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some new on the Hearts situation, courtesy of the BBC:

I have been asked by a friend in work to join this, for £12.80 approx per month. Anyone know anything about it and if it is a good thing and worth it or not. Thanks in advance guys. SC.

http://www.gersnet.co.uk/index.php/latest-news/195-fans-meeting-analysis-between-a-rock-and-a-hard-place First things first – I must say I’m pleased that last night’s meeting at the Hilton in Glasgow went ahead. Unfortunately, I was unable to make it due to family commitments but the hard work of the organisers and those who tweeted updates meant I was able to be there in spirit; if not in person. As someone who has criticised McCollco long and hard for not reaching out to the wider fan-base, I can only praise them for finally going to the support for what seemed a very open and challenging Q&A. But, there’s always a bloody but nowadays, it’s debatable just how useful this meeting was. Yes, further negative points were made about parts of the current board; yes, McCollco did highlight a few areas where they’d seek to improve matters; and yes, most fans present seemed impressed by the talking done. Fair enough. Unfortunately, I’m not convinced that enough was said to really persuade huge swathes of our support that the issue is as simple as voting for X instead of Y come the AGM in December. In saying that, to his credit, Jim McColl did underline that himself and was definitely the most conciliatory of the top table in acknowledging the difficulty in suggesting none of the present Rangers board are worth backing. Indeed, I think that was the most important point made of the evening. Let’s not forget that as we retreat to the trenches this morning. At almost two hours long the meeting was certainly well attended, most of the questions valuable and many points well made – both by the top table and a few obvious critics from the floor. In that respect, it was a pity McCollco appeared unable to underwrite their opinions with genuine evidence to confirm them. For example, we were told MediaHouse is on a huge financial package to operate PR for the club yet this was denied immediately by the company online. Jack Irvine doesn’t have many fans amongst the Rangers support but are we really to believe he earns more than the majority of the playing staff? In addition, I’d agree with the criticism of Brian Stockbridge and the contention his position is certainly untenable going forward. However, if his performance is poor (and it is) then I’m not sure I could vote for Paul or Malcolm Murray to replace him given neither of them set the world alight during their own periods on the board. Consistency on that basis is required so it may be only Alec Wilson and Scott Murdoch may be agreeable. I particularly liked the cut of Wilson’s jib but given both of these gentlemen were involved with previous failed Blue Knights bids, just how much faith can we put in them? That’s up for debate for sure… With that in mind, we can at least praise McCollco for being prepared to go to the fans and hold an open meeting like last night. The empty seats at the top table which were reserved, more in hope than expectation, that the club would send along a few representatives arguably said a lot about the existing board’s reluctance to be accountable to fans and shareholders. Of course next month’s AGM will determine their situation but I’m already disappointed by new chairman David Somers’ eagerness to release petty statements on the club website. He and Graham Wallace may have only been in their jobs for two minutes but at what point will they consider a similar meeting with fans to iron out the various issues that were evident from last night? Is waiting until the more formal AGM really an option for them or should they look to answer our concerns beforehand? The next 3 weeks in the lead-up to that event will be fascinating – if not tedious and tiresome. Indeed, it could be argued that fatigue will induce the kind of apathy that has helped place us in this ongoing awful position. Such a luxury isn’t one we can afford if we want to secure our club’s future and, preferably, improve the way we’re represented in the longer term. To that end, the final meeting point made about not standing back and allowing the situation to pass us by was another important one. Not just in terms of clarifying many of the problems we have with the existing board (or their linked predecessors) but by asking more from McCollco who, once again, struggled to put the meat on the bones of their ‘manifesto’ last night. Scouting, PR, fan representation, director pledges, break-even budgets and asset ring-fencing may all sound impressive ideas but it would be argued anyone could highlight the same areas for improvement. What the support needs is the finer detail – not least how the club will be funded from our financial low point of next April which is now less than six months away! The golf courses of South Africa certainly appear more attractive to Dave King than sitting beside his fellow fans sorting out the club’s future. In conclusion then, while this article discusses last night’s meeting, attention now must turn to the club itself. Irrespective of what we think about McCollco, the existing boardroom is wholly responsible for the future. They may wish to release more soporific statements blaming other people for the challenges ahead but the buck stops with them. Last night McCollco made an effort (imperfect or otherwise) to engage with the support to show why their nominations are a better option instead of or, perhaps more accurately as Jim McColl conceded, alongside the incumbents. It’s now up to the Easdales of this world (we’re continually told they hold a large percentage of voting rights) why their plan is a better one. Yet they’ve given us no indication of how they intend to fund and run the club. As it stands the support and shareholders are between a rock and a hard place. Can anyone address that or will the farce continue?

Here's the latest bitch-fest from our Club's board of directors... http://rangers.co.uk/news/headlines/item/5670-board-statement

Market News alert Rangers Int. Football Club PLC Read the London Stock Exchange announcement...

Interesting stuff....

