I was in swithering whether or not that the man from Oldenzaal was a cult hero or a player whose contribution to Celtic is often overlooked. I went with the later.

Why?

Any player that scores 38 league goals during two league winning seasons is more than a footnote and it’s only injuries plus what some would call a not pleasing on the eye style of play that is the reason he isn’t more widely regarded and missed.

Jan signed for £3.4m in August 2006 from PSV Eindhoven. This was a time when we could afford Champions League proven strikers and fully fledged Dutch Internationalists who were reaching the peak of their careers.

His debut was a sign of things to come. One down – to a Scott Brown goal – he came on during the second period to swing the game in our favour. He scored what was to prove the winning goal after Aiden McGeady had hit the post. The big man was the first to react to the rebound – he came alive in those situations – and slammed the ball home.

Then it happened. The grin that would have brought light to the darkest polar winter night. A joyous reaction of a player who loved his job and would never tire of the feeling his job gave him.

It was a heart warming reaction that we would see 44 times in 108 games.

A few weeks into career saw him score his first European goal for Celtic when he made Rio Ferdinand look foolish long before Roy Hodgson ever did. This goal disproves the lack of style theory so many have.

The collection of goals on the Celtic Viewer will remind you that he was a fantastic finsher and the sharpness of mind that only a natural striker can have. Off course for someone 6ft 3in he was pretty decent in the air but had that knack of finding space when others saw none.

In addition to that strikers instinct he had the genius of certain Nakamura trying to find him with cross balls.

The other thing that he is never given credit for was that he was Dutch meaning that he didn’t need a harpoon and a fishing net to trap a football. Add to that the very un-Dutch unselfish attribute that was part of the game then you had a player who was nothing short of valuable when fully fit (see his 51 goal season partnership with Scott McDonald).

Yes, he always seemed to be returning from knocks and his injury proneness saw the club not take the option of his final season.

Still, for a half-fit, injury prone, slow as a elephant in quicksand player he didn’t half score some important goals in what will be remembered as a successful period for the club as a whole.

His last minute winner against Inverness, which saw him get sent off for celebrating in the crowd, his double in the Scottish Cup Semi Final against St Johnstone, diving header against Barcelona, last minute winner against R*ngers and the league winning goal at Tannadice.

In this case first impressions lasted. My favourite moment was his debut goal. It summed him up. Enjoyable.

Jan Vennegoor Of Hesselink won two Leagues, a Scottish Cup and a League Cup. He left with more than medals.

“I truly believe I played for one of the biggest clubs in the world. Not too many people can say that and I’m proud to be one of the chosen few. I have treasured memories of my time at Celtic. When the day comes to reflect on my career, I will only have warm feelings about the club.”

That time has come.

As a giddy 12 year old returning from a sun soaked Hampden (in the time when our eco system ensured that when we played at Hampden it was sunny) I ran home, rewound the VHS tape and started watching the match again.

At the start of watching my only hope that the Tv did my love of Frank McAvennie and the fairytale of that centenary season justice.

It did more. It gave me the moment that sums up what Tommy Burns was all about.

4 years ago we lost Mr Celtic. Celtic have never lost him.

Growing up I loved black and white films. The atmosphere created from watching anything from Laurel and Hardy, The Marx Brothers, to dramas such as ‘Inherit the Wind’ (one of Spencer Tracey’s best performances) was great.

A classic is ‘Twelve Angry Men’. It is a film based on a play where 12 jury men sit in the room weighing evidence to a nicety, balancing probabilities and facing their own prejudices in an attempt to deliver a verdict in a serious case. The main character starts out standing alone against all the other members of the jury but, as he dissects the case, he begins to change votes one after another. He shows moral fibre and no little courage to stand against the other eleven. The main character was played by Henry Fonda. One of Hollywood’s all time good guys.

Years later in the late nineties, like most great films, it was re-made. This time the lead role was played by another Hollywood great; Jack Lennon in one of his last performances.

Almost fifteen years later Scottish football now produces its own version of the classic. Unfortunately we have taken the script and altered it considerably but, unlike the real thing, there is no perceptible leader within the jury. Indeed there does not appear to be anyone with any moral fibre or courage.

Again, unlike the original, everyone knows the evidence is irrefutable and there does not seem to be any dissenting voices regarding the guilt of the defendant.

