End This Rangers Madness

YOU go away for a few days of much-needed R&R and what happens? As far as the on-going Rangers saga is concerned - not a lot. I can only concur with my fellow blogger 'Rangers Tax Case', who dubbed the whole sheebang "An Unholy Mess", aye, and it is one shich is getting messier by the day.

I persist in believing that there is no way "Rangers" be it Newco, Oldco, Sevco, tesco or Coco the Clown should be playing in Scottish football this season. Having said that, I feat some sort of shabby compromise will be thrashed out which will satisfy nobody and leave Scottish football looking even shabbier and disreputable than it currently is.

The lack of leadership from within Hampden has been nothing short of disgraceful, we're awe doomed, doomed ah tell ye.

I shall say no more about "Rangers" until some sort of order and sanity reigns - if ever.

SO, what is going to happen this season? I honestly don't have a clue. We may well have the melt-down of the SPL which some are forecasting, in which case, old Private Fraser, to whom I nodded in section one of this blog, may well, finally, have been proved correct in his pronouncement of impending Armageddon.

I prefer to think, we will muddle through, some how.

But, for Scottish football to prosper from the whole Rangers mess, it will take a whole new mind set from within the various board rooms. For seasons 2012-13 certainly, 2013-14 probably and maybe even 2014-15, instead of being all about the other ten SPL clubs keeping their feet under the table from which the Old Firm dispense their largesse of big gates, of finishing third or fourth and getting into the Europa League, it is now about finishing second and maybe getting a shot at the greater riches of the Champions League.

I still see the rest as being short-sighted in how they approach this challenge. The directors will allow the managers to recruit third and fourth-rate players being punted to them by agents, while young Scots talent is overlooked.

Until our directors tell our managers: "Enough shoddy imports - do your job and properly COACH young Scots talent, encourage and nurture this, WORK on the training pitch" - we will continue to go nowhere in Europe.

I don't think the current Celtic squad is all that good. Instead of going straight to the default position of trying not to lose too-heavily to Celtic; perhaps, if the rest had a go, they would do better and we would have a truly-competitive SPL.

FINALLY today: the whole episode has been mis-handled right from the start; warnings about potential disaster have been ignored; it could all come back to bite our bums in the future - but - we have to now get right behind Team GB's two Olympic football squads.

I have long been protesting about the disgraceful mis-management of the FA, and of the craven duplicity of the SFA, but, there is no point in portesting now - the calls for common sense have been ignored and the tournament is about to start.

The Team GB men, I do not see getting past the quarter-finals, England's usual limit; but, the girls, with the tartan tinge from Ifeamu Dieke and Kim Little - they have a real chance of a medal. The gold is probably beyond them, I expect Germany to win that one, but, if they gel, with home advantage, a silver or bronze is a possibility, which would be great.

And, who amongst us will begrudge Ryan Giggs his cameo on the major stage of international tournament play? Certainly not me.