RANGERS Football Club is delighted to announce details of an exciting new partnership with Global Image Sports that will see the sports management company represent the club in North America. Rangers Soccer Schools already have a well established programme in some regions of North America - including successful camps in New York, Florida, Indiana and Kansas which have introduced the Club to a new audience - but we are always looking at ways to develop and enhance our activities. Our association with Global Image Sports, as their exclusive Scottish partner club, will help increase the exposure of Rangers Soccer Schools across the Atlantic. The Rangers North American Academy will host a series of Elite Player ID Events in 2014 culminating in the RNAA National Camp, all staffed by Rangers fully qualified and professional coaching staff. Greg Statt, Overseas Development Officer at Rangers, said: "North America is an important market for the Rangers Soccer Schools brand to target and having a company as experienced as GIS representing us out there can only be a positive. "Their expertise will help enhance our profile across the Atlantic – where we already enjoy a vibrant overseas programme that has seen over 5000 participants from 15 countries taking part to date. "This partnership will see a massive increase and awareness in the club's Soccer School activities in North America allowing us to make contact with thousands of players, coaches and new supporters across the region. "Global Image Sports have a successful track record partnering with European clubs for all to see and aim to increase brand awareness for the club in North America while also potentially unearthing a future star." Rangers Manager Ally McCoist added: "It is great that this partnership has been created and I look forward to seeing how the relationship grows and hopefully a young player from these camps can follow in the footsteps of Carlos Bocanegra, Maurice Edu, Alejandro Bedoya and Fraser Aird and join us one day at Murray Park." Mike Kelleher, Chief Operating Officer of Global Image Sports, said: "We are delighted to announce this partnership with Rangers Football Club, one of the most prestigious clubs in world football. We look forward to offering further opportunities and experiences to even more players and coaches in North America via this partnership." To find out more about the partnership or how to get your club involved please contact Robert Roddie by email – Robert@globalimagesports.com or Greg Statt – greg.statt@rangers.co.uk. Global Image Sports is a sports management company that provides opportunities and experiences via the formation of strategic partnerships in the sports industry. It prides itself on a professional approach to its business activities and strives to be the market leader in its field while offering its customers unrivalled service and satisfaction. For more information go to http://www.globalimagesports.com or email info@globalimagesports.com http://www.rangers.co.uk/news/headlines/item/5651-gers-seal-american-partnership

New Rangers chairman David Somers has turned his fire on the ‘Gang of Four’ trying to shake up the Ibrox boardroom — and urged shareholders to vote down their attempted rebellion. Somers directly questioned the credentials of former chairman Malcolm Murray, ex-director Paul Murray, Alex Wilson and Scott Murdoch, the four ‘requisitioners’ seeking a place on the board. In an attack immediately described as a ‘smokescreen’ by the Murray-led group, the chairman — promoted from interim to permanent just last week — expressed doubt over whether they had even filed the necessary paperwork needed for the AGM on December 19. Arguing that they hadn’t obtained consent from the Stock Market or from the SFA, and that their nominations have not been properly proposed under the club’s own Articles of Association, Somers said: ‘There can be no guarantee that each of these individuals will be found to be suitable to act as a director of the company or that the board would be able to function properly.’ Under the plan being fronted by Paul Murray, with help from Jim McColl, the current five-man board will have to stand for re-election at the AGM. If they are swept from power, the new men would take control. A source close to Murray and McColl attacked Somers’ statement as ‘disgraceful’ and ‘a smokescreen using technicalities’, while confirming that all the nominations would be properly filed at least seven days before the AGM, as the rules dictate. The decision by Somers to seek popular support ahead of the meeting is interesting, partly because many had assumed that the board already had more than enough votes to quash Murray and McColl. Isle of Man-based hedge fund managers Laxey Partners, who increased their shareholding to over 11.5 per cent recently, pledged their support last week. That was considered to be enough to tip the balance against the requisitioners. If Somers is chasing votes, though, it may suggest a recalculation of exactly what is needed in order to stave off a popular vote for wholesale change at the top. Rangers manager Ally McCoist, meanwhile, has offered a positive assessment of new chief executive Graham Wallace, who saw the team win 3-0 at Arbroath on Monday night. ‘I’ve met Graham a couple of times now and things have gone very well,’ said McCoist. ‘We had our first meeting last Friday at Ibrox. I then got a phone call from him saying he had changed his diary and he was coming up to the Arbroath game. ‘That was great. He came along to the hotel, we had a cup of tea and I introduced him to the players. ‘It was very positive and the meetings we’ve had so far have been encouraging. He seems to be a football man, which I have to tell you I’m thrilled about. ‘Graham’s CV is as good as anybody’s. He’s Scottish, so he certainly knows Rangers, and I don’t have any doubt he knows what is required here to take the club back to the top. ‘The most important thing is the club. Our relationship is very important and, from speaking to Graham, all the indications are he’s very aware of the problems we’ve had in the past.’ Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2514148/Rangers-chairman-David-Somers-hits-Ibrox-Gang-Four.html#ixzz2lpwVTcpS Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

http://www.therst.co.uk/buyrangers/ The Possible Dream: Fan Ownership http://www.therangersstandard.co.uk/index.php/articles/fan-culture/293-the-possible-dream-fan-ownership

