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The Rangers Supporters Trust wishes to express its concern at what we consider to be a clear attempt by some online elements of the Celtic support to incite trouble ahead of an Old Firm game which already has the potential to be a powder keg fixture. We, along with the vast majority of the Rangers support, noted with some amusement the recent advert taken out by Celtic supporters in a once respected Sunday newspaper. However, what has followed makes us considerably more uneasy. There is now no question that a hardcore element of the Celtic support are not content with the troubles which have plagued our club over the past few years. For them, Rangers Football Club, and by extension its fans, must cease to exist. Whether this stems from an inferiority complex amongst part of a generation who had to live through Nine-In-A Row, or whether it is down to a more ingrained bigotry, a fierce football rivalry is not sufficient for these people. We are extremely concerned that the rhetoric and hatred spewed out by the likes of Phil MacGiollabhain, Angela Haggerty, Paul Brennan’s CQN website and others, is a deliberate attempt to try to stoke sectarian fires and incite violence at the upcoming fixture. One need only view the reaction of some Celtic fans to the recent blog by MacGiollabhain entitled “The ****** Blood Festival” to see how these people operate. MacGiollabhain himself has never challenged the assertion that he is “tarred with a sickening sectarian brush” and he has willing servants in Miss Haggerty, CQN and several other online Celtic sites. We urge all sane Celtic fans to ignore their bile. We hope the upcoming fixture will be fiercely contested. We hope, despite being clear underdogs, that Rangers will win. We also hope that fans of both teams will be able to travel to and watch the match safely. We hope that Police Scotland, as well as policing the day effectively, will take careful note of those who continue to try to incite violence at the upcoming fixture. It would be an odd legal system that arrested people for singing songs but ignored hate speech and incitement of violence. Should the worst happen, we hope the full force of the law will be brought to bear not only on the perpetrators of any trouble but also those who encourage it online. Rangers and our fans have many challenges to face in the months and years ahead. Challenges which are considerably more important to our long term future than this upcoming Old Firm game. We urge Rangers fans to stay safe, behave in a way which can make us all proud of our club and enjoy their day." - See more at: http://www.therst.co.uk/news/rst-concerns-over-upcoming-old-firm-game/#sthash.dvHYDWc2.dpuf
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From the Record. And what is allowed. -
American football remains a minority sport in the UK, and especially in Scotland, where the urban English fascination with US culture, especially those of minorities, is less firmly felt. Even so, some of you may have read about the 'inflategate' scandal which erupted after last week's semi-finals, in which Boston's New England Patriots were, apparently, found to have deliberately under inflated the footballs used, presumably giving them an advantage. Quite how it did so I can't explain: perhaps their players are more used to handling squishy balls than the firm-tested team they beat. But the comeback against the most successful side in recent years in the NFL has been swift and bitter. Patriots' owner, Robert Kraft (presumably of the atomic-orange 'Cheesey Pasta' and suspiciously mushy, not-very-cheesy Dairylea Triangles family) has angrily stepped up to the plate, to mix our American sports, and lashed out at the coverage his side has received. Get this: “I’m disappointed in the way this entire matter has been handled and reported upon,” Kraft said, pointing directly to reports citing anonymous sources. “We expect hard facts rather than circumstantial leaked evidence to drive the conclusion of this investigation.” Sounds mighty familiar. I doubt many folk in the Greater Boston area would be thrilled at a comparison with Rangers, the bastion not only of quintessential Britishness but the Protestant Ascendancy, Conservative Values, Stout Monarchism etc etc. Just the same, it does sound familiar to the bluenose ear (now there's an image), does it not? “I am confident that this investigation will uncover whatever