very small issue,” said McCoist, with reference to the continued controversy surrounding semi-final opponents Dundee United’s complaints about both choice of venue and the number of tickets they have been handed ahead of the 12 April meeting at Ibrox. “I think we as a club and as a team have got far bigger things to worry about than having a mump and a moan with individual clubs,” said McCoist. “We have got to take a step back and look at the bigger picture and concentrate our energies on getting back to the top flight and playing semi-finals and finals on a more regular basis than we are doing at the moment.” One spokesperson for a Dundee United fans’ group suggested that some supporters are nervous about attending due to safety concerns after another war of words between the two clubs. United chairman Stephen Thompson has also revealed he will choose to sit among his club’s fans rather than in the directors’ box at Ibrox, due to fears he might be the target for the home fans’ venom. The ill-feeling between the clubs stretches back to a row following United’s decision to charge Rangers fans a reduced price to watch a replayed league match in 2009 after the original game had been abandoned due to a waterlogged pitch. Some Rangers fans also feel Thompson was instrumental in blocking plans to fast-track the Ibrox club back to the top-flight in 2012. But it is United who have now been outraged by having to face Rangers at the Ibrox club’s own ground in next month’s semi-final and the Scottish Football Association’s initial offer of 11,000 tickets. McCoist admitted that he could “understand” some of the points made by United, but then the choice of venue was made long ago. In any case, he has other worries. “The ticket allocation is a problem between Dundee United and the SFA and whoever, so they will sort that out between them,” he said. “I’m certainly not going to get involved in an issue that doesn’t really bother me, to be honest.” As for fears about safety concerns raised by some United fans as well as Thompson, McCoist added: “I would be hopeful that was maybe taken a wee bit out of context. I didn’t read the quotes so it would be wrong of me to comment on them. But certainly in this day and age, the one thing you expect is any travelling supporter of any club going to any game would like to sit down and watch it in comfort and safety. I would hope that is just about guaranteed in all the stadiums in the country and ours is no different.” It was understandable that McCoist wished to concentrate on football matters. For the first time in what feels like a very long time, the near future looks to contain some exciting on-field possibilities for Rangers. The agreed month-long ceasefire between the board and former director Dave King has meant there is some chance that the spotlight can fall on the team, who secured the League One title last week. Rangers also have a Ramsdens Cup final to contest on 6 April against Raith Rovers before facing United in the Scottish Cup last four. “It’s probably as positive as it has been for a while in terms of the football side of things,” noted McCoist. “So we are actually quite enjoying that – if you will spare us that little bit of enjoyment.” Two concerns impacting on the manager’s current good cheer involve the fitness of Andy Little and David Templeton, who have respective thigh and groin injuries. Both players could be in a race to be fit for the Ramsdens Cup final and the Scottish Cup semi-final. http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/spfl-lower-divisions/rangers-ticket-spat-a-small-issue-for-mccoist-1-3348743