Yesterday brought another picture for the Ally McCoist photo album, another shot of the Rangers manager shaking hands with a suit and declaring his support for a guy, Graham Wallace, with a “good pedigree”. Without wishing to be unkind to Mr Wallace, whose CV is, indeed, highly impressive, we can, for now, file this photograph alongside McCoist shaking hands with the Easdale boys and, before them, Craig Mather and, before him, Malcolm Murray, and before him, Charles Green, and before that, Craig Whyte. It’s quite a collection. Wallace is going to have to forgive us our scepticism for the moment because too many men with “good pedigree” have been unveiled at Rangers over the last few years only to metamorphose into an embarrassment a little while after. McCoist has endorsed all of them and hasn’t got it right yet. It now appears that he’s throwing his weight behind the current board, saying on Friday that to do anything else at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting would be tantamount to career suicide. He followed that up by saying that he wasn’t just going to vote for the current board, as opposed to the requisitioners led by Jim McColl and Paul Murray, because of his own survival instinct but that he would do so because he felt it was in the best interests of the club. That phrase – as in, “I have the best interests of the club at heart” – has been bandied about Ibrox so often in recent years that it has now become almost as big a footballing cliche as “over the moon”, “game of two halves” and “sick as a parrot”. If it was true that all these boardroom people, from David Murray onwards, had “the best interests of Rangers at heart” then they wouldn’t have become such an epic shambles, now would they? McCoist, understandably, craves calm at Ibrox. He is fabulously well-rewarded for what he does but, still, these past few years haven’t been much fun for him. Giving his imprimatur to the current board is McCoist backing what he thinks is the winning horse, a symbol of his belief that the board will not be beaten at the AGM. A belief that they have become too powerful now to back against. That the decision last week by Isle of Man-based hedge fund Laxey Partners to buy more shares and then commit their support to the board, and not the requisitioners, was a key play in the battle for Rangers and that McColl and company are close to being a busted flush. McCoist has backed a few losers in this Rangers business over the last two years, but the smart money is riding on the board winning the big AGM vote in December. Rangers people are now entitled to ask about the strategy of the requisitioners. Little has been heard from McColl of late. Malcolm Murray gave it the cringe-making “No Surrender” routine in an interview he did with a fans’ group a few weeks ago, but where is the grand plan from these people? Telling the fans that they “can win the vote at the AGM simply because they must” is not exactly a gameplan. Malcolm Murray talks enigmatically about the level of support the requisitioners have from some unhappy and nervy institutional investors but won’t say from where it comes and what it amounts to. Sections of the Rangers support are busting a gut to try to bring about change to the board – change that is needed – but, all the while, what they are seeing is millions of Rangers shares being traded on the market and, seemingly, none of them being purchased by the McColls, the Murrays, the Kings – “the people with Rangers’ best interests at heart”. If this is a war, then the requisitioners appear to be fighting it with pop guns. If they want control of the club, then McColl and King combined have more than enough money to hoover up shares and put themselves in a strong position, but they haven’t done it. They have allowed the Easdales to do it. They have allowed Laxey to do it. They have allowed the opposition to strengthen their position, while the requisitioners have sat on their hands, vowing that they have major support from institutional investors. If they do, then they are going to win a famous victory. If they don’t, given all they have said, they are heading for a humiliating defeat. Let’s be honest, Rangers could have avoided all of this stuff years ago. Whyte was allowed in the door because no Rangers man would touch the club while the big tax case hung over it. The defence was that they’d have been mad to take it over while the big tax case horror show was still in play. Instead they stood back and allowed Whyte to finish a destruction job that David Murray had started. Later, Green was allowed in the door because the Blue Knights didn’t blow him out of the water, even though they had the financial wherewithal to do so. Yes, there are serious issues surrounding the performance of Duff & Phelps throughout that period, but the fact remains that Green was allowed in the door and, by the time McColl and Walter Smith and others made their move, it was far too little, far too late. Twice bitten. No, make that three times bitten. Still there is deep unrest, still there are mystery shareholders, still there is great uncertainty about the club’s finances and its future and still there is a lot of posturing from the requisitioners and, it would seem, not a lot of real action. McColl and King have the money to go to war and to win but they haven’t. It has reached a stage now where the Rangers manager has backed the board, partly because he has to, if he knows what’s good for him, and partly because he thinks he knows which way the wind is blowing in all of this. There’s been so much noise about Rangers men being concerned about the way the club is heading and yet there is a simple truth in all of this. If they are that fearful that the place is moving towards the rocks again, why have they not used their financial muscle to change the narrative – as Fergus McCann did when Celtic were about to go under? McCann arrived at Celtic, put his money down and did the deal to save the club. He didn’t talk, he executed. McCoist – like all managers – will have had cause at times to ask his players about hunger and whether they wanted victory more than their opponents. You could ask the same of the requisitioners. Not the supporters, who fight on in various ways, but the men who are in the lucky position in life to have the wealth to do the things they truly want to do. But do they want it enough? More and more, that seems to be becoming a rhetorical question.

http://twitter.com/RFCSA_London/status/404311520798343168/photo/1

http://www.rangers.co.uk/news/headlines/item/5616-joining-was-an-easy-decision A fair interview but I disagree with his analysis of the board at this moment in time.

