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Showing results for tags 'future'.
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Side splitting stuff,,,,, ......and back on the payroll!
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I sometimes wonder if the news HMRC intend to appeal the latest dismissal of their vendetta against Rangers causes any ripples in the Ibrox boardroom. After all it was another time, another regime with legal culpability squarely on the shoulders of Sir David Murray and his legal advisers. But not for us who are the Rangers support. For us it is part of a journey from hell, a journey which is not yet complete, with the scars and wounds endured on that journey show little sign of healing. Why is it that those who aspire to power within our club don't seem to feel the pain of such scars ? For years under the tenure of Sir David Murray many of us warned about the dangers of the “dignified silence” strategy. As lies were written and broadcast about both club and support Sir David Murray responded to our concerns with “If a newspaper offends you – don’t buy it” Our club and support have become the easy picking for hate filled individuals who appear to think that carrying an NUJ card offers them considerable immunity from lies, deceit and hate filled articles, many written without research or based in fact, or more concern, deliberately omitting facts in order to damage to our club. Why is it the defence of our club has been left to individual bloggers or groups such as Vanguard Bears, The RST or The Rangers Standard who appear to have the energy and passion to respond to unfair articles or decisions against our club ? Why is that same energy and passion not emanating from inside our club ? Have we honestly learned nothing in the last few years ? Its time those inside Ibrox, whoever that might be, became pro-active rather than occasionally reactive. If you are privileged enough to wear a Rangers blazer and tie – then that should be akin to a suit of armour - stand prepared to champion this club against all attacks. Jim McColl's alternative board missed a considerable trick at their question and session at the Hilton when asked about defending the club. Their fudged answer showed little desire or forethought, and was as bereft of ideas as those they sought to depose. Why cant these people get it ?? This issue is of vast importance to the Rangers support. We live, eat and breathe this club and every attack on her is borne personally by every single one of us. It's hard to understand why our club pays for PR, when we appear to be getting trodden on day in day out by the same individuals and organisations, operating with apparent impunity. Jim Traynor's “Gentlemen be very careful” is a dark and distant memory full of empty threats. In fact words without action appear to have exacerbated the problem. For all the criticism I have penned over the years about Charles Green, I will concede one point – at least he “got it”. He realised that defending this club, albeit his reasons were part of bigger plan and not altruistic, was a sure fire of winning over the support. How can it be a stranger can walk into our midst and grasp such a crucial point which our own seem to continually miss ? The well meaning articles by Rangers bloggers, Rangers Supporters Groups and Rangers websites however well intentioned and passionate, do not carry the same authority as statements or action coming from within the club itself. Furthermore it's not our job – its your job, those of you who are privileged enough to wear a club blazer and tie, or aspire to do so in the future. This support has proven itself time and time again in the face of considerable adversity, with its willingness to protect and safeguard this club. We have done as much as we can. For those with both responsibility and authority – its time for you to step up and play.
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I said this elsewhere about entire teams being brought back to defend corner kicks: I can see the time coming when the football authorities will feel inclined to amend the laws of the game regarding every player back at a corner kick. This tactic is designed to clog up the area, limit runs, deny space and minimise goalscoring opportunities, and the outcome is often a series of fouls which may or may not be punished. Officials usually favour the defending team and too often a promising moment in the game fizzles out when a free-kick is awarded. It'll take an extensive trial and error period before the cure is found, but if the football authorities want to make the game better, they really need to guard against coaches and managers who are too often negative and safety-first. The general well-being of the sport comes first and eleven players in the box defending corner kicks is not something that should be tolerated indefinitely. In addition, now that we have a fourth official, I see no reason why the game should be stopped to make substitutions. Players on winning teams who are about to be hooked are often told to go to the either side of the pitch before their number is called, and then they make the long, slow walk to the dugout. Let the fourth official take care of this and let the game flow. Managers know that this is an effective time wasting tactic. That's why they do it. On the same subject, let's draw the line at the 75th or 80th minute regarding substitutions. After this point, no matter what happens, no more substitutions should be allowed. If a player has to go off injured, so be it. We really need to end this business of time-wasting substitutions being made deep into injury time purely to upset the game's rhythm and waste more time.
