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Highlights * No longer reliant on bank funding * Turnover at GBP57.2m for 2010/11 was an overall increase of GBP0.9m over the previous year * Gate receipts and hospitality sales increased overall by GBP1.3m to GBP27.1m CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT When I became the majority shareholder and Chairman of this great football club in May this year, the sense of honour and privilege I felt was overwhelming. Those feelings are stronger than ever within me now. First, I would like to address what matters most to every Rangers fan - football. In recent years the performance of the players and the football management team has been quite magnificent and I would suggest their achievements rank among the Club's greatest. Three successive League titles, three out of the last four Scottish League Cups, plus two Scottish Cups and a UEFA Cup Final appearance is extraordinary by any standard and set the seal on Walter Smith's outstanding second term as Manager and a truly remarkable managerial career. Every Rangers supporter owes him an enormous debt of gratitude. Walter also left the Club in good hands and Ally McCoist, Kenny McDowall and Ian Durrant are showing the same tremendous drive for success. All of us wish them - and the players - continuing success this season. In May, the Club entered a new era both on and off the pitch. Whilst this Statement covers the 12-month period ending on 31 June 2011, it also affords us the opportunity to look forward. I am the first to recognise the contribution that my predecessor as majority shareholder, Sir David Murray, made to Rangers over 20 years. With any change in ownership, however, there will be a change in approach and I firmly believe the changes I have implemented will be in the longer-term interest of the Club, which must always come first. We have a new Board. In addition, we have appointed a new Chief Operating Officer to drive the business forward and take advantage of emerging opportunities and a Director of Football, whose role is to help Rangers maximise every opportunity to develop, attract and retain playing talent, as well as ensure the Club engages productively with football authorities at domestic and international level. Perhaps the biggest change that has been effected since the takeover in May has been the repayment of all bank borrowings. The Club is no longer reliant on bank funding, nor does any bank control our operations on a daily basis. I hope fans would share my view that, looking ahead, the Club should do everything to live within its means and operate on a commercially viable basis. I firmly believe that is the only sustainable, long-term strategy for Rangers. Performance on the field has a direct bearing on the Club's business performance. Participation in the UEFA Champions' League remains important although increasingly difficult to achieve given the qualification process for the SPL champions. During 2010/2011 we qualified for the UEFA Champions' League and played in the UEFA Europa League. Turnover at GBP57.2m for 2010/11 was an overall increase of GBP 0.9m over the previous year. Gate receipts and hospitality sales increased overall by GBP1.3m to GBP27.1m, due to the extra European games games, although there was an overall reduction in season ticket sales, hospitality sales and sponsorship revenue. Net operating expenses increased by GBP3.6m to GBP47.5m reflecting increased salary levels, higher European fixture costs and operational cost increases across the business. The Club remains embroiled in historical tax issues with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, primarily the tax tribunal on Employee Benefit Trusts. It has been a dark cloud hanging over the Club for far too long and any resolution must enable the Club to move forward. Rangers has never been short of challenges in recent years and there is no question there are many challenges ahead for both the Club and Scottish football in general. However, I am certain that, as a Club, we can rise to these challenges and deliver success both on and off the pitch. That is what Rangers is all about. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all supporters who have offered me so much encouragement. Your support for the Club is inspirational and I can only promise to ensure that the interests of Rangers and our fans will be at the heart of everything I do as Chairman. Craig Whyte, Chairman Unaudited Consolidated Profit & Loss Account for the year ended 30 June 2011 2011 2010 GBP'000 GBP'000 Turnover 57,183 56,287 Net operating expenses (47,525) (43,856) Trading profit / (loss) 9,658 12,431 Amortisation of player registrations (8,412) (7,339) Operating profit / (loss) 1,246 5,092 Exceptional items: Gain on disposal of player registrations 4,202 512 Taxation of Discount Option Scheme (3,270) - Profit / (loss) before interest and taxation 2,178 5,604 Interest payable (2,102) (1,395) Profit / (loss) on ordinary activities before 76 4,209 taxation Taxation - - Profit for the year 76 4,209 Basic and diluted earnings per share 0.07p 3.87p Basic earnings per share is calculated by dividing the earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the year. For diluted earnings per share, the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue is adjusted to assume conversion of all dilutive potential ordinary shares. The Group has 1,200,000 of potential dilutive ordinary shares at 30 June 2011. As the current share price is below the option price, the basic and diluted earnings per share is the same. The Directors do not recommend the payment of a dividend (2010: nil). Unaudited Consolidated Balance Sheet as at 30 June 2011 2011 2010 GBP'000 GBP'000 FIXED ASSETS Tangible assets 116,856 118,688 Intangible assets 8,626 11,594 Investments - - 125,482 130,282 CURRENT ASSETS Stock 2 2 Debtors 5,899 5,640 Cash at bank and in hand 8,893 348 14,794 5,990 CREDITORS Amounts falling due within one year (49,065) (27,568) NET CURRENT LIABILITIES (34,271) (21,578) TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES 91,211 108,704 CREDITORS Amounts falling due after more than one year (20,369) (37,938) NET ASSETS 70,842 70,766 CAPITAL AND RESERVES Called up share capital 10,879 10,879 Share premium account 120,973 120,973 Capital reserve 9,185 9,185 The Rangers Bond 7,736 7,736 Revaluation reserve 57,207 57,770 Profit & loss account (135,138) (135,777) SHAREHOLDERS' FUNDS 70,842 70,766

http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/spl/3975613/I-still-laugh-Scott-Brown-was-crying-the-day-we-won-title.html

RANGERS are exploring the potential of a formal relationship with the Brazilian club, Corinthians. Gordon Smith, the Ibrox sideâ??s director of football, is currently part of a trade delegation visiting the South American country, and has already been involved in talks with team officials. Although British clubs are restricted by work permit regulations to signing only full internationalists, meaning that Rangers could not bring young players over from Brazil, the Ibrox side could benefit from shared commercial and scouting expertise. It is understood that Smith could announce the tie-up on Thursday, when he returns from the trip. He is Rangersâ?? representative on the trade mission, which was organised by the Scottish Council for Development and Industry. Along with Michael Moore, the Secretary of State for Scotland, delegates from the golf, banking, whisky, oil and legal industries, among others, are taking part in the four-day visit, which began in Sao Paolo, where Corinthians are based, and is currently in Rio de Janeiro. â??Like many football clubs, Rangers are looking to develop their global brand and enter into partnerships with Brazilian clubs, most notably Corinthians,â? said Moore. â??Theyâ??ve also been attending the Soccerex Global Convention, the biggest soccer expo in the world and an opportunity for Rangers to show their wares. â??Rangers have a lot of interesting plans and it shows the world that Scotland can produce not just whisky and golf, but a lot of other cultural wares, such as Rangers.â? Smithâ??s visit is part of an ongoing bid by Rangers to strengthen their fanbase and income potential abroad. Ally McCoist, the Ibrox manager, spent some time in Argentina during the summer to look at players, while Sunil Chhetri and Jeje Lalpekhlua, two Indian strikers, are currently on trial at Murray Park. The former was offered a contract two years ago by Queens Park Rangers â?? where Ali Russell, Rangersâ?? chief executive, was working at the time â?? but couldnâ??t sign for the club due to work permit issues. With the British government keen to strengthen trade relations with India, it is felt that Rangers could secure the necessary paperwork if they choose to sign either player now. It is more difficult for British sides to sign South American players, which Gordon Strachan criticised during his time in charge of Celtic. Yet Manchester United had a working relationship with Corinthians, and once sent youth players to Sao Paolo during the summer to train with the Brazilian side. In June 2001, John Rankin was one of two United youth players to go to Brazil for a two-week training camp, although the pair returned early because there was no translator provided. Smithâ??s time in Brazil may result in a similar relationship with Corinthians. The Sao Paolo side currently top Brasileiro Serie A, but only by two points from Vasco de Gama and tension is building in the championship race. â??Itâ??s a crunch moment in the Brazilian league and Iâ??m bumping into lots of football fans of differing rivalries,â? said Moore. â??A lot of it would seem similar to people from Glasgow.â? Rangers, meanwhile, have agreed to play cash strapped Crusaders in Belfast next year. The Irish outfit, who have just settled a £350,000 tax bill, urgently require funds and the Ibrox side, despite their own financial problems, will play a fixture between January and March. â??We are delighted Rangers have said yes to our invitation,â? said a club spokesman. â??Obviously, they are a massive draw and we expect a capacity crowd.â? Liverpool, too, will play Crusaders in their bid to finance a move from their current ground to a new stadium at North Foreshore within the next few years. http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/rangers/smith-scouting-possible-corinthians-tie-up-on-south-american-trade-visit-1.1137078