Scotland’s unique version will be released on May 30th with a changed name of ‘Twelve Spineless Men’. This is the date SPL Chairmen vote on sanctions that are to be levied against a completely new football entity being voted straight into this country’s top league.

It is unprecedented, anywhere in football, that a newly formed club is immediately promoted over every other domestic club and placed into a national association’s top league.

Is there a Henry Fonda who will stand tall and turn the tide?

Don’t hold your breath because I certainly will not be holding mine.

Update: P.S. Just listened to Rod (Henry Fonda) Petrie on the BBC. Good on him.

Maybe we have all just found our champion!!

We seem to be finally approaching Hunageddon. Bidders and administrators agree that a CVA is looking unlikely (though both blame timescale and forget the creditors won’t agree) and one self serving egotistical bawbag – Brian Kennedy for those who haven’t been listening at the back – has even stated that the finances involved in a Newco are unworkable.

Kennedy pulled off an incredible piece of PR today. He told the natives of what they could have won(Souness & Smith) and they all left with their bus fare home. He threatened the administrators, which seems to be something the anyone connected or with the wish to be connected with the club seems to be good at. He made a play to be the ‘last man standing’ and I think he will be.

I also agree with CQN. FC Rangers Of Airdrie / Cowdenbeath / Queens Of The South will be in the SFL next season as it’s not financially viable and competitively prudent for them to be in the SPL.

Neil Doncaster and other assorted fruit cake chairmen and managers on-going party political broadcast about the need for a Newco in the league and the financial disaster of losing the SKY / ESPN deal -a deal that we are told is poor (something that I highlighted here months ago) – is rendered mute.

Does anyone else remember Neil Doncaster saying: “Attendances remain the lifeblood of Scottish football. We’re not blessed with the Tv deals some other leagues enjoy”. No, well you wouldn’t think it the way he has been acting.

Well, we need bums on seats. This was always going to be the case. This blog would have been written if we were talking about boycotts. I feel the need that we as a support need to fight for financial fair play in ticket prices as much as we needed to fight for sporting integrity over financial gain.

The league is at breaking point and it’s time this was put back on the agenda.

So how much more do our away fans get charged than other SPL clubs?

Rangers: £42. Other away fans are charged £28.

Aberdeen: £24 / £18 / £9. Other away fans are charged £23 / £17 / £9

Dundee United: £24 / £12. Same*

Dunfermline: £22 / £13. Other away fans are charged £20 / £12 (this has been reduced to £18 / £10 / £1 recently).

St Mirren: £25 / £15. Other away fans are charged £20 / £10.

Hearts: £29 / £19. Other away fans are charged £23 / £15 (Hearts also allow home fans in the Roseburn Lower for £17 / £13 and £23 / £15 for the higher).

Hibs: £28 / £17. Other away fans are charged £22 / £12.

Motherwell: £25 / £14. Other away fans are charged £22 / £14. (Motherwell are charging all fans £5 for their game on Sunday and do a family ticket for £25).

St.Johnstone: £23 / £11. Other away fans are charged £21 / £10.

Kilmarnock: £26 / £10 (they also charged £30 for the extra stand during the Championship winning game). Other away fans are charged £22 / £5.

Inverness: £25 / £20. Other away fans are charged £20 / £15 / £10.

*Please note that all figures are ones that I managed to get confirmed either from the clubs websites or fans that attended away games at the grounds. I fully understand that individual games may change.

So an adult going to watch Celtic will pay a total off £586 (for simplicity I have just assumed we play each other twice away). The SPL clubs will get an accumulated total of £490 from other fans. Over the course of the season Celtic fans approx give the SPL an extra £96 per head a season. Take an average of 5000 away fans per game that is £480,000 a season extra that we contribute to the SPL. Remember this figure is inflated as I calculated it being on 22 away games.

The cash cow is easy to spot.

So, what can we do to sort this? A blanket maxium admission price in the SPL must be brought in all (including the home fans whose clubs also hike up ticket prices when we visit). I would call for a blanket £15 / £5.

Remember that inflated figure? Well, do you know that it would only take an extra 32,000 fans over 38 games, an extra 843 per game to cover that loss? Also, say clubs lose £500,000 from a defunct Tv deal.
An extra 1851 per home game sorts that out.

So, teams should be looking to attract around 2700 extra fans every time they take the field.

Lower prices and correct prices will get fans back through the turnstyle. The Celtic Away support has been dwindling due to this extra charge being forced upon us. I’m sure the sold out signs would soon be seen again if we weren’t being used as the golden ticket.