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Richard Wilson has tweeted.
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I've seen it at Ibrox for a couple of seasons now. I don't think it's appropriate. Please desist.
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Suspect the Daily Record will make for interesting reading tomorrow. Will make us even more frustrated though. #justicefortherangerssupport Glad to see what looks like some things HMRC would rather stay unsaid are going to finally come to light. A couple of tweets tonight. Story here: http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/ex-rangers-owner-craig-whyte-being-3992415
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It didn't take them very long. Lunney or no Lunney ... http://www.rangers.co.uk/news/headlines/item/7359-mohsni-handed-two-game-ban Monday, 04 August 2014 16:00 Mohsni Handed Two Game Ban Written by Rangers Football Club RANGERS have been informed today that defender Bilel Mohsni will serve a two-match suspension following his red card in the pre-season friendly against Derby on Saturday. The Tunisian defender will now miss the opening two games of the season against Hibernian in the Petrofac Training Cup tomorrow night and the first league match of the campaign against Hearts on Sunday.
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Bit off topic for a gers site, but how do people here view the future for scottish clubs? The top five leagues are now so far in the distance that any future european success for a scottish club now appears to be fanciful. England are never going to allow us to play within their leagues. The bottom english club now earns more than a quarter of a billion from tv every five years whilst SPFL winners will receive around 10 million. Personally, I'd approach the dutch and belgian leagues and try hammer out a northern european amalgamation before the damage done to these countries is irreparable, with promotion and relegation from national setups. The old firm both made a second tier euro final last decade. Both clubs spent 30 million (on debt) or so achieving it. Now I'm not so sure that 30 million will come close to providing the squad capable of euro success. IMO the football landscape has changed into a place we have never been before. We are in danger of being permanently left behind, despite the fact our fans are possibly the best in the world. Our grand children will grow up as barca / munich / arsenal fans first, scottish clubs second, if we don't arrest the situation.
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Let us begin this article with the boring bit; an extract from the Civil Service Code, the Government's published document which outlines the Civil Service's core values, and the standards of behaviour expected of all civil servants in upholding these values:- Full article: http://www.vanguardbears.co.uk/bill-mccreaths-civil-disservice.html
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http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/news/market-news/market-news-detail.html?announcementId=12035870 Speculate away gentlemen but it seems there's some sort of influential tug o' war happening...
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Can anyone confirm?
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Steven Whittaker says he's no regrets about quitting Rangers despite his injury nightmare at Norwich. SCOTLAND defender headed to Carrow Road 2012 when Ibrox club imploded but he has only made 39 appearances since he moved south. STEVEN Whittaker swears he has no regrets about quitting Ibrox despite an injury nightmare at Norwich. Whittaker left Rangers in 2012 when they were dumped in the bottom tier and moved to Norwich. Injuries have restricted him to just 39 appearances and he said: “I knew I could do better than play in the Third Division. “And I didn’t want to spend three years of my career trying to come back up the leagues. Norwich offered me the challenge to come south and I have enjoyed it. “I still have two years here so I am looking forward to what we can achieve. “I’ve trained hard and all I can do now is make sure I can’t be edged out of the team.” http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/steven-whittaker-insists-no-regrets-3940468
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The poll resulted in a narrow win for 27/09/2014 v Hibernian, with the obvious caveat of moving to Sunday if required. As was proven last time, even if an early kick-off is unpalatable to some from a football point of view it gave us a nice comfortable afternoon/ early evening to eat and drink; so in some ways I'd be hopeful of an early kick off again. In the first instance I'm only going to put up two options: going back to Malaga Tapas http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g186534-d1087980-Reviews-Malaga_Tapas-Glasgow_Scotland.html or "somewhere else". In order not to appear biased, I will say only that I have confirmed that Cristobal would be happy to have us back; but it is entirely up to you guys if you want to go back or somewhere else. If you wish to go somewhere else then please post a suggestion and I will do a second poll. Unless there is a landslide one way or the other, I'll keep the poll open till the end of the month, so that everyone who is on holiday gets a chance to vote. -