http://t.co/YEh6Ay09Wi The noise around Rangers has abated. A series of statements were released after former director Dave King flew to the United Kingdom last week to meet Rangers International Football Club shareholders, directors and supporters. All parties have now entered a 30-day period in which the board has to produce a business plan that adheres to their public commitments about restoring the club to its former status of title challengers in the top flight and regular European competitors. So what is the state of play in and around Ibrox? Here are five key questions on the latest chapter of the Rangers saga. Has peace broken out? King has the backing of fans groups as he puts pressure on the board It's more a hiatus. Following their meeting with South Africa-based businessman King on Friday, the Rangers directors issued a statement in which they pledged to reveal a business plan that would allow the team "to compete at the highest levels of Scottish and European football". This requires significant investment in the football department, which is currently operating without any scouting staff, and in new players. Yet the board also pledged not to use Ibrox Stadium and the Murray Park training ground as security against any borrowing, which leaves investment from existing or new shareholders as the only likely way to raise finance. King wants to lead that round of fundraising and pointed out that the board of a publicly limited company is bound by its stated commitments. He urged fans to give the board 30 days to comply, which the Union of Fans (UoF) - a coalition of supporters groups - "reluctantly" agreed to. It certainly represents a less adversarial approach. What options are there for the board? Wallace is examining Rangers' finances but has ruled out a second period in administration It is difficult to see them having any choice but to commit to a fresh share issue. This has always been mooted by the chief executive, Graham Wallace, but without setting any timescale. Existing shareholders would need to reinvest to maintain the size of their stake, though. If the club is to invest ahead of challenging for promotion from the Scottish Championship and then mounting a title challenge in the Premiership, the question of a share issue would need to be put to a shareholder vote as soon as possible to allow a two-year football strategy to be put in place. The board has agreed to borrow £1.5m from the shareholders, Sandy Easdale and Laxey Partners, with the loans secured against Edmiston House and the Albion car park, with Laxey also receiving a £150,000 premium in cash or shares. King revealed in his statement last Monday that the directors told him they had agreed to these terms because they "considered that a combination of legal risk and the current financial position justified the loan terms". In effect, the financial state of the club meant that the loans ought to be considered high risk. It is clear that Rangers need investment and that the £1.5m is a temporary sticking plaster. Wallace, though, has consistently stated that administration will not occur. Why 30 days? McCoist is awaiting word on what budget he will have for next season At the annual meeting in December, Wallace told shareholders that he would conduct a 120-day review into the business, with outgoings exceeding revenues while the club is in the lower divisions. This ends in mid-April, but the interim accounts are also due out before the end of March. So, within the next 30 days, shareholders and fans will have a clearer understanding of the current financial state of the club - it is expected that the interims will show a reduction in the £14m losses suffered in the last financial year - and the board's plan to improve its position on and off the field. This will then allow fans to make an objective decision about season ticket renewals, which will follow. What if the business plan does not meet expectations, or the board does not fulfil its pledges? The UoF is pressing ahead with plans to set up a season-ticket trust fund, with lawyers likely to be engaged on the project and trustees appointed thereafter. Before asking fans to wait for 30 days, King had advised them to pool their renewal money, which is the club's single largest income stream, and only give it to the club in return for securing Ibrox and Murray Park to protect them. Existing shareholders will surely also be monitoring events. Is a resolution likely? The current board and the shareholders they represent want to stay in place. King wants to invest directly in the club in return for an influence on how the money is spent. A majority of fans at the last home game against Dunfermline Athletic held up blue cards in support of King. From these three positions, a workable solution needs to be delivered. Conflict is unlikely to resolve anything and ultimately it is finances that will dictate what happens. Rangers either seek new funding, or cut costs, with the latter likely to make life more testing for the manager, Ally McCoist, and Wallace to deliver a team that can eventually challenge Celtic again, at least in the short-term.

