UCF2008

If we can bring in a central defender with those same qualities - Big, strong, good leader, good in the air & a goal threat then I agree. Having read that he's lost his place in the US National team due to not getting a regular game in Spain's 2nd tier, I just hope he's not too jaded if/when we get him back.

I've never seen any connection between my support of the national team and opinions of the SFA and I don't see why I should now. I've never given them any gate money, but I've always tuned in and cheered them on. It's not always enjoyable but it's a habit I don't plan on breaking any time soon.

Interesting article. At first I was wondering the obvious about where the players would come from if clubs stopped developing them I've said for years that our education system needs to change it's attitude towards football, but it's true that the clubs need to show more responsibility as well. Too much radical change required for this approach to become the norm in the short term, especially in Scotland but we should at least continue working towards it.

We need better leadership at the back as well as more of a goal threat at set-pieces from our CH's. That's why I like the idea of keeping McCulloch there. It's also why I suspect Daly is being looked at. Like McCulloch he's a big lad with leadership qualities who is more accustomed to a striking role but has been known to fill in at CH. I'm not sure if he'll be used purely as backup for McCulloch but he does fit that bill at least.

Well, they do say 'if you're good enough you're old enough'. The youngsters in that Ajax team were a lot better than good enough though. The line-up you've suggested isn't too bad. I'd get shot of Alexander & Play McCulloch alongside Boca.

I don't think it's too bad an idea to play Little and Sandaza up front but failing to do so is definitely not our biggest problem. As long as McCulloch continues to play in defence I'd prefer to see Hemmings given an opportunity alongside the [not so] 'disappointing' Little up front. I think we should be looking at Sandaza as a squad player and nothing more.

I would hope that Green's working very hard behind the scenes to deal with this as well as using the media to make Rangers position clear. As for for last seasons fiasco, it's not as if we prompted them or pushed them into a corner back then. With us losing our position of power in the game they saw an opportunity to run amok and took it, just as they're still doing no matter what Charles Green says.

Just another example of their divide and conquer strategy at play. Picking Sandaza might have been a bit of an OG for them but then if you look at our foreign players right now it was probably tough for them to pick a decent player to alienate from the support.

It's true that we don't normally play a team which has an average age as low as that for our overall squad. The same could be said for most clubs. Players gain experience based on game time and the level they're playing at. So for instance if we compare Wallace to Argyriou who are both 25 we're looking at 188 club appearances compared to 70. It's also about maturity and leadership qualities which tend to grow with maturity though. You can maybe play an 18 year old for every player over 30. The same can't be said for every player over 25.

We're not an old team either... Our average age is 23.7 which isn't the youngest squad in the 3rd Division but the only SPL side as young are ICT. We need a balance. If we've got older experienced pros then we can play more youngsters. If our experienced players were all under 25 then we'd be putting teams on the park with an avg age less than 21. That's an inexperienced side

I notice this STV article appears to be taking the issue more seriously than others - Rangers confirm investigation into 'Francisco Sandaza prank phone call’

Unsurprisingly the BhBC are leaping to his defence in their coverage trying to play the 'hacked account' card. Only mention of a sectarian element to the comments is put across vaguely via Tony Ford's statement. - BBC Tayside & Central - Footballer denies Ibrox Disaster remarks but faces probe

He'd be a decent squad player with a good level of experience in Scottish football. Not bad as cover for Jig as he's a similar type of player to some extent. Is he an indication of the type of player we're generally looking to bring in to take us forward? I don't think so. At least, I hope not.

The difference between us and folks like Mick Mulraney, Turnbull Hutton and the rest of the of them is that making our opinion known via the media is the only say we've got on the matter. I'm sure he does find it amusing. He must be loving his 20 seconds in the spotlight as well. He'd better because the next time he's given any attention it might well be because his club's the next to under. He won't feel so smug then will he? Especially not having passed on the oportunity to have a lasting source of revenue at the bottom. Enjoy getting stuck in the barren 18 team wilderness you're about to give the thumbs up to Mick.