Dear Mr Fitzpatrick, SUBJECT : RANGERS TAX CASE I refer to my previous correspondence to you regarding this matter and the various concerns I raised with you. I appreciate to date there has still been no conclusion to the ongoing Police Investigation into the criminal Breaches of Confidentiality which so characterised this HMRC investigation. Since we last exchanged correspondence the only significant development has been the dismissal by Lord Doherty at the Upper Tier Tribunal, of HMRC's appeal against the decision of the First Tier Tax Tribunal. It is as yet unknown whether HMRC intend to escalate this matter and launch a further appeal, despite the previous decisions of the First and Upper Tier Tribunals. However it is the conduct of HMRC during the course of this investigation which is a source of considerable anger and ongoing concern. As I previously informed you, many Rangers supporters and shareholders wrote to both HMRC and Government Minister's with ministerial responsibility regarding breaches of confidentiality regarding the Rangers Tax Case, only to receive responses from both HMRC and the HMRC Ministerial Correspondence Unit that they would not comment on “alleged breaches of confidential information”. The source of such “alleged breaches” was an award winning web blog – The Rangers Tax Case Blog- which ran for numerous months and regularly published confidential information which it sought to interpret courtesy of it's anonymous operator. BBC Scotland also produced an award winning documentary “The Men Who Sold The Jersey's” which was a consequence of numerous items of confidential information they had received, by as yet, unknown means. BBC Scotland also published on their website numerous items of confidential information pertaining to the Rangers Tax Case. An independent commission chaired by Lord Nimmo Smith subsequently concluded as follows : Meanwhile, BBC Scotland came, by unknown means, into possession of what they described as “dozens of secret emails, letters and documents”, which we understand were the productions before the Tax Tribunal. These formed the basis of a programme entitled “Rangers – The Men Who Sold the Jerseys”, which was broadcast on 23 May 2012. BBC Scotland also published copious material on its website. The published material included a table containing the names of Rangers players, coaches and staff who were beneficiaries of the MGMRT, and how much they received through that trust. It also listed the names of people where the BBC had seen evidence that they received side-letters. This event appears to have been the trigger for more activity in response to the SPL’s request. [section 98] Not only does Lord Nimmo Smith highlight the impact of these breaches of confidentiality and their subsequent exposure, but as can be seen, he suggests that the material passed to BBC Scotland was in actual fact evidence before the Tax Tribunal. Whilst it is dangerous to make any presumptions, I do not think it is unreasonable to presume that evidence removed from an evidential storage area, can only have been appropriated by theft. Furthermore as the Police Enquiry into the breaches of confidentiality only commenced after the conclusion of the First Tax Tribunal, following a complaint by Sir David Murray, it would suggest that this appropriation of evidence had up till that point gone unreported.. Whilst there are considerable parts of the jigsaw missing, based on the information which is available I would highlight the following areas of concern to you :- HMRC having seized evidence, in order to progress an investigation, totally ignored repeated concerns and complaints pertaining to breaches of confidentially. To suggest that documentaries produced by BBC Scotland and broadcast on national television equate to “alleged breaches of confidentiality” is simply unacceptable. One is left to speculate if they even bothered to cross reference the evidence they had seized and catalogued with the information which that was being released into the public domain. I would respectfully suggest to you if they have failed to do so – that would be tantamount to gross negligence. There is a considerable feeling amongst many shareholders that having highlighted breaches of confidentiality on numerous occasions, the response of HMRC was both dismissive and misleading, and displayed a complete abdication of their legal responsibility. Lord Nimmo Smith's conclusion that the material passed and subsequently used by BBC Scotland was evidence before the Tax Tribunal raises serious questions about the safe handling and storage of productions by HMRC. If the security of these productions was violated, on how many occasions did this happen ? How was this possible and what steps did HMRC take to report this apparent criminality ? Did they in fact report this appropriation of evidence and what was their legal responsibility to do so ? I’m sure you will appreciate the above concerns are only the tip of the iceberg and there are numerous other areas of concern as well as questions shareholders and supporters have. HMRC's failure to deal with previous complaints has resulted in an erosion of confidence in this organisation's ability to respond to concerns. The apparent, and further possible failings within a government investigative body should be a concern to everyone, even those outside the Rangers community. The concerns I have highlighted are particularly grave and warrant considerable in depth investigation and clarification, not only for the Rangers community, but to ensure all persons dealing with HMRC in the future can so with confidence. I would therefore ask you to raise these concerns amongst your peers within the Scottish Parliament, and for consideration to be given to a full government enquiry in order that these concerns can be investigated fully.
