Paul Murray claims 'incredible' support for Ibrox takeover

[forlanssister 3,114]

FORMER Rangers director Paul Murray has said there is an "incredible level of support" for his attempt to mastermind a bid to take over the crisis-torn club.

 

Mr Murray said he was about to register his interest with the administrator, having received backing "ranging from modest offers to substantial offers".

 

His interest emerged after the Ibrox club's slide into administration.

 

The move comes as the Rangers Supporters Trust, which has created nearly 5000 new shareholders in the club, has pushed for an ownership model involving a consortium of fans and businessmen if the club comes out of administration.

 

They want a structure similar to that established by European champions Barcelona â?? where supporters call the shots through a fan membership scheme and elect the board â?? and Hamburg, which is 100% member-owned.

 

The German Bundesliga team has 65,000 members who pay an annual fee of �48 (£39) and elect a supervisory board that recruits suitable figures from the football, legal or business communities to serve on the board.

 

Mr Murray said: "The key thing is to get in front of the administrator to understand what the scale of the issue is and I am endeavouring to have that meeting as soon as possible.

 

"I am proposing a different structure to what we had in the past. The current structure is not sustainable in the real world. Given the economic pressures, we need to have a more sustainable and broader ownership structure where all stakeholders have representation, where all contributions are welcome."

 

He added: "We need a proper governance structure with a board of directors that acts on behalf of the members and it manages the club within an agreed business plan. That directorship may need to be rotated to bring in fresh blood.

 

"It is right to have as broad a church as possible and then you manage that participation in a professional way."

 

He said the current owner, Craig Whyte, was "perfectly entitled" to bid for the club like anyone else but added that "the question supporters have to ask is if he is a fit and proper person to own the club".

 

He raised concerns earlier that Mr Whyte had previously been disqualified as a company director, which he said was not disclosed at the time of his take- over in May, that Mr Whyte was forced to admit he sold £24.4 million of season tickets after documentation was released. He also pointed out that, as recently as last week, he was described by a sheriff as "wholly unreliable" after giving evidence in court during a civil case.

 

"If they (the fans) are happy with that, then clearly he (Mr Whyte) can proceed. If not, he may have an uphill struggle. I know there is a lot of anger and a lot of people let down at the moment."

 

As senior figures, including Rangers manager Ally McCoist and director of football Gordon Smith, yesterday met administrators at Ibrox, Rangers Supporters Trust said the global Rangers fanbase was a "powerful force".

 

Spokesman Mark Dingwall said: "If you garner the hundreds of thousands of people that support Rangers and get a contribution off them, it is a very powerful force.

 

"There is an understanding, as Paul Murray agrees, that the problems cannot be solved by one person. It has to be a team effort between people like himself and the broad mass of fans, providing their talent and money."

 

"Anything that takes us from a position where there is one major owner to a democratisation of the club we think is an improvement. We would like to see a far wider shareholder base and to ensure that in future no one man can control the destiny of the club by himself."

 

He said there had been a lack of "proper corporate governance" with no properly convened board meeting since May, accounts being filed or an annual general meeting.

 

Supporters want former Rangers captain Richard Gough and fellow club legend Trevor Steven to spearhead a campaign.

 

It is believed the current debt levels mean that, once the club has stabilised, a new share issue might be needed "to create the capital to take the club forward".

 

I remain to be convinced that the German model would work here, but concede the present ownership structure where we become beholden to one man's ego absolutely must change for it is that particular model that has brought us to where we are today.

Edited February 16, 2012 by forlanssister

[GovanAllan 0]

As long as Murray doesn't want my vote I'm in. We need a totally clean slate no one from the past or present.

[Frankie 8,665]

I harbour doubts about Murray but certainly agree with his comments.

 

I look forward to hearing more from him and the Trust.

[Bears 0]

I harbour doubts about Murray but certainly agree with his comments.

 

I look forward to hearing more from him and the Trust.

 

I personally have wiped my slate clean with every person and supporters organisation involved with Rangers. As of this morning i'll listen to everyone and anyone with an open mind no matter what i thought of them this time yesterday and perviously.