the facts were that took place last Sunday and the science of how game balls react to changes in the environment,” Kraft added. “This would be in direct contrast to the public discourse, which has been driven by media leaks as opposed to actual data and facts. Because of this, many jumped to conclusions and made scarring accusations against our coach, quarterback and staff questioning the integrity of all involved.” At least throughout all Rangers' travails no-one accused them of under inflating their footballs. Balls of a different sort will be needed on Sunday, when probably the least anticipated Rangers - Celtic game of all time rolls around. The air has certainly gone from this fixture, and it would be appropriate if Rangers turned up on a series of old Raleigh bikes with flat tyres. Clown horns would not be amiss either, given the standard of play we've seen. I daresay Celtic fans can't wait for it. If I was in their shoes I'd be hoping for double figures. All very defeatist and in line with the mood of gloom which not only surrounds but suffocates anything and everything to do with the Ibrox side, but I don't apologise for that. On the pitch, in the boardroom, on the stands, can anyone see any light? As a long established handwringer, I'm split 3 ways between worrying about a total doing, the off field ramblings of various boards, and the potential for embarrassment from the stands. My wishy-washy attitude to this last has never been about being personally offended: as someone of no religion I shed few tears for sensitive clerical types of whatever stripe. It's always been about what hurts Rangers; but there's no sign of anyone else giving much of a toss. An afternoon long Sash Bash awaits, say some. Oh, the joy. I just felt it would show more balls, inflated to maximum, to call for decorum before the game, rather than wading in afterward. Who knows? Maybe it will all pass off in a manner which doesn't damage the club's image, what's left of it. Can't see it, though. And it's all such a waste of energy, anyway, shouting meaningless insults which don't insult the other side and bring harm to your own. I suppose everyone - and certainly, every club's fans - is guilty, from time to time, of saying things they don't mean. Only last night on the radio, Soviet Jim Spence, the Tayside Trotsky, suggested that the 80% of football fans who don't follow Rangers are bored with the saga. He might be more convincing if he didn't spend quite so much time talking about it, mostly in the manner chastised by Robert Kraft above. I doubt the US capitalist rotter, who seems more than a little aggrieved at being questioned at all - a sense of entitlement is rarely attractive - had the Couthy Commissar in his mind when he complained about 'circumstantial leaked evidence' but if the caps fits...and if 80% of fans don't care about Rangers, they've a funny way of showing it! Certainly, football worldwide is often the refuge of the unreconstructed, simple minded soul, and a sense of social awareness has never been a qualification for media work at all, let alone in sport. Last week's superb game in the FA Cup between Arsenal and Brighton, for example, was marred only by Robbie Savage's shrieked commentary, in which he not only encouraged Brighton players to put opponents into Row Z, play long balls into the channel and hoof it clear from defence, but persistently referred to co-host Ian Darke as 'darkey'. Even allowing for 'PC gone mad' considerations, this was brutal, throwback behaviour, as if the last 30 years on and off the field had never happened. I was ready for him to suggest Albion start the second half in flares before going on strike. But the game doesn't have to be so stupid: who in their right mind wants to use Robbie Savage as an exemplar? Maybe we can set an example for whatever future awaits our club by ignoring the existence of opposing fans and trying to lift the team. Well, there you have it, the depressing thoughts of a depressed handwringer on a depressingly wintry morning. We wait to see what happens on the pitch. I am sure the ground staff at Hampden will have the balls at the right pressure. I wonder what pressure mine will be come kick off.
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Am I the only one who saw Plgsarmy on the news tonight?
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The Sun saying he has been banned because he joined RF. Someone asking if Foster has joined yet.
