Stu

This game was never going to see all the aunties and uncles and fans from Timbuktu coming to Fir Park. While it may be a once in a lifetime match in a way, it is, ultimately, a qualifying game against a semi-big(ish) European team. It's not Real Madrid or AC Milan coming. It's not a cup final at Hampden. This game will excite our core fans and probably attract a few hundred floaters. Considering the financial issues we're apparently going to face, I don't blame the club for raising the prices a little.

So if we get relegated next season, will you be offski?

...but while there's music, and moonlight, and love and romance...

The best bit of it is that this pandering to protect Rangers by the governing bodies actually achieves the exact opposite reaction from the fans and clubs. The more the SFA, SPL and SFL tell us we need to change the rules to save Rangers, the more everyone else is going to point blank refuse.

According that document, our governing bodies recognise the need for change and restructuring. I'll be interested to see if all of the positive proposals (which appear to be just incentives to vote Rangers into division 1) still happen even if the SFL reject Rangers out of hand.

You're right. It's about now about Scottish football as a whole. I think most of us realise that. However, to suggest protecting Rangers is necessary to save Scottish football is utter nonsense. Why? Because there is no future in Scottish football if the fans of every other club in Scotland feel that they only exist to maintain the corrupt hierarchy. We will lose far more fans from clubs all over Scotland by protecting Rangers than we will lose Rangers fans if we force them to apply to the SFL and division 3.

I wouldn't want this to be a half-arsed attempt with only 200-odd fans. Is it too short notice to arrange this for Saturday? More than ever, fans of all non-OF clubs have to join forces and unite for the sake and future of Scottish football. Those in charge need to be shown that all clubs should be treated fairly and the fans will no longer stand for being pushed around. Not just with this newco proposal but other future instances too. If this is organised properly, I'll drive down from Aberdeen and happily take down a few passengers. This is too important.

If, and I stress it's a big if yet, clubs such as Dundee United and ourselves have seen season ticket sales rise due to publicly being seen to do the right thing while secretly plotting this monstrosity all along then it is beyond abhorrent.

Exactly. The boards of the SFL clubs (and let's face it, of most SPL clubs too) would welcome newco Rangers with open arms. It's simply down to fan pressure that enough SPL clubs have intimated that they will vote no. What we desperately, desperately need is for the fans of SFL clubs to stand up against the incompetent buffoons who 'run' our game. For the good of the game and Scottish football in it's entirety, I hope we can all unite and support a stand against any improvisation of league structures or rules just to accommodate a club who have had absolutely zero regard for following rules or supporting the national game.

Obviously there are scumbags and mentalists in the Rangers support (far more than the supposed tiny minority who sing the sectarian songs) but there are also a lot of decent fans who simply follow the club of their father, grandfather, etc. We have to be vigilant and ensure we don't attract the bigots who will destroy our reputation. However, we should be looking to encourage the decent Rangers fans local to the area.

Exactly. 50,000 people aren't all going to suddenly give up on football all together. Rather than having a go at Motherwell fans who genuinely can't afford to be regulars at Fir Park (see earlier post), how about attracting the people who climb aboard buses out of Motherwell to Govan instead?

It's the SFA that are driving this merger so that Rangers can get off with being in the first division. They're as culpable as anyone in protecting Rangers.

This. Full of praise and respect for anyone who has bought a season ticket for dozens and dozens of years, but I've bought Rice Krispies for years - doesn't mean I should get a say in how Kellogs is run.

I'm a better fan than you. As long as I'm free, I'll be heading to Pittodrie too...

Great shout. There's plenty fans of other clubs who might struggle to get their team's stadium. It's very unlikely I'd be able to make it to Fir Park for any protest but I'd happily turn up to Pittodrie if I thought it was part of a concerted effort between us all.

Nothing mentioned in that statement is new or particularly complex, is it? I think most people on here, even the most ardent of 'No' voters, have acknowledged the probable loss of revenue from TV, sponsors, etc.

Sounds like a clear 'Yes' to me. EDIT: Not that I'm suggesting a decision's already been made. I totally accept that the club are doing everything appropriately. It just sounds like they would prefer the Newco to be allowed in and the fans to be accepting of it.

Yes, in other countries. Not in our own one when our team isn't anywhere near being involved in it. As for days like Skippy Sunday, yes, it was hilarious, yes it was enjoyable, but it was one game where Motherwell FC never won anything for it. All we can celebrate is the misfortune of others? Sorry, but that sounds pretty shit to me. We need to get away from this obsession with the Old Firm. They should just be any other team like Aberdeen, Killie or St Johnstone. The constant whinging of us not taking points off the Old Firm (as though they were worth 25 points instead of the usual 3) was staggering considering how many points we earned against the other teams. It's not just the media and Old Firm fans that are guilty of viewing Rangers and Celtic as some sort of superior entity.

I never said that it would. But you stated that less money will equal less of a challenge. I'm trying to point out that we earned more points this season than for many, many years and that's already with budget cuts because all clubs had to cut their cloth. All SPL teams had more money ten years ago and they were still languishing dozens of points behind the Old Firm. This idea that more money will help all teams is nonsense if the Old Firm have proportionately more than the rest anyway. More or less money for all other 10 SPL clubs will not make any significant difference to the competitiveness between them. To suggest otherwise is to encourage the idea that we need Rangers in the SPL. Celtic will be in a better financial position than the other ten clubs irrespective of budget cuts or no budget cuts. So yes, Celtic probably will win the vast majority of games. They probably will win the league at a canter. But that's not because of budget cuts due to an SPL without Rangers. And anyway, why are you so concerned with whether or not there's a title race? As fatcalf points out, we haven't been concerned with a title race since the mid 90s.

But if every team in the SPL had experienced players and squad depth, then one individual team wouldn't necessarily be any more consistent. There's nothing to say we can't achieve the same points as last season with a weaker squad if all other teams have a weaker squad too.

Why? All teams will lose money. The likelihood of a consistent challenger does not decrease or increase.

No, Finlay is right. We are guaranteed to be in the Europa League. We just don't know whether it'll be in the qualifying round or the league stages yet.

207 No votes compared to only 9 Yes votes. Pretty resounding. However, is 207 itself a significant enough number for anyone to take notice?

Herve, I did read your post. At no point did I say that you thought anything. That's why I only quoted the part in which the Kilmarnock chairman gave his opinion. I'm responding to his opinion, not yours.

So we have to accept the blatant cheating and tax fraud of one club to protect the gross financial mismanagement of other clubs? Well in, Scottish football. Well in.