I HAD had a long and tiring day, but even allowing for that, the fact I fell asleep and missed the last five minutes of Mark Daly's much-trumpeted BBC Documentary: Rangers - The Men Who Sold The Jerseys might indicate, that while it did bring some new issues to light, it didn't radically extend the boundaries of humanknowledge.
We have all known for months that something has never been "right" about Craig Whyte, or his relationship with Duff & Phelps (or Sooty and Sweep as I call them - since with that firm, CW is really playing the part of Harry Corbett). We have also been aware that the way in which David Murray, his empire £700 million in hock to the Lloyds Banking Group, tried hardest to off-load Rangers FC - one small part of his overall business portfolio, but one which gave him more headlines and headaches than the rest of the group put together.
Anybody who ever read the financial pages of the Herald or The Scotsman was aware that certain people, including Murray had a very-cosy relationship with the Edinburgh Money Mafia, one which was put under strain once Lloyds took over the Bank of Scotland and the forensic money-making skills of the City of London were let loose on Edinburgh's Old Boys network - with mind-boggling results.
We were all aware that, when they were set-up by the Murray Group, EBTs were legal; but, anyone who had ever read the excellent rangerstaxcase blog was aware there were very serious doubts as to the way the Murray group had managed their EBTs and this was the cause of the HMRC interest in them.
We were all aware that Campbell Ogilvie, as a former Rangers employee, might be vulnerable once the searchlights were fully-turned on to the allegations of double contracts.
So, while Daly reinforced these conceptions, and gave us a few names of EBT beneficiaries - he didn't tell us all that much that was new. Certainly the e-mail of April, 2011 - prior to the Whyte take-over, looks bad for Duff & Phelps. The allegations of a conflict of interest involving that company MUST be investigated, while the SFA probably ought to (at the very least) suspend president Ogilvie on full pay pending a full INDEPENDENT inquiry into "The Rangers Affair".
The trouble is, this might have to be handed over to UEFA, given the fact that Scottish football is a swamp, with lots of mutually-loathing different tribes inhabiting it - can we find anyone Scottish and independent? I think not.
I would like to think the Scottish government might like to step in, but I don't think, with an independence referendum around the corner, Alex Salmond would wish to further alienate the Rangers/Unionist vote with findings which are bad for Rangers, or the Celtic Family and their sympathisers with findings which appeared to let the club off the hook.
I have been convinced, for months, that liquidation is the only realistic outcome to Rangers' woes, followed by a fresh start in Division Three of the SFL. After last night, this looks ever more likely.
Not that the programme was totally-disappointing. The notion of Price Albert of Monaco, leading Roman Catholic, bob-sleigher and one-time play boy being a major player for douce, dour, ultra-Calvinist, "nae Papes" Rangers - well, I laughed. Trouble was, the Grimaldi connection was apparently a wee Whyte lie.
Nope, we have barely scratched the surface of The Rangers Affair - m'learned friends and a host of hacks will be busy for a good time to come.
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