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We are f----d. 27 January 2015 Rangers International Football Club plc ("Rangers" or the "Company") £10m Credit Facility and associated transfer of 26% of Rangers Retail Limited The Board of Rangers announces that Rangers Football Club Limited ("the Club") has entered in to agreements with independent.co.uk/news/business/news/sports-direct-stops-20000-staff-taking-other-work-by-using-zero-hour-contracts-9661746.html Retail Limited and associated companies ("SD"), to provide a long term on-going credit facility of up to £10m (the "Facility"). The Company's financial condition has been perilous for a number of months exacerbated by lower than expected match attendances. The Directors have implemented a cost cutting program with which they have made significant progress. There is however an immediate need for a substantial injection of capital, and the Directors have considered a number of options. The terms negotiated with SD (which are reversible in respect of the Facility) represent the optimum combination of quantum and duration of funding, allowing the Company time to arrange permanent capital which can be used for strengthening the playing squad. The Facility is structured in two separate interest free tranches. GBP 5million will be available immediately for working capital purposes and for the repayment of the credit facilities with MASH Holdings Limited which was entered into on 27 October 2014. All rights and security associated with the MASH facility will be cancelled. The Club will transfer 26% of the share capital in Rangers Retail Limited ("RRL") to SD for the duration of the Facility (the "Transfer"), which will be transferred back, at no cost, upon repayment of all outstanding sums owed by Rangers and its subsidiaries to SD. There is no specified repayment period for the first tranche of the Facility. The Facility is to be secured by (1) a floating charge over the Club's assets and (2) fixed charges over Murray Park, Edmiston House, Albion Car Park, and the Club's registered trademarks. None of the security that is being given to SD covers Ibrox Stadium, which is specifically excluded and remains in the full ownership of the Club, free from any security. SD will also have the right to nominate two directors to the board of Rangers for the duration of the Facility, any such nomination will be subject to regulatory consent pursuant to the AIM Rules and other regulatory bodies. If the entire sum drawn down is repaid, the Facility will be deemed to be terminated, all security will be released, the 26% of RRL will revert to the Company and all rights of SD to nominate Directors to the Board of the Company will cease. The second tranche of GBP5 million, which repayable 5 years after drawdown, will be used, if required, for working capital purposes and is subject to due diligence by SD prior to drawn down. The Company has also agreed that from the 2017/8 season, for the duration of the Facility, any future shirt sponsorship proceeds will be for the benefit of RRL. RRL will declare a dividend of a total of GBP 1,610,000 prior to the Transfer. The Club will use the proceeds of its share of this dividend, inter alia, to repay sums owing to SD in respect of the cessation of onerous leases on unprofitable stores entered into by a previous Rangers management team. RRL is a joint venture between the Club and SD whose business is selling merchandise both on-line and in stores. In the period ending 27 April 2014, RRL made a profit before tax of GBP 1,172,893. SD is a Related Party under the AIM Rules and accordingly the Facility is a Related Party Transaction pursuant to AIM Rule 13. The Independent Directors, consider, having consulted with WH Ireland its nominated adviser, that the terms of the Facility are fair and reasonable insofar as shareholders of the Company are concerned. The Directors would like to thank all the Rangers Stakeholders who showed an interest in helping the Company. Commenting on the Facility, David Somers said: " The Board has sought for some time to establish a long term funding solution for the Company in order to create a platform of stability to build for the future. This Facility begins this process and we very much hope that it will be augmented with further permanent capital in due course. In addition, the executive team have made strides in addressing the cost base of the Company in order to improve our financial condition and working capital profile. We very much hope that we can now move away from having to seek short term funding solutions and can focus our efforts towards investing in the first team playing squad, a return to profitability and to re-establishing Rangers in the top league in Scottish Football and in due course, to European competition. The Board now calls upon all shareholders to rally together to achieve this goal."