Another weekend with no game...sigh. Here's your Sunday morning 'long piece' a day or so early. Today's musical accompaniment is Hannah Georgas with 'Enemies'. Takes a while to get going but grows on you, kind of like a modern Suzanne Vega. Living with other people isn't always easy. Look at cities - the number of urban dwellers who look for ways to escape tells its own story: living with other people creates tension. So it's no wonder that many of the 20th century's finest thinkers on cities and how to live in them from countries which suffered the most devastation to their cities: having seen their countries convulsed for the better part of the entire 100 years, you can't be surprised that so many French and German intellectuals turned their minds toward how to improve the world for the future. Le Certeau, Foucault, the wonderfully named Lyotard...but what about the Germans? Unfortunately, for many Brits raised on a TV diet these last 40 years, mention of the word 'Germans' brings on a kneejerk reaction where an image of Hitler appears unbidden in your mind, either sauntering 'neath the Eiffel Tower or giving it laldy at one of the lads' night's out he and the rest of the gang were fond of. There he is at the podium, one fist turned backward on his left hip, his right hand karate-chopping an imaginary swarm of bees as he yells 'Niemals! Niemals! Niemals!' A strange man, indeed. But hardly the definitive image we want to take forward of that country, surely? Adolf's ubiquity on British cable TV is now such that it is only a matter of time before someone decides to hive off another arm of the History Channel into a dedicated Hitlery Channel. They may as well: from serious, academic studies such as The Nazis: A Warning From History or The World at War, through well meaning but poorly (cheaply) made cut-and-paste jobs like Secrets of the Nazi Gold to the recent, alarming trend in US low budget movie making to use Nazis as almost a comedy stooge - Nazis From the Moon, anyone? It's a real film, although even it is eclipsed by the appalling bad Nazis From the Centre of the Earth. What Jake Busey, so effective as the ghostly psycho the in Michael J Fox movie The Frighteners, is doing in this trash is anyone's guess: but any answer other than paying off a gangster's bill will reflect very badly on him. Hopefully America, given it provides pretty much the cultural compass for the world, won't go down the Nazi obsessed route the British media is addicted to. If you think the next four years, with day by day accounts of World War One are going to be full on, just wait, if you're old enough, until 1933 - I should think you will have a minute by minute account of what Herr Schicklegruber was up to from the day he assumed power until the Fuhrer's butler served up the cyanide and Lugers in the bunker. Given I'll be 63 in 2033 I imagine I will be either (a) dead or (b) gaga so it won't matter to me. I don't envy the rest of you, though! I suppose it shows how getting your image, your public perception out from under some kind of media imposed identity is not easy. Hence the reluctance in Britain to take people seriously who have names like Mearsheimer, Gadamer, or Bauman. Stuck in a Dr Strangelovian timewarp, we see them as sinister candidates for the experiment room rather than people who may offer something positive. Michael Schumacher, it's true, was popular, but his popularity in the UK was of the grudging respect kind last seen in veteran Desert Rats when they were talking about Rommel. In my lifetime I can think of only Prof.Heinz Wolff, woolly-haired boffin of TV science-fest The Great Egg Race, who has been accepted in Britain. Even he was looked upon with grave suspicion by my mother, although admittedly she was bombed out by the Luftwaffe in the 40's and has never forgiven 'the Germans' since. We as Bluenoses know all too well that if you don't control your own image, others will happily control it for you, and those others will almost certainly have nefarious intent. Our current status in the game - if this were India we would rank somewhere between pariah dog and untouchable street sweeper - have led many, me included, to adopt a defiant stance of 'get it up ye!' and to hold ourselves apart from the rest. They'll need us more than we need them, I have said, and meant it. Now, I'm not so sure. When veteran sociologist Zygmunt Bauman recently took a look at urban life, he diagnosed it to be suffering from two separate but connected illnesses, which, in the time honoured fashion of the intellectual, he gave the unfriendly names of mixophobia and mixophilia. The former sees fear of other groups than one's own run rampant, and those who can do so barricade themselves into gated communities with security guards, gradually losing the ability to communicate with the others outside, the fear of whom grows the more they become unknown. A self-perpetuating cycle where no one wins except, presumably, Barratt Homes. Mixophilia, meanwhile, seems a bit optimistic to me, a happy city with lots of mixing between classes and sects, Bauman foresees 'benign, and often deeply gratifying and enjoyable daily encounters with the humanity hiding behind the frighteningly unfamiliar scenic masks of different and alien races, nationalities, Gods and liturgies'. I remain doubtful how enjoyable daily bumping into hordes of celtc fans would be, especially in a city with trams, but I do take his point: hiding ourselves away in a ghetto will, in the long run, do more harm than good. Hang on , though, I hear you cry. What about Timmy? When O'Neill appeared, they drew back into the cultural enclave, they've never come out of it since and they're doing alright, aren't they? Well, not really, no. Although they have people at the top of the game and are very much the country's strongest side, there are two caveats. First, obviously, we handed it them on a plate, both due to our implosion and our mismanagement of the game during the SPL period. If we were to pursue the Germanic theme of this piece a little further, you could call the SPL period the Weimar Republic and the present lot the early days of Adolf. It certainly looks like a one party state, anyway. Given the delusion which appears to run rampant through their support - 'we bring smiles wherever we go' must rank up there as one of the best lines of this or any other year - perhaps Stalin's self-delusional Soviet Union would be a better comparison. Secondly, in broad terms they are dying every bit as much as the game as a whole. Although many Bears see the Sectarianism Legislation as directly only at them, it reflects a wider belief in Scotland that the day of Old Firm bigotry is past. Teams may be multicultural but the fans you are obliged to step past, usually pished and almost always giving it something from some idealised Irish folk history song book certainly are not. Scottish society, which seems to have been taking a look at itself in recent years (probably due to devolution and the independence referendum) has clearly concluded that shibboleths like the Old Firm are shibboleths no longer and must either change or wither. I think we're both doing a pretty good job of withering at the moment, crowds or no crowds, the mutual hate and societal impact of recent events causing disquiet among those who are fans of neither club. How appealing will the present antipathy be to the generation which comes along after us, which has to have the last few years explained and which, like all new generations, will probably look at us with the same unconcealed contempt my son directs at me when I tell him to cut his nails or tidy his room. Certainly it will keep me going for years, this hate, but as a long term marketing strategy it is lacking. We exist in the Scottish leagues, and we're going to have to come to some kind of understanding with the Scottish leagues. Hans Gadamer, in a book called Truth and Method, explained that mutual understanding can only occur when there is a 'fusion of horizons' between peoples. This fusion can only come about through shared experience and that shared experience can only come about in a shared space: if we exist in a vacuum, our horizons, whatever they may be, will be ignored in favour of everyone else's. Given how much everyone else's appear to accord with those of celtc FC, this is a genuine worry, but more broadly, if the OF continue on their road to cultural isolationism, they may well both be victims of the rest of society's impatience and end up moribund. This may seem needlessly pessimistic to celtc given their CL money, but it goes out as soon as it comes in and even it is far from guaranteed. Another German, philosopher Emmanuel Kant, talked about a general association of mankind: 'allgemeine vereinigung der menschheit'. For this Scot, who suffered at school trying to get his bunged up nose and gutteral, throaty accent around the romantic cadence of French, German is a godsend - it is basically 'say what you see' and none of that Froggie rubbish about silent letters or nasally stops. It even sounds like English. How two countries with so many similarities as the UK and Germany ended up so far apart is one of the great questions of the century gone by, but it's generally ignored in favour of endless programmes about Hitler, Goering and the rest. Unless we take steps to address our current position in the game: no power, no influence, no friends, nothing other than a sometimes useful chip to throw down for small clubs looking for a payday - we may end up more a curiosity rather than a vibrant player, and contribution we might have to make ignored in favour of bone-picking over the last few years. Given the present shambles that is the club, any kind of future vibrancy may seem like lunatic optimism but we fans have a duty to at least try and shove the club into engaging with the outside world. A voice which is constantly telling everyone else to go stuff themselves is unlikely to win many arguments. I suppose at some point we have to engage: even if the ultimate aim remains the annihilation of certain clubs,we don't have to shout it from the rooftops. The AGM is coming up: there will be a possibility of change, though it varies from day to day and depending on who you read. How I hope we seize this chance, for the alternative is terrible: Rangers from the Centre of the Earth, anyone?

