The BTC Verdict Is Not The End

SO, we finally know - for the moment - that Murray International Holdings, the former owners of Rangers Football Club, has won what is known as THE BIG TAX CASE. This "victory" may yet be challenged by an appeal by HMRC, indeed, given the two-to-one verdict in favour of MIH of the three-person tribunal, I can definitely see an appeal coming.

 

So, what has this got to do with fitba? In truth, nothing. Oldco Rangers is still deid; Newco/Sevco Rangers is still in Division Three of the SFL and Scottish football is still heading down the stank faster than last night's curry and lager.

 

For sure, we will get a lot of hot air; the cyber-warriors, both pro-Rangers and anti-Rangers, will still enthral us with their insights into this over-long, over-complicated but entirely spurious case; Santa will still arrive overnight on 24-25 December and life will go on.

 

The Oldco could still be stripped of their SPL titles won between 2001 and 2010, but, since the Newco/Sevco will NEVER play in the SPL, this will matter little, since, even if the titles are eventually stripped once Lord Nimmo Smith's SPL tribunal finally reports - the disputed titles are highly-unlikely to be re-presented to Celtic.

 

You see - and here I hate to argue with my late uncle Wullie's "mucker" down the pit - football isn't even a matter of life or death, far-less far-more important than that. Modern football is a very good and healthy way of passing free time, which has, thanks to over 100 years of professionalism become a cynical, nasty, over-inflated business of little moral or physical benefit to the majority of the population.

 

It has given some of us a good living, either playing, administering, managing, or in my case, commenting and reporting on. But, while deep down, it's a great game and, at its best, it can lift, inspire and make us feel good about ourselves and life. At its worst, and the noise and fury around the BTC has been an example of this, it can depress, humiliate and be an example of the worst of human nature.

 

The fact is, as I have said before - the Murray model for running Rangers was always going to be unsustainable. Those few of us journalists who had seen what the then Mr Murray did to Scottish Basketball feared he would do the same to Scottish Football.

 

Our fears have, to some extent, been proved correct and, this whole business has still some way to run, further casualties could and probably will follow. I would suggest - you aint seen nothin' yet.

 

 

 

JUST as I feared they might, beating Barcelona did not encourage Celtic to kick-on and beat Benfica last night. However, it wasn't all bad news and while there might still be some nail-biting to be done, I am still convinced Neil Lennon and his men will beat Spartak in their final group game and clinch their last 16 Champions League place.

 

After what has gone before, only getting into the Europa League would be a huge anti-climax.