andy steel

I did ask him if it was ok first! At the moment we have thread after thread wallowing in the thought of other teams upcoming demise. We even have a 'Revenge' thread started by the illlustrious CanadaReady but can we should we really go on like this. Football is tribal. Football is passionate. Football creates intense rivalry but we are allowing what has happened to us to create football hatred. Looking at the CR revenge thread - there is not one team in the SPL we don't "hate", there is hardly a football team in Scotland we are not calling for revenge on and not one media outlet we should ever read/listen to again. But does any of this help Rangers? For Rangers to recover to full health, in fact for Rangers to be all we want it to be Rangers have to be playing in a credible league with credible opposition. There is no point in us fighting our way back to the top, if that top is but a pimple on the face of real serious football. The demise of Scottish football is NOT in Rangers best interest. I fully understand the levels of passion, bordering on hatred, directed against those who, while not responsible for the financial melt down we faced, leaped onto the bandwagon with such fearvour it is extermely difficult to not come out swinging and not be seeking revenge. But for the sake of Rangers this is something we must do. Rangers are a real power in Scotland - recent events have shown that our fanbase carries clout and is needed for the financial well being of of the game, and it is this power we should weild for the good of the game and the betterment of Rangers - but this power should NOT be used to help destroy the game our power should be weilded for the betterment of the game. So what needs to be done. 1. The current SFA / SPL "leadership" has proven unfit for purpose and yes regime change is needed - but not for revenge but because the current regimes have proven inept. But once the regime has changed we need to be actively involved with bringing common sense back to the table - we need to work WITH the SFA to support the betterment of the game - it is impossible for us to do so with the current leadership - but after they have gone we need to forgive and move on. Take a big breath and embrace a new regime. 2. We suspect 5 other SPL clubs of being financially unstable - we should work to make sure no other set of fans has to go through the shit we have gone through - we should NOT be seeking revenge and their demise - but ensuring there is a recognised way to deal with these situations - and if 5 SPL clubs do go to the wall this season I dont think that Div3 is the answer because Scottish football would take so long to recover from that hit we may well become little better than the League of Ireland. We have a recognised points deduction for administartion - and I think a newco event should be treated in a similar manner but in the next season (so if you go Newco you get points deducted now and next season - and if that leads to relegation so be it - BUT it should be no worsse than that with an easy transfer of SPL/SFA membership to newco. - Now I know that if different to how we are being treated - but how we are being treated is unfair - and if it is unfair to us - it is unfair to any team in a similar situation. 3. Perhaps the hardest thing for us to do - but there should be NO boycotts of those who have sinned against us - our fan bases is power, money is power - but we should use that power to help the game become stronger - taking money out of the game through boycotts does not strengthen our position, does not make our league more creditable - our team deserves our support at any ground we go to and if it helps bring a financial well being to our game then I see that as part of our role. I dont think Scottish football can survive the wrath of the angry Rangers support and it would be to our detriment if we allow pure revenge and anger to shape our actions moving forward - I would rather we used our strength for the good of Scottish football - using our strength to build, to provide ;leadership and to protect our game and our club - that is the way forward.

I can't see how our clubs being even more vulnerable to the advances of English clubs can be anything but detrimental. The national side may improve if our players go south and actually learn how to play, but our leagues are going to struggle to achieve parity with even the Irish league. It may have been different were we further away from England and culturally less similar; but with such a close and financially wealthy avenue open, any player with ability (no matter how big headed!) is going to be over Hadrian's Wall faster than you can say out of contract.

And the second para. I was going to keep my mouth shut for once, as well.

I'm starting to agree with Gabriel Marcotti, this city is a madhouse. If this ^^ is true, that is.

Top notch stuff! Well done, RST.

Fair enough points dB, but few are going to be willing to invest in the present shambles. We need many issue sorted out before we can turn our attention to share issues.

Dear Gio, You're right, we didn't get around to terminating that membership. We'll do it first thing today, cheers. Yours, Dave

Can't fault that statement, seems perfectly reasonable and sane. I didn't like Sandy Jardine's claim that we were a special case, so I agree with this wallah. Plus, we get to see the trumpets in the SPL collapse. Fuck humility, I want revenge!

