Barry Ferguson: Bonus culture at Rangers is bleeding my old club dry

[Steve1872 4]

FERGUSON says the £200,000 bonus financial director Brian Stockbridge pocketed for the club winning the third division was more than double what he received for winning the treble.

FORMER Rangers captain Barry Ferguson has launched a stinging attack on financial director Brian Stockbridge and says he is tearing his hair out at the latest figures to come out of the Ibrox boardroom.

Ferguson responded to the club's annual accounts, in which they posted an operating loss of £14.4million, in his column in today's Record Sport.

The midfielder claimed the £200,000 Stockbridge pocketed for Gers winning the third division title last season was more than double what he received for leading the club to the treble of SPL title, Scottish Cup and League Cup 10 years ago.

Ferguson claimed the bonus culture at Ibrox is bleeding his old club dry and said: "Unless I’m losing the plot I’m sure financial director Brian Stockbridge was trying to talk up the fact the club had lost £14million in a year.

"As a fan, I’m tearing my hair out at what’s going on.

"Stockbridge is also the guy who received a £200,000 bonus for Ally McCoist and his players winning last year’s Third Division.

"Can someone please explain why the guy in charge of finance is getting bonuses for winning titles?

"Let me tell you something, I was captain of Rangers in a UEFA Cup Final. If we had won it my win bonus would have been nowhere near £200,000. When we won the Treble my bonus was less than half that.

Barry Ferguson helped Rangers win a treble

Alan Harvey/SNS Group

"The money Rangers have spent is actually frightening and all I want to know is where it’s gone.

"Rangers fans deserve some honesty and transparency and, most of all, they deserve people they know they can trust in the boardroom."

Ferguson went on to urge Stockbridge to hand back the bonus to prove to fans he has the club at heart.

[Steve1872 4]

IT’S not been the greatest of weeks – for me or my old club.

On Monday night I was having my ankle sliced open. The surgeon found I had torn a muscle in my ankle and that it had come off the bone completely. And because of that the bone was moving as well.

So that’s it. I’m all pinned and wired together, looking at 10 weeks on the sidelines and so full of pain killers I can hardly spell my own name.

But it’s just part of life as a footballer. It happens so you just take your horse tranquilisers and get on with it.

The thing is, though, I’m not the only one who must be full of drugs this week given some of the things that have gone on in the last few days.

Rangers? They put out their financial results on Tuesday and unless I’m losing the plot I’m sure financial director Brian Stockbridge was trying to talk up the fact the club had lost £14million in a year.

Seriously, is this guy for real? Then again, I’m not the one who thinks blowing £14m in a year is a sign of a healthy business.

Which brings us back to Stockbridge. As a fan, I’m tearing my hair out at what’s going on.

Stockbridge is also the guy who received a £200,000 bonus for Ally McCoist and his players winning last year’s Third Division.

Can someone please explain why the guy in charge of finance is getting bonuses for winning titles?

Let me tell you something, I was captain of Rangers in a UEFA Cup Final. If we had won it my win bonus would have been nowhere near £200,000. When we won the Treble my bonus was less than half that. The money Rangers have spent is actually frightening and all I want to know is where it’s gone.

Rangers fans deserve some honesty and transparency and, most of all, they deserve people they know they can trust in the boardroom.

People like Stockbridge could start to earn that trust by handing back his bonus and showing he cares more about the club than he does about his own bank balance. I won’t be holding my breath though.

In the meantime I’m going to make a bad week even worse for myself by standing up for Celtic’s Scott Brown, right, who has had a rough few days. I managed to watch the Barcelona game on Tuesday night even though I was half-tuned to the moon. I felt for him when he was sent off.

I’m not condoning what he did when he aimed a sly kick at Neymar.

It was stupid and the Celtic skipper will know that himself.

But, really, you’d think it was the crime of the century given the reaction we’ve had.

On Wednesday night I turned on the radio to hear Peter Grant filleting Brown in an interview with the BBC. Yes ... PETER GRANT.