Published on Sunday 27 November 2011 00:52 SEVENTY-Five years after Celtic brought the first Indian player to Europe to play professional football, two others have arrived at Rangers. No doubt the trialists at Murray Park, Sunil Chhetri and Jeje Lalpekhlua, are well-versed on the story of their predecessor in Glasgow, Mohammed Salim, a talented winger who never quite made it, remembered in places as the Barefoot Indian of Celtic Park or The Juggler of Calcutta as one Scottish paper called him in 1936. Salimâ??s time here was short-lived. Homesickness got to him. Truth be told, we donâ??t know how long his countrymen are going to be around either. For the players, and for the club, their arrival is like a journey into the unknown. What chance have these guys? Long odds against, you have to say. Chhetri, more experienced and a proven international goalscorer, is considered the best bet, but then he failed to impress when at the Kansas City Wizards last year and didnâ??t hack it during a trial at Coventry a few years earlier. There are also work permit issues. QPR wanted to sign him in 2009 but he was turned down for a permit because India are miles outside the top-70 nations in the world rankings. They still are. And that is still a huge issue. Even if Rangers wanted to sign these players, they might not be able to under the rules. We shall see. Somesh Upadhyay writes about football in his homeland and has waited a lifetime to see an Indian player have an impact abroad. In the beginning there was Salim. The Bangalore-born Paul Wilson flourished at Celtic in the 1970s, but he was raised in Scotland and came through the traditional Scottish route. More recently there was Bhaichung Bhuta, a star at home but one who couldnâ??t cut it at Bury. In between there was Harpal Singh at Leeds and not much else. There are some players of Indian origin â?? Michael Chopra, for instance, and the French international Vikash Dhorasoo â?? but to claim them as Indian would be clutching at straws. In these parts the best known Indian player is probably Jesminder â??Jessâ? Bhamra, a fictional female footballer in the film Bend It Like Beckham. â??If even one of Chhetri or Lalpeklua make it to SPL, the popularity of the SPL in general and Rangers in particular will scale new heights,â? says Upadhyay. â??It has a potential to add 50 million new fans at least. The fact that the SPL is telecast in India will only hasten the process. It is one of the most discussed topics among youths in India. Even in smaller towns, people keep up late at night to watch the matches.â? India is very much on the radar of the established football nations. Sometime today, Raymond Farrelly, head of business development at Rangers, is going to jump on a plane bound for India, heâ??s going to spend the next week moving between cities and meetings, from Mumbai to Delhi to Kolkata, all in the name of establishing links, building relationships that will, it is hoped, lead to a commercial result down the line. Last weekend, Rangers set up a Twitter page delivering Hindi text commentary of their game against St Johnstone. They have plans to provide future commentaries in Punjabi and Urdu. They have met members of the Indian community in Glasgow, will meet some heavy hitters from the football world this week and now they have two international footballers at Murray Park and an expectant audience in India wondering if either of them will be offered a deal to stay. â??My agenda is fact-finding,â? says Farrelly. â??I have a lot of a meetings and part of that is sitting down with members of the Indian media. The news of the two players coming across on trial has provoked a lot of media attention. Itâ??s unbelievable, the scope of it. The circulations of some papers over there blows you away. Thereâ??s a huge amount of interest in what weâ??re doing. â??You only have to look at the financial position of our game and where the club sits right now to know that itâ??s absolutely incumbent on us to explore opportunities around the world. If you look at the growth opportunities for Scottish businesses, a lot of them exist in Asia and in particular in India, where there is a real need for infrastructure and a lot of Scottish companies can provide that. So, yeah, weâ??re looking at commercial opportunities, trying to build an audience. Itâ??s a long-term vision.â? The challenge for Rangers is that plenty of others share the same vision. It is a paradoxical football landscape. There is little money in the domestic league and yet massive crowds at the biggest games, upwards of 120,000 for the elite fixtures. And Indian businesses are in acquisition mode abroad. Venkyâ??s, the poultry giant, owns Blackburn Rovers. An Indian group has long been linked with a takeover at Everton. QPR have had Indian backers. Huge sums are paid out to the English Premier League to screen their games in India. Everton just did a lucrative deal to show their games on mobile phones in the country. Rangers are exploring, but others are well ahead of them. Liverpool run a training camp there already. Manchester United have a presence also. It is said that there are 17 million United fans in India â?? and seven United cafes and bars. Bayern Munich are doing more than anybody, making regular visits while also laying down roots with the Bayern Munich Youth Cup for under-16s in Delhi, held last month. The whole shooting match was organised not by some coaching junior, some inexperienced wannabe but by Werner Kern who was an assistant coach at Bayern in their golden era in the 1970s and who has been instrumental in the coaching of recent stars such as Bastian Schweinsteiger, Philipp Lahm and Thomas Muller. Bayern have even sent a Legends side to play in India. It was captained by somebody called Paul Breitner. Bayern have played to crowds of 120,000 in India. Recently, Argentina played Venezuela in a friendly in Calcutta and they got 90,000 â?? and were pretty disappointed it wasnâ??t a lot higher. The place came to a standstill for Lionel Messi in the same way it was brought to a halt when Pele played there in 1977. â??You see the opportunities out there and it can be overwhelming,â? says Farrelly. â??Thereâ??s something like a 60 per cent growth in football advertising and there is a lot of large multi-national companies who are linked with football in India. Thereâ??s an appetite to work with a club with the history Rangers has. We donâ??t have the world class superstars other clubs have but we have a strategy that is about more than a player walking into a hospital and disappearing for the rest of the year. We have a strategy for a long-term legacy and if we can find the right business partners to develop it then creating an Indian powerhouse is a tangible goal.â? All eyes on Chhetri and Lalpekhlua, then. Not just Rangers eyes, but the eyes of the growing number of football obsessives in a nation of 1.2 billion. http://www.scotsman.com/scotland-on-sunday/sport-columnists/aidan-smith/tom_english_rangers_seek_indian_sign_1_1987329

MOTHERWELL chief executive Leeann Dempster fears fans are being driven away from the game by barmy rules. Fir Park's powerbroker spoke out after Well supporters were chucked out of Pittodrie for standing up during Saturday's SPL clash with Aberdeen. The Lanarkshire club have been inundated with complaints from disillusioned supporters in the wake of their 2-1 win. During the match, a number of Well fans were ejected after altercations with stewards. It is understood the problems began due to a small section of the visiting support standing up. Dempster said: "Clubs have guidelines but each club uses its own interpretation. "We are prepared, to an extent, to tolerate some things and we work to engage with the fans. I heard our fans were told not to travel to Aberdeen with any flags or any drums. "A couple of years ago Kilmarnock fans brought a load of inflatables. The stewards waded into the section and took them away and I wondered why. "What is offensive or dangerous about inflatables? It was just a bit of fun and no one else in the ground seemed to mind, yet they were confiscated. "We're asking people to come and pay money. When they've paid we're telling them they can't sing, shout, stand up or dance around. "I fear they might start to ask themselves, Why are we coming? Why am I paying money for this?" Dempster will today investigate the situation with the club's safety officer Alan Marshall and has made it clear she is no way critical of Aberdeen and will not make judgments about the treatment of her team's fans or draw any conclusions about the incidents until she is in possession of all the facts. But she knows the bandwagon for standing areas in SPL stadiums is rolling again and believes that could help the situation. Dempster has discussed the matter with the SPL's Neil Doncaster and understands inconsistency in the upholding of the rules annoys punters. Aberdeen fans contacted radio stations on Saturday night defending the Motherwell fans and claimed Old Firm supporters get away with standing at Pittodrie when others don't. Dempster said: "A couple of years ago, the debate was raised about safe-standing and a few eyes rolled, believing that this situation had already been covered and discussed. "But I think that, as the financial squeeze has come, it's changing again. Fans always ask the question about sitting down and they also get upset by it sometimes. "It's obvious that when you're talking about 4000 or 5000 people it can inflame a situation to wade in there. But that irks the supporters who then ask why they would be put out for standing up. "How are we going to tell our supporters to do something when there are occasions when it doesn't get done by others? "Of course you can't have it happen all round the ground but in certain situations there has to be a judgment call if there is no danger to safety." Dempster is convinced that making the matchday experience as enjoyable as possible for everyone is the way ahead. She said: "We have a great relationship with our supporters. There has been a bit of leeway because we encourage fans to bring their flags and drums and to make some atmosphere. "We have a group of supporters who bring masses of colour to games. "We ask them about how they want to support the team and they say by standing up, by bringing their flags and banners. "There is an understanding that if we tell them to sit down or tell them something is not acceptable they abide by those rules and we work as a group. "We have said that if some of their flags are too big to carry around, we could store them for them. We engage with these guys. "So far nothing untoward has happened and the discussions we're having with them seem to be working. We feel it's the way ahead." Motherwell Supporters Trust board member Joe Smith revealed what he witnessed at Pittodrie. He said: "About 20 of our young fans were targeted by the stewards for standing up after Motherwell scored 10 minutes into the game. "They were told to sit down and I think they did but one of them got up and started singing 'Stand up for the Motherwell' which obviously annoyed the stewards. "Five heavy-handed stewards waded in and dragged the lads out the ground kicking and screaming. It wasn't fair because hundreds of Aberdeen supporters stood up when their team scored and the stewards didn't even blink an eyelid." Daily RHebel