Please tell me this is just a co-incidence. http://www.standard.co.uk/business/troublemaking-investors-have-left-us-all-in-a-mess-6872819.html He's argued against what he perceives as the lack of transparency and governance within Hirco. However, of the four new "independents", one is Andrew Pegge, his Laxey co-founder, another is Michael Haxby, a Laxey executive. A third, Aled Rhys-Jones, runs Celtic Asset Management. Celtic's chief financial officer, Christopher Bruce, was Laxey's CFO between 2001 and 2007. http://www.celtic.pl/en/o-grupie-1/rada-nadzorcza-1/colin-kingsnorth-member-of-the-supervisory-board

Rangers' biggest shareholders will back the current board at next month's annual general meeting. Laxey Partners Limited increased their shareholding to 11.64% on Wednesday. Colin Kingsnorth, founder and director of the hedge fund, said: "I want to support stability so I think that means supporting all current directors. "Shareholder worries are the use of cash, transparency and corporate governance. The recent appointments seem to address that." Laxey's stance could prove crucial as the current board attempt to retain control, with another group of shareholders, including former director Paul Murray and former chairman Malcolm Murray, keen to oust them. With voting at the AGM expected to be close, the identity of the seller or sellers of the shares is also significant, depending on who they would have backed. But Kingsnorth told BBC Scotland: "I have no idea where the shares came from. I just bought them in the market." Asked if it was conceivable that Laxey could also vote the "requisitioners" - Paul Murray, Malcolm Murray, Alex Wilson and Scott Murdoch - onto the board at the AGM, Kingsnorth added: "Of course I could support the EGM people but I won't because their job is done. "They should claim some credit for forcing the club into action, but now it has I hope they accept that. "They would have supported (the new chief executive) Graham Wallace if he had joined them and I think they should be big enough to support him if the club supports him. "I doubt they will. A spurned chairman just wants to be loved again, but the club has moved on and I hope the new board drives it forward. They have the credibility, so why not. "The fact that cash has been spent badly seems fact, but what's the best thing to do now? "We'll get behind a professional board, make sure we never go into administration again, get the on-the-pitch stuff right." Source BBC ( need you ask )

Good to see this - apparently the booked suite holds 500 people!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/25023927 Fair enough if it's a football debt it should be paid but this is over a year after the event. Get it sorted once and for all!

http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/prices-and-markets/stocks/exchange-insight/trade-data.html?fourWayKey=GB00B90T9Z75GBGBXASQ1 Time/Date Price Volume Trade Value Type 12:59:00 20-Nov-2013 41.00 3,328,672 1,364,755.52 Ordinary trade Interesting...!

http://www.therangersstandard.co.uk/index.php/articles/current-affairs/295-the-rangers-football-club-selfie

Coming up on SSN. Sons of Struth ‏@SonsofStruth 28m You should tune in to skysports news if your a fan of SOS. Chris Graham ‏@ChrisGraham76 55s Rangers news coming up on Sky Sports.

Kris Boyd will end a three-year international hiatus by joining the Scotland squad on the flight to Norway tomorrow ahead of Tuesday’s International Challenge Match in Molde. Boyd was drafted in to the squad by Gordon Strachan to replace Steven Fletcher, with the Sunderland striker permitted by the national coach to return to his club after playing in Friday night’s 0-0 draw against the USA at Hampden Park. The 30-year-old Kilmarnock striker last appeared for his country in a 2-1 victory against Liechtenstein in the UEFA European Championship qualifier at Hampden Park in September 2010. Boyd, who played under the Scotland national coach at Middlesbrough, has stated his desire to add to his 18 caps and seven goals for his country since returning to the SPFL Premiership and rejoining his home-town team, Kilmarnock, after a spell in Major League Soccer with the Portland Timbers. “I never gave up hope of playing for my country again and I am grateful to Gordon for giving me that chance,” he said en route to the team hotel. “I have always felt I can make a contribution at international level and knew that if I kept working hard my chance would come again. Hopefully I can get involved against Norway and show people what I am still capable of at the highest level.” Gordon explained he had no hesitation in turning to Boyd to supplement his attacking options after losing Fletcher, Matt Phillips and Jordan Rhodes from his original squad. “Kris has always said he was determined to return to the international squad. Now he has that opportunity again and I am delighted for him,” said Gordon. “He is a terrific professional who works hard on his game. Having spoken to a lot of people about him, they are of the same opinion as me – that Kris is an asset to any squad with his goalscoring capabilities. “He is playing regularly again at Kilmarnock and that sharpness made him a natural choice when looking for a striker to replace Steven.” Scotland have allowed Grant Hanley to return to his club after experiencing muscle tightness after his part in Scotland’s draw on Friday night, with Charlie Mulgrew also given leave for the trip to Norway.

