Frankie 8,146 Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 http://www.gersnet.co.uk/index.php/latest-news/230-markers-and-moonbeams If there is one aspect of the Sir David Murray era that perhaps defines his time in control, it was that of the moonbeam. From the infamous 'for every fiver Celtic spend, we'll spend a tenner’ line to belated and failed promises in terms of investment as his custodianship stumbled towards being ‘duped’ by Craig Whyte; over time Rangers fans gradually realised that the success Murray brought to the club came at a great price. A cost we’re still paying for now. However, if there’s been one positive of the awful last few years, it’s that more and more Rangers fans have become cynical of the bolder claims made by the long line of chancers that attach themselves to the club. Sure, we all want to believe tall tales about tie ups with successful American sports franchises or argue we can secure impressive sponsorship deals with mobile-phone companies but I genuinely think, deep down, we now appreciate modern day Scottish football just doesn’t bring such opportunities. Of course European football may occasionally raise our profile via Champions League participation but the ‘big fish, small pond’ metaphor has never been more accurate – as much as our rivals across the Clyde may pretend otherwise. Nevertheless Rangers remain a big draw for its supporters. Incredible numbers of fans have stayed with the club through administration and our journey back from the (old) Third Division. Indeed to retain 36,000 season ticket holders during this period is something our usual critics must lose sleep over and it’s this annual loyalty which will always form the back-bone of the club’s financial future. This is why the art of the moonbeam became important as SDM started to realise his ambitions soon outweighed his ability; not just in terms of running the business successfully but being able to fund it. Quite simply our season money is the only substantial financial given each year for the club. Ticketus and Charles Green certainly knew this – even if both may have suffered somewhat since. Unfortunately, despite this seasonal show of fiscal fan passion, it remains clear the club will continue to struggle to be viable without the correct business plan and properly qualified directors. That’s why Whyte quickly failed, Green and Ahmad soon departed while other periphery figures also moved on; leaving us with the current stand- off we have now. In one corner we have the incumbent board defending itself from criticism via a rather over-long four month buffers while in the other we have Dave King applying pressure via a £50million media marker. Or is it a moonbeam? The last sentence is a bit harsh of course. After all, if anyone suffered more than most from SDM’s charismatic efforts to raise investment, it was Dave King who didn’t see much return for his £20million investment nearly 14 years ago. Ergo, when people like King talk about such matters, we need to listen and there’s no doubt his suggestions of investment levels are probably correct if Rangers are to ever genuinely challenge Celtic again at the top of Scottish football. With that in mind, I’m certainly glad he’s applying pressure to Graham Wallace ahead of his much-vaunted 120-day plan. Anything less than the £30-50million King speaks of would now look insufficient so the buck is definitely with the existing board over the coming weeks. Their overdue April reaction will be fascinating. However, all this should and must go beyond superficial sound-bites about ‘war-chests’ and/or budget cuts. We’ve heard all this before. What Rangers fans need, more than anything, are demonstrable plans of action. I, for one, don’t doubt the intentions of someone like Dave King but just because he’s a Rangers man or that he’s invested previously doesn’t mean we can have blind faith in his ideals. To obtain that faith, we need as much from him as we’re asking of Graham Wallace: namely a sound business plan which enables to club to be successful but self-sufficient in the longer term. Clearly, an element of risk and initial investment will be required to compete with Celtic in the coming years but how does this square with ensuring the club remains secure for the future? For example, wouldn’t it be dangerous to invest tens of millions into the playing squad if there are doubts over the management team and the lack of scouting? At what level is this risk acceptable without compromising the club’s ongoing progress? Now, all these questions are as valid for the current board as they are for Dave King. Yet, a couple of weeks since my two similar articles on TRS, we’re no closer to seeing genuine answers – widespread media Q&A’s or not. That remains a source of concern so we can only hope all these figureheads are aware of what we expect ahead of the next few weeks. Rangers fans undeniably want to invest in our future but not if it’s just repeating the same old mistakes of the past. It isn’t a surprise that some fans are considering their options so who will be the first to show that they have learned the lessons of the last 15 years? Markers may well be fine but moonbeams certainly are not. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
26th of foot 5,827 Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 I will continue to say this. All of them, whether they are inside the tent pissing out, or outside pissing in, are only capable of issuing statements of intent. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