http://www.rangers.co.uk/news/headlines/item/6545-club-statement

by Union of Fans First of all we would like to thank Dave King for his time and patience over the past few days. Having met with him on Friday, and then again yesterday morning, prior to the release of his statement, we appreciate him keeping us fully appraised of his progress. It has been extremely refreshing to deal with someone who shares our own love of Rangers and also has the means, commitment and passion to significantly improve the club’s fortunes over the coming years. We are pleased that Dave has acknowledged the fans’ role in bringing the current board to the negotiating table and we are heartened by his ability to very swiftly secure some important, binding, public commitments from them. Clearly the board’s position has changed over the weekend, from one where we had no clear sight of their strategy with regard to moving the club forward, to one where they have now committed to fans and shareholders to implement the funding plan we believed was required. This plan, if properly executed, should allow the club to compete both domestically and in Europe in the medium term. We are pleased that they are no longer considering the massive scaling back of club operations that would have been required, both on and off the park, under their previously assumed but never communicated strategy. We also note that they have confirmed that they do require further investment as a matter of some urgency. We expect significant amounts of that investment to come from a united fan investment vehicle, including Dave King. Although pleased that they have made a commitment not to raise finance, or take out any type of security, on Ibrox or Auchenhowie, we are disappointed that they have refused to make this as unequivocal as we would have expected. “We have no plans” does not engender the same confidence as “we will not”. Having secured these binding, public commitments from the board, through Dave King, we are now prepared to wait for the publication of the business review from Graham Wallace within the next 30 days. We expect it to fully reflect the promises made by the board in their last statement and we are, reluctantly given previous experience, relying on them to fulfil those promises. We expect them to produce a coherent vision and detailed plan of how they will fund it. In the meantime, whilst the board complete this process, we will be continuing with plans to set up a Season Ticket Trust. We are determined to be in a position to provide it as an option, if required, and will continue to update the supporters on our progress on a regular basis. We expect to engage with legal advisers and trustees as early as next week. We would like to thank all the fans who sent such a clear message to the board at the weekend. Without fan pressure we would not have made the significant progress we have and we are fully aware that following the completion of the business review, depending on its outcome, the fans may once again be required to act. We remain fully committed to continuing our work with Dave King as part of a fan led initiative to invest in the club and will be in close contact with him over the coming weeks. We fully support his vision for Rangers and his methods of achieving that vision and will hold the board fully to account, within the timescales they have indicated, for the binding, public commitments they have made. http://www.unionoffans.org/statements/2014/3/18/follow-up-statement-re-dave-king

