Bonfire of the Blazers

I WONDER what the Hampden "blazers" are up to this week-end. The SPL clubs meet on Monday and perhaps cold reality will have struck by then - they will realise that they have indeed, temporarily, got rid of one head from that two-headed beast "The Old Firm", which has terrorised them for years.

However, the head they have removed has only crossed the corridor, and will be back, having taken with it the major share of the money which the OF used to dispense to the lesser lights, as a condition of allowing them to thump them regularly.

That money kept the diddy teams going, without it, they're in trouble and unless they can cobble together a deal to get that cas back soon, they are in even bigger trouble.

This whole charade proved one thing - maybe "Rangers" weren't "too big to fail", but letting them fail was still the wrong thing to do. The SPL and SFA had a duty of care to a club in trouble and didn't exercise that duty - now they must pay the price.

That said, a lot of "Rangers Men", who had their doubts about the path David Murray had taken and who knew immediately that Craig Whyte was a wrong 'un, but who said and did nothing, have to look at themselves this morning and ask: "Why didn't we do more before and what more can we do now".

The reality is, Charles Green saw a money-making opportunity, which relied on a quick in and out. He will clearly not get the £50 million which he believes "Rangers" are worth on a bad day any day soon.

He has a life-line though: if he can use his supposed get-out clause of the deal not being concluded to his satisfaction by 31 July (here I paraphrase) then he could we understand still walk away. This would be drastic and would throw Scottish football into even more confusion than it currently is in. Or he can dig-in for the long haul. Which way will he jump?

There is still the nuclear option, of BDO walking through the front door of Ibrox and immediately saying: "This whole thing stinks, it stops now", while Strathclyde's finest will surely be knocking on a few doors in the weeks and months ahead.

The "blazers" need a quick fire-fighting course this weekend. I don't see them putting out this particular bonfire of the vanities.

BUT, suppose it all calms down and I Can't Believe It's Not Rangers has, indeed, to battle back from SFL3.

This is a wonderful opportunity for Ally McCoist to become an even bigger Rangers Legend, if he can indeed get the best out of the "Apprentice Boys" who will now form the back bone of his squad. Legend status also calls for Lee McCulloch, Lee Wallace and Kirk Broadfoot, the three experienced men who will be tha backbone of the new squad.

I firmly believe that these three, plus the likes of Ross Perry, the lad Cole and the other fringe players who will now be exected to be first team regulars are more than capable of winning SFL3. They will also produce good cup runs and enough of the Bears will still Follow-Follow.

I also suspect that, since the SFL doesn't have a TV deal for the Third Division and since, in reality the only SFL3 games likely to attract TV attention will be those involving ICBINR, Mr Green could possibly arrange a nice wee individual TV deal for his club.

This is a win-win time for ICBINR, while the SPL clubs, having for so-long got their figures wrong, safe in the knowledge the crumbs from the Old Firm's table would bail them out, will be facing a new reality, with much tighter belts.

These are indeed interesting times.