The Scottish Football thread

[GoGo Yubari]

That was really awesome.

[Lineker]

Motherwell have asked their supporters to vote on how the Fir Park club should vote on Rangers' application on 4 July while Kilmarnock have expressed concern about the financial implications of an SPL without the Ibrox side.

[The Kraig]

Asking the fans is probably the best way to decide it, so I applaud Motherwell. There's too many politicians in Scottish football, like Romanov. A guy who doesn't pay his own players half the time.

Most fans in Scotland I speak to (at work and a couple of nights out) are in the anti-Rangers boat. Their reasoning is that a lot of fans would be MORE interested in a non-Rangers SPL and that would replace the revenue from the Rangers games in new fans and existing fans taking more interest as their team is going to be more competitive. Makes a lot of sense for teams like Kilmarnock in my opinion, as Ayrshire is plagued with Rangers fans for some reason. If they supported their local team more, they probably wouldn't struggle every season. And I can't argue with their logic, unless Sky massively reduce the TV rights money (which they haven't renegotiated yet by the way). A lot of teams have shit support because their local fans all support Rangers and Celtic. Same way you get people from Swansea supporting Man United for no apparent reason that "oh, I like that Rooney guy". Uh huh, sure you do. If the Scottish clubs actually rally their fans I'm sure they will prove the SPL can happily exist without Rangers' new puppet club.

Surprised at the Bury buy-out idea. Didn't realise Bury were in trouble. You'd think a team that big could do exactly what other clubs (and now Rangers) have done and just liquidise if necessary, and re-apply. If The FA and Football League don't block it, then I'll be fucking delighted.

As for Southern Englanders having to make the journey to Glasgow, I don't think us Glaswegians will enjoy the traveling very much either. Nor will we enjoy the minority of snobby cunts in the South.

There's also the danger Rangers fans pose to English towns/cities. The FA could refuse them entry to any English league based on the behaviour of traveling Rangers fans, ALONE. And we'd have no right to complain. We have a really er...violent, scumbag, sectarian and glory-hunting trouble-making community of bigoted fans that ruin it for the majority. And that's a fact. And they will never go away. What makes things worse is that a lot of the trouble-making fans in Manchester for the UEFA Cup Final were actually English so all the plastic Jocks will be out en force again to support this new club I'm sure. Just cunts who ruin football for everyone.

No one mentioned it I don't think, but the now-defunct Rangers may be stripped of up to ten SPL titles if they are proven to have used dodgy payment methods as well.

It's quite shite being a Rangers fan when you're not a sectarian arsehole, when I take all things into consideration. I miss the days when bigots were the biggest problem at the club.

[Lineker]

BBC Scotland are reporting that Aberdeen intend to join Hearts and Dundee Utd in voting in favour of kicking Rangers out of the SPL.

[SeanDMan]

If Rangers go out, who will Club 12 be?

[Lineker]

If Rangers are not admitted to the SPL, the 12th place is likely to fall to either Scottish First Division runners-up Dundee or Dunfermline, who finished bottom of the SPL last term.

[SeanDMan]

Dunfermline is a stupid name, so I hope Dundee make it!

[GA!]

If Rangers are not admitted to the SPL, the 12th place is likely to fall to either Scottish First Division runners-up Dundee or Dunfermline, who finished bottom of the SPL last term.

The BBC said Dundee would get promoted.

As far as politics go, didn't most of the SPL want rule changes about majority votes to stop the Glasgow teams from sandbagging everything? Shouldn't the Scottish teams think long term by getting Rangers out of there for a good three years to give the national game a kick up the arse?

Plus rewarding Rangers for shitty business practices with a place in the SPL would just open a huge can of worms. Weren't Gretna and Livingston bumped down to Division 3 for the same reason? Got to be one rule for all, even for Rangers.

[Colly]

That's it for me, on a level playing field there's no reason why Rangers (or whatever they are now) should be able to dodge punishment for whats been going on. It's the separation of business and football, and whoever wants to buy a club as a plaything may as well buy Rangers because you can do what you like without fear of punishment. They can't stay (or indeed start, as its not Rangers) in the SPL.

[Adam]

So do we need four or five teams to oppose them staying to kick them out?

If Motherwell join the other three, then it just might happen...and I would love it to. A big team getting truly punished for their financial failings.

[Crybaby Bunting]

I think a few teams are willing to oppose them, but would rather give the impression that they'd vote for Rangers so they don't have officials being targetted by hardcore Rangers fans.

It'd be pretty funny if Rangers are kicked out with a 9:3 ratio ^_^

[Crybaby Bunting]

Oh and Rangers will try to sue any player that decides to leave this summer on a free

Which sounds borderline evil, because Rangers don't want their players to leave in case they end up in the SPL and need a team... but would happily dump them on frees citing the contract issue if they had to start from scatch at the bottom and had to pay SPL wages.

[Lineker]

Rhys McCabe and Sone Aluko don't want to be transferred over to the newco.

[ADG]

Now Steven Whittaker and Steven Naismith have come out and said they want to go as well.

[Guest mr. potato head]

If this had happened earlier, Rangers could have sold all their players and been able to pay down their debt, then had to put together a squad full of castoffs and nobodies!

[Lineker]

Hibernian have become the third club to publically state they will vote against newco Rangers' application to join the Scottish Premier League.

Hearts and Dundee Utd have already said they will vote against the move.

Rangers required an 8-4 majority in the vote on 4 July to transfer their share in the league to Charles Green's newco.

"Following a board meeting, Hibernian confirm the club will vote against the transfer of the Rangers share in the SPL," said a club statement.

"This re-affirms the view of the board that the sporting integrity of the SPL is of paramount importance.

"The board is also acutely aware that in making this decision, Hibernian - like other clubs in the SPL - will suffer collateral financial damage at a time of severe economic hardship and uncertainty.

Hibernian chairman Rod Petrie had previously said that the integrity of the competition should come before financial considerations .

"It's not a question of any sum of money in return for that integrity," he said.

Hearts were first to announce their decision before Dundee Utd chairman Steven Thompson followed suit after a meeting with fans' groups.

(Y)

[Lineker]

A criminal investigation is to be launched into Craig Whyte's takeover of Rangers Football Club in May last year.

The Crown Office asked Strathclyde Police to probe the purchase and the club's subsequent financial management.

The investigation into alleged criminality follows a preliminary examination of information passed to police by administrators.

The club was bought by Mr Whyte in 2011 before going into administration in February this year.

A Crown Office spokesman said: "The procurator fiscal for the west of Scotland will now work with Strathclyde Police to fully investigate the acquisition and financial management of Rangers Football Club and any related reports of alleged criminality during that process."

[Lineker]

Aberdeen have become the fifth club to confirm they will vote against a newco Rangers joining the Scottish Premier League.

Sayonara.

[Marcos]

Aberdeen and Inverness confirm that they will also both be voting No to the newco, and as such it looks as if the team formerly known as Rangers are gone from the SPL !

[MDK]

Rejoice!