I became well acquainted with the inner workings of Scottish football at a young age. The company my father worked for printed the matchday programmes during the 80s and early 90s. His boss was former Motherwell captain, Matt Thomson, a great man, who was enormously generous and it was not uncommon to find an ex-football player, having fallen on hard times, been given a job by the former full back.

Many a time I recall my father lamenting Jim Farry’s position as the SFA chief executive and, even then, it was widely known how corrupt and self-serving the SFA was. As a young teenager I recall my father calling me into the factory to aid in rectifying a printing error in a batch of programmes. A copyright symbol had inadvertently been replaced by a two-fingered peace sign (no doubt the work of a good Tim on the factory floor !) and Farry had threatened to sue if it wasn’t removed.

I earned 50 quid that day, spending an hour or so blotting out, with a black marker, the sign that Farry found so litigious. In years to come, Fergus would take a similarly offensive two-fingered sign and jam it right back up the SFA. The result was Farry being given his books in 1999, having being found guilty of deliberately stalling the registration of Jorge Cadete.

Current events are directly reflective of the standards (or lack thereof) that were implemented during the Farry era. The governing body of Scottish football continues to be mired in cronyism and pork barrel-style politicking. When Stewart Reagan was appointed in 2010, I was skeptical. He navigated the referee strike, but I felt he came across as largely impotent and bumbling. Only under the weight of massive outside pressure did Reagan, in his first real test of resolve, sack Hugh Dallas for circulating an email linking the Pope with child abuse.

Following this, celebrity scientist Richard Dawkins thought it appropriate to demonstrate his ignorance outside the biological sciences and damned the decision, describing the email as a “joke”. While I respected Dawkins’ defence of free speech, he unfortunately neglected to put his brain into gear before he put his mouth into motion.

What he failed to grasp was the context of the situation and how it removed the notion of any impartiality on the SFA’s behalf whilst stoking the flames of an already volatile, fractious religious divide in Glasgow. Innumerable incidents since have been unsuccessful in dispelling the notion that the SFA is simply not fit for purpose.

In the case of Reagan, I think he simply lacks the qualifications and mettle for a job that is way out of his league. Alex Thomson’s recent dissection of him was painful viewing as he continually stuttered at the interviewer’s questions and deflected blame.

Thomson a direct, well-respected, award winning journalist deserves praise in the face of criticism (from, well not the sharpest tools in the box) regarding the significance of his role in the Rangers debate. In my mind, the significance of Thomson is not how much fresh material he has generated, but the fact that he has brought the debate to a wider audience and, hopefully, encouraged UEFA to keep a closer eye.

The SPL and SFA are currently doing everything in their power to ensure Rangers survive. It is the most shocking display of prejudice and favouritism I’ve ever witnessed in sport. The SPL rules are undergoing revision that would allow a phoenixed Rangers to re-enter the top level of Scottish football with penalties, laughingly, regarded by some as overly punitive.

Considering the unpaid tax and debts they’ll leave behind, it’s a mere slap on the wrist. While the assertion is that Rangers survival is financially critical to the survival of the SPL, the real reason is far simpler. Rangers are the establishment team. Extrapolate further; their fan base in Scotland is a huge proportion of the electorate. The SPL, the SFA and the government all have to collude to allow them to survive in some form.

Scottish football fans were recently surveyed on how they would act if Rangers liquidate and are allowed to transfer their SPL league share to a Newco (http://www.splsurvey.co.uk/). Result ? They will vote with their feet. Any doubt of fair play in the Scottish game will be removed. If so, the governing bodies of the game will have achieved what they apparently sought to prevent by protecting their favourite club; the death of Scottish football.

As the season draws to a close, so reflection on an eventful year for Celtic begins. My recent unemployment, which I’m sure has afflicted many of you, has given me pause for thought regarding Celtic and this is proving to be both cathartic and enjoyable (at least for me, if not for you). I hope this will be one of a (staggered) three part post, focusing on the major issues that have impacted Celtic, and all of us, this season. The media/tax case, the role of the SFA/SPL (which may take some research given their consistent ineptitude) and finally, most importantly, footballing matters and what lies ahead.

Given the unfortunate magnitude of “non-footballing” events, it seems appropriate that we should begin our review there.