chilledbear 16 Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 If we end up with DK, I hope something is put in place so we don't end up back in square one when he goes. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zappa 0 Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 Frankie, I don't agree that Dave King needs to provide explicit details of a business plan for the Club's future before he gets his foot in the door. Wallace is almost through getting 120 days to come up with a plan from the inside and from a point which began in December, nearly 18 months after Green & co took over from the administrators. Surely if King were to lay down a business plan on the table right now as an outsider without the specific details of how the business is currently being run and without specific details of the current landscape and finances of the Scottish top flight, then moonbeams are exactly what that business plan would contain? 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,146 Posted March 25, 2014 Author Share Posted March 25, 2014 Frankie, I don't agree that Dave King needs to provide explicit details of a business plan for the Club's future before he gets his foot in the door. Wallace is almost through getting 120 days to come up with a plan from the inside and from a point which began in December, nearly 18 months after Green & co took over from the administrators. Surely if King were to lay down a business plan on the table right now as an outsider without the specific details of how the business is currently being run and without specific details of the current landscape and finances of the Scottish top flight, then moonbeams are exactly what that business plan would contain? Malcolm Murray is a close associate of King so I'm sure he'll be able to provide details (perhaps slightly outdated for sure) of the landscape at the club. Not to mention that King was a director himself for over ten years so should have a reasonable idea of how he'd like to run the thing... I'm not saying King has to provide every dot and cross - especially ahead of the incumbent regime - but he needs to offer a viable plan should he want our backing. That goes for everyone and I made that clear in the article. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zappa 0 Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 Malcolm Murray is a close associate of King so I'm sure he'll be able to provide details (perhaps slightly outdated for sure) of the landscape at the club. How much and for how long did Malcolm Murray really have his finger on the pulse at the Club though? How much does he really know about running the Club and the current landscape in the top flight of Scottish football that would be valuable to assisting Dave King with a business plan and/or road map for the Club? It strikes me that Green & co (and those they represent/ed) brought in Malcolm Murray for two reasons - A: They needed a Rangers supporting Chairman with a good business background who hadn't been previously involved & B: They needed a man with connections and some credibility in the financial corridors of 'the City' to help them launch the IPO. It seemed as though they kept him at arms length and as soon as they had gotten what they needed from Malcolm Murray and the IPO was launched they made it their mission to try to get rid of him rather than answer his questions, heed his advice or work with him at all. Not to mention that King was a director himself for over ten years so should have a reasonable idea of how he'd like to run the thing... A director from 6000 miles away who would have taken part in or been given copies of the information discussed in the boardroom, yes. He was never hands-on at the Club though despite making such a large investment, was he? I'm sure you're right and that he does have have a reasonable idea of how he'd like to run the Club, but does he have enough information right now without even having a foot in the door of the current setup to provide a business plan sans moonbeams? Or very much like McColl & co said last year, would he like to get in there and get under the bonnet before committing himself to a workable plan? I'm not saying King has to provide every dot and cross - especially ahead of the incumbent regime - but he needs to offer a viable plan should he want our backing. That goes for everyone and I made that clear in the article. I can understand your stance after Whyte & Green got the backing of so many of the fans without viable plans and with little more than moonbeams and if it was another character like either of that pair on the horizon, then I'd completely agree, but Dave King is a very different prospect with very different credentials. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,146 Posted March 25, 2014 Author Share Posted March 25, 2014 King is clearly a very successful businessman with contacts throughout the world and, based in SA or not, would surely have taken a keen interest in how his money was spent post-2000. I'd contend the fact he and SDM fell out badly during this time suggests he he did. Add in the fact he's now flying back and forth between the two countries, holding meetings with all involved and making what seem to be regular media statements about the club's current business plan ahead of a planned circa £50million investment, I'd be absolutely stunned if he didn't have a clear idea of how he expects to run the club should, as expected, he becomes majority shareholder via a new share issue. Of course there may be a few issues he may be unclear about but the generic finances of the club won't have changed much since his time on the board. To that end, I'd like to know how he intends to avoid the same debt problems in the future given he seems intent on spending a lot of money. For example, under what terms is he prepared to invest his money? That he should know right now. Like I said in the article is very unfair to suggest King's comments are moonbeams. For the avoidance of doubt, I think he's serious and I don't doubt his commitment to the club. However, he's made a variety of inconsistent statements of late and those, along with other business mistakes, make his contribution worthy of debate. I can't wait for him to show us clearly how he intends to deliver a successful future. And until he does I'll keep asking.... 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
D'Artagnan 173 Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 Frankie another excellent article in a long line of sensible and balanced commentaries during this difficult time. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
the gunslinger 3,366 Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 i do agree with zappa that it will be hard for king to put together any detailed plans but of course we need to hear more from dave. excellent piece as per usual. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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