 

I hope others do the same

[Tumshie RFC 0]

Fan-based model is what we should be striving. A membership scheme on top of season ticket money and all of the other sponsorship deals would be an excellent way of going forward.

[biggordy 0]

I harbour doubts about Murray but certainly agree with his comments.

 

I look forward to hearing more from him and the Trust.

 

Frankie, you or I could blurt this stuff out, after all, he's done it before.

 

Let him walk the walk and give us facts..not could, would or should.

[Tannochsidebear 2,429]

Be very careful what we wish for in Paul Murray here.

 

He, and his pals, have been waiting for administration to happen since Murray put the club up for sale. They have been running about in the background telling folk they have the money but wont put it in until after admin as they didnt want to be the ones with the stigma attached to put the club into admin.

 

They will be going all out on a charm offensive from now on similar to Fergus in the 90's across the city to galvanise support for them.

 

But please everyone should remember that Murray was a board member for a long time and chose not to put one penny into the club. I trust him not one single per cent more than Whyte as I think they are both cut from the same cloth and neither worthy (or rich enough) to be in charge of our great club. However Whyte is slightly ahead as the man who at least had the balls to take on the sinking ship, take the personal abuse and the muck-raking, and hopefully pull us through this quickly.

[Bluedell 5,679]

Be very careful what we wish for in Paul Murray here.

 

He, and his pals, have been waiting for administration to happen since Murray put the club up for sale. They have been running about in the background telling folk they have the money but wont put it in until after admin as they didnt want to be the ones with the stigma attached to put the club into admin.

 

They will be going all out on a charm offensive from now on similar to Fergus in the 90's across the city to galvanise support for them.

 

But please everyone should remember that Murray was a board member for a long time and chose not to put one penny into the club. I trust him not one single per cent more than Whyte as I think they are both cut from the same cloth and neither worthy (or rich enough) to be in charge of our great club. However Whyte is slightly ahead as the man who at least had the balls to take on the sinking ship, take the personal abuse and the muck-raking, and hopefully pull us through this quickly.

 

I don't think that PM should be criticised for not putting cash into the club when he was a director. That's irrelevant. We wouldn't either if we were asked during that period.

 

PM was brought on board for his corporate finance skills and experience and it wasn't his fault that the banking crisis came along and scuppered the G51 project.

 

He is nothing like CW in that PM is well respected in the industry and has a track record that is open to scrutiny.

 

Given your other post, I'm surprised that you put CW ahead of PM. PM didn't acquire the club by stealing the club's future income and hasn't lied to the support as far as I'm aware and therefore that puts him way in front of CW.

 

However I believe that you are correct that PM doesn't personally have the cash to buy the club. He can, however be a conduit for others to do so.

 

Where he does fall down is his inability to put forward an argument that he can take the club forward. He spectacularly failed at this at the time of the CW takeover and, while making better noises this time, it seems that he has not yet got much funding behind him yet.

 

I'm also unimpressed by his behind-the-scenes dealings with the fans groups at the moment. We had enough of that before with the anti-Lloyds stuff and largely seems to be self-interest based.

 

I trust him a hell of a lot more than I do CW, but he still has a bit to do to convince me that he is right man to take things forward, although I'd be saying that about anyone at this point.

Edited February 16, 2012 by Bluedell

[Darthter 542]

I'm VERY skeptical about Paul Murray.....

 

Until actual details about his proposal are announced, I would take everything he says with a massive pinch of salt. At the moment, I hear him saying all the stuff the fans want to hear. At present he is still rather non-committal - saying that he's waiting for meetings with the Administrators (fair enough), then once he knows the exact situation, he will then be in a position to confirm partners/backers etc. So, at present, while hes shouting about his great plan...it has no substance (yet???)

 

As everyone knows he was on the Board for a good long time, and the 1st folk heard about him was 15min before Whyte took over, when he produced a rescue plan on the back of a fag packet!!!

[Tumshie RFC 0]

Would rather have Paul Murray in charge than Craig Whyte. Having Whyte in charge is like having Del Boy in charge of a huge Scottish institution!