Well, like a fledgling SPL manager here I am making my first post on this illustrious forum. So, since I'm new to all of this, I think its best to claim that I mean no harm to anyone who reads this post and that I cannot be responsible for the actions of individual morons who may take something that I absolutely intend to insinuate during my outburst and apply it out of context. Even though I fully appreciate that some follow followers have an IQ lower than a certain clubs current credit rating. Previous witch-hunts and bomb threats not withstanding, I'd like to offer these nuggets for your consideration.....
While I have no desire to see any club in the sorry state that Rangers find themselves in, theres a few things bugging me, completely separate to the legal issues of the takeover and the deflection tactics surrounding the punishment meted out that seem to be getting lost in the crossfire. Allow me to refocus the debate........
1. Rangers are skint. The fine handed out to the club works out at under £4000 a week for a series of rules breaches. Anyone want to bet that, even on the currently negotiated 75% wage reductions, most of the first team staff are still taking home more than that. Hardly a bank breaker when Lafferty has just been fined personally by RFC for playing truant. Every little helps as they say....
2. If they are skint and have no money, is there really any point in complaining about not being able to sign players. Last I heard, players cost money. If you're still confused, please see point one above. Any money from the upcoming summer sales will be used to repay creditors. Perhaps the Ibrox DJ would like to start playing some Bob Marley over the next few games. May I suggest 'Exodus' as a fine example of his work.
3. If Rangers were/are to be bought over and someone invests in the club, are the fans, McCoist, Smith etc., really suggesting that they should be allowed to go out and buy success again simply because someone will finance player transfers and then, as a cherry on top, they still want to be allowed to remain in the top tier? What lessons have the big boys of Scottish football learned there? That they are still the people? It may be a nightmare, but rest assured my blue nose friends, you are very much awake.
4. Can any true football fan, regardless of club, think that the impending doomsday scenario is ALL bad for scottish football? Let's be honest, most Scottish football is bad at the best of times, even with Rangers and a whole new approach is required. So if RFC dropping off the radar to division three directly affects my/our clubs, then we all have to accept that we must cut the cloth accordingly, for the future of the Scottish game. Whatever that entails. From what I see in the youth ranks at clubs across the country and most notably at Falkirk, the future is bright, some might even say its a particular shade of orange. Time to stand together.
5. Welcome to the world of provincial football. A period of being a 'selling club' and learning what its like to rear young players through the youth ranks only for some unscrupulous club to come in and offer a pittance that you know is well below the asking price, but you are in no position to refuse might, just might give some people the dose of humility that is long overdue. Treading the fine line every year between success and failure/bankruptcy. Not so long ago, there were tenners waving in the air when visiting teams played at Ibrox, apparently as a gesture of the (wealth?) that was abundant within. Perhaps the Rangers Supporters Trusts should organise another such display during the demonstration march to Hampden. That way you can pay the fine that has been issued. If all 40,000 of you go, I reckon you'll have £240,00 in change. Enough to sign a reasonable standard SPL player like the rest of us have to watch - week in, week out. Time to stop thinking it shouldn't be happening to you. It's not the Rangers fans fault, but neither was it the fault of Gretna fans, Livingston fans, Dundee fans, Falkirk fans. I don't recall many column inches being devoted to saving these institutions which were every bit as important to the fabric of their communities, staff etc.
6. Walters comments in the press smack of exactly the kind of elitism that has lead Rangers to the point they find themselves at now, plain and simple. For example:
For: "The sanctions they have given would, in my mind, put them in danger of relegation and every club in the league would suffer then."
Read: "It's not fair. Plus we're too big to be relegated. Regardless of what we do off the pitch. We're bigger and better than all of the rest of you, so if you don't help us by turning a blind eye again to us breaking the rules we all agreed to abide by, you'll all be sorry"
Hardly the best way to ingratiate oneself and extract sympathy across the board from your peers Wattie.
7. Anyone else see similarities between RBS and RFC all along the line from the warning signs to the excuse mongering and finger pointing? Fred the Shred took the brunt of what happened at RBS, but lets be honest, he couldn't have done it alone or in a few short months. Whyte has his share,( pardon the pun), of blame to take but thats all it is - a share of the blame. Many many more are complicit in this charade. By the way, If you own shares in both RBS and RFC, you have my most sincere sympathy.
8. Much as I and many others have a soft spot for super Ally his outburst, while understandable, cannot go unpunished. As previous posts have alluded to he knew exactly the type of reaction that was likely, given the 'spirited' nature attributed to a section of his clubs followers. By 'outting' the three man panel in the way that he did and questioning the impartial nature and integrity of their judgement, something that ALL clubs including his beloved Rangers signed up to well before this current saga came to fruition, I think Ally has unwittingly galvanised the rest of us into standing our ground and the SFA into digging their heels in even further. By the way, for clarification, digging your heels in is NOT the same as sticking the boot in. I see no difference in questioning the integrity of the sports ruling body, whether you like them or not, than there is in questioning a referees integrity. Mr Lennon, please take note.
9. Five. Thats right, FIVE. Count them. One, two, three, four, FIVE breaches of rules that clubs are to abide by out of six charges. Its not even as if they got a 'not guilty' with the other one. Not proven is the legal equivalent of 'we know you did it, we just don't have enough evidence yet to nail you for this one too'.
10. I simply had to make this up to ten purely to match the number of points deducted so far and for my own childish personal amusement. That's me being as transparent as I can be with my reasons. If you enjoyed this too, thats a bonus. Offshore of course.
Ah, I do tend to ramble on sometimes, but it was important that it had 10 points to represent both the points deduction and the other 10 clubs hopefully sticking together!! Cheers for reposting!