Lifted from FF From Sun Journo Andy Devlin on Twitter

by Graham Taylor | Guest Contributor I’ll be the first to admit that when the name of Sandy Easdale was first mooted as having a possible involvement at Rangers in November 2012 I didn’t know the first thing about him, as no doubt many that do not live in the central belt probably didn’t either. Handily though, the Daily Record were quick to point people in the direction of Mr Easdale’s somewhat questionable business past with an article entitled “Bus tycoon Sandy Easdale who was jailed over VAT fraud is courted as possible investor at Ibrox”. Taken at face value at a time when the club was needing to regain its credibility following the disastrous insolvency experience under the stewardship of Craig Whyte, I, like many, was aghast at the thought of an individual with an equally-dubious business background to that of Whyte being involved at the club. It was noticeable from the story that the Rangers spokesman at the time felt it necessary to give direct comment on the possible involvement of Easdale at the club. Looking back it is clear that, even from that early stage, Sandy Easdale was being lined up for a prominent role at the club. As the beginnings of a boardroom turf war started to creep its way into the spotlight Sandy and his brother James joined the embattled Charles Green in the Directors' Box for the friendly against Linfield. It was around this time that Green was feeling the heat for his links to Craig Whyte and the fallout from his racist remarks in a Sunday newspaper interview, so with the focus firmly on Green it was perhaps an ideal opportunity for the Easdale brothers to be seen with the man firmly in the public domain. Days later, Green resigned his post as Chief Executive of the club. A few days beyond that, it was announced by BBC Scotland’s Chris McLaughlin that James Easdale–and not Sandy–would be buying the seven percent shareholding held by Green. Now, given what we know now, why was it James that was announced as the man looking to buy the sizeable shareholding and not Sandy who has been largely the main figure at the club in recent times? And why was it claimed by McLaughlin that the brothers held a shareholding far in-excess of what they could possibly have held then and still do to this day? Coincidentally, it became common knowledge around this time that Jack Irvine had become the Easdale brothers’ personal PR representative. This led to the infamous interview where Sandy and, to a lesser extent, James laid out their vision for Rangers going forward to BBC Scotland’s Chief Football Correspondent whilst sitting in one of their buses. For businessmen hoping to be taken seriously in their objective of securing board representation, it was an abjectly embarrassing episode. Sure enough and even with a relatively small level of shareholding James Easdale was given a non-executive Director role on the plc board. Sandy would have to wait a few weeks later for his role on the Ltd company board, which he was later named Chairman of with the remit to run the business side of the club that the plc board did not run day-to-day. Sandy was subsequently asked in an interview with STV’s Peter Smith if he felt his conviction for VAT Fraud in 1997 contributed to him being unable to take a role on the plc board. He denied this was the case and said it was his decision to not take up a role on the plc board. It was widely discussed in October last year, none more so than by the former Scotsman journalist Tom English in an amusing parody, that Easdale did not wish for Dave King to be involved at the club and that Easdale’s PR representative had been briefing journalists that King’s potential involvement would be vetoed by the relevant authorities. King himself admitted last month that his recent discussions with a view to investing in the club were held with Easdale and not the Chief Executive Graham Wallace or the Chairman of the Investment Committee Norman Crighton. King has since said that had it not been for fan pressure then the board would not have met with him in the last few days. Now what possible problem would Sandy Easdale have with a committed fan investor such as Dave King being involved in the restoration of Rangers? If he’s as big a supporter as he claims to be then getting King involved is a no-brainer, but if the above is true then it seems Easdale is continually putting obstacles in the way of King getting in the door. Why? The question that many would pose is just what purpose does Rangers Football Club hold for Mr Alexander Easdale? Does he see the club as a passionate hobby and is involved to assist the club in its return to its rightful place? Does he see Rangers as a commercial opportunity to make a profit from, as is the case with the various institutional investors? Or does he see his involvement as a chance to create a public profile that would give him the type of status that is indicative of others with similar wealth in Scotland? And with the added bonus of providing him with a less-than-dubious prefix to his name when being discussed in media circles, unlike the “ex-con” he was described as in the above Daily Record article prior to his involvement at the club? The questions surrounding Easdale don’t end there. For instance, why has he decided that Craig Houston from the Sons of Struth or the GersNet site is more deserving of litigation proceedings than the fans of lesser clubs or frequenters of bus and coach forums who constantly label him with the same terms? Why have his solicitors Levy McRae issued legal letters for and demanded immediate cessation on Rangers fan forums only and not targeted these various other football and travel sites? One Google search will confirm that this is the case, yet he has chosen to make an example of an ordinary Rangers supporter, as Alexander also claims to be. Why? Why did he claim in the interview with Peter Smith that he had investors lined up to invest in Rangers if need be? If so, why were these investors not approached prior to him providing a loan facility that is secured against valuable tangible assets such as Edmiston House and the Albion car park? Did these investors even exist or was it just bluster for the cameras? With the voting rights of Blue Pitch Holdings and Margarita Funds Holding Trust still registered in his name does he still have a binding agreement to purchase the remainder of Charles Green’s shareholding as per the Media House press release of 30th August 2013, an acquisition which would take him over the concert party threshold of 29.9 percent? And given his good relationship with the individuals behind these trusts, why won’t he come to an agreement with them to publicly reveal their identities to allay fears that certain individuals with alleged criminal activities are involved? For all the questions there are over Sandy Easdale’s involvement at Rangers, there is one that stands out more than most: If the institution that is Rangers means as much to him as he claims, why is that everything he has done in his time in the limelight appears to be to the detriment of what the vast majority consider to be in the best interests of Rangers Football Club? And does he even care...? http://www.thecoplandroad.org/2014/03/posing-question-of-alexander-easdale.html

RANGERS are set to swoop for St Mirren midfielder Kenny McLean — but fear they could lose him to English football. Ibrox boss Ally McCoist has drawn up a list of targets for next season’s Championship campaign and the Scotland Under-21 star, is on it. McLean, 22, has also been targeted by several English clubs who know his Buddies contract expires this summer. Ipswich gaffer Mick McCarthy watched McLean in action against Hungary earlier this month. Leeds, Blackburn Rovers and Huddersfield have also been north to run the rule over McLean. Paisley gaffer Danny Lennon has admitted the highly-rated kid is unlikely to sign a new deal, but Saints will hope he decides to head south. If he does they would pick up around £350,000 in compensation as McLean has been with them since he was 14. If he moved to Gers or another Scottish club, a tribunal would decide Saints’ fee for developing the player. McLean grew up a Gers fan and was discarded by their youth system as a kid. But the prospect of joining his boyhood heroes might sway his decision. Ibrox boss Ally McCoist, has yet to find out what funds — if any — he’ll have to strengthen his squad this summer. But the deals of fringe men Kyle Hutton, Emilson Cribari and Steve Simonsen are all up and that could free up some cash. from the sun

