No Confidence in Stewart Regan

[Guest JCS]

No Confidence in Regan by JCS

 

Many of you may not be aware of Ewing Grahame; he is the Daily Telegraph’s resident Rangers hater, and peripatetic writer for several Scottish and Irish publications that quite often demonstrate………how shall I put it…………an ‘antipathy’ toward our famous club.

 

Since Rangers descended into administration in February 2012, many of Grahame’s articles have focused on Rangers in a way that can only be described as obsessive and hostile.

 

So, not surprisingly, Ewing Grahame has become a bit of an icon to the obsessed, deluded and demented souls that inhabit the likes of Kerrydale Street, Paul McConville’s stridently anti-Rangers blog, Phil MacGiollaBhain’s sectarian, bigoted and terrorist supporting site and Alex Thomson’s fairy tale world of mystery assaults, intimidated publishers and heavy breathers from Belfast.

 

So, I must confess to a degree of surprise when I read that Mr. Grahame had opted for an anti- Regan piece rather than the usual anti-Rangers one in Sunday’s Scottish Sun.

 

“Rebels gun for Regan”, he announced. “SFA chief, Stewart Regan is facing the axe”, trumpeted Mr. Grahame, while he went on to say,

 

“Rebel clubs furious at his handling of Rangers’ collapse and the poor World Cup campaign, believe they now have enough support to oust him. And they could force Regan to step down by moving for a vote of no confidence in his ability to improve Scottish football.

 

The motion requires 10 backers but it is understood that 21 clubs have already confirmed their intention to back chief executive Regan’s removal.

 

One club chairman said: “The time is right. Obviously, we’d rather be going to Brazil in 2014 but that’s never going to happen. We need to use this disappointment to force change. Our call for a Special General Meeting and a vote of no confidence in Regan will be presented within the next 10 days. If the vote goes against Regan then the SFA board will be called on to act and I don’t see how he can survive that.”

 

Regan has been under pressure since SFL clubs claimed he lied to them and attempted to bully them to vote new Rangers into the First Division in the summer. With Scotland’s World Cup campaign doomed they will make their move.

 

Even in an article that is clearly directed at the hapless, incompetent and embattled Stewart Regan, Ewing Grahame still can’t resist a little sideways ‘swipe’ at Rangers.

 

“Rebel clubs furious at his handling of Rangers’ collapse”, he says. A bit disingenuous don’t you think? I rather suspect the SFL clubs are furious, not because Rangers collapsed but, rather, because Regan lied, bullied, intimidated and threatened them!

 

I suspect they are angry because Regan and Doncaster sought to subjugate them, impose their will upon them and hoodwink them during the sad and sorry events of June, July and August - a point that Ewing Grahame alludes to at the conclusion of his article, albeit only half-heartedly.

 

The collective ire of the SFL is now firmly focused on Stewart Regan because he treated its constituent clubs with utter contempt – with the indifference and distain that has characterised his tenure as Chief Executive of the Scottish Football Association, and has seen him preside over a regime that has brought Scottish football to its knees and besmirched the good name of Scottish football worldwide.

 

But Ewing Grahame’s ‘sniping’ at Rangers aside, it appears that at long last, the spotlight has now come to rest on the man who is primarily responsible for the demise of Scottish football both at domestic and international level – the inept Stewart Regan.

 

If Ewing Grahame is right, and 21 SFL clubs are now backing a vote of no confidence in Regan perhaps, at long last, we can look forward to his dismissal and immediate replacement by a chief executive who will seek to heal the wounds that Regan has inflicted, repair the damage that he has undoubtedly wrought on the game in Scotland, and restore the trust and confidence in the SFA, and its administrators, that he has almost single-handedly destroyed.

 

Whilst it is unfortunate that Ewing Grahame has focused on the devious Stewart Regan because of Craig Levein’s disastrous World Cup campaign, and his inept management of the national team, it is no less welcome for that – even if it is long overdue!

 

But rather than focus on the men who have brought Scottish football into such disrepute, Ewing Grahame, and the majority of his journalistic colleagues, have been content to launch attack after unwarranted attack on Rangers, day after day, week after week and month after month, whilst deliberately ignoring the nefarious and Machiavellian plotting of Regan, Doncaster and their puppet-master Peter Lawwell.

 

It’s a great pity that Ewing Grahame did not turn his journalistic spotlight on Stewart Regan in June, July and August, when SFL representatives were openly calling for his ‘head’ after his ill-conceived and ill-fated attempts to bully and intimidate them into submission and acquiescence in his dishonest and disreputable plans.