Chettri, left, and Lalpekhlua, below. RANGERS are weighing up a shock move to sign two Indian international strikers - in the hope of opening up a new market in the subcontinent. Record Sport can reveal Jeje Lalpekhlua and Sunil Chettri are expected to arrive in Glasgow before the end of this month to begin a trial with Ally McCoist's squad. And the visit - which has been set up by director of football Gordon Smith - has been timed to allow McCoist to make a move to sign one or both when the transfer window opens in January. The potential double swoop is also being looked upon in the Ibrox boardroom as a chance to open a new revenue stream into the lucrative Asian market where both players are held in high regard. Lalpekhlua is hailed as the hottest kid in the Indian game after bursting into the international team this year at the age of 20, scoring four goals in his first three games. He plays for Pune. jeje lalpekhlua rangers Image 1 Chettri - under contract with I-League rivals Mohun Bagan AC - was regarded as the country's poster boy and has been linked with Celtic and QPR. In August 2009 his agent claimed the Parkhead club were considering an offer after sending scouts to run the rule over the striker. But later that month Chettri signed a three-year contract at Loftus Road only to have his dream move to Europe collapse after failing to secure a work permit. He then failed to make an impact in the USA after a failed stint with Kansas City Wizards in 2010. Meanwhile, anxious shareholders could be given the chance to grill new owner Craig Whyte at a much-awaited agm just six days before Christmas. Record Sport can reveal that although no date has been set officially, Monday December 19 has been pencilled in for the meeting at Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall. That would mean Whyte will have only three weeks left to make public the first set of accounts since buying Sir David Murray's majority shareholding for £1 in May. It's understood the auditing process should be signed off in the next few days. If December 19 is confirmed Whyte will then have until November 28 to send the accounts to shareholders. The meeting should provide much needed clarity on the financial health of a club that has been rocked by rumours of administration throughout Whyte's six months at the helm. Whyte insists he has become the target of a malicious whispering campaign designed to blacken his name and undermine the SPL champions. This week a longrunning £49million dispute with HMRC was reconvened in court, with a final decision expected in February or March.

The deadpan Welsh comedian, Milton Jones â?? you can see him regularly on Mock the Week and Have I Got News for You? â?? has a joke which goes: â??When I got back from work the other day my wife was already home. â??I called out, â??Hi, Hon!â?? â??It wasnâ??t a term of endearment â?? itâ??s just that my wifeâ??s German.â? OK, OK â?? itâ??s a joke that depends on how you hear it, not how you read it. And if Milton wants to press charges for murdering a gag, your correspondent is done bang to rights. Hereâ??s the point, though. If he had used that routine in a Scottish nightclub and changed the punchline to: â??It wasnâ??t a term of endearment â?? itâ??s just that my wife is a Rangers supporterâ?, would he fall foul of the Scottish Governmentâ??s proposed laws in respect of sectarianism in Scottish football? There are times when Alex Salmond exudes the powerful impression that he supposes he can walk on water. By now, though, you would have thought that a politician as astute and opportunist as Salmond would realise that, on this issue, he and his SNP colleagues are marching into a swamp. The Tories at Holyrood also tipped head first into the mud when their new leader, Ruth Davidson, discovered she was employing (or rather you and I were, because his pay comes out of the public purse) a researcher called Colin James Taylor, who tweeted about â??Timsâ?. Now should you be a reader who happens not to have the requisite information to divine meaning from this term, it is used among some Rangers supporters to refer to Scottish Catholics in general, Catholics of Irish extraction in particular and Celtic supporters likewise. The origin of the term is not certain. Some say it refers to a mythical generic Celtic supporter called Tim Molloy or Malloy, others that it originated from a Glasgow Irish Catholic gang of the 1930s, a rival to Billy Fullertonâ??s Protestant gang â?? the Billy Boys of the proscribed song. There was, if memory serves, a witty echo of the name by a metals firm in the east end of Glasgow which traded under the title of Tim Alloys. Be that as it may, when Taylor, a Rangers supporter, Tweeted about Tims, he was told by his new governess to withdraw and say sorry, which he duly did. That he caused offence â?? possible, actual and self-generated â?? is likely, perhaps certain, in the current climate. Would he, however, have committed an offence under the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Bill? After all, there are Celtic supporters who refer to themselves as Tims, just as they refer to Rangers fans as Huns because of the clubâ??s traditional attachment to the Union Flag and the Royal Family, with its distant German ancestry. And, again, if a Celtic supporter replied to Taylorâ??s Tweet and referred to him as a Hun, would both of them be dragged off by the thought police? The answer, says the Scottish Government, depends on context. Badinage is one thing, malice is another. Intent to cause offence would therefore presumably play a part in determining whether or not a crime had been committed â?? yet offending one another is also the stock in trade of football supporters and the fiercer the rivalry, the more calculated the offence. You might think that Scotland is already well provided with laws that deal with anything that crosses the boundary into menacing behaviour, especially since there is now a range of crimes which can be aggravated by religious, racist, sexist or homophobic abuse. The SNP, though, insist that we need even more and are hell bent on delivering them. They do this despite the example of muddle-headedness set by Uefa. The governing body of European football is admirably dedicated to the eradication of racism within its domain, but it is notably uneven in its enforcement and haphazard in its methodology â?? especially with regard to Eastern Europe and Spain. Closer to home we have Rangersngers fans banned from away games in Europe because some were reported for singing The Billy Boys â?? with its line about being â??up to our knees in Fenian bloodâ? â?? a sanction imposed for an incidence of a song sung at a game and reported by FARE (Football Against Racism in Europe) but not by the match delegate, in one of the two instances. Now Celtic have been cited â?? though not by FARE â?? for â??illicit chantingâ? at their 3-1 home victory over Rennes. Again, the match delegate was not the originator of the charge, which was instigated by the police match commander, the former Scottish Premier League referee, Eddie Smith. Celticâ??s chief executive and the Assistant Chief Constable of Strathclyde Police want to meet the Green Brigade to discuss the legality of their songs and chants. I assume there will be a lively argument, especially since, last time I looked, the Green Brigadeâ??s manifesto included a 32-county united Gaelic-speaking Irish republic, an independent Gaelic-speaking Scottish republic and a demand for boycotts of global brands whose sponsorship underwrites the game at various levels. They might well ask Peter Lawwell, the chief executive of Celtic, what he supposed they were likely to sing and chant when he invited them to act as Celticâ??s resident glee club. If he is then sucked into a debate about how one manâ??s terrorist is another manâ??s freedom fighter and how one clubâ??s support hears a hymn of hate when another believes it is singing a ballad of liberation, then he will have something in common with Mr Salmond. They both set in train a course of events without anticipating the consequences, no joke for either of them â?? or a laughing matter for Scottish football. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/competitions/scottish-premier/8897701/First-Minister-of-Scotland-Alex-Salmond-is-walking-into-swamp-over-banning-songs-on-terraces.html

ALLY McCOIST may have failed to keep Rangers in Europe for long this season, but his staggering record in the Scottish Premier League since taking over from Walter Smith has firmly focused the continentâ??s attention on Ibrox. Rangersâ?? remarkable unbeaten record in the league has put McCoistâ??s team out in front of just about every European rival and when the Ibrox manager puts his own record next to the work put in by Smith last season, the only club that can boast a better unbeaten record in European league football is FC Porto. The Portuguese champions have amassed a remarkable 49 games without defeat, stretching back to February when they lost 3-0 to Sporting Lisbon, but Rangers are easily the next best top-flight side on the continent with a 21-game unbeaten run. The last time Rangers lost in the SPL was on April 2 when Dundee United won 3-2 at Ibrox and, with a home game tomorrow against St Johnstone â?? who have not won a league match in Govan since the 1970s â?? McCoistâ??s men seem certain to make that 22 games unbeaten against his old team. When Rangers exited the Champions League and the Europa League at the qualifying hurdles to Malmo and Maribor respectively, McCoist was left with the domestic scene to make his mark upon. He has done that emphatically. Rangers can also boast a better record than the best unbeaten sides in the Barclays Premier League, where Newcastle United protect the longest record with just 14 games since they lost at Liverpool in May. Current leaders Manchester City may have dropped fewer points than Rangers this term, with just one draw in their 11 games, but McCoistâ??s men have racked up more wins with 12 victories out of 14 SPL games. The only time the SPL leaders have not won this season was on the opening day of the campaign in a 1-1 draw with Hearts â?? and then another 1-1 draw with St Mirren at Ibrox last month. The closest European top-flight side to Rangers are Serbian leaders FK Radnicki, who have posted a 20-game unbeaten run and, like Rangers, also lost last April. That was the same month that Champions League winners Barcelona last tasted defeat in La Liga, but Pep Guardiolaâ??s men only have a 15-game unbeaten run and have drawn four times already this season, while current Spanish league leaders, Real Madrid, have already lost once this season. In Greece and Italy, the best unbeaten runs are shared by Panathinaikos and Juventus with ten games each while Dynamo Kiev are the best in Ukraine with a 15-game unbeaten run. Even the side with the meanest defence in Europe cannot match Rangers. Bayern Munich have conceded just four goals in the Bundesliga this term, but already the German league leaders have lost twice. Rangers have lost six SPL goals in this campaign â?? better than Real Madrid and Manchester City. They have also dropped fewer points this term than Porto, who have drawn three times. http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/rangers/all-eyes-on-ibrox-as-mccoist-revels-in-domestic-bliss-1.1135588