RANGERS BOARD REJECT KING PROPOSAL The Rangers board have rejected Dave King's plan to ring-fence season-ticket cash, the former director claims. King met with the ruling Ibrox regime on Friday for showdown talks about the club's worrying financial state. The club responded 24 hours later with a statement describing the meetings as a "helpful, open and honest discussion". But the South Africa-based businessman's proposed scheme - that would have protected season-ticket cash from being used to repay a controversial £1.5million loan handed to the new League One champions by investors Sandy Easdale and Laxey partners - was knocked-back by the board. The loan agreement is secured against the Albion car park and Edmiston House facility and will earn Laxey a £150,000 profit in either cash or shares when it is repaid next year. King says the board have addressed many of his concerns about the fallen Glasgow giants' future but revealed the two sides could not find common ground on the topic of season-ticket revenue. In a statement, the Castlemilk-born multi-millionaire said: "The only significant issue that I discussed with the board that is not contained in the board statement is the Laxey loan facility. "Mr [Norman] Crighton, on behalf of the board, made a forcible argument as to why the board considered and approved the terms of the Laxey loan. "The board considered that a combination of legal risk and the current financial position justified the loan terms. "I replied that a consequence of the board's view of the high risk to anyone advancing funds to the club is the board's fiduciary responsibility to ring fence any season-ticket money that is received (even if fans don't request this) unless sufficient committed financing is in place at that time. "The board did not agree with me on this logical consequence but I believe that my observation is correct." King looked set to go to war with the board when he advised fans to withhold season-ticket cash and instead pay it into a trust fund which would then drip feed the money to the club. He made his original call after complaining about a lack of transparency about the club's financial state following last year's £14.4million loss and rumours of downsizing to boss Ally McCoist's squad, which King feared would allow Celtic to rack up "10 in a row". On top of his concerns about season-ticket cash, the former director - who lost a £20million investment when the club was liquidated in 2012 - also expressed fears that the board would mortgage off Ibrox and Murray Park to secure fresh finance. But he added: "The board has now publicly dealt with each of the above. The board has affirmed that it regards competition with Celtic and in Europe as being its continued aim and that this outlook will be reflected in the business review that will be published within the next month. "Crucially, that will allow fans sufficient time to consider the review prior to investing in season tickets but it is also important that the board has now confirmed categorically that they will not use Ibrox or Murray Park as security for any form of fund raising. "No one should be in any doubt that this public statement and commitment is significant and should be appreciated as such. "Statements from a public company board are intended to be relied upon so in a couple of weeks we can expect a business review that will reflect the board's ambition and a funding plan to achieve this. "We can also rely on the fact that if circumstances change the board would be bound to advise the public in advance of this." He added: "The board has now communicated with the fans and has committed to do so in more detail within a month. "Let us give the board time to comply with its commitment. "I advised the board that I would wish to be a part of the required fund-raising as a component of a united fan group investment vehicle. This will require further discussion after release of the review in the next month."

"The Union of Fans and it's representatives would like to take this opportunity in wholeheartedly thanking the many volunteers who helped distribute the Blue Cards for today's display in support of new investment from Dave King. We would also like to thank the overwhelming majority of the support who took the decision to participate and show their support in the display. (To the naked eye well over 80% of those in attendance). In the main the cards were very well received and even those of dissenting voices were civil in either not taking cards or as is their right, not participating in the display. Once again your support & participation is very much appreciated. Union of Fans" ** Blue Card thread locked again* or I would have put this there. *I can hear conspiracy clogs whirring into action even as I type