Did he never do anything similar? Was he some sort of angel as a player? I know I’ve done plenty of silly stuff like that in my time. I’ve kicked out at people in the heat of the moment when I should have known better.

I’ve been red-carded for it. I’ve let my team-mates down.

Has Grant never done the same? I remember watching him when I was a kid and there were plenty of incidents he got involved in so for him to have a go at Brown is quite incredible.

Listen, Brown was daft. So be it. He’s come out and apologised for his mistake so let the guy get on with it and move on.

But no, we’ve got Granty slaughtering him in the media.

It makes me so angry I can actually feel my mouth going dry just thinking about it. Because Granty has been there too and knows what it’s like.

Let’s get one thing straight here. Brown made a crazy mistake.

I tell you what, he’ll make another four or five of them before his career’s over and I can say that speaking from experience.

It doesn’t matter how many times people tell you that you’ve been bang out of order or you’ve let everyone down – you know that. Believe me, no one will be feeling worse than Brown.

It wasn’t as if he took Neymar’s head off – or broke his left arm in two places.

It was just a silly flick and I know these things happen in the heat of the moment before you’ve even realised it.

It’s almost like a natural reflex. Ask any football player, they’ll all tell you they’ve done something similar.

Two or three seconds later Brown will have thought to himself: Oh no, what an idiot.

He will have gone into that empty dressing room and realised he’d dropped his team-mates right in it.

I was sent off at Parkhead 20 minutes from the end of an Old Firm game and I can tell you it felt more like 20 hours.

The first people you think about are your fellow players, your manager and your fans. You’ve let them all down and it feels horrible.

But for Granty – who was Celtic’s assistant manager under Tony Mowbray – to come out and stick the knife in? For him to say Brown has a “screw loose” and that he never considered him to be first-team material, never mind a Celtic captain? That was way over the top.

He even said he’d have driven Brown over the border himself if someone had made a bid of £4m for him. It was nasty and uncalled for.

Let me tell you, I’ve also worked under Granty when he was the assistant manager at Birmingham City. I’m surprised at him because he is a Celtic man and was a feisty player himself, just like Brown. He’s entitled to his opinion, I suppose, but I can’t agree with it.

Maybe I’m the one with the screw loose?

Like I say, it’s been a bad week all round. Nurse, pass the medication.

[pmu 0]

Don't disagree with Barry's comments re bonus's. Funny he doesn't mention over inflated salary for Ally for managing a third div club.. Finally remind me has Barry repaid the EBT loans he got from Rangers, several mill if i'm not mistaken? Now that would help the cause!

[andy steel 0]

Grant was eloquent and accurate in his opinion of Scott Brown. If someone had managed to get into the dense bastard's head what Grant was trying to - you're a good player, stop coming the hard nut because it's counter productive - Brown would be twice the player he is now.

 

But no, we should all defend twats. Feckin Scottish football, man.

[Calgacus 8]

Why should he repay the EBT - it was part of his remuneration package. McCoist's salary was inherited from the previous regime - if Stockbridge had been any sort of FD he would have been trying to renegotiate it from the day 1. I suspect they didn't so they could try and use it to justify their own inflated salaries and bonuses.

[pmu 0]

Stockbridges bonus will have been part of his package as well, however unsavoury..

[Calgacus 8]

Stockbridges bonus will have been part of his package as well, however unsavoury..

 

 

 

Yes - must be great to be able to decide your own remuneration!

[der Berliner 3,245]

Don't disagree with Barry's comments re bonus's. Funny he doesn't mention over inflated salary for Ally for managing a third div club.. Finally remind me has Barry repaid the EBT loans he got from Rangers, several mill if i'm not mistaken? Now that would help the cause!

 

He just got 2.5m from the EBTs ... born and bred and reared Rangers player that he was. If I were him, I'd stop commenting about bonuses et al. Of course, while many are up in arms about our chaps, what do other comparable coaches, CEOs, managers et al get?