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US-BASED coach persuaded Pheonix Suns owner to mount £20m bid and reckons Ibrox board failed the club by rejecting the offer. DAVID ROBERTSON last night insisted Rangers have blown a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity by ditching a takeover bid from American millionaire Robert Sarver. The former Ibrox full-back also accused the board of failing to act in the best interests of their club by rejecting a £20m offer from the Phoenix Suns owner. Sarver opted against a further attempt to do business after his approach to gain a controlling stake was kicked out by the directors who failed to find the required 75 per cent shareholder backing. But Robertson is adamant Rangers’ loss will be another club’s gain and insists they have looked a gift horse in the mouth. The 46-year-old played a key role in pitching the idea of an Ibrox bid to the Phoenix Suns owner. Robertson’s role as head coach of Phoenix FC allowed his path to cross the American financier’s and he admits it should have been a twist of fate that would have shaped an exciting future for the Light Blues. He said: “I run a club in Phoenix and his kids play within the club, I coach one of his kids. “He’s just like any other parent, he stands on the sidelines and cheers his kids on. He’s a down to earth guy and has been generous to our club. “It’s a good relationship I’ve got with him. It was actually by chance that he was talking about buying a football club and I mentioned Rangers. He took a big shine to it. “If you look at his interviews then that’s the type of guy he is. He’s by the book and straight talking. He’s not going to go around doing anything dodgy behind the scenes. He’s out in the open and he put in a couple of offers that have been turned down. “Rob’s the type of guy who wants to make a bad situation good. He would do whatever it would take. He was prepared to invest a lot. “Rob’s got the know-how of a pretty big sports franchise to implement a lot of stuff. “I know Rangers as a club – even on the business side of it – are not operating to full capacity. “Whoever ends up in control of Rangers, there’s got to be a good solid plan. It’s got to be long term.” As one of the best defenders of his generation, Robertson’s six years at Ibrox brought six titles and countless trophies as well as three Scotland caps. After flying back to Glasgow to start his SFA UEFA Pro Licence course, it allowed time for the former Aberdeen player to provide a detailed analysis of the origins behind Sarver’s bid but he is adamant a quick trip to Google would have done the trick. He said: “With technology these days it doesn’t take you long to work out what a good guy he is. “He’s got a heart foundation. My daughter goes to school in Tucson, University of Arizona, and he’s got the Sarver Heart Foundation, so he does a lot of charity work there. “He’s also a winner. The Phoenix Suns are on a fantastic run at the moment, Rob’s got all the infrastructure. He’s obviously got the wealth to invest in a football club and at some point he will. “You’ve got to meet tough guidelines with the franchise every year, every week. Whatever club he ends up at, he can certainly bring all that. “Even just the Phoenix Suns alone, he has had the franchise for 10 years. He has invested a lot of money in every single aspect of that franchise. “I’ve had a few conversations with Robert but it’s mainly just about my views on Rangers as a club. “The one thing he has said is he loves the passion that the club has and that the Rangers supporters have. He has had loads of messages and thank you notes, he’ll definitely remember Rangers for a long time.” One of the more reasonable suggestions for Robertson was to expect a call from someone from the Rangers board on a fact-finding mission about Sarver. He said: “No one called, I do feel if they were looking for info then it’s surprising. “I had a lot of people contact me at certain points from the media but I’m so much away from it that I didn’t want to get involved.” Cynics may suggest Robertson’s initial motivation for inviting Sarver to attempt a salvage operation at Rangers could have been to try to carve out a coaching return to Ibrox but he says there’s no hidden agenda. He said: “That was never spoken about. I’m not the type of guy who goes out to try to do something like this to get an opportunity. “He has taken a big shine to it and all the conversations I’ve had have been about my knowledge of Rangers.” There is frustration both as a friend of Sarver’s and also as a former Rangers player that the takeover has not been realised but there are no hard feelings for Robertson, only a suspicion the Ibrox board have a selfish motive not to relinquish control. He said: “It’s a difficult situation. He needed 75 per cent and they felt they couldn’t have got that. The shareholders really could have made it happen. “I don’t know how far he would have gone but he’s such an honest guy, whatever he says you can take as gospel. “He had visions of getting Rangers back to where they were. He has never been negative towards Rangers or anything but he’s disappointed the way it has turned out. “I talk to him now and again. He’s never going to give too much away. But he was serious about Rangers.” ● David Robertson was speaking at the SFA’s UEFA Pro Licence course. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/ex-ibrox-star-david-robertson-says-5042436 -
Celtic striker Leigh Griffiths has been arrested in connection with an incident at a pub. The 24-year-old Scotland international was charged and cautioned with an offence under the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications Act. The charge relates to an incident at a pub in Edinburgh last year. A Police Scotland spokesman said: "We can confirm that a 24-year-old man has been arrested and charged." The arrest came before Griffiths played for Celtic in their SPFL match against Ross County in Dingwall on Saturday afternoon. The club declined to comment. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-30965522
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Stuff some block out time and again when talking about us and postmen, plummers and co. for these last few years. Stuff, that happens time and again, all over the place. And today again ... CHELSEA 2 - Bradford City 4 (that's the English third tier team) MANCHESTER CITY 0 - Middlesbrough FC 2 (that's the English second tier team) SOUTHAMPTON FC 2 - Crystal Palace 3 Cambridge United* 0 - MANCHESTER UNITED 0 *(that's the English fourth tier team) ... so none of the EPL's top four have made it to the next round against lesser opposition, only ManU with a chance to go through. It does not mean much with respect to our players failing time and again to play some decent football, or our managers to show some sort of imagination. Yet, it does show that time and again big names and hilarious money paid for and on players will not guarantee you success. If a third tier team is set up and drilled well enough, it can cause quite a bit of a shock. And while I'm at it, Falkirk did beat Hearts at Tynecastle today, rather unexpectantly.
