Can this be stopped?

[The Educator 1,572]

I'm not saying we could have. We are limited in what we can do, but how come last time league construction failed to go ahead we had statements released right away applauding the move ... now when we need our club to release any sort of statement, even expressing disappointment we go back to the usual dignified silence pish.

With any luck they are taking stock of what has happened and will release a statement late on Friday/early Monday giving the clubs view rather than the worthless sound bites that we were getting thrown at us in the past.

[1st_Jan_1994 4,868]

With any luck they are taking stock of what has happened and will release a statement late on Friday/early Monday giving the clubs view rather than the worthless sound bites that we were getting thrown at us in the past.

[allgers 735]

Sorry, but I don't get the logic of this. How can surrendering power over our club to our enemies leave us in a position of strength? As soon as this is ratified they will start to look for ways to re-write the rules to weaken us. Two days ago an SFA rule on fines, deducting points, and the closure of stadiums for clubs whose fans were deemed to have broken proposed new SFA rules was voted down. Can you put your hand on your heart and say in all honesty that you don't expect this to be rehashes for the new SPFL wit our club being the only one ever to be found in breech of the rules?

Rangers won't get into a situation of any influence in the game if we adopt an attitude of capitulation.

Do you expect the changes that have been made to greatly effect the decline in the SPL, a play off for relegation to the 1st division, it's an extra game, expect to see it played out in front of 3 or 4 hundred fans, meanwhile revenue for the clubs in the SPL is nosediving. Glasgow Rangers is in better shape financially than most of the the teams in the SPL. By the time we return to our rightful place the pendulum will have swung in our favour again. And will increase if we keep our wage bill anywhere near 30% of turnover

Do we expect equal treatment, what will stop us demanding it, I have always had this perception that Lunny only looks for Rangers players when he is handing out suspensions, plenty of people have contradicted me on that one.

If rules and regulations are drafted they must be meted out fairly, that is in Uefa's rules, we have access to the sporting arbitration if they are not.

Who wants capitulation, we need to pick our battles, the first battle we need to win is equal representation at all tables.

From the Boardroom I would rather see deeds than words. If a statment is required why make it before the due diligence is completed, now that the SFL have received the documentation they need to go digest the facts.

[The Educator 1,572]

Do you expect the changes that have been made to greatly effect the decline in the SPL, a play off for relegation to the 1st division, it's an extra game, expect to see it played out in front of 3 or 4 hundred fans, meanwhile revenue for the clubs in the SPL is nosediving. Glasgow Rangers is in better shape financially than most of the the teams in the SPL. By the time we return to our rightful place the pendulum will have swung in our favour again. And will increase if we keep our wage bill anywhere near 30% of turnover

Do we expect equal treatment, what will stop us demanding it, I have always had this perception that Lunny only looks for Rangers players when he is handing out suspensions, plenty of people have contradicted me on that one.

If rules and regulations are drafted they must be meted out fairly, that is in Uefa's rules, we have access to the sporting arbitration if they are not.

Who wants capitulation, we need to pick our battles, the first battle we need to win is equal representation at all tables.

From the Boardroom I would rather see deeds than words. If a statment is required why make it before the due diligence is completed, now that the SFL have received the documentation they need to go digest the facts.

The fact is the new set up has been designed for the good of four clubs, to keep c****c as yearly champions and to keep Aberdeen, Hibs and Dundee Utd permanently in the top division. The rules and regulations will be re-written as and when required to fit their purpose and to hinder Rangers in everyway possible, so don't expect any fair administration. If UEFA was all that interested in how the rules were being applied they'd have got involved before now.

As I replied to a previous poster I would hope the club will make a statement over the next four days and I don't mean the usual sound bites we've been getting over the last year proclaiming that we have been hard done to, but don't see away to fight it. As we know there has been no real due diligence on this takeover because the SPL down right refuse to allow anybody independent of them to examine their books.

I agree that the club has to pick its battles, this in my opinion is one that is crucial. We cannot sit by and let them have total control of the leagues, the rule book and the means to stop the recovery of our club. Having gone to the trouble they have to get control of every area that controls Scottish football do you really believe they are ever going to just hand some of that back to Rangers? There's probably more chance of me winning the next three euro lottery jack pots than there is of the cabal ever allowing Rangers any real influence within the corridors of power of Scottish football.

Until this takeover is ratified on the 27th they are vulnerable to any legal challenge that will either nullify it or push back its implementation until next summer. If we can strike the right sort of blow just now to bring about either of these I believe that the cabal is done for with a real possibility of Aberdeen and Dundee Utd facing severe financial problems and the truth about the SPL's finances coming out for all to see. That's when we will find out just what has been going on behind the scenes regarding Regan, Doncaster and Liewell.