IAN REDFORD reveals all about the stress and strains of his Ibrox career, the death of his younger brother and his experience as Darren Fletcher's agent in his new book FOOTBALL is a game of fate. A roller coaster of fortune. During my time at Rangers, Ally McCoist was enduring torture from the fans. It wasn’t his fault the club were struggling – but the fans seemed to be on a mission to destroy him. And things came to a head on March 17, 1984 when we played Dundee at Ibrox in a Scottish Cup quarter-final replay. We started well but Dundee pegged us back to 2-2. The crowd were getting impatient and I remember feeling the enormous pressure of expectation on the players. It got so bad for Ally that at one point the whole of the support began chanting, “ALLY, ALLY, GET TAE F***” And it got worse. First Robert Prytz was sent off then I stupidly saw red as well. We heard their winner from the dressing room. Afterwards, we all just sat in the huge communal bath together, no-one speaking a word. Suddenly Ally just broke down into tears, he was weeping openly. The weeks and months of constant pressure and abuse had driven him to the limits of his tolerance. He looked a broken man and I’m sure no one would have thought it possible for him to come back from such depths of seemingly utter despair. But fate intervened. If Prytz and myself hadn’t been suspended for the League Cup Final with Celtic the following week, I don’t think Jock Wallace would’ve selected Ally. He had no choice, though, and the rest is history. Ally scored all three in a famous 3–2 victory, the winner coming in extra-time from a rebounded penalty. Some things are just meant to be. But that’s the pressure of signing for Rangers – and the day I did back in 1980 was one I’ll never forget. I had only ever wanted to go to London from Dundee and play for Arsenal or Spurs but John Greig had offered a Scottish record £210,000. So I found myself at the top of the marble staircase shaking hands with him. I defy anyone to walk through the doors of Ibrox and not feel they are within the boundaries of a special club. But so many things about my move to Rangers weren’t right. Signing for them was an intimidating prospect for a country boy with low self-esteem. When it came to the finances I was at best naive and at worst plain stupid. I got £6000 to sign on, taxed, £150 a week, a four-year contract and never saw a penny of the transfer fee. I became Rangers’ biggest ever signing for practically nothing! I knew this was a struggling team I was joining. I was also just not fit enough to do myself justice and to handle the immediate pressure. My dad was no help because all he wanted was to see me playing for Rangers. That was his dream. He didn’t want me going to England. To be able to say I played 250 games for Rangers gives me an enormous sense of pride. But the timing was wrong. In that first year I didn’t really feel part of that dressing room. In training I had a major bust-up with Rangers’ most legendary hard man, Tam ‘Jaws’ Forsyth. He seemed at that time like a playground bully. We were playing fives on the ash park at our Albion training ground and I took the ball straight past Jaws. He was getting on a bit and didn’t appreciate anyone doing that to him. Next thing I knew was WHAM! I received a forearm smash. I just exploded in rage. Within seconds Big Tam and I were trading punches. We were separated but Tam wanted ‘afters’ and I was up for it because I was past caring. It turned out to be a defining moment because my team-mates no longer saw me as a big, soft, silver-spooned country boy. Coming from the Perthshire countryside, religious bigotry was new to me. Although I’m a Protestant, I would not consider myself a religious person. Early on at Rangers, I was targeted by a bigot at a party. He was goading me then punched me hard in the face without any warning. The next day at training, I was asked by someone what had happened and if I “wanted it taken care of”. The tension of sectarianism is inescapable when you play for either Rangers or Celtic and, like it or not, sectarianism is responsible for the unique atmosphere that surrounds the rivalry. A bigot is just a bigot – no matter what the colour of his scarf is. It’s naive to think it will all just go away. It never will. The wounds of history will ensure a portion of each new generation, no matter how small, will be indoctrinated in hatred. I was also shocked one night at a Supporters’ Player of the Year function when a fan asked for my autograph and wanted me to sign FTP alongside it. I told him “no way” and he began to rant that I wasn’t a true Rangers player. It was an isolated incident though. Generally speaking, the fans are wonderful and make you feel proud to be playing for the club. The best Old Firm game I played in came in the same week as a 3–0 defeat by Chesterfield in the Anglo-Scottish Cup. We took a slaughtering but playing Celtic was ideal because we had nowhere to hide. We thumped them 3–0 – it easily could’ve been six – and I was voted Man of the Match. But John Greig wasn’t able to find a formula consistent enough to win a title. My frustrations led to me feeling depressed and I was drinking to blot everything – but it solved nothing. It was a vicious downward spiral. Then at the end of 1981 – after beating Dundee United in a Scottish Cup Final replay following my missed penalty in the first game – we met them again in the League Cup Final. I was on the bench. Looking back, I can see that I was very depressed. In the second half United took the lead. I had begun to give up on playing any part in the match. So had my friend Billy ‘Bleeper’ MacKay, so we began to tuck into a box of chocolates that had been lying unopened in the back of the dugout. It was comfort eating! Suddenly, Greig shouted: “Bleeper! Get warmed up.” Meanwhile, I was still stuck in the dugout, feeling even more depressed. Then, with no more than five minutes remaining, John shouted: “Reddy, get your tracksuit off. You’re going on – NOW!” I nearly choked on the last remaining chocolate as I stumbled out of the dugout. I had been on the pitch no more than seconds when Davie Cooper equalised. Suddenly, from munching chocolates in depression, I had only one thing on my mind – scoring the winner. It all happened within a split second. As I controlled the ball, I was aware of a gap just inside the top left of the United goal. My first touch had been good but my second touch was even better. I knew in an instant. My lifelong dream came true. I had just scored the winner in the last seconds of a cup final! In front of me were all those Rangers fans who had witnessed that last-minute penalty miss. Like a maniac I was off and running. Had the stadium doors been open I would’ve needed a fiver to get back in! There were too few of these rare gems in my time at Ibrox but even to have experienced one moment such as this made everything worth it. *** My last appearance as a professional player was a cameo role in Raith Rovers’ remarkable League Cup triumph over Celtic in 1994. I was a sub and don’t remember much about the game – but was crapping myself when the tie went to penalties. As a former spot-kick taker it shouldn’t have fazed me but I didn’t relish it. It went to sudden death and it was Paul McStay’s turn, then mine. I wanted him to miss more than anything in the world. Sure enough, Paul obliged and it saved me the ordeal of another do-or-die Cup final penalty. My previous record was one taken, one missed! *** I remember being happy in my early childhood – but a couple of events ended up having a profound effect on my life. The first was the birth of my brother Douglas when I was five. When he was two Douglas was diagnosed with leukaemia and it was the beginning of a nightmare that makes me feel empty. My sister Jill and I were young and had no idea our little brother’s illness was life threatening. I would regularly say things like, ‘When will Dougie be better, mum?’ I never considered for a minute he might be dying. When he began going to school he was teased because he had lost his hair and was fat because of the chemotherapy and having to take steroids. I hated that. He loved playing football when he was well enough but I would never let him win. He would go running off crying to mum and she would come out and give me such a rollicking. I couldn’t understand why mum and dad seemed to go way over the top but the hurt and anger they were feeling made them protective of him. They kept a lot from us but the time they spent with Douglas at hospital with mum meant Jill and I had to fend for ourselves emotionally. Looking back, deep down, I must’ve resented it. We would sometimes talk about how Douglas was their favourite. The atmosphere at home was not what it had been before Douglas was born. I was subconsciously blaming Dougie for the way all our lives seemed to be changing. I was in my first year at Perth High School when Douglas died. I was playing football for the school on a cold Saturday morning in December 1972 and when we got home I was told he only had hours to live. I bolted from the kitchen, threw myself on the bed and sobbed my heart out. The emptiness I felt during that time haunts me to this day. It was a total, unforgettable nightmare. My life felt like it had just imploded with the shock of it all. Christmas followed just days after the funeral. Somehow mum found the strength to make the effort but dad made it clear he wanted no part of it. Every Christmas after that at home was a tense, anxious and depressing affair. For years it was taboo to even mention his name. Dougie died pretty much a stranger to me. I regret not being able to say sorry for resenting the attention he got and sorry for teasing him and hurting his feelings. But as a young child, I simply didn’t know. Over the years I have rationalised this and forgiven myself for my feelings then. The other big thing to happen was when I found I was stone deaf in my left ear. A specialist told me a nerve had been damaged and there was nothing they could do to save my hearing. He told me contact sports were no longer an option – I would end up completely deaf if I received any blow to the head. But there was no way he was going to stop me doing what I loved. *** After my playing career was finished, it seemed natural to get involved on the business side of football as an agent. One major talent I was involved with in his early years was Darren Fletcher. A French contact tipped me off that scouts were raving about his displays for Scotland schoolboys at a tournament in France. I was asked to get him to Lille and persuaded Darren and his dad to come with me to France to see the set-up. They were impressed but Alex Ferguson got wind of the interest and convinced them Darren’s future lay at Manchester United.