 

Plans which were clearly founded upon the devious and self-serving agenda of Messrs. Doncaster and Lawwell; plans that almost everyone – with the notable exception of the many anti-Rangers journalists – immediately recognised as the subterfuge they actually were.

 

Even London-based football ‘expert’, Chris Brady recognised the Regan, Doncaster, Lawwell plot for the deception it was when he said,

 

“Integrity is all very well but the SFA and the SPL know having Rangers in the Third Division is footballing suicide. Quite simply they are hatching this plot to try and save the TV deal and keep the money in the Scottish game.”

 

I suppose we should be grateful that journalists such as Ewing Grahame are now – at long last - ‘turning up the heat’ on a beleaguered, and discredited, Stewart Regan. Better late than never as the saying goes!

 

But the inescapable fact is, that we would not be reading about Stewart Regan’s impending departure had Scotland’s World Cup campaign got off to the ‘flyer’ that everyone hoped it would. Now that Scotland’s World Cup campaign is in tatters, Regan is being singled out as the prime ‘sacrificial lamb’.

 

But, make no mistake; he will not be sacrificed because of his obvious incompetence, or his dishonesty and double-dealing during the Rangers insolvency crisis. No, when Regan is sacrificed – as I hope he will be very shortly – it will be because he helped appoint the bumbling and inept Craig Levein who simply can’t produce a winning Scotland team or offer a credible excuse for the negative schoolboy tactics he employs.

 

The bullying and intimidation of June, July and August will be remembered only by Rangers and the SFL clubs that were insulted by Regan’s thuggish tactics, whilst the journalists who resolutely refused to confront Regan when he was at his most destructive and dissembling, will take the credit for having eventually brought him down!

 

Personally, I will be content to ignore the irony in that scenario if Regan is indeed toppled. If he is eventually dismissed because of the ineptitude of Graig Levein then so be it. The fact that Stewart Regan will be no more will suffice for me.

[Zappa 0]

Fine article again JCS. I enjoy reading your articles that RM publish.

 

With Regan, I really do hope it's not the case that the SFA and Scottish media try to blame the national team performance on his departure because there's a relatively long list of reasons for him being given a P45 and the national team performance is right at the bottom of that list in my opinion.

[26th of foot 5,838]

Stewart Regan is burst.

 

Peter tells the usual on message broadcast and print media crew to prepare the ground. Peter will tell Eric to headhunt another Chief Executive who will do as telt. Peter will tell the crew to get behind the new CE, until he tells them, he/she is burst.

 

Ewing Grahame is a cnut.

[Guest JCS]

Fine article again JCS. I enjoy reading your articles that RM publish.

 

With Regan, I really do hope it's not the case that the SFA and Scottish media try to blame the national team performance on his departure because there's a relatively long list of reasons for him being given a P45 and the national team performance is right at the bottom of that list in my opinion.

 

Thanks Zappa. You're quite right of course. If Regan is to be sacked, it will be for ANY other reason than his vindictiveness toward our club. As you say, the national team is at the bottom of a very long and disreputable list, so let's hope that the SFL representatives 'tell it like it is' rather than hide behind Craig Levien.

[RANGERRAB 3,260]

Let's not count our chickens just yet. Until he's actually gone we can only speculate.............

[Jim1955 12]

It can't be too early for Rangers to begin thinking about his replacement and to take what steps we can to ensure that the full support of the club will be required to secure his successor's appointment. We cannot have another candidate imposed on us.

[der Berliner 3,249]

IMHO ... Regan's successor needs to be someone like Green, i.e. qualified for the CEO job, but not comming from the "local tribal breed" and being tied - in one way or another - to a particular faction.

[Kenzie1 0]

When I saw who the author was and the source of publication, I have to say that my first reaction was "bullshit". On careful reflection, my second thought is still "bulshit". I won't be holding my breath waiting for this to happen. As 26th alludes, the dregs of the gene pool will have this particular base covered.

[Kenzie1 0]

Whilst on the subject, does it not reflect badly on Ogilvy, who as president of the SFA, is not doing very much to level the playing field. Or is Campbell another who 'runs wi' the hares an' barks wi' the hounds'?

[GovanAllan 0]

Whilst on the subject, does it not reflect badly on Ogilvy, who as president of the SFA, is not doing very much to level the playing field. Or is Campbell another who 'runs wi' the hares an' barks wi' the hounds'?

 

Liewell has him by the baws over his EBT.