[Non_Sucumbi 876]

<<snipped>>

Its not ideal and I have concerns over the financial liabilities of this new structure going forward but ultimately we didnt have a vote....Assuming we now become full members of this new organisation we can begin to lobby for Rangers representatives on boards and committees and try to influence things from the inside....throwing the toys out the pram from the outside just weakens our position. In actuality short term other than the trialist rule (which surely will be looked at again to help part time clubs) it wont negatively impact on us and at least we now know where we are and we can just concentrate on that and slowly building ourselves back up to where we belong on and off the park.

What makes you think we will get full membership??? I predict that our status as associate members will remain for another three years and that evn if we had a 'voice' among our board we will have no input to the processes.

Why do people 'assume' (we all know what assume does) we will get full membership...... is the assumption based on how fairly we have been treated over the past 12 months??

[Faircity 186]

....The due dilligence is the key, if its found that the sfa have been cooking the books in order to let the spl push this change through then this takeover is fukt...not just us but every other football fan will turn their backs on the sfa ..Questions need to be asked its time all this shadowy dealings were brought into the light for the greater good...if not!...our game will die a slow lingering death just as is happening now..

[CanadianBacon 2,088]

Sadly it looks like our club lost the backbone it had when Green was here to challenge these things

I agree.

The OP is under the impression (wrongly) that the present Rangers Board actually gives a fuck.

"We'll pick our fights"!!

Aye..........heard it.

[Reformation Bear 6,453]

Can this be stopped? Don't know. But if due diligence information revealed sufficient serious concern then I suppose if enough clubs joined together they could force a rethink on those grounds allied to the moral ground of 'this was a takeover not in the interests of many clubs.' Might have been worth concerned clubs jointly commissioning a quick legal review of the process carried out and of the wider commercial risks and liabilities being absorbed all clubs in the new SPFL (ie is it in effect forcing liability on to clubs that bore no responsibility for the actions giving rise to the liabilities). Maybe it could be brought down on legal process grounds - after all it has been rushed through so there are bound to be areas of stress that might not stand the test of robust legal scrutiny. That of course takes money - money which smaller clubs do not have and my guess is that the SPL and Div 1 clubs are banking there being no collective will or collective funding to do a forensic legal check on the proceedings and to mount a challenge.

The silence of the Ranger Board? Deafening isn't it. A mark of complete indifference to the future of the game in Scotland. Even allowing for no vote it is a strange strategy to say nothing and not even to comment on what it means for Rangers and for clubs in the lower divisions. If, having watched SFL Div 1 clubs openly define their current brand of sporting integrity as financial greed at the expense of others (in effect shafting lower div SFL clubs) and the Rangers Board has nothing to say about proceedings then what conclusion are Supporters to draw from this? Is it now the case that as far as the Rangers Board is concerned the only matters to comment on are matters that directly affect Rangers itself ie we are only concerned about our ourselves and the action to be taken against those on the Mather List as maked out for action when the time is right? I don't know. But the new Board's apparent strategy of silence about anything other than routime business, and what I see as an developing lack of visible effective leadership is of concern.

[The Educator 1,572]

Can this be stopped? Don't know. But if due diligence information revealed sufficient serious concern then I suppose if enough clubs joined together they could force a rethink on those grounds allied to the moral ground of 'this was a takeover not in the interests of many clubs.' Might have been worth concerned clubs jointly commissioning a quick legal review of the process carried out and of the wider commercial risks and liabilities being absorbed all clubs in the new SPFL (ie is it in effect forcing liability on to clubs that bore no responsibility for the actions giving rise to the liabilities). Maybe it could be brought down on legal process grounds - after all it has been rushed through so there are bound to be areas of stress that might not stand the test of robust legal scrutiny. That of course takes money - money which smaller clubs do not have and my guess is that the SPL and Div 1 clubs are banking there being no collective will or collective funding to do a forensic legal check on the proceedings and to mount a challenge.

The silence of the Ranger Board? Deafening isn't it.

There certainly seems to be enough for this to be challenged in court especially as the SPL have blocked having anybody independent of them from examining their books. The big danger to them is the on going situation with Hearts, if the fall out from that confirms in any way that the SPL has been deliberately covering up that Hearts have been trading while insolvent they will have big problems. The SPL would almost certainly have to open up their books and I really feel that would be the end of the takeover.

As you said any legal action cost money. I feel this would be an ideal use of any RFFF cash that was available especially as we have been denied a vote in the proceedings. How can the most successful club in the country be expected to adhere to legally binding agreements when they have had no say on their contents? Legally it seems to go against anything I've ever heard about running a business.

I agree that the board have been very quiet on this matter, but I would also ask everybody to consider the following. If the clubs who did get a vote were being denied full access to the SPL accounts and the TV deal, how much information has been presented to Rangers and when? I would hope that before the middle of the coming week we get a full and proper statement on where they stand on the takeover and why. If there is to be a legal challenge to the takeover the last thing we need is anybody from Rangers coming out and making sound bite comments to make himself popular with any section of our fans as it would only serve to take away any support we could gather from the clubs who voted no.