Too late, pussies! You actually believed that you were creating a revolution...Lenin's dictum about getting 'useful idiots' to do the dirty work has never been so apposite. Alas, what is happening is not aimed at building a strong Rangers, it is aimed at preventing your clatty little club going to the wall, along with several others. Inability to see this is either pretence or stupidity on a scale not seen since...well, since y'all voted us out the SPL. 3PM ko's to revive the game, aye right. Hibs have had plenty of those, owing to their being too shite to get on the TV much - haven't seen them hoist the 'sold out' sign too often, have we? As usual, everything is Rangers fault. Even this, this collapse of the game brought about by your own stupidity and hate, is our fault. The hollow pride in your claim that would be hilarious, were the bigger picture not so sad.

Would have been a lot more useful some months ago! Bit late now.

Timing, timing, timing!!! This is just going to make us look even worse if it happens before everything else is sorted out, as only those whose hearts rule their heads will invest.

Probably be better to reply in the Irish Independent, but all I can be bothered to retort is that when we draw Division 3 teams in the Scottish Cup, civil chaos does not descend upon the towns we visit. Not that surprising, but I am a bit disappointed that with so many open goals of our own making at their disposal, the haters are still inventing scenarios from within their own inadequacies.

Is his guy for real? My working career has been spent in two places - building sites and shops. But even with my stunted, uncultured,Rangers-addled brain I can see what that statement is saying - if the SPL agree to everything we want, we'll vote the Huns in. Otherwise, they can get stuffed and start in Div.3. Whoever his source is, he must be a right dick. Which leaves the field wide open, I admit. I suppose if you're looking for a conspiracy you can whistle one up, but really, this is a slow news story gone mad. And btw: this- pretty much points up how little this guy knows about our game. Such figures do not exist.

Well, if it's that simple, there's no need to hire hackers, is there? 11 silky but wussy ball players will do.

Black is different. Nikica Jelavic is a special talent, who can shine at any level, up to and including the best tournament in international football. Black crippled him for no reason other than he couldn't deal with a player of real ability. While he may be modestly able to pass a ball (i would question even that accolade) his default position is the thuggish hacker whose day should have gone at the very latest in the late 90s. After having watched Euro2012 it is depressing, to say the least, to see our rebuilding being built around players like that - cloggers, basically. We may have no choice but I'm not going to be happy about it.

Well, having spent a good portion of the game against Hearts last season explaining to my son why Ian Black is symptomatic of all that is wrong about Scottish football, I am in a bit of a pickle as to explain how he suddenly represents Rangers.

Every time you think it can't get any worse... I remember hearing 'Black for Scotland' calls after his cup final showing against a team who a) were down to 10 men b) didn't turn up and c) are crap anyway. This is dismaying. All those dreams of rebuilding from youth, actually using the facilities we have, and instead we turn to the man who put the only genuinely European class striker we are likely to see for years In Scotland out of the game.

Quite a realistic remark, since both he and most fans would know that there was no chance whatsoever of that sort of money coming through. If anyone can show me a manager who has said 'no, I won't buy player X until I know where the money is coming from' I will award him a pint. Let's just nip this pish about Smith being part of the problem before it gets started - it's a Tim campaign and no doubt they will soon be calling for Martin O'Neill to explain his £6m signings back in the day. Aye, right! Bears should have nothing to do with it.

I'm surprised we haven't heard this lad on BBC Scotland of late. I wonder what he has done to offend? Perhaps there's some link, some unknown thread, which joins BBC Scotland media contributors which we don't know about...

I must say I get less and less inclined to defend Naismith every time he opens his mouth. His reasoning for leaving, while just about understandable, could surely have been addressed by meeting Green? If he repeatedly tried to do so and was rebuffed, you'd say fair enough. If he did so and was given unconvincing explanations, you'd say fair enough. Even if he said this is a chance to make me and my kids really really secure for generations, I personally would say fair enough, tho some would not! But to have concerns and to say, 'well, I'm not happy, so I'm off and it's Charles Green's fault' doesn't really cut it.

UEFA acting against money in the interests of sport. I'm not holding my breath.

Here in the Peoples' Socialist Republic of Steelonia, we avoid such capitalist shenanigans.

It's only fair to point out that is has taken the imminent collapse of the game in this country for them to come to this conclusion. Not as if many have been pointing out the blindingly obvious from the word go.

You think the London financial model is a good one to follow?!

Not that easy, is it?