There are seminal moments in watching football in childhood that remain vivid as the years gather speed. One remembers sitting on a Glasgow bus before Celtic hosted Rangers in the New Year derby match at Celtic Park in 1988. A man draped in Celtic garb could be viewed waltzing on to the bus with what resembled a carrier bag brimming with bananas. In an era when men sported Graeme Souness moustaches and Frank McAvennie mullets as standard practice, the sight of fruit in Glasgow's East End seemed like an odd occurrence, even before the latest helping of a fractious fixture that has never ceased to throw up large sequences of unplanned mayhem. It later transpired that the bananas - or an 'assortment of fruit' as the television commentator Archie Macpherson later described them that evening - were intended for the black player Mark Walters, a winger who had signed for Rangers from Aston Villa hours before the match. The bananas shamefully lay strewn before a saturated 'Jungle' area of the old Celtic Park, a spot not far from where Celtic's vociferous band of supporters known as the 'Green Brigade' can be found on match days in the revamped ground. This singing section of ultras support the team while also making their political feelings on wider issues, especially relating to the political make-up of Ireland, be known. It has been 23 years since Walters was racially abused at Celtic Park. With a mission statement that describes itself as 'a broad front of anti-fascist, anti-racist and anti-sectarian Celtic supporters', it is perhaps inconceivable that a member of the Green Brigade or the wider Celtic-minded family would racially abuse a player, but old habits die hard in small splinter groups of the Glasgow club's vast support. Celtic have endured problems policing IRA chants away from home, but their emergence on their own doorstep in recent times is something that must be handled with the realisation that while they may be offensive/illicit and unwanted, such chants may not be illegal. In avoiding fraternising with the traditional Scottish media obsession to lump Celtic in with Rangers as part of the Old Firm package, Celtic would be healthier for lancing this festering, historical boil. Celtic Park is private land, and the club should be entitled to ban unruly guests who fail to show the required level of decorum in watching the team, but there is not much else that they can do. UEFA have decided to study footage of Celtic's match with Rennes apparently after Strathclyde Police made the match delegate aware of 'offensive singing'. Celtic will be called before European football's governing body next month to face a charge that songs of an 'unsporting nature' were sung at the Europa League contest. Songs glorifying the IRA may not be filed under the sectarian category, but they remain unsavoury even if they are argued away as political. These songs are unnecessary, irrelevant and damaging to Celtic - who have a body of award-winning supporters on the continent - and Scotland's reputation. More pertinently, they are offensive to many people, some of whom share the same stadium when watching Celtic. Personally, I think they soil the atmosphere of football because they are offensive, but offensive and criminal behaviour are separate strands. "It is offensive," commented the QC and Celtic fan Paul McBride, a figure who has represented manager Neil Lennon in recent times. "What do you say to a 10-year-old child who asks his father why people are singing about killers at a football game? There is no answer to that." In every sense, fans who damage their club's standing by singing IRA songs are a rogue element, almost rebels without a cause. They are hijacking the club crest and the club's Irish background to further an ideal that surely has no place at Celtic Park. Fans are entitled to be in love with Celtic's Irish heritage and the story of the club's beginnings, but there are plenty of other traditional Irish folk songs that can be sung without stinking the place out. That being acknowledged, is it right to demonise such fans? As two enormous clubs in the relative backwater of the Scottish Premier League, it is no coincidence that Rangers and now Celtic have been earmarked for treatment from the authorities, but there is a wider debate to be had on what constitutes 'offensive' singing, and what is punishable. A fine would seem the likely outcome to embarrass Celtic, but it will be interesting to see whether or not Europe's governing body go after the blue-chip names of Barcelona and Real Madrid on similar grounds. How far will UEFA's bid to silence 'illicit' chanting stretch? It is one thing making an example of a club, or making a scapegoat of them. Celtic and Rangers are hardly in splendid isolation in having fans espousing political idealogy, however warped it may seem to others. National anthems from all over the globe could be held up as offensive, political and unsporting on similar grounds. Upon initial inspection, it seems a good human rights lawyer could have a field day with UEFA's criteria for what constitutes 'illicit' chanting in this sphere. Eddie Smith, the former referee turned Strathclyde policeman, who apparently shopped Celtic to UEFA without notifying the club, surely has a duty to encourage similar happenings throughout Scotland. Will East Fife fans be reported for singing 'they are dirty and smelly..and come from near Lochgelly..the Cowden family' or St Mirren's mascot Paisley Panda be banged up for coming out dancing to Cher's 'gypsies, tramps and thieves' when Morton pay a visit? Or will a Scotland fan be fined for wearing a 'we hate Jimmy Hill' t-shirt? What about a Celtic supporter carrying a Palestinian flag? Is this deemed to be offensive? I recall working for an international news organisation in past times, and being told to dispense with using the word 'terrorist' in connection with mentioning paramilitary groups because one man's terrorist group is another man's freedom fighter, however uncomfortably this may sit with some people. On the surface, proposed new laws to tackle sectarianism, bigotry and racism in Scotland are fraught with peril, because they do not appear to make clear what or what is not offensive. In attempting to protect freedom of speech and freedom of expression, it is a dangerous road to go down. Without strict guidelines, the whole legislation drafted by the Scottish National Party could serve to encourage the notion of police harrassment. An Orwellian society is just as unwelcome as one that endorses songs saluting terrorist groups. Celtic and Rangers may be fierce rivals in football, but their fans share a common ground on the subject of freedom of speech. In every respect, ridding Celtic Park of IRA ditties is an initiative that should be welcomed, but the lines quickly become blurred on what else is deemed legitimate. Anti-IRA songs would also have to be outlawed on the same grounds. Unlike the obvious and awful racism Walters suffered in the late 1980s, the issue of 'illicit' singing is far from black and white. http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/football/desmond-kane/article/2603/

KYLE LAFFERTY has told Rangers boss Ally McCoist: I'm yours to keep. McCoist made it clear last week he is anxious to secure the striker on an extended contract. Lafferty is keen to stay and he said: "I saw what the manager said about me staying here and it means a lot. He's shown a lot of faith in me since taking over from Walter Smith and I'm doing everything I can to repay him. "There haven't been any talks over a new contract, but hopefully there will be soon and we can sort something out quickly. "I don't see why I can't finish my career here. It would be brilliant to play long enough for Rangers to get a testimonial." Lafferty praised McCoist, No2 Kenny McDowall and coach Ian Durrant for the way they have followed legend Smith, who left Gers last summer. He said: "Ally, Kenny and Ian have been fantastic. It's a happy place to be and all of the boys are desperate to do well for them. "Our team spirit is brilliant." Despite the financial uncertainty over Gers owner Craig Whyte, it's clear McCoist is anxious to seal a new deal for a player who is a key figure in his plans. Lafferty, who has four goals this term and hit 16 last season, added: "Things couldn't be going better for me. "I'm playing where I want to for Rangers, scoring goals and playing regularly. "It's brilliant playing alongside the likes of Nikica Jelavic and Stevie Naismith in attack. It's all I've ever wanted in football. "I've won three league titles and now we're pushing strongly for a fourth. "I've supported this club since I was a boy. I'm living the dream." Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/spl/3899118/Lafferty-Deal-me-in-Rangers.html#ixzz1c3vC9Q3J

NIKICA JELAVIC is the finest No 9 to ply his trade at Ibrox since Ally McCoist. There, I've said it. Better than Rod Wallace, better than Kenny Miller, better even than Kris Boyd. In many ways, the Croatian is the COMPLETE centre forward. Remember, eyebrows were firmly raised when Walter Smith shelled out £4.1million for his services last summer. Why splash that kind of cash on just one player when many felt my old boss could've been doing with two or three? Well, right now the Jelavic deal is shaping up to be bargain of the century. He's become almost priceless to Gers. And it would be a brave man who'd bet against him producing the goods against Aberdeen once again tomorrow. Twice last season he conjured stunning winners against the Dons at Pittodrie. I fancy him to nick another at least. That sometimes happens with strikers. Against certain clubs they can't miss. Coisty was like that against Celtic. He just had that knack of finding the back of the net in the big Old Firm games. Jelavic seems to have some Indian sign over Aberdeen and there's no doubt their Dons defenders won't be relishing facing him at the weekend. I for one saw enough last Sunday at Tynecastle to convince me Jelavic is almost back to his best. Climbing out of his sick bed he struck a brilliant second goal against Hearts. Most strikers would have been tempted to put their foot through the ball as it dropped out of the Edinburgh sky. A hopeful lash as it dropped over their shoulder. Not Jelavic. After watching Carlos Bocanegra's raking pass all the way, he caressed the ball into the back of the net. It was a stunning finish from a striker I greatly admire. Listen, I don't think anyone will ever again hit the heights of Coisty. My old mucker was a one-off. A goalscoring enigma who could play a bit. Rod Wallace was a fantastic goal scorer while Kenny Miller would run and run all day. Boydy was an out-and-out poacher who you could always bank on for a goal. Jelavic? He's all three rolled into one. He can run, he can hold the ball up, he can bring others into play, and most importantly, he can finish. And here's the worrying thing for the teams choking on Rangers' fumes. If McCoist's men are nine points clear of second-placed Motherwell without Jelavic firing on all cylinders, what will the margin be when the Croat finally rediscovers the sensational form he showed in the second half of last term? It could be all be over by March! But that's the great thing for McCoist. Jelavic hasn't been at his best so far this season yet his team is still miles in front in the race for the SPL title. I don't doubt for a single minute that his head was turned in the summer by all the transfer talk. Everton and Bolton were linked first before Leicester City tabled a £9m bid on transfer deadline day. Fair play to the board. They resisted and Jelavic was to remain a Rangers player. But all the uncertainty at the time unsettled Jelavic, I'm sure. He looked out of sorts at the start of the season â?? sluggish almost â?? in games. Yet I know he has been working extra-hard in training and all that work is beginning to pay off. Let's not forget, Jelavic has had his fair share of injury problems too. Rangers were robbed of his talents for three months of last season after Ian Black's horror tackle at Tynecastle ruled him out for a long spell. A full pre-season helped him but he's had one or two niggling problems since. Yet his desire and will to win has never waned. He is as committed to Rangers as the likes of Allan McGregor and Steven Davis. He's also a winner with a first-class attitude in everything he does. For such a big man his touch is superb, a fact highlighted with his superbly-taken strike against Hearts. And for me he is a man for the big occasions. The bigger the game the better he seems to play. He's someone who revels in the big-match atmosphere. And if you want to win trophies you need guys like that in your team. During the nine-in-a-row era at Ibrox, the home dressing room was absolutely packed out with guys like that. Make no mistake, there is more to come from Jelavic this season â?? much, much more in my opinion. He's playing his football with a real smile on his face again. And last week's stunning goal in the capital will have done his confidence the world of good. Far more goals and many more big performances will come. We're now heading into the Christmas period and, as we all know, it's an important time for the clubs leading the title race. But with Jelavic back in form, I fear the rest don't stand a chance. Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/spl/3898888/Red-hot-Jela-holds-key-just-like-Coisty.html#ixzz1c3xMTXpO