As it stands they appear to be proposing that the Div 2 champions and playoff winners will join the championship to make up the 12. You're right about the Div 3 playoff winners though. They'll be in the same boat as us. I'm not sure they'll be complaining though as they probably wouldn't fancy their chances of an invite to the championship anyway. If it's voted through in time, the playoffs should be scrapped and the 2nd & 3rd Division champions should get the invite. It's harsh on the 2nd Division teams fighting for a playoff spot, but the alternative is worse for the game. If Dunfermline are liquidated it could make the situation easier to resolve. Knowing Scottish football I doubt it though.

From what he's shown so far, I would be delighted to see him gone, but to be fair to the lad, he doesn't have an agent and only said what most players in his position would. He said he would be prepared to look at any offer which is an improvement on his current contract. He didn't say he wanted to leave. He also said Rangers is a great club, with great management and great fans, but the quality of football in DIV3 is poor.Tell us something we don't know ffs. I was looking on transfermarket.co.uk earlier and it's only got him contracted till June 2014. I'm guessing Fran knows best though.

Alexander, Cole, Mitchell, Wiktorski and Hemmings are all out of contract in the summer. Cribari, Argyriou and Sandaza will have a year left on their contracts

I didn't say needed mate. I was responding to your point about Ally saying we need a new team for next season - which I think he's exaggerating tbh. Like I said, we need to improve the quality and balance of the squad

Because we need to bring in players to improve the overall quality and balance the squad? Because he's told the existing players they're playing for their jobs? I think (and actually hope) that's because Alexander and Cribari will be two of the first out the door so except for Wallace we'll likely have an inexperienced defence until Sept 1st

I don't think last seasons finances can be used as any sort of benchmark since we still don't and possibly never will have a clear picture of them. If you want to compare the wage bill to turnover in the SPL you'd probably have to look back to 2008-2009 for a season without Europe and that one is uneven given our summer expendature adding to an already bloated squad. You'd then need to go back to 2002-2003 for a season without Europe and the wage bill was through the roof at that point. It might be easier to look at either of Walters last 2 seasons and deduct the income from Europe but that's not straightforward either as you have to take into account matchday revenue and possible sponsorship bonuses as well as the published figures from UEFA.

In 2 seasons how much money has Ally spent?

I think you myst be getting those views from elsewhere, because the pro-Ally opinion on this forum at least doesn't appear to be based on sentiment.

Do 'some' put Charles Green before Rangers or are they just defending him against those who (in their opinion) oppose him without good reason?

I'm not saying the wrong conclusion is being drawn, but it's worth pointing out that when Doncaster and Longmuir were asked specifically if there was a chance of Rangers being fast-tracked they didn't actually say no. From Fiorentina's Wiki - 'The club was promptly re-established in August 2002 as Associazione Calcio Fiorentina e Florentia Viola with shoe and leather entrepreneur Diego Della Valle as new owner and the club was admitted into Serie C2, the fourth tier of Italian football. The only player to remain at the club in its new incarnation was Angelo Di Livio, whose commitment to club's cause further endeared him to the fans. Helped by Di Livio and 30-goal striker Christian Riganò, the club won its Serie C2 group with considerable ease, which would normally have led to a promotion to Serie C1. Due to the bizarre Caso Catania (Catania Case), however, the club skipped Serie C1 and was admitted into Serie B, something that was only made possible by the Italian Football Federation's decision to resolve the Catania situation by increasing the number of teams in Serie B from 20 to 24 and promoting Fiorentina for "sports merits".' Then we've got Doncaster - 'Asked specifically about Rangers, Doncaster said: ‘There is a genuine desire to ensure that sporting merit is the basis on which clubs fill the positions which are available. ‘Our intention is to ensure that clubs get there on sporting merit. ‘I don’t think there is any desire to accelerate any club falsely. It’s sporting merit which will decide it.’ Interesting choice of wording if you ask me

Apart from the bribe it's a decent statement