I think the best thing about this long piece is the trailer, but anyway, here's your Sunday morning... When we got kicked out the SPL, one thing I thought would be good was that when international breaks came around, we at least would have a game to look forward to. The idea that we could have internationalists playing for us down amongst the dead men never occurred to me, and while these dreary weeks without even a competitive international game to watch are dull, they do at least give you a chance to look a the bigger picture. As usual, it's a dispiriting one, with the main news of note being the appointment of a raft of directors at Rangers - temporary or otherwise, time will tell - and celtc's continuing attempts to remove Rangers entirely from the game in Scotland. Booooring!!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsSbhdo0kQI So instead of waxing gloomical about the same old stuff I've groused above before, I shall this week offer a menu of possibilities for the future, things the game could engage with and maybe create a freshness about that stalest of products, the SPFL. These are all nicked from other sports, but that's no reason to dismiss them. Other sports are booming, thriving even, in these difficult financial times by innovating: we could learn from them. First up, a boring marketing/community bonding opportunity. BT show French Ligue 1 games, and you see every side has the regional tourist board advertised on their strips. Watching the Aussie football this weekend, I see they are the same. 'Do the CG experience!' exhorts the brightly coloured either Adelaide or Perth shirt (my Australian geography is not great). Given that there's plenty of space available on SPFL shirts, they ought to employ this device to get as much exposure (limited, I admit) for each club's region or city. Given how fast Scots clubs are declining, anything which re-engages them with their communities ought to be embraced. The current rugby world cup is attracting huge audiences in England, Wales & France; at the end of the game, both teams take a lap of honour, during which players pose for photos and sign autographs for fans. Perhaps this ought to be home fans only, and only then after a win, but it's an idea which would take an extra 10 or 15 minutes for the players and which would reinforce the bond between fan and player. And to any player who couldn't be bothered, they would have to shoulder the consequences should they dip in form! Cricket's 20/20 competition has brought in many innovations since it appeared about 10 years ago, nowhere more so than in the magnificent Indian Premier League. Features include an audio link between a fielder (usually the skipper) and the commentators while bowlers are walking back to their mark, or during a drinks break; while the heat doesn't require such a break in Glasgow very often, there's no reason why keepers could not be linked up by an audio tech behind the goal while their team are up the other end of the pitch - in cricket the interviewed player just breaks off should he have to, and goalies could do the same. Likewise, since there have been trackside reporters for decades, let's get them broadcasting the actual sounds of the sideline, rather than some mediated, filtered, cleaned up version. If this causes issues for managers or coaches who can't go 45 minutes at a stretch without effing or blinding, that is their problem - if they want TV money, they can behave to minimum live TV standards. This kind of technical innovation would allow the SFA or SPFL or whoever to approach broadcasters with a fresh product, offering superior access to players or staff, rather than a pale imitation of England's success. The IPL also require their grounds to build a little VIP booth, which is for competition winners rather than high heid yins, and include big comfy armchairs and fridges filled with Pepsi products. Practicalities might make this hard, but we are too much in the habit of saying 'we can't' when we need to be saying 'we have to'. Such competitions and prizes must be a money spinner as well as ideal product placement, an area we need to maximise in order to tempt what appears to be a highly reluctant commercial sector back to our moribund product. Joint managerial press conferences could be introduced, which ought to go some way to enforcing managers to act like adults. I think we can think of the one exception who would still stick out his petulant lower lip, and no doubt the media would be annoyed at losing their precious controversial moments, but the aim is to make the product better and financially healthier. Childish and whiny complaints will not bring in investment, a relatively mature product might. No doubt every reader will have ideas of their own. We all know that the game needs radical change at a purely functional level, especially the 4 games a season nonsense, but there's lots of room for tinkering around the edges and freshening up what is a sorely tired product. Just sometimes we need to turn our thoughts toward what we can do to make the game better, rather than the understandable constant harping on about what's wrong with it. Let's hear it for positive thinking, even just for a week!