DAVE King will help rebel Rangers fans to finalise plans for the formation of a trust for season ticket money at talks in Glasgow this weekend. And supporters are set to show their backing for the South Africa-based businessman at the game with Dunfermline at Ibrox tomorrow. The Union of Fans - an umbrella organisation comprising six supporters' groups - will distribute 30,000 blue cards to spectators at the SPFL League One match. And they will be asked to hold them up in the 18th and 72nd minutes of the match and "paint Ibrox blue" to underline their backing of the former director. The Union want the current board to accept the wealthy Scot's proposal to inject fresh share capital into Rangers. Union spokesman Chris Graham said: "The club clearly needs investment and Dave King has stated his willingness to provide it. "We hope that fans will take the opportunity to show their support for someone with a track record of supporting Rangers both personally and financially. "Hopefully the board will realise the strength of feeling on this issue and adopt a less adversarial approach in their future dealings with Dave King. "Fans should not underestimate the power they have to push for positive change at another critical time for the club." King has spent the last two days in London speaking to institutional investors in Gers about whether they would back his plans for the Ibrox club. The 58-year-old, who previously invested £20million of his personal fortune in the Light Blues, will now meet with the Union and the current board of directors over the weekend. He is urging fans to pool their season ticket money and only release it to the club on a "pay-as-they-play" basis when their questions are answered and their demands are met. The Castlemilk-born financier has vowed not to return to his adopted homeland until a trust for pooling season ticket money is legally in place. King's visit follows the news that Rangers had agreed a £1.5m loan for "working capital" with shareholders Sandy Easdale and Laxey Partners, secured on Edmiston House and the Albion car parking facilities. The revelation that Laxey Partners will make a £150,000 profit on the loan when it is repaid in September has also angered fans. Wealthy Rangers fan George Letham has volunteered to loan the Ibrox club the money on better terms and officials are believed to be considering his proposal. Documents lodged with Registers of Scotland, the country's official land and property register, have shown that Rangers will use season ticket money to repay the loan. http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/rangers/king-to-set-out-pay-as-they-play-scheme-to-rangers-fans-155805n.23693712

......Rovers have got more class. HUGH says Albion Rovers' display helps put Ibrox title win in perspective and says Old Firm fans should be asking why their teams are not in today's League Cup Final. THEY tell me Ian Black drives to and from Murray Park in a bright red Bentley. It should go with his bright red face because the painter and decorator turned midfield huffer and puffer has managed to alienate himself from the Ibrox support in the same week that Rangers won a title. That takes a bit of doing. The process of alienation, that is, not the title success. When squad members are earning enough to drive Bentleys while playing against part-time teams it’s hard to see this championship as a triumph to be discussed in the same breath as others Ally McCoist has been associated with. But disaffected season-ticket holders? That’s another matter altogether. Former Ibrox director Dave King hasn’t moved a rebellious muscle yet and he’s beginning to look like a shoo-in to win the battle for hearts and minds in the debate over where Rangers go from here at board-room level. And if his trump card is the backing of the fans then a Bentley driver asking the support what more they want after successfully “earning” a replay against Albion Rovers is a perfect start in the propaganda stakes. That and Rangers director Sandy Easdale talking about taking fans to the Court of Session for abusing him. There’s commercial suicide and then there’s commercial cynicism, of course. Celtic have lulled their fans to sleep on the back of a season prematurely ended by a championship won with the same unbalanced ease with which Rangers have dismissed their so-called challengers. The Hoops have beaten what is put in front of them and done exactly what they should’ve done in the Premiership. No more, no less. Just like Rangers. But Celtic can always keep their support on side by ticking the begorrah box. The latest edition of the club’s magazine, published last Wednesday, has Neil Lennon super-imposed on the flag of the Republic of Ireland. Above this image is a message wishing everyone a happy St Patrick’s Day from the champions. St Patrick’s Day doesn’t actually take place until tomorrow but who’s counting? And before those who are always waiting to be scandalised reach for the laptop to send the abusive email, my grandparents were from Ballymote in County Sligo and I’m as proud of my family roots as the next member of the Irish diaspora. But no matter where you’re from I’m sure a lot of Celtic supporters would rather their club magazine was talking about this weekend’s League Cup Final instead of camouflaging the fact they won’t be there. The reason why neither Celtic nor Rangers will be there this afternoon is that the former couldn’t get past the mighty Morton at home with the additional benefit of extra time. And even a team with a Bentley driver in it couldn’t find a way past part-time Forfar Athletic – after Rangers also got an extra half hour at Station Park to see if they could find the right gear. So good luck to Aberdeen and Inverness for having made it to the final and selling almost 50,000 tickets to remind us that there’s still life outside the Bentleys and the begorrahs. And well done to Albion Rovers for earning a replay against Rangers and a host of admirers at the same time for deciding to share their financial windfall from that match with the less fortunate. The idea of the Coatbridge club giving away £10,000 to Radio Clyde’s Cash For Kids charity appeal would once have been thought preposterous. But when they came into a few bob by dint of their own efforts on the park the Rovers asked “What do you need ?” instead of “What more do you want?” like a member of the other team annoyed by people having the audacity to criticise their performances. I got a text from someone anxious to point out that Rangers drew with Albion at Ibrox in 1935 when Bill Struth was the manager. My reply to that is, it was an embarrassment then and it’s an embarrassment now, begging Albion Rovers pardon. So sue me for having an opinion.

