A Friday Night Rummage By Tony Attwood
Image a club – one of the biggest in the land in which…
There is a constant shortage of money, so that every couple of months the club has to find another million or three in order just to pay the players (the season ticket money long since having been used up).
The manager has resigned, and is serving a one year notice period (at a higher salary than he was on before he handed in his notice) and the club can’t afford to pay off his contract and bring in a new manager who actually wants the job.
A fight is going on to avoid paying a £250,000 fine imposed because of the club’s admitted widespread use of undisclosed payments to players.
The argument against paying the fine is that it wasn’t levied on this club, but on this club before it went into liquidation, although the current club is allowed to keep the trophies won by the pre-liquidated club because it didn’t get any playing advantage out of the undisclosed payments which are the reason behind the £250000 fine.
The case being fought involving the fine relates to activities between 3 and 14 years ago, and is still not resolved.
The League has stopped paying TV money over to the financially challenged club in order to recover the money from the case noted above, forcing the club to start an expensive appeal procedure using money that it would like to use for the paying of players.
The person who is the main source of funding at the moment is being investigated for having an involvement in the running of two clubs – which is not allowed.
“An appeal has been lodged with the judicial panel of the Scottish FA which has confirmed that the decision of the SPFL is suspended pending the outcome of the appeal subject to the SPFL’s right to object. The board is advised that the sum is not due to SPFL and the appeal will be pursued vigorously.”
The Inland Revenue is preparing to launch a third legal challenge to the tax-avoiding employee benefits trust scheme which is at the heart of these arguments, which if it were to win it, would wind up the club for a second time, and send it once more down to the fourth division, or maybe even lower.
The club and the only shareholder putting new money into the club have now been given five new charges of malpractice concerning the dual ownership rules.
The club sold the naming rights to its stadium, then said it had done so by mistake, and spent about £250,000 in legal fees trying to get them back.
The investing director is only investing because he has all the rights to the running of the club’s shops.
The director with the money has given an undertaking not to exert undue influence at the club.
The AGM of the club this Monday has been preceded by a fans’ group requesting that the club’s Stock Exchange Nominated Adviser ensure the club does not use the excuse of poor weather conditions to avoid answering fans; questions!
The fans have stated that, ““We expect that all questions from shareholders will be answered, as they are asked, and that follow-up questions will be allowed within reason. We do not expect multiple questions to be taken at a time.”
The chairman of the board holds fewer shares than the Supporters Trust
Yes just imagine all that.
And if you are imagining that you are imagining Rangers FC who have won the Uefa Cup, the Scottish League 54 times, and the Scottish Cup 27 times. and reached the semi final of the FA up in 1887.
Their last three results have been a league defeat by 2-0 to Queen of the South, a 1-0 victory over Cowdenbeath, and a 3-2 defeat to Alloa in the Cup – a club whose home ground has a capacity of under 4000.
The plight of Rangers is a plight that can befall many clubs who become easy prey to crooks and charlatans. They are not the only club to suffer this sort of problem, be they clubs with a long history of success, or smaller clubs like Hereford who are currently just about surviving after a series of court cases and are now in the Southern League (the 7th division) having been in the second.
Makes you think.
“We expect that all questions from shareholders will be answered, as they are asked, and that follow-up questions will be allowed within reason. We do not expect multiple questions to be taken at a time. The company and, for many of us, our football club, is in dire straits.
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“The board remain unwilling to engage properly with their concerned shareholders and customers and this is the only opportunity we may have for another year to get the clarification we require.”
Hereford are now down and out.
Financial recklessness if it is condoned in whatever form can lead to the fall of any club irrespectives whether the club is big or small. Mighty Rangers of Scotland, why did you allow yourselves to fall? Will clubs ever learn from the fall of clubs? Why didn’t Rangers learn from the falls of Leeds Utd FC and Kanu Nwanko’s Portmouth FC? I think the FA should put a financial monitoring regulations in place that will put into check any financial reckless spendings by any club that could lead to the collapse of the club.