PEOPLE used to call Walter Smith defensive. But compared to yer man Craig Whyte, the old silver fox was Jimmy Calderwood going 2-4-4-1. With his goalie up front as the one. There's an old saying that if you've done nothing wrong, you've nothing to hide. And it's run round my head again and again this week in regards to the new Rangers owner. Why IS he so secretive? Why DOES he bristle quite so angrily over any kind of criticism? I mean, he's done one truly impressive thing since taking over at Ibrox and that was to turn up at the first Old Firm game of the season alongside a blonde with a cleavage like Kenny McDowall jumping to head a Mitre. Yet here we are, more than a month on, and her name STILL hasn't come out. And in this day and age of celebrity tittle-tattle, that takes some doing. So if this is how closely he wants to keep his socialising to his chest, what chance is there of him letting his guard down when it comes to his hush-hush business affairs? Some men in his position would have dared the Beeb to come ahead with this week's documentary then gone to war if and when anything iffy was broadcast. Yet Whyte had the wagons in a circle before the apaches even appeared over the hill. He got his retaliation in first by banning Auntie in advance â?? a naïve piece of knee-jerkery, because the first thing his actions did was make far more people far more aware of the show than they might have been otherwise. Plus, it was a clear sign that he's not half as big a player as he wants us to think he is. Put the tackities into a Murray or a Lawwell or the like and they'll cut you out of their gang, spin a story to the opposition as their idea of punishment and make sure you're as unwelcome on their turf as humanly possible. But they take it, because they're strong enough to take it. Because they know that you're only one guy with a laptop while they're running a gigantic institution that's taken blows for 100 years and is still standing. Whyte, though, seems so brittle he makes Celtic's central defence look like Baresi and Maldini. He's actually very like Romanov in the way he deals with the outside world, the Lithuanian's insecurities highlighted once again by a media blackout in the wake of his manager criticising a referee; a blackout that comes by pure coincidence at a time when players are speaking out about unpaid wages. If Romanov thinks people can't see through stunts like this then it's a miracle that he ever made himself into one of his country's most powerful tycoons. And if Whyte thinks shutting out a national broadcaster will stop people asking questions about his ability to bankroll Rangers, he's even more like Tim Nice-But-Dim than he appears. Anyone who's been in debt knows nothing gets better till you stop hiding the final demands and start facing up to your problems. It seems for all the world like Whyte's actions this week are those of a man in denial about the weight of the worries he's taken on. If that's not the case, why is it that RANGERS are refusing to deal with the Beeb and not just the man himself? After all, apart from the fact that their name was in the title of the documentary, there was barely a word of criticism about the club. It was all about Whyte. Yet he felt the need to throw stones at his attackers from behind the red brick of the main stand. As for that criticism itself? Well, I'd love to go through it here with a fine-toothed comb, because some of it was serious stuff indeed. But, true to form, before the opening titles had run, Whyte's lawyers were issuing dire warnings of what they would do should any allegations be repeated in print. So I'll ask again: What's he scared of? If, as he says, it's all a pack of lies, why not face it down and tell us WHY it's a pack of lies; because just saying it is isn't enough. And let me say this. If there's one journalist out there in whom I'd put 100 per cent faith, it's Mark Daly, the man who fronted this investigation. I've known him since he was a kid on the local paper in Clydebank and his track record is there for all to see. He's infiltrated Greater Manchester Police to weed out racist officers, got to the bottom of the Royal Bank of Scotland's collapse and probed the Stephen Lawrence murder. He's a top-drawer, old-school digger who doesn't hang his theories on "insiders" and "sources". The spine of his documentary was an interview with Robert Burns, head of the UK Insolvency Service, the organisation dealing with every company that goes down the pan. It would be hard to imagine Mr Burns going on camera and on the record if he wasn't sure of what he was on about. Yet Whyte calls the documentary and its makers biased, despite it being stated on camera that they asked him more than once to give his side of the story. As he took the decision to refuse, maybe his definition of biased is different to the dictionary's. All in all, he's an odd one, is Craig Whyte. You take a Duncan Bannatyne or an Alan Sugar and they can't wait to tell the world how they made their squillions. Along the way, that means the world finding out stuff they'd probably rather it didn't. But in the end, they shrug and move on, because they know that the good stuff on the CV far outweighs it. You'd think that Whyte would be the same, that if he was big enough to run Rangers, he'd also be big enough to deal with the odd black mark he may have against him in the past. But then, that's the biggest unanswered question of all. Whether he IS big enough. Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/spl/3888799/Why-do-you-feel-the-need-to-stay-in-shadows.html#ixzz1beY4wsf2

On the face of it, there isn't a lot to be worried about as Rangers fans. After all, a cursory look at the SPL table shows us sitting proudly at the top less than six months after winning the title for the 3rd season in a row. Poor European performances aside, surely the Rangers support should have smiles as wide as the Clyde? Unfortunately the answer is no. While most fans will be enjoying what is happening on the park; off the field we're less confident. Oft-discussed tax 'queries', boardroom reshuffles, legal challenges and confusion over proposed government laws means it isn't easy to find a Rangers supporter who is genuinely certain of the club's competitive future. Indeed, even when Craig Whyte did finally take over the club there wasn't a great deal of real excitement despite the investment promises he made shortly after. Rightly or wrongly, cynicism was more prevalent - perhaps a remnant of failed promises from the previous regime? Moreover, a lack of demonstrable positive business experiences (and finance) from the new owner, coupled with the old and new tax investigations meant that rather than welcoming Whyte with open arms, many fans were guarded to say the least. To that end, the relationship between the owner and the support hasn't really improved. Although we've seen Gordon Smith appointed as 'Director of Football' the other names apparently involved are less well known to fans. Ali Russell, Phil Betts and Gary Withey may all stand up to scrutiny if you examine their business CVs but are they Rangers men in the same way people like John Greig, John McLelland and Alistair Johnston could show? Also, why haven't their directorships been announced to PLUS? Of course, just because someone isn't a Rangers fan per se doesn't mean they won't do a good job in their roles. In fact, it could be argued that having more 'neutral' minds in charge will mean more suitable business strategies. After all, if a self-professed Rangers man like Sir David Murray can run us to the brink of bankruptcy via a string of dubious tax schemes (aided and abetted by those named above) then that perhaps points to the wrong model. Unfortunately, we have no way of knowing just where we stand with Whyte. Despite a low key meeting with the Assembly (and another one with the Trust tomorrow) his intentions are no more obvious than they were before he took over. Clearly, as touched on earlier, our European failures this season means finances will be even tighter than usual, so it is worrying that no updated plan of action has been discussed. We can only hope the Trust can ask the questions that matter. Can we really expect any positive outcome though? Without wishing to be gratuitously negative, the short-term outlook is bleak. In previous seasons without essential European income, we've lost up to £10million unless we sell key players. Given none were sold in the last window, can we really afford to turn down offers come January? How will such potential sales affect our title challenge? Add in £4million of outstanding tax claims; ring-fenced director dismissal costs and what must be large lawyer fees (which we also struggle to pay); then this is indicative of palpable pecuniary issues. If we take that line of reasoning to its natural conclusion, does this mean administration is more likely than ever before - irrespective of the larger HMRC tribunal due to be ruled on next month? If so, what are the ramifications of such a decision? Would a pre-pack agreement and ten point deduction be enough to start again afresh? How would the history and reputation of our existing club be affected? How would MIH and SDM's contribution be examined? Some of the answers may come on Thursday night via what is likely to be a less than positive BBC expose by Mark Daley of Panorama fame. Suffice to say, these answers won't be the ones we want to hear and quite frankly, the fact our club is now under investigation on three fronts (legal, media and tax) isn't just embarrassing but a scandal which should concern every Rangers supporter. Now, some will say our current predicament isn't one of Whyte's making. That's true and it's unfair to suggest the guy is to blame for existing HMRC problems. However, it has been several months now since he bought the club and he has yet to really show us how he intends to run it. With next to no board of directors and minimal investment, how can he possibly do so effectively? To conclude, as Halloween approaches, we certainly do have people knocking on the door of our proud club. They're dressed as tax men, lawyers, and journalists - and all are frightening me to varying degrees. However, the scariest aspect for me is that we've still to see the person who is answering the door to these people. Who is Craig Whyte and what costume is he wearing - the sheep or the wolf? It is beyond time for him to show his hand - no more sweeties and no more small change. What is the future of Rangers Football Club?