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Betting been suspended by Paddy Power Magath.
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ByPAUL THORNTON The Sun Published: 18 minutes ago CHEEKY Celtic fans are planning to light the blue-touch paper on next week’s long-awaited Old Firm clash - with a full page ad explaining why Rangers are a new club. Sections of the Hoops support have clubbed together to take out the message in a Sunday newspaper one week before the tie. The lengthy message sets out why some Celts reckon the Gers are a different outfit from their historic rivals following the oldco’s liquidation in 2012. After organising through forums and supporter sites a group of dozens of fans have clubbed together a four-figure sum to place the statement. The message states: “As Celtic supporters, we regrettably recognise that our club had an association with Rangers (1872) through the collective descriptive term, The Old Firm. We believe this term is now redundant following the liquidation of Rangers (1872). “On 1st February Celtic supporters will support our team in the semifinal against a new club, which came into being in 2012. “This will be the first ever meeting between the two clubs and the purpose of this statement is to place our position on record so that Celtic supporters can enjoy the occasion for what it is and without playing any part in what we see as the Rangers ‘club continuation’ fiction.” The stunt is sure to wind-up Bears who were buoyed by Lord Nimmo Smith’s report which saw Rangers retain their titles in 2013. At the end of December SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster firmed-up that view when he insisted the team were “absolutely” the same club. He said: “It’s the same club, absolutely. “The member club is the entity that participates in our league and we have 42 member clubs. “Those clubs may be owned by a company, sometimes it’s a Private Limited Company, sometimes it’s a PLC, but ultimately, the company is a legal entity in its own right, which owns a member club that participates in the league. “It was put to bed by the Lord Nimmo Smith commission some while ago – it’s the same club.” Bosses at the paper where the ad is due to run contacted Police Scotland to make sure it would not spark trouble between the supports. Last night the force said: “We are aware of the advert.” Rangers declined to comment. But Union of Fans spokesman Chris Graham said: “We’ve been over this time and time again. The football authorities have said it’s the same club and Lord Nimmo Smith has said it’s the same club. “I don’t think Rangers fans are paying any special attention to the online crackpots among the Celtic support who continue to put forward this notion. I’d have thought they’d have better things to spend their money on.”
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If loans are given by Ashley Ibrox will not be used as security -Sky Sports News.
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Not much yet, but here we go ... Rest later or from behind the pay wall of The Sun
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The day I take lessons from Easdale on what is and isn't in the best interests of Rangers, there'll be proper fiscal responsibility in Ibrox. Can it be that even after everything he doesn't grasp how detested he is? He lost his right to tell fans what is in Rangers best interests when he started hocking the club off to Mike Ashley. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-30922826 Rangers director Sandy Easdale has said police are investigating threats made against him amid the ongoing and acrimonious battle for the Ibrox club. Officers are believed to be monitoring his home after internet posts allegedly urged fans to attack his house in a bid to remove him from the club. Mr Easdale, 47, said he had also received threats by email and letter. Last week, several hundred fans protested outside Ibrox stadium against the current Rangers board. In a statement released to the BBC, Mr Easdale said: "I have received several threats that are now in the hands of the authorities and I am confident that Police Scotland will get to the bottom of this. 'Violence and intimidation' "I appreciate that feelings are running high but I would like to make an appeal for calm. "This sort of behaviour is not in the best interests of the club, its shareholders or its true supporters." Mr Easdale said members of the Rangers board had been "subjected to an unprecedented level of abuse". "People are entitled to air their views but I hope that all parties will agree that violence and intimidation are unacceptable," he said. "All I want to see is the best possible outcome for Rangers." Police Scotland said it did not comment on operational details. Various fans groups have voiced opposition to the Rangers board for some time amid ongoing financial problems. It is understood that the club cannot pay this month's wage bill and needs immediate funding. A £10m loan has been offered by Mike Ashley, the owner of Sports Direct and Newcastle United, who holds an 8.92% stake in Rangers International Football Club - the football club's holding company. In return, Mr Ashley wants security over Ibrox stadium and its Murray Park training complex - a move that has enraged some fans who say the stadium should never be in danger of being taken away from the club's control. About 600 supporters demonstrated before and after the club's abandoned Championship game against Hearts on Friday. Following reports of disturbances, police arrested one man and said they expected to make more arrests after studying CCTV footage.