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RANGERS will compete in their first game of this year’s Dale Farm Milk Cup when they take on County Armagh at the Riverside Stadium in Drumahoe tonight, kick-off 7pm. The young Light Blues, who are in the under-15 Junior section, will then face a mouthwatering test against Liverpool on Tuesday at Ballymena Showgrounds (ko 8pm) before their third game against O’Higgins from Chile on Wednesday at the Riada Stadium in Ballymoney (ko 3.30pm). It is 21 years since Rangers participated at the Milk Cup in Northern Ireland and Jim Sinclair, Rangers Academy Director, believes it's an exciting opportunity for the up and coming talent in Craig Mulholland and Andy Kirk's squad. He said: "We are delighted to be renewing Rangers' long association with the Milk Cup having won the event during the 80's and 90's and we're hopeful that our group will enjoy the experience again this year. "The Milk Cup has over many years developed a fantastic reputation for providing a strong tournament with competitive clubs from all over the world and the quality of opposition will prove a great test for our young team. "We always look forward to taking teams to Northern Ireland where the club has a large supporter base and we know we will participate in an event which has a reputation for first class organisation." This year’s tournament kicked off yesterday with an Opening Ceremony and Nicky Byrne was the special guest. The former Westlife singer, who played at the Milk Cup on three occasions, also led a parade of competing teams through Coleraine. In total 56 teams from the world's leading professional clubs, famous football academies and National Associations from all five Continents have descended on the five local authorities of Coleraine, Ballymena, Limavady, Ballymoney and Derry City to battle it out over five days hoping to end the week as Dale Farm Milk Cup champions in the Elite (under 19), Premier (under 17) and Junior (under 15) sections. The Rangers squad in Northern Ireland is as follows: Kieran Wright, Aidan Wilson, Scott Gray, Kyle Bradley, Jason Krones, Kieran Balfour, Grant Nelson, Jamie Barjonas, Sam Jamieson, Liam Burt, Andrew Dallas, Jack Thomson, Lewis Mayo, Jordan Houston, Stephen Kelly, Zak Rudden, Matifadza Zata, Lewis Muir. For more information on the Dale Farm Milk Cup click here. http://www.rangers.co.uk/news/academy-news/item/7327-young-gers-face-county-armagh
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Letter sent to Rangers CEO Graham Wallace As we previously communicated with you, we contacted Graham Wallace in June requesting whether he still agreed over the "importance for clubs with ambition to own their own stadium and training centre". Sadly, we received no response so this week we have sent further correspondence to Mr Wallace. This is as follows: Dear Mr Wallace, Season Ticket Sales and the Future of Auchenhowie We note we have yet to receive a response to our email of 10/06/14 (copied below), and again write to express our concerns in regards to the above. Season ticket sales appear to be very disappointing, which is astonishing given that this season could see us return to the top flight, and will involve some potentially excellent matches against Hibs and Hearts, in what will generally be a much more competitive league. This is surely a reflection on how the fans view the performance of the board, and in particular, a reflection on some very real concerns fans have over the future of Ibrox and our training ground at Auchenhowie. We note the recent statement by the board as regards Ibrox, however, rumours continue to persist that the board are in the process of using Auchenhowie to raise funds in some way to bridge the gap left by the very disappointing level of season ticket renewals. As you are no doubt aware, the training complex is viewed as a symbol of the future by Rangers fans, and disposing of this asset in any way is likely to be counterproductive as it would lead to further disillusionment and detachment of the fans - who, it should be remembered, contributed significantly to the cost of the facility. We