48. Lewis Macleod, Rangers, 19. Living the dream after joining Rangers as a 10-year-old, he might be playing in the Scottish League One, but there are plenty predicting big things for the midfielder. Impressive displays at all levels for Scotland’s youth sides suggest he will continue to be an important player as Rangers climb the divisions. http://www.101greatgoals.com/blog/the-top-101-youngsters-in-world-football-don-balon-list-2013/

I suppose this is blogger’s equivalent of the Samurai tradition of Seppuku – their unique suicide rite. At journalism college one of my course tutor’s used to invariably preach about the successful narrator knowing, and writing to the very heart and soul of their audience. This article will do quite the opposite and some may find the content uncomfortable, however I feel it asks a question which needs to be asked. The boardroom battle for control of our club has seen a thorough examination of the character and integrity (or alleged lack thereof) of the various candidates vying for control. It would be fair to say the Rangers support is well versed in the personal character strengths and weaknesses of the Murrays, the Easdales etc. The apparent weaknesses of the “other sides” candidates have been given maximum exposure during the ensuing debate, with the morality factor at times appearing as important as the size of the wallet they, or their backers, bring to our club. All is fair in love and war. Waiting in the wings is a man many Rangers fans would view as our club’s “Messiah” – Dave King. Almost as important as his money appears to be his ability to unite the fragmented factions within our support for he appears to have the unanimous backing of all. Perhaps the eventual winner in our boardroom battle will determined by which side, if any, Dave King decides to ally with. Such unanimous support for King has spared him the moral examination so many others have been subjected to in our boardroom struggle. With the exception of course of the Scottish Press. Let me make one thing clear – the Scottish Press have long surrendered the right to exercise moral judgement with regard to our club. They surrendered such a right long ago with their silence over 5 way agreements, their silence over unlawful transfer embargo’s imposed on our club and their desire to join with the haters in labelling us “cheats”and thus trampling over our right to a presumption of innocence until proven otherwise. This discussion is by invitation only, and those out with the Rangers support are not invited, cordially or otherwise. But it is nonetheless, a discussion which has to be had. Judge Southwoods assessment of Dave King in his tax battle with the South African authorities was damning. I’m sure most of you have read it, but to spare you the false morality of the Scottish press it can be found here : http://www.moneywebtax.co.za/moneywebtax/view/moneywebtax/en/page259?oid=56208&sn=Detail Are we satisfied as a support that the coat bearing glib and shameless will be discarded should Dave King return to Ibrox in any capacity ? Will an alleged disrespect for the truth be at odds with a support demanding transparency and clarity with regard to the governance of our club ? Or are the characteristics described by Judge Southwood exactly what are needed at our club in a battle where our enemies are not playing by the rules ? These are difficult questions but we will need to wrestle with them at some point. Failure to do so is just not an option.