Venue: Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz Date: Saturday 8 October Kick-off: 1830 BST Coverage: Live on BBC 2 Scotland, BBC Radio Scotland 810mw, BBC Sport website (UK users only) Wigan's James McArthur has been called up for Scotland's Euro 2012 double header against Liechtenstein and Spain after Robert Snodgrass withdrew with an ankle injury. Meanwhile, captain Darren Fletcher could be a fitness doubt after being hit by tonsillitis. The midfielder has not travelled and will be assessed by Scottish Football Association medical staff on Wednesday. Craig Levein's side travel to Vaduz on Thursday ahead of Saturday's tie. Snodgrass is the third player to pull out of the squad after Blackpool pair Stephen Crainey and Matt Gilks, who were replaced by Lee Wallace and Cammy Bell. Scotland assistant manager Peter Houston also says "it will be difficult" for Kenny Miller to be fit to face Liechtenstein. But Houston is "hopeful" that the striker will make Tuesday's game against Spain despite the groin injury that forced him out of Cardiff's weekend match. Scotland's Euro 2012 campaign so far "Certainly, Kenny is more than hopeful and is still progressing," said assistant Houston. "No-one knows their own body better than himself." Miller suffered a groin injury that forced him off early in Cardiff's npower Championship defeat by Hull City, but he is working with the Scotland physios and plans to travel with the squad when they fly out for the double header on Thursday. McArthur last featured for Scotland against Brazil in a friendly at Emirates Stadium in March and scored in the 3-0 win against Northern Ireland in February's Carling Nations Cup encounter. He looks unlikely to be risked for the clash in Vaduz, with Brighton striker Craig Mackail-Smith set to step in. Cammy Bell and Lee Wallace Bell and Wallace have been added to the Scotland squad (Pics: SNS) However, with Scotland hoping to emerge from the double header with a play-off place by finishing second behind Spain in Group I, the final group game in Alicante on Tuesday looks a realistic target. "Kenny Miller is still with us," said Houston, who said it was be disappointing if the Scots had to do without a player who has scored 15 times in 57 internationals. "He's progressing by the day. "Kenny came up on Saturday evening and stayed here and the difference between Saturday and Sunday and him feeling better was quite amazing. "He is working away with the physios and hasn't joined our sessions yet. "Saturday might be difficult, but certainly for Tuesday I have high hopes for him." Scotland have four listed strikers in their squad, with David Goodwillie the back-up for Miller and Mackail-Smith, while Steven Naismith can also be used up front. "We haven't really spoken about bringing anyone else in with regards to that," Houston said. "I think it will be as you are with regards to the striker department if Kenny doesn't make it." The former Rangers, Celtic and Bursaspor striker scored one and set up the other goal in last month's 2-2 home draw with Czech Republic but missed the following 1-0 win over Lithuania through suspension. Houston is confident Mackail-Smith can step in against Liechtenstein if required. Media conference: Scotland defender Gary Caldwell "Craig Mackail-Smith is a bit similar to Kenny - he works very hard, is very, very quick and, more importantly he is scoring goals and in very, very good form," said the coach. Aston Villa right-back Alan Hutton has been receiving treatment for a knee injury, while Leeds winger Robert Snodgrass has an ankle problem, but both are expected to be fit. However, Houston confirmed that Kilmarnock goalkeeper Bell had replaced Gilks in the squad. Scotland squad Goalkeepers: David Marshall (Cardiff City), Allan McGregor (Rangers), Cammy Bell (Kilmarnock) Defenders: Stephen McManus (Middlesbrough), Steven Whittaker (Rangers), Alan Hutton (Aston Villa), Phil Bardsley (Sunderland), Grant Hanley (Blackburn Rovers), Lee Wallace (Rangers), Christophe Berra (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Gary Caldwell (Wigan Athletic) Midfielders: Charlie Adam (Liverpool), Barry Bannan (Aston Villa), Don Cowie (Cardiff City), Graham Dorrans (West Bromwich Albion), Darren Fletcher (Manchester United), James Forrest (Celtic), James Morrison (West Bromwich Albion), Steven Naismith (Rangers), Barry Robson (Middlesbrough), Robert Snodgrass (Leeds United), Danny Swanson (Dundee United) Forwards: David Goodwillie (Blackburn Rovers), Craig Mackail-Smith (Brighton and Hove Albion), Kenny Miller (Cardiff City) Spain v Scotland is live on BBC 1 Scotland and BBC Radio Scotland on Tuesday 11 October. Kick off is at 1945 BST http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/scotland/15138390.stm

I have the following games from last season that i can put on a disc: CIS Cup Final against Celtic Walter's last home game against Dundee Utd Walter's last game against Kilmarnock I also have a documentary shown on STV: Walter Smith the football years If you want any memories of Walter on disc, drop me a PM.

Jamie Ness admits his battle is only just beginning as he makes his next step on the road to recovery after a month on the sidelines. The midfielder joined Davie Weir, Lee McCulloch, Matt McKay and Alejandro Bedoya in action as Rangers beat Gateshead 4-0 in a bounce game at Murray Park on Wednesday. Ness has endured a torrid time with injuries so far this season and despite getting close to a return to full fitness, he faces an even stiffer challenge to oust in-form duo Steven Davis and Mo Edu from the Gersâ?? starting line-up. He said: â??You saw on Tuesday night that Mo got man-of-the-match and Davo was just his usual self so itâ??s going to be really tough to try to get back in that midfield. â??But Lee McCulloch and I will be doing our best to try to push our way in. â??There are only a couple of boys injured now and we have a big squad so the guys in the first team know that they will have to keep performing and winning games to stay in the team. â??Today was a good opportunity to get a strong team out because we have a bigger squad now and a lot of boys coming back from injury so it was good to get a run out. â??Thatâ??s my first game since the match at Inverness six weeks ago so Iâ??m just delighted to be back playing. â??Thatâ??s what I need now, to get some game time under my belt and improve my match fitness. â??There are a lot of reserve games coming up and hopefully if I can do well in those I can force my way back in to the managerâ??s plans.â? Injuries curtailed Nessâ??s progression last season after he burst onto the scene under former Ibrox boss Walter Smith. He has made just one appearance for Ally McCoist this term after being crocked during the championsâ?? 2-0 win over Inverness Caley Thistle in August. Rangers, meanwhile, could extend their lead at the top of the Scottish Premier League to 10 points when they face Hibs on Saturday and Ness is eager to be involved as soon as possible. He said: â??Saturday will be up to the manager. I got through 45 minutes today fine so itâ??s down to the manager and the medical team to decide about the weekend. â??Itâ??s been a long six weeks and very frustrating for me to be injured again. I think thatâ??s me over it now and Iâ??m just looking forward to getting back out there. â??It was a completely freak incident in the Inverness game that injured me. It was just a bang on the hip that caused a problem and it was nothing to do with previous injuries.â? http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/editor-s-picks/jamie-ness-ready-to-fight-for-a-place-1.1126703