would therefore urge you to end this downward spiral and clarify how the board plan to address the apparent lack of confidence which the fans appear to have in them, and thus, hopefully, increase the level of season ticket renewals. We would hope an increase in season ticket uptake to a more realistic level would obviate the need for the board to resort to disposing of vital assets. We note that the first responsibility of the board is to the company and not to any individual or group of shareholders. With this in mind, you will recall the board's recent attempt to raise short term funding via a major shareholder, and that The RST was able to assist in procuring a significantly more beneficial deal for the company. Can you therefore confirm that we will be afforded a similar opportunity to obtain a better deal for the company should the board fail to raise season ticket sales and have to resort to using Auchenhowie to raise finance? We hope you will understand our concerns and the urgent need for a response. We will update members with any response we received.
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Some thoughts on yesterday's HMRC appeal result: http://www.gersnet.co.uk/index.php/latest-news/256-rangers-v-hmrc-a-pyrrhic-victory
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"The Union of Fans were approached approximately two weeks ago, on behalf of the PLC board, to once again try to reach agreement on a binding legal guarantee over the club's assets. These discussions continued and various drafts were passed back and forth. The statement that the board released yesterday was rejected by UoF last week due to the fact that it does not give a binding guarantee over Ibrox and that several misleading statements are made within it. Despite us negotiating in good faith, the board has seen fit to release the statement anyway. We were seeking written guarantees over both Ibrox and Murray Park. The board removed all reference to Murray Park. This was not an oversight - they are explicitly refusing to include Murray Park in any undertaking. We believe this is because the board are actively looking to sell this vital club asset due to their failure to so far secure enough funds to see the club through the current season. Their statement is also disingenuous and is a slap in the face for the thousands of fans who have given up long cherished seats attempting to get this board to guarantee the future of our clubÂ’s home. Despite their attempts to claim otherwise, it has never been their position to give any kind of legally binding guarantee over Ibrox and they still have not done so. This most recent statement, on behalf of the so called 'Football Board' - not the PLC board - has crucially not been released to the stock exchange and therefore reduces the chance of shareholder action should they go back on their word. The board claim that they are "committed to protecting the assets of the club". Currently the club has four main assets. Two of those, Edmiston House and the Albion Car Park, have already been used as security for crisis loans due to financial mismanagement. The board continues to refuse to give any legally binding safeguard over Ibrox and we believe they are actively looking at a sale and leaseback of Murray Park - a vital asset if we are ever to properly develop our own talent. They have shown no commitment to protecting the club's assets. This board has committed to raising funds from existing investors through a new share issue in September. We do not believe that they have support from those investors for what is essentially money to keep the lights on and we would ask Graham Wallace to urgently clarify the position on new money coming into the club. The board have lost just under half of the club's season ticket holders due to a complete lack of ability to build trust. Even if those fans were to buy season tickets now, the club still does not have the funds to complete the season and yet the board keeps us in the dark over how they will address this shortfall. We ask them to stop the half-truths, spin and smoke and mirrors and tell fans the truth."