Find myself without a lift again, so if anyone leaving from (or passing through) Motherwell tomorrow has a space in their car, could drop me at the broomloan end between 11pm & 11.30pm and is returning back to Motherwell after the game please send me a PM. Taking some petrol money from me will be compulsory!

March 13, 2014 Ibrox Set For Blue Card Display by Union of Fans The Union of Fans are set to paint Ibrox blue in support of Dave King. 30,000 blue cards will be distributed at Ibrox on Saturday calling for the Rangers Board to meet with King and accept his plan to inject fresh share capital into the club. Following the very successful red card display carried out by Sons of Struth earlier in the season, to show the fans displeasure with the board, this display will take a similar format. Rangers fans will be asked to welcome King’s involvement by displaying the cards on the 18th and 72nd minutes - a reference to the club’s foundation in 1872. Union of Fans spokesman Chris Graham said: “The club clearly needs investment and Dave King has publicly stated his willingness to provide it. We hope that fans will take the opportunity to show their support for someone with a track record of supporting Rangers both personally and financially.” “Hopefully the board will realise the strength of feeling on this issue and adopt a less adversarial approach in their future dealings with Dave King. Fans should not underestimate the power they have to push for positive change at another critical time for the club.” “The cards will be handed out by volunteers around Ibrox before the game. So if people want to take part we would ask them to seek out a card prior to the game.” http://www.unionoffans.org/statements/2014/3/13/ibrox-set-for-blue-card-display

Former director Dave King will begin the next phase of his plan to bring fresh finance to Rangers on Wednesday. King is flying to London for meetings with current investors to discuss his plans for the future of the League One leaders before heading for Glasgow. The South African-based businessman has been involved in a war of words with the present board in recent weeks. Over the next couple of days, King will meet several of the institutions and individual investors who own shares. One of those meetings is scheduled to be with Laxey Partners Ltd, the club's single-biggest shareholder, which has been at the centre of the most recent controversy at Ibrox. The Isle of Man-based investment management company loaned Rangers £1m at a 30% interest rate only for the club to issue a statement this month saying they were considering an alternative loan at a lower rate of interest. King will ask current shareholders to back his plans for a new share issue, arguing that a diluted holding for them is better than a total write-off should Rangers go into administration. His plan then is to come to Glasgow at the end of the week to meet fans groups and other interested parties, with the current board having requested an audience. Rangers announced a £14.4m loss in the 13 months to June, but chief executive Graham Wallace has insisted that the Glasgow club is not facing a second administration. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/26539769