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http://supportersnotcustomers.com/2015/01/20/why-scotland-needs-rangers/
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http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/jack-irvine-paul-murrays-more-5015233? THE Easdales have launched an astonishing attack on Paul Murray, mocking the former Rangers director and questioning his commitment to the club. A statement released by Jack Irvine, family adviser to the Ibrox club’s major shareholders, hits back at Murray for speaking out against the current regime in today’s Record Sport and savages him for being part of the board when former chairman David Murray sold the club to Craig Whyte for £1. Irvine said: “ So like an episode of The Living Dead, Paul Murray emerges from his borders lair having vowed never to return. He says he expects a smear campaign against himself and Dave King and in the same breath compares the Rangers board to Gerald Ratner. Hypocritical? You decide. “If Mr Murray and Mr King ever do get anywhere near the club they are welcome to carry out a robust financial investigation. The Easdale brothers have never taken a penny from the club and nor have they claimed any expenses. “One begins to wonder if we are not dealing with Paul McKenna as opposed to Paul Murray who appears to have hypnotised himself and his cohorts into obliterating the memory fact that they sold their beloved club for one pound. Rangers men? You decide.” In fact, former Deutsche Bank executive Murray launched an eleventh hour bid to persuade former David Murray against the Whyte deal. Forecasting the liquidation crisis which just over a year later brought the Glasgow giants to their knees, he said at the time: "In my opinion, Craig Whyte has not adequately demonstrated what his strategy is for managing and funding a negative outcome on this matter."
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The Rangers Supporters Trust (RST) is delighted to announce that, following a successful meeting yesterday, the Rangers Fans Fighting Fund (RFFF) has thrown its considerable finances and influence behind the RST's continuing fight to ensure Ibrox remains under the control of the club. We are delighted that the RFFF has taken this decision and would like to thank them for doing so. There is now a substantial legal fund available, should it be required, to fight any attempt by this board to pass security over Ibrox to Mike Ashley. We will work closely with the RFFF going forward to ensure every avenue is explored. http://www.therst.co.uk/news/rst-gains-rfff-support-for-ibrox-legal-fight/
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Latest Mohsni incident... http://www.football411.com/story/0,22162,14340_27179,00.html
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CG on Sky Sports News at 5pm approx. Just saying.