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From club website today. THE Board of Rangers Football Club ('the Club') has been asked in the past several weeks to confirm once again that the Club will not grant security over Ibrox to any organisation during the upcoming football season. The Board is happy to reaffirm its position, which has never been a matter of debate, by confirming once again that it will not enter into any form of sale, securitisation or leaseback of Ibrox Stadium. This has been and still remains the Board’s clear and consistent position on this subject as it continues to protect and enhance the assets of the Club. The Board of Rangers Football Club is committed to protecting the assets of the Club for the benefit of all Rangers fans, and to adhering to the highest standards of corporate governance. Season Ticket sales are continuing throughout the next few weeks ahead of the start of the season and we are grateful to the thousands of supporters who have already bought for the 2014/15 campaign. Events over the past few weeks have reminded everybody of the remarkably testing period our incredible supporters have been through in recent years and now is the time for us all to look forwards, together.
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Along with the UTT appeal rumours, I'd fancy a few people will not be sitting comfortably over the coming monhts... http://www.followfollow.com/news/tmnw/rangers_creditors_win_24m_settlement_from_law_firm_836024/index.shtml
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He lost the vote but I'm surprised that seems to have been the end of it? I don't think much of him but it seems odd he has gone completely quiet. Am I missing something?
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THE IMPORTANCE OF SAFEGUARDING IBROX 23rd July 2014 Some have asked why we have such a desire to safeguard Ibrox and claim it's ok for a club to borrow money against it's stadium and to be fair in normal operating conditions this may be the case. Unfortunately our club does not operate within normal operating conditions. To understand the full importance of our position it is important to be aware of the full financial position our club currently operates. Our club does not have enough cash flow to see out the full season that is soon to start. Some predict a shortfall of circa £8m just to allow the club to stay afloat. Due to many issues, last years season ticket holders numbered approx 34,000 and by the end of the renewal date only 50% of these had renewed their seats. It is fair to assume that some new ST will be sold to new ST holders and some old ones may still renew but regardless, the season ticket sales will be significantly lower than last year and after a promotion, one would have expected to see a rise in sales. The much touted share issue that the board would have us believe would be fully supported by institutional investors simply will not be as successful as they publicly admit and sources close to us claim that even the board now feel the money raised will be much lower than they first presumed. The reason for this is simple, they are asking investors to invest more money but this money will not be used to make the club better and worth more it will simply be used to shore up shortfalls in cash flow (remember we were advised by Mr Wallace at the AGM that we had no short to medium term cash shortfalls) If this share issue was to raise funds for assets or player purchases etc then there is a good case for investors to invest more as the business would normally rise in value and they would see an increase in their investment. Our directors expect to go cap in hand and ask investors to give them more money just to stay afloat and this is only 7 months after telling these very same investors that we had no short to medium term cash worries. Would you give it if you had no emotional attachment to the club? I didn't think so. ST sales are well below target and the promised windfall from a share issue looks like just a pipe dream so where does that leave us as a club? Simple, fresh investment is required and is available and not only from Dave King. So why won't the board accept outside investment? I believe this is the reason or at least one of the reasons that our board room is starting to split. Anyone willing to invest at the levels required would rightly ask for a say in the boardroom and here lies the problem. Our faceless investors and hedge fund simply don't want this and although between them they own less then a third of the business, they want to control the full boardroom and don't want to dilute their power. The faceless and the hedge fund are therefore starving our club. We find ourselves a club in a catch 22. We need cash but those willing to give it won't be allowed as the faceless and hedge fund won't agree to them. That takes us back to the main point, Ibrox. If the club were to use Ibrox to raise money then two options are available 1) Sell stadium then lease back or 2) use Ibrox as security in a loan. If we do a sale and lease back agreement then our club will be paying out money over a long period of time just because this current board are way out on their own cash assessments and if we borrow against Ibrox and our club was to once again lurch in to admin then we would lose our stadium to the lender. Neither is acceptable to me as a fan. So what's the alternatives? 