Reminds me of a true story about the person of influence above’s other club – i.e. Newcastle – who, under a previous regime, where two of the directors were caught in flagrante (not with each other) in a tabloid sting, deliberately scheduled their AGM for 9am in London. On a Monday morning directly after a 4pm home Sunday kick off. It was physically impossible for anyone who attended that game to get to the AGM by train.
(I was told this story first hand by another director…).
Pedantry corner: it was the Cup Winners Cup, not the UEFA Cup, that pre-liquidation Rangers won in the early 70s. Otherwise another impeccable piece.
Off topic, but saw this from Jamie redknap on sky and thought it is relevant to why we see our players getting physically assaulted each game;
“Going forward Arsenal are brilliant to watch. Against Newcastle they were too good. In a footballing way they almost bullied them. Newcastle came and tried to play, they didn’t try to stop Arsenal or upset them, they just let them play. And if you let Arsenal play they will capitalise on that.”
So, what will any team hearing this prepare when they meet us. Here we have someone who works in the media legitimising thuggery against us. Disgusting.
Very sad state of affairs for a great club that shares a bit of history with our own.
@AL,
That is why, without the protection of honest referees, we suffer so many long-term injuries.
Watch the infamous video of Manchester United’s GBH on Arsenal at OT, practically encouraged by the referee and in particularly the fouling by those two thugs, the Neville brothers.
Redknap’s not saying anything new ,in fact he rarely does. It’s been a consistent mantra of many pundits over the years and especially ex players that like to parade their hardness to all and sundry . Brazil, Grey, Houghton spring to mind ” get in their faces ” is the way they so delicately put it.
Last night (for me, I’m 7 hours west) there were a couple of news articles at Google News, quoting Gerrard as saying that Liverpool had to “Man” up to play Arsenal. Just another way of saying they expect the referees are going to be lax, and they will be allowed to kick us all over the park.
Joey Barton thinks Alexis Sanchez is inconsistent. Might be something about not being carded every time on the pitch? 🙂
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There are news articles about Arsenal in the process of signing X as a striker. We also see news about Sanogo going out on loan in the upcoming transfer (stupidity) market. If Sanogo goes out on loan, there will be no striker signings (IMHO). Not that I think we needed a striker.
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There is noise about Bellerin being sold or loaned. I think AW is going to look for backup at centre back, but he may not find anyone. To loan or sell Bellerin seems unlikely. Maybe if AW finds a versatile defense player, there is a chance that Bellerin could go out on loan. He has done well, and if we get caught up with injuries his chances for time are slim. Which seems to me to be the only point in letting him go on loan.
Selling him? I wouldn’t.
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Arsenal U-18 beat Reading 1-0 in Youth FA Cup
http://www.arsenal.com/match/report/1415/post/under-18/youth-cup-arsenal-v-reading-report
Crowley with the penalty.
> Ryan Huddart – who featured on Arsène Wenger’s bench against Anderlecht and Borussia Dortmund – started in goal with recent first-team debutant Stefan O’Connor at centre back.
> Gedion Zelalem, who made his maiden Champions League appearance in the same game against Galatasaray, started in midfield while under-21 regulars Crowley and Chris Willock also came in.
I think Reading was out-Gunned!
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Man is there turnover in the Ladies Superleague!
Porter,
“Redknap’s not saying anything new ,in fact he rarely does. ”
IfRedknapp ever has an original thought it will die from loneliness. The man is a talent vacuum.
given the ominous words that suggest it will be s rugged encounter what might we expect from the officials?
Gord – good news re Youth Cup. I would like to think that Bellerin may get some more chances here (e.g. why not start him against QPR at home – don’t want to risk overplaying Debuchy at this stage) and let Chambers focus on being a centre back.
The main disadvantage at the moment is that long-term injuries are affecting the progress
Not sure if it’s just me but it appears the only times Barton is in the media these days is when he’s attacking Arsenal. Pathetic
Unfortunately the fool Barton suffers from the modern day sickness of believing that having to say something is the same as having something to say. His ridiculous, usually plagiaristic, outpourings are to be ignored in the same way one would ignore an over indulged child.
If Joey ‘Cunt’ Barton has anything to say about Arsenal, try putting him in the room with Abou Diaby, he is finished. As his career.