Venue: Hampden Park, Glasgow Date: 6 September 2011 Kick-off: 2000 BST Coverage: BBC Radio Scotland, BBC Sport website, highlights online and on BBC 1 Scotland 2235 BST David Goodwillie will make first start for Scotland against Lithuania Craig Levein has backed David Goodwillie to handle the pressure of making his first international start against Lithuania on Tuesday. Goodwillie will win his second cap in the Euro 2012 qualifier with Levein's striking options limited. Kenny Miller is out through suspension, while a back injury has ruled out Craig Mackail-Smith. "What an opportunity for a young lad to get a chance to play in a game of this magnitude," the Scotland manager said. "Technically he has the ability and also knowing him personally he won't be fazed by the size of this game. "I put David Goodwillie in the squad for a reason - that's because I feel he's capable of playing international football. Scotland coach Craig Levein Injury and suspension have forced Levein to make changes "David would sit third in the pecking order and what a great opportunity for him. "If I'm David Goodwillie it's an exciting time for me." The 22-year-old Blackburn player is the only other listed forward in the squad and has played just 14 minutes of international football previously, as a substitute in a friendly win over the Faroe Islands last year. Meanwhile, Charlie Adam has returned to Liverpool after coming off during Saturday's 2-2 draw against the Czech Republic due to a hip flexor problem, but Levein has Steven Whittaker available again after suspension and Grant Hanley back following a bout of tonsilitis. Rangers full-back Whittaker may well be needed with both Alan Hutton and Phil Bardsley doubtful for the game. Left-back Bardsley was substituted just before the Czechs netted their first equaliser and Hutton was suffering after his first competitive game of the season. Levein, who will delay naming his team until tomorrow, said: "The other two who are a little bit doubtful are Phil Bardsley, who came off on Saturday with adead leg, and Alan Hutton has a tight groin but I think he will be okay." Despite the call-offs, the Scotland manager has chosen not to call up any replacements. "I thought about it but I put 25 players in the squad," he said. "We have lost a few but I still feel we have lots of options so I'm comfortable." Midfielder Scott Brown will also miss the must-win match through suspension. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/scotland/14782670.stm As much as I want to see Scotland win I do believe they have had their last chance by not beating the Czech Republic. The runners-up from Group I will go into a play-off for Euro 2012 regardless of their points total. But to finish in second place, Scotland need to win their three remaining matches against Lithuania, Liechtenstein and Spain, and hope the Czech Republic drop points in their two final games. If the Czechs win one and draw one of those games, at home to Spain and away to Lithuania, they would still progress to Poland and Ukraine if the Scots take nine points. The rivals would finish level on 14 points and the Czechs would go through by merit of their head-to-head record. If Michal Bilekââ?¬â?¢s team lose both their games ââ?¬â?? and they lost to Lithuania at home and Spain away ââ?¬â?? and Craig Leveinââ?¬â?¢s side win two of their last three games, then we will progress. If Tomas Rosicky and Co. draw their remaining two games they would move to 12 points and Scotland would not make it if they win two and draw one of their fixtures. The 1-0 defeat the national team suffered in Prague last year could well prove costly to our hopes of reaching a major finals for the first time since France in 1998.

Taken from an article today on the Sheffield United official website with the manager talking about their transfers - http://www.sufc.co.uk/page/Gaffersnotes/0,,10418~2438984,00.html

Taken from his autobiography. And Boozegate

Remember the so-called Sellik supporters' champion, Brian Dempsey? Sure you do, son of a long standing Labour MP. Made his money in the building game in the 70s, all those Labour Party controlled councils ensuring the Rate Support Grants found their way to fellow green'n'grey travellers. A bona fide Godfather of the west of Scotland Murphia. His elevation to ra Sellik Board in the late 80s was hail hailed as akin to winning the League. Both Brian and Wullie Hee-Haw(Haughey) took their places around the Parkhead formica drop leaf just long enough to realise they were rebels. Dempsey took up with Elmer Fudd and rode the wave of revolution that blew away the Kellys, Whites, and Grants. The deal was ra Bunnet chip in �£9million and Dempsey/Hee-Haw �£1million each. Dempsey failed to cough up, it would appear ra Rebel had choked. Now, Brian was/is devout. He never got tired of telling anyone that would listen about the vital importance of his moral compass. Thus, it was no surprise when he enlisted the aid of Record Chief Reporter, Anna Smith to spin the, 'ah've left the trouble and strife furra burd hauf her age' story. Yep, devout Brian had fcuked off to the Caymen Isles with bhint and new born daughter. What both his sons attending St Aloysius College thought of their most moral old man, well? Anyways, the good news, he declared bankrupcy today; debts of almost �£11million. I am positive Phil McStupidname in Donegal will be demanding HMRC get weighed in and will be utilising his numerous contacts in the service to ensure bang up to the minute news. Personally, I hope Dempsey is reduced to selling his hairy rebel arse to maintain his hospitality package at ra Stydome.

But had this been a Rangers fan, he'd have been jailed. With all the hullaballoo about sectarianism, you'd have expect a harsher sentence. Well, it would have been if it had been us.

A YOUNG mother who claims she was raped by football star David Goodwillie is to sue the player after criminal charges were dropped. The 24-year-old community worker accused the former Dundee United striker of sexually assaulting her at a New Year party. But last month the Crown Office announced he would face no further action, saying there was insufficient evidence to proceed with a criminal case. FREE NEWS UPDATES 24/7...FOLLOW THE SCOTTISH EXPRESS ON TWITTER Following the move Rangers reportedly made seven bids for the 22-year-old player but he secured a Ã?£2.8million switch to Blackburn Rovers last week. He was also recalled to the Scotland squad for Wednesday nightââ?¬â?¢s friendly against Denmark at Hampden. However the woman now plans to claim legal aid to pay for a civil action against Goodwillie which could cost in the region of Ã?£100,000. She said a civil action was now her only way ââ?¬Å?to get my day in courtââ?¬Â. She is also considering action against Goodwillieââ?¬â?¢s former teammate David Robertson, who she claims had sex with her when she was incapable of giving consent on the same night. However, he was never charged. As the level of proof required in a civil case is lower than in a criminal one, the alleged victim and her lawyer hope that she can win significant damages. The West Lothian woman said: ââ?¬Å?I feel Iââ?¬â?¢ve been let down by the criminal justice system. ââ?¬Å?This is now the only way I can get my day in court and tell what happened that night. Iââ?¬â?¢ve been left with no other option but to go through the civil courts.ââ?¬Â Lawyer Cameron Fyfe, of Drummond Miller, who is representing the mother said yesterday that he planned to approach the Crown and the police for access to witness statements and evidence. He said: ââ?¬Å?Iââ?¬â?¢m aiming to build a case for damages against both players. ââ?¬Å?Weââ?¬â?¢ll allege she was incapable of giving consent for sex either through the intake of drink or drugs and, in law, that is rape. ââ?¬Å?My client is hugely disappointed the case was not pursued through the criminal justice system. ââ?¬Å?I am applying for legal aid to pursue both players. ââ?¬Å?If this is not available we will try and obtain legal insurance cover to pay legal costs. ââ?¬Å?An action such as this can cost in the region of Ã?£100,000.ââ?¬Â The woman was a former schoolmate of Robertsonââ?¬â?¢s and she met him and Goodwillie during a night out in Bathgate on January 1. She had never met Goodwillie before and claimed she did not know he was a footballer. A spokesman for Goodwillieââ?¬â?¢s legal team said: ââ?¬Å?This matter would have been subject to a thorough investigation at the Procurator Fiscalââ?¬â?¢s office resulting in the decision not to prosecute. ââ?¬Å?No civil legal action has been intimated to Mr Goodwillie nor his lawyers at this stage.ââ?¬Â Robertson now plays for St Johnstone FC. Spokesman Paul Smith made no comment regarding the player. http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/263646/I-ll-have-my-day-in-court-says-woman-who-claims-she-was-raped-by-footballer

BOBBY WILLIAMSON claims Ally McCoist should have walked away from Rangers with Walter Smith. Coisty's old strike partner says Gers' record goalscorer is risking his Ibrox reputation as boss of his boyhood heroes. Williamson fears Coisty, who he also bossed at Kilmarnock, will get NO help in the transfer market from the new Rangers regime. He said: "Maybe he should have walked away when Walter did because I don't think this new chairman is going to give him any cash. "I'd hate to see his reputation go down the swannee. Fans are fickle and have short memories. "The man is a legend in my eyes and I wish him all the success, I really do. "I wish him every success, I really do, but I don't know why he's doing it. "He is a legend for Rangers and he's putting his neck right on the block at a difficult time. "There is no money to strengthen the team and has got a very difficult job on his hands. "I needed to carry on in football because I can't do anything else, but Ally has other strings to his bow. He can do TV or radio." Williamson is on the brink of a historic achievement as boss of Uganda, needing just a point against Angola next month to qualify for the African Cup of Nations for the first time in 34 years. Williamson added: "We've GOT to qualify. "The fans are so passionate about football, they love the national team and I need to work hard for these people because they have been so supportive towards me. "The Angola match is going to be massive for the entire country. "It's huge and we're all looking forward to it." Nicklas Bendtner believes Arsenal pal Kyle Bartley can help ease McCoist's problems this season. Bartley is back at Ibrox on a season-long loan and Danish striker Bendtner reckons that can pave the way for him to be a Gunners first-team star. He said: "Kyle really enjoyed his time at Rangers last season and I think that is why he has gone back there. "He must feel this is the best thing for him. "It is good for him to get experience because it is difficult to get into the Arsenal first team. It is always good to get experience and he is getting that at a top club like Rangers because they challenge for the league every year. "I am sure if Kyle does well then he could come back to Arsenal and get into the first team. It depends on the season ahead, but he is a very strong lad. "When he tackles players, he goes through them. "He also has good feet and good technique." Bendtner also revealed he almost became a Rangers player four years ago. He said: "There was talk about me signing for Rangers four years ago when Paul le Guen was manager. "I was close to going there but in the end I decided to sign for Birmingham." Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/spl/3745338/Ally-should-have-said-no-to-Gers-job.html#ixzz1Ufl2fGcL