1) Mr Easdale can magic the investment he promised on national TV prior to the AGM (has there ever been a public excuse of what happened to this promised investment?) 2) Mr Wallace can find the £5m he told the UoF at a meeting six weeks ago was available "at the click of a button" 3) Mr Crighton can do something he's been paid to do since pre AGM and that is attract investment as when he was introduced to us he was to chair an investment committee with that very aim (what investment have we attracted since he came?) 4) Talk to those willing to invest in the club and compromise with them. It's not a bad word. 5) Stop mucking about with the fans and show a bit of humility. Tell the fans you are listening to them, tell the fans their actions have been noted and tell them you WILL NOT sell or borrow against our stadium instead of hiding behind cute statements with obtuse phrases. But for the sake of the future of our club DO SOMETHING. If you are incapable of finding an alternative then move aside and let others on board that aren't selected by the 30% of investors who are holding our club back or welcome some on board who can bring the faith of the fans and investment with them. Why are Blue pitch, Margareta and Laxey so against others being represented on our board? This will be discussed in the near future Why does this statement not ask about Auchenhowie? Simple, there's no point in asking for something you can't get and our belief for sometime has been that our training ground will go soon as negotiations have been ongoing for some time. It's time for change, either change how our board conduct themselves or change who selects and drives our board members. The alternative isn't worth considering. http://www.sonsofstruth.co.uk/blog.html
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The Europa League seems to have slipped by almost unnoticed up to now but an excellent away win for Aberdeen at Gronigen (after an 8-0 agg drubbing of Daugava Rīga) and a penalty shoot out win for St Johnstone at home to Lucern gives Scotland two teams in the 3rd QR. Both Scottish victories came against seeded teams but a disappointing extra-time loss by Motherwell to the unseeded Icelanders, Stjarnan, admittedly second in the Icelandic Premier League in mid season, put a stain on an otherwise good night. Aberdeen and St Johnstone now take the place of their seeded opponents but whilst Gronigen were not seed in the 3rd QR leaving Aberdeen with a difficult hurdle against the 7th seeds Real Sociedad (7th in La Liga last season); St Johnstone theoretically have an "easier" game against Spartak Trnava (3rd in the 12 team Slovak league last season). Adam Rooney is the top scorer in the competition with 6 goals so far. Quality teams like Lyon, Inter Milan, Spurs and Eindhoven await in the 4thQL so a long way to go but it would be nice to have a Scottish team in the group stages. I'll say nothing about the touchy subject of coefficients no doubt I've done enough already!
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1300 words on a situation that is becoming more worrying and difficult to justify with every day that passes... http://www.gersnet.co.uk/index.php/latest-news/260-ally-mccoist-and-rangers-time-for-some-home-truths
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Moyes tried for 11 years to get Everton above Man Utd and now he has succeeded. Yet another defeat and 12 points off the top. Everton were far better shape than Utd and look more like scoring. The appointment just wasn't right. I admire Man Utd giving a British manager the chance but surely the football club is more important that a few morales about continuity of a manager. Jose whilst not hanging around for too long would have kept the trophies coming. When Liverpool were winning in the 70s and 80s they did it under 4 managers which says the club was all ok and the players were up for it. But perhaps its just the cycle of football. This is a side that won the league at a canter last year but don't look like they will finish top 6 this season. I didn't tip them for top 4. I understand managers need time but that's normally when things aren't going well. This is the champions and they have been derailed. They need 2 players in the quality of Fabregas, Sneidier, Modric, Schweinsteiger, Xavi, Iniesta. They should break the bank in January for Juan Mata. The centre midfields and creativity of the other big 3 is not worth comparing. Chelsea have Oscar, Hazard, Lampard, Ramiries, Essien, Mata, etc. Man City have Silva, Toure, Fernandinho, Nasri etc Arsenal have Ozil, Ramsay, Wilshire, Arteta, Flamini, Rosicky, Cazorla
