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The club that vanished- The story of Gretna


Wilky1878

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Aye maybe that programme done him a disservice, he did seem to really get caught up in the 'living the dream thing'.

I think he probably did, but he wasn't alone. It did seem to prove seductive to people as the money just seemed to make the progress so smooth.

Mileson's own wealth seemed bottomless and his intentions appeared philanthropic, if a bit egocentric. It was never romantic or David/Goliath stuff though and it was that kind of lazy portrayal that was so galling.

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I`ve always thought of Grady as a wee naff but as i say thought he came across OK on the programme. I met Tosh when he was at Gretna and he was great fun, absolutely up for a good laugh. Delighted when we signed him and thought he was superb for us.

He'd be very good entertainment if he posted on here. 'The Juniors shouldn't be in the cup' was a brilliant display of trolling.

I felt bad for the players and fans who were there at the end when it was pretty obvious it was terminal, some Uruguayan lad got released because they couldn't pay for his cruciate ligament treatment. Their celebrations against Hearts showed how much it meant to them. Strange to think that Kyle Naughton is playing Premier League football six years later.

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. It was weird, because several perfectly decent people were involved and I think the experience scarred them.

Indeed there were, including the guy I was alluding to.

A real shame the whole episode occurred.

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He'd be very good entertainment if he posted on here. 'The Juniors shouldn't be in the cup' was a brilliant display of trolling.

I felt bad for the players and fans who were there at the end when it was pretty obvious it was terminal, some Uruguayan lad got released because they couldn't pay for his cruciate ligament treatment. Their celebrations against Hearts showed how much it meant to them. Strange to think that Kyle Naughton is playing Premier League football six years later.

Indeed it was, top class.

It was especially good given the response of some that we had no chance of making any impact in the tournament only for us to go on a run to the final for the first and quite possibly only time ever.

Edit for typing incompetence.

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Indeed it was, top class.

It was especially good given the response of some that we had no chance of making any impact in the tournament only for us to go on a run to the final for the first and quite possibly only time ever. time

I have a good feeling about this year ;)

For the record, Our cup run > Their Cup run

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Conversely Queens in some ways ultimately benefited when it started to go tits up being able to sign players like Tosh, McQuilken, Macfarlane and Aitken who all reached a cup final and Europe with us.

The first three, yes, absolutely. Aitken though was with us before and returned to us before it all went tits up. I wouldn't include him in that group.

I've said before though that Gretna ultimately ended up being good for us. The attempt to undermine our support through the schools galvanised both club and supporters to do far more than before. Their ultimate demise left us inheriting a few crucial players. It was in many ways the spark that ignited where we are now.

There's also an interesting angle in how 'new' everyone regards Gretna 2008 to be, even though they wear black and white and play at Raydale. Rangers however, must be regarded as the same outfit as that which went tits up, largely on the basis of wearing blue and playing at Ibrox.

That's because the people at Gretna 2008 went out of their way to emphasise that they are a different club. They didn't want direct association with the way Mileson's lot ended. If Gretna wanted to claim the history and continuation of the old club they could. It's their approach which is fairly unique. Not Rangers. Rangers are not the first reformed club to claim a previous incarnation's history, they won't be the last (though they are undeniably the most precious about it).

The whole episode was decidedly odd.

I too wished them well in their earlier days. I remember them visiting Bolton in the FA Cup at one point and giving them a Hell of a fright. When they got into the Scottish League and scored, nineteen seconds into their first match, it also represented a feel-good story.

The trouble with the Mileson thing was the dishonesty of it all. This myth that they hadn't merely bought success was an absolute insult to the intelligence of each observer.

In the BBC documentary of the time, the hubris was astonishing. It was weird, because several perfectly decent people were involved and I think the experience scarred them.

When it blew up, it was actually less satisfying than I'd envisaged. There was something sad about the death of a little club that had spent most if its history serving its community. The glory hunters from the area that we scorned, would have been pretty unbruised by the demise of something they'd only fleetingly invested in.

A really weird little story all round.

This, other than the fact that I found the blow up entirely satisfying. They'd long since ceased to be a little community club. The whole "we haven't bought success, we just pay players what we think they are worth and they come to work with Rowan" nonsense that Mileson used to peddle and the press used to lap up was vomit inducing.
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I felt bad for the players and fans who were there at the end when it was pretty obvious it was terminal, some Uruguayan lad got released because they couldn't pay for his cruciate ligament treatment.

Fabio Yantorno, he got signed by Hibs.

I think he probably did, but he wasn't alone. It did seem to prove seductive to people as the money just seemed to make the progress so smooth. Mileson's own wealth seemed bottomless and his intentions appeared philanthropic, if a bit egocentric.

Mileson also 'gave' a lot of money to Supporters Trusts and fan groups. I recall he gave £ to Berwick's ST, IIRC.

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They saw the edge of the cliff approaching fast, yet they kept their collective foot on the gas. F***ing cretinous fraudulent b**tards.

http://www.newsandstar.co.uk/sport/football/gretna-make-1-9m-loss-1.295518

GRETNA MAKE £1.9M LOSS

Published at 00:00, Thursday, 16 November 2006

GRETNA Football Club lost nearly £2 million in the last financial year, according to the latest figures.

The ambitious Borderers – currently top of the Scottish First Division – are being bankrolled by Carlisle-based millionaire Brooks Mileson as they “live the dream” of reaching the Scottish Premier League.

And the club’s chief executive Graeme Muir told News & Star Sport there were no concerns about the £1.9 million loss for the financial year ending May 2005.

He said: “We have always said we are not in this to make a profit. That (£2 million) is the amount of investment that has gone into the club thanks to the generosity of our owner (Mileson).

“We have done some restructuring to at the club to look at how it runs in the future.

“But if you are involved in football, that is the reality. We have been to the Scottish Cup final, played in Europe and are on the verge of the SPL,” said Muir.

“That is the type of investment Brooks has put in. It is down to the generosity of the guy.

“You don’t come into football to make a profit.

“The only thing he has got back is a heck of a lot of personal enjoyment.

“Rangers are £72m in debt – that is the level we are going into.”

Gretna, who used to play in the UniBond League, are seeking a third successive championship which would give them promotion to the SPL.

Mileson has introduced £1.9 million to assist replayment of the club’s liabilities.

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