By Tom English YOU don't have to be in Ally McCoist's company for very long to understand what his favourite word might be. When he gets earnest, which is pretty much most of the time in these early and troubled days of his reign, he has a way of speaking, a McCoistian sincerity, that is hard to miss. "To be honest with you..." "To be perfectly honest..." "I'm going to be honest here..." "The honest truth is..." Such a lot of honesty, so let's continue the theme. Rangers had every right to hope for the best in Malmo last Wednesday evening, but the sensible ones among their support, the ones, if you like, who knew their history, would have been totally prepared for the worst. In the analysis of their demise in Sweden there has been talk of McCoist's inexperience as a manager and, of course, the frenzied knee-jerk that paints the job as just being too big for him. There is a time to make that assessment but it sure as hell isn't after four games. In any event, what happened to Rangers on Wednesday has been the kind of thing that has been happening for some years now. Even the old maestro, Walter Smith, suffered the same fate repeatedly in recent times. Before Sweden, Rangers had won just one of their previous 20 games in European competition. The last time they secured the kind of away result that would have been deemed good enough in Sweden - a victory - was over three years ago. To illustrate how long ago it was, Christian Dailly played in the match, a 2-0 victory at Sporting Lisbon. So did Carlos Cuellar. And Jean-Claude Darcheville. There is a strange dynamic that takes hold in Scottish football sometimes. We decry the quality of the product here and bemoan the falling standards of the elite teams at the top. And yet a form of arrogance - in the media and among the support - takes hold at times when they enter Europe, an assumption that bad and all as the Scottish teams are, they're surely not that bad that they can't beat an "average lot" like Malmo, or "pub teams" like Kaunas and Artmedia Bratislava. McCoist wasn't the only one who fell at such hurdles. Far, far more experienced managers - Smith and Gordon Strachan - have been undone before him. Malmo was a missed opportunity, though. Rangers actually played reasonably well, better than they have done away from home in Europe for a little while. They lost because of indiscipline, not because they were outplayed or outclassed. They looked comfortable. There is a modicum of consolation in that for McCoist. Something to hold on to as he watched the Champions League millions floating away on the breeze. They were hampered, too, by a terrible false economy at work in the Rangers transfer strategy. Craig Whyte has money to spend, and he will spend it. Wesley Verhoek, the Den Haag winger, and Roland Juhasz , the Anderlecht defender, have been the subject of bids and may soon join Rangers. But Whyte should have had more players in the door by now, should have had more new talent in the starting line-up already. It's a failure of philosophy and this cringe-making 'low-bidding' process that they have been engaged in. Low-bidding has cost them dear. "I wouldn't say deep frustration," said McCoist when asked about the transfer strategy. "The problem with transfers is that in an ideal world you go in and get the job done and get out and everybody's happy. In the current climate that's very seldom the case. What's been a little unfortunate for us is that every deal has been scrutinised to the maximum. "I can understand totally the frustration and some of the criticism that's coming our way because players are not coming in as quickly as we all hope. You want to get the deal done and get out. It's the job of you guys (reporters] to find out (what's happening] and the next minute it's leaked and when it's leaked, prices go up, values go up, wages go up. I'm not complaining about it, but that's the way it is. If you're asking me if I'd rather go in, grab somebody, sit them down and say, 'Right let's do it right now, get the papers signed' then yeah, great." So why doesn't he? Who's been talking to these players? Whyte? Ali Russell? Gordon Smith? "I've been in constant dialogue with Kyle Bartley, for example," said McCoist. "Constant dialogue with Lee Wallace's agent. Maybe I need to use my phone more. Believe me if I get an opportunity to speak to any player I speak to them and that's the case." Is there a coded message in there? McCoist is a deal-closer whereas some of the others at the club are not? On Verhoek and Juhasz he comes across as a man who is expecting them to walk through the door at any minute. "The bids went in on Wednesday. I just want them done. We are very, very hopeful." If nothing else, the Malmo game offered up a test of McCoist's attitude when dealing with players who had clearly let him down. Namely, Steven Whittaker and Madjid Bougherra. The Algerian doesn't matter so much now that he has left the club, but Whittaker remains and he has had a rough week. Did McCoist give him a verbal blast or was his treatment more subtle? What exactly is the McCoist way of doing things in these situations? "I'll be really honest with you, I haven't spoken to them. A couple of reasons and the most important reason is, well, they know. They know. I'd be really disappointed if Steven did that again. Really disappointed, because he's an intelligent boy and looking at Steven at the end of the game I don't think I needed to say anything to him. Sometimes you judge a situation and the decision is made for you. "You know, the indiscipline has definitely cost us but the indiscipline, dare I say it, was more stupidity than malicious. It doesn't help because we're out of the tournament, but sometimes you can forgive a little stupidity as long as you don't make the same mistake twice. Everybody makes a mistake but the crime is making the same mistake twice. Steven is the only one who can help himself. Effectively, there's nothing that anybody can say or do. I'm disappointed. I don't want to sound flippant here but I'm not overly worried." Keeping your head when others are looking for it is a big part of managing the Old Firm. Keeping your head and freshening your team. He can do the first part. The second he would want to get on with pretty damn quickly. http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/sport/Tom-English-The-woes-of.6814359.jp

NOT good enough for Manchester City, but too good for Rangers. Roberto Mancini has plunged Vladimir Weiss' football career into limbo after ruling out a return to Ibrox for the Slovakian winger. After falling in love with Gers, Weiss would walk back to Ibrox if he could. But with one eye on the future, City boss Mancini wants Weiss to test himself at the best level possible. And the 21-year-old has revealed Mancini insists that won't involve a return to Rangers because he doesn't rate the SPL. Weiss, who played an important role in helping Gers win the title and League Cup last season, said: "I don't know what my future holds but I'm just waiting for the right club to come in for me. "It's a waiting game for me but Rangers is not a possibility. I would loved to have gone back there. "But I've not heard from them and I don't know if I was in Ally McCoist's plans this year. "Mancini has said he wants me to play in one of the top leagues. "I think he wants me to play in England, Spain or Italy. So that rules out Rangers for me. "I'll have to find a club in one of those countries but I loved my time in Scotland. I have nothing but good memories of it. "When I left Ibrox I said I would go back one day and nothing has changed in that respect. Rangers are really close to my heart. "My situation means I'll be heading to another country now to play. "But make no mistake, I want to play for Rangers again in my career - that's 100 per cent my aim." Weiss got a rare run-out for City in Saturday's Dublin Super Cup win over a League of Ireland XI. But with so many players to choose from in his massive squad it's likely Mancini will move on the younsgster before the end of the month. Weiss was given pelters in Dublin by Celtic supporters who haven't forgotten the sight of him celebrating with Gers supporters. But the player admitted he wouldn't have had it any other way. He said: "I was expecting that from the Celtic fans. It was nothing serious and I enjoyed it. "I'm just happy they remember me. It wasn't so bad really. "It would have been worse if there had been a full house, but it was nothing I couldn't handle." After five goals in 17 games for Gers in his loan spell, Weiss knows he made his presence felt at Ibrox. After spending an entire season with guys like Allan McGregor, Steven Whittaker and Steven Davis, Weiss insists the fact they've signed new deals will prove the key to more Gers success. And he believes securing the trio in the long-term is as crucial as any new face that comes through the front door of Ibrox. Weiss said: "Those guys being tied down is just as important as bringing in a few signings. "All of them played a big part in Rangers' success last season. It would have been a huge blow had they gone. "Davis especially, because he is the best player at Ibrox. His performances last season were exceptional in almost every game. "That's what you need from your key players and it's great they have all signed long-term deals. "I don't really know the new lads but hopefully they can complement the strong core there is at Rangers and do well. "That will stand them in good stead on all fronts." Weiss enjoyed working with new Ibrox boss Ally McCoist when he was No2 to Walter Smith. Now Coisty's the gaffer in his own right, the pressure is on for him to deliver. And that pressure will increase hugely if Gers crash out of the Champions League against Malmo tomorrow night. But Weiss is convinced McCoist is the only person who could have followed in the footsteps of Smith. He added: "Ally was the right man for the job after Walter left. "Ally is also a legend at Ibrox and he knows everything there is to know about Rangers. "It's been a disappointing start, but he got his first victory against St Johnstone and I would love him and Rangers to go really far in the Champions League. "Their squad is definitely strong enough to do well again this year at home and in Europe. "I always look out for their results. Even before the game in the Super Cup on Saturday I was checking they had won against St Johnstone. "I will be watching them as much as I can and hopefully they can win more trophies and the title again." There has already been murmurs of discontent from the Ibrox punters unhappy with their slow start to the season. Most already feel they are on their way out of the Champions League. But Weiss just thinks back to to last year when Gers were written off as a title force after a 3-0 hammering by Celtic. They came storming back and that's why he believes Coisty WILL get things right before all-out panic starts to set in at the champions. Weiss stressed: "Is it very dangerous to write Rangers off? Well, after what they achieved last season in winning the title, then yes, I would say so. "I didn't actually see the first leg of the Malmo game, but I spoke to my mate about it and he told me that Rangers did have a good few chances to score a goal. "They know they will have to go to Sweden and do far better to win the game. "I am hopeful they will score there and can do exactly that. "It's vital they progress to the final qualifier and if they do that I'm confident they can go on to make the group stages of the Champions League." Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/3727038/Man-City-Vlads-Rangers-ban.html#ixzz1TpXAPQGF