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https://twitter.com/jimwhite Jim White @JimWhite 41s42 seconds ago Kenny McDowall has resigned as Rangers caretaker manager, citing personal reasons for stepping down. #Rangers
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THE emotional pull of the 1971 stadium disaster in which 66 people died means that Rangers must never give up the lease of Ibrox. ”THE disaster will never leave me. Never a day goes by that it doesn’t go through my mind. “I still get letters from guys who have never been back to Ibrox for a game since that day. I have taken some of them around the stadium for them to see what it is like now. “The new stadium is, in fact, a testament to those who died. In the trophy room there is a beautiful picture of the old stadium up on the wall. For me it is one of the most important things in that room and I make a point of showing it to the people who go there. “It’s important, especially for the young fans who have only seen the new stadium, that they know the history of this club, where we came from and why we came from that point.” Those words were spoken by John Greig as he received his Greatest Ranger Ever award on March 1999. The people guising as the guardians of Rangers would do well to read them and let them sink in. And perhaps listen to the words of a man I interviewed on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the Ibrox Disaster. I must have written about hundreds of people in the 20 years I have worked for this newspaper but few of them left the kind of impression a softly-spoken Airdrie man did when he invited me into his home just after Christmas in 2000. Matt Reid was a 49-year-old man but a part of him was forever 19 – the age he was when he survived the disaster but lost his father, one of the 66 people swept to their deaths when the barriers crumpled on Staircase 13. Matt’s description of the horrors of that day remain vivid in the mind of this Glaswegian who was only eight in ’71 but whose own dad was in the crowd that day. He came home. We were among the lucky ones. Matt Reid spent three months in hospital after the crush. It wasn’t only his thigh bone that had broken. His heart was too. He said: “The game was a blank but every other detail is vivid. The final whistle went and we moved straight up the terracing to make our way out. We took a left, walking alongside the back corrugated shuttering, getting 20 or 30 feet, then a surge started and we got carried off our feet. “My father was agitated because people were crushing and he was protective towards me. He was panicking more than me because I’d encountered crushing before at other matches. “When we got to the top of exit 13, people were coming from three different directions to reach it. It was like trying to put a gallon of water into a pint bowl. “The crushing was really bad at the top of the stair but I wasn’t too concerned at that point, certainly not in fear of my life. But when the surging happened again I thought I would be swept down the stairs so I got a grip of a six-foot fence running parallel with the handrail all the way down that stair and I wasn’t for letting go. My father was behind me at that point. “The force of the people coming down behind me was so strong I started to lose my grip. Just at that point I heard metal grinding and crushing just down the stair below where I was. “It was like a wave of people being carried out the way as well as down and that’s when the barriers must have mangled. That’s when my father got swept away. It was as if he had been swept away on a wave of water. “I was still trying to cling on and it must have been horrible for him – the last thing I heard him shout was, ‘Oh Christ, my boy’. After about 10 minutes I finally couldn’t hold on and went down on to the stair, face down and facing the bottom. “Again there were surges and I felt people getting carried over me. I could feel their heels on my back, then when they stopped moving, this guy was standing square on my back. There was nothing the guy could have done but to me he felt about 16 stone. “I was being crushed and that’s when I was sick. The pie and Bovril I’d had during the game came back up. To this day, when I smell Bovril, I’m back there, lying face down on those stairs.” Matt was finally rescued from beneath a pile of bodies and went on to marry the nurse who cared for him in the Southern General Hospital. The one good thing to come out of the Disaster, he told me that day. But for generations of Rangers fans, another good thing came out of that terrible afternoon. Ibrox was rebuilt and in many ways has become a monument to those who fell on January 2, 1971. It’s not only the names of the dead on the wall, it’s not about the statue of Greig – the man, who with Sandy Jardine and the other Rangers players, attended so many funerals in the weeks that followed. No, the spirit of the 66 is seeped into those red bricks. They are a part of that rebuilt stadium. You might not see it but you feel it, particularly every January. Ibrox Stadium is a memorial to these people, as much as it is a stage upon which the hopes and dreams of thousands have been played out over the years. And now the very people who are supposed to be custodians of this club seem to be prepared to hand it over to Mike Ashley. They’ve posted an advance notice with the Register of Scotland, which would mean if they accept another loan from the Sports Direct tycoon and default on the repayment terms, they’d have to sell it to raise the cash to pay him back. Think about that for a moment. The very people entrusted with looking after the best interests of their club have put its ownership of the stadium at risk. The Rangers board which agreed to this set of circumstances have to examine their consciences. Two of them, Derek Llambias and Barry Leach are Ashley’s men of course. As the Newcastle owner drip-fed loan deals to keep the lights on at Ibrox he demanded more and more control. This is a man who refused to pay into the last share issue, then spent £800,000 shortly after buying them from another investor, which meant Rangers didn’t receive a penny of that money. In desperation the club had to go cap in hand to him for more cash and thus he was able to exert even more influence. If Ashley, Llambias and Leach have squared off those tactics in their own minds so be it. But perhaps they should sit down with the relatives of the 66, look into their eyes, and tell them Ibrox may no longer belong to Rangers. If they can do that without blinking then Rangers really are careering into hell on a handcart. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/david-mccarthy-66-reasons-rangers-5001307 -
http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/news/market-news/market-news-detail/12218558.html
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Stuart McCall has thrown his support behind the Three Bears, the group owning a near 19 per cent stake in Rangers headed by businessman and Rangers fan Douglas Park. The former Ibrox midfielder has called for Rangers people to be back at the helm of the stricken ship, believing that the departure of legendary figures have left a gaping hole at the heart of the club. “I don’t know any of these gentlemen [the Three Bears], but if you believe what you read, they have Rangers at heart,” said McCall yesterday “I’m not saying that, just because you have Rangers at heart, you are going to be successful and the club is going to make money. But you do know that, whatever they are doing, they are doing it for the right reasons. “They are not in there saying: ‘we can earn this and we can get out’. What you want are people that the club matters to and will do their best for the club, not for themselves as individuals. If it is The Three Bears, if it is Dave King, if it is anyone else, you would rather have people who bother about the club and it’s not just about money-making. “Rangers don’t necessarily need an ex-player as their manager,” he added. “But what they need is someone at the club who doesn’t just have business sense, but is actually doing it for the love of the club – because they’ve got ties to the club.” McCall believes that the departure of three stalwarts who have cut their ties with Rangers – John Greig, Ally McCoist and Walter Smith – sums up the state of the Ibrox club. The Scotland coach was at Ibrox for the abandoned game against Hearts on Friday night in his role as a summariser for BT Sport and watched with anguish afterwards as passions ran high among supporters angered by the board’s conduct. With advanced notices of loan securities against Ibrox and Murray Park having been lodged at the Register of Scotland last week in the name of Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct retail company, fans now fear losing ownership of the club’s stadium. However, it is the emotional heart of the club being ripped out that McCall struggles to accept. Greig, voted Greatest Ever Ranger in 1999, resigned as a director in 2011 in protest at Craig Whyte’s running of the club. Departed manager McCoist, who was put on gardening leave after tendering his resignation, has decided to watch other teams rather than Rangers in recent weeks. Nine-in-a-row manager Smith, meanwhile, confirmed last week he has no intention of ever returning to Ibrox in an official capacity. McCall, who played for Rangers for seven years and had been linked with a return as manager, despairs at the quality of characters who have felt compelled to end their official association with the club. The 50-year-old offered the assessment that few clubs, including Manchester United, could withstand such blows without some very searching question being asked. “John Greig stayed away, which for me is hard to get my head round,” said McCall. “Walter left the board and, again, alarm bells started ringing. If Walter is walking away it must be bad. Obviously the great Sandy Jardine passed away. And now ’Coisty is away. That would be like Bobby Charlton at Man United saying: “You know what? I’ve had enough of the club. Then Sir Alex Ferguson departing because something was going on – and then Ryan Giggs leaving. If that happened at Man United, imagine how everyone would react. “Yes, football is a business now. But is there anybody at Rangers actually doing it for the sake of the club? Or are they just in to make a few quid then disappear into the night?” McCall was speaking at a Scottish Football Association event to publicise the start of the selection process for year four of the regional performance school programme. Since resigning as Motherwell manager late last year the Scotland coach has been linked with the Rangers manager’s post, currently occupied on an interim basis by Kenny McDowall. However, he sounded unconvinced by those in charge at boardroom level at the club, and questioned Ashley’s involvement. “Mr Ashley has got what, eight-and-a-half or nine per cent of the club?” McCall said. “Yet he seems to be the one making all the decisions – appointing a chief exec and a finance director etc. Obviously I’ve got a lot of friends and family who are Rangers supporters – and they can’t understand how this can be the case. The catalyst for everything now is the fact that Ibrox was going to be put up as security against loans. Supporters see other people wanting to offer money and ask why Ashley is the best option.” http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/spfl-lower-divisions/stuart-mccall-backs-three-bears-rangers-bid-1-3665193
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As title states.