The demonisation of Neil Lennon has been well documented on this blog (http://thecelticblog.com/2012/03/blogs/the-demonisation-of-neil-lennon-part-one). Those of us that follow the English Premier League will be well aware of the misdemeanors that land the likes of Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger in tepid water. Why are two managers, so perpetually critical of officials, treated so leniently by the FA ? Transpose to the SPL and the reason is obvious:

Neither are Northern Irish Catholics that manage Celtic FC in Scotland.

This is a truth that is borne in fact and cannot be denied. I say this from the perspective of a protestant, Glasgow-raised, Celtic fan. There is no religious (or otherwise) bias here.

The main stream media (MSM), have been disgustingly complicit in the hatred and bile directed towards Neil Lennon. “Lennon is angry”. This sells newspapers. Amongst others, Hugh Keevins, Jim Traynor, Darrell King and, particularly in recent years, someone that cannot hide his hatred for all things Celtic, even at a charity event, Tom English. A man that has the audacity to call a colleague, whom has done more investigative journalism in 2 years than he has in his whole career, a “chancer”. Given the current circulation figures of his employers’ publication, I’d be more worried by my own performance.

The mainstream media is done. There is no such thing as informed, fact-based, journalism these days. Even the standards of the intelligentsia, like the Guardian are littered with lazy, poorly researched opinion articles.

The MSM’s ignorance regarding knowledge of events transpiring at Rangers is astounding. The general misconception is that the role of the First tier tribunal (FTT) is to ascertain whether or not HMRC find Rangers guilty of tax evasion/avoidance (the distinction could fill another post).

Apparently they cannot google “first tier tribunal”.

Rangers HAVE been presented with a tax bill by HMRC, who consider them guilty of tax evasion. The FTT is not to determine whether or not HMRC find them guilty of this crime. The FTT (perhaps the first of many) is made of up of 3 judges, in a civil court, that is considering Rangers’ APPEAL AGAINST HMRC’s verdict of guilty. The FTT (more specifically, the Tax chamber) considers appeals, it does not make the initial decision on a case.

I anticipate the decision going against Rangers. HMRC have pursued this vigorously. The actual amount and severity of the punishment is another matter. The guilty verdict is perhaps more important (explaining HMRC’s protracted pursuit) and sets an important precedent. HMRC have been embarrassed by high profile decisions going against them in recent years. We’re in the midst of a brutal recession and with grossly high unemployment figures the government cannot be seen to be taking a lenient stance on this.

Tainted titles. Indeed

You don’t really need a reason to put up a video of us winning the league but when it celebrates a Celtic Legend who never kicked a ball for us and the worst day in Hearts history then it’s extra special!

The 3rd of May 1986 is that day.

First video is us winning in the radioactive rain at Love Street. The second is from the STV series The Football Years and focuses on greeting Jambos.

Happy (belated) Albert Kidd Day!

“Well this could be the last time, This could be the last time, Maybe the last time, I don’t know. Oh no.”

The 1965 Rolling Stone hit: “The Last Time” was sampled by The Verve for their biggest hit: “Bitter Sweet Symphony”. The song propelled the band from Indie psychedelic funk stoners into pop royalty. Though the song changed their career it also caused them nothing but grief after it caught the attention of Allan Klein – The Stones crooked ex-manager – who sued successfully for plagiarism and The Verve earned not one penny.

Where am I going with this? Well, I think we can safely assume that Sunday was THE LAST TIME that we will play R*ngers 1872. Off course I am not deluded enough not to know that we won’t some day, some where play a team in blue who are from Govan and reside in Ibrox. But since it was THE LAST TIME it gave it an extra edge. An edge in a season that has seen us as a support get a Verve like break.

Yes, we expected financial meltdown and years of doom but liquidation?

But…..we had to win the last one. Not winning it would be our Bitter Sweet Symphony. Aye, we would go on to bigger things but that would stick in our throat. Winning was the perfect bookmark. A perfect end. The biggest GIRUY that we could ever hope to get.

We won the first and we won the last. In between we won, we drew and lost some usually to cheating.

The thing was that it wasn’t a stick on. No, sir after Ibrox a few weeks back when we were faced with a team of mercenaries who are trained in the magic of the old smoke and mirror trick, which will see them walk away to the detriment of the club, the fear was that they could produce one more performance to the watching suitors. They were in form. 4 wins on the spin so Sunday wasn’t us playing a team whose heads were elsewhere due to the problems at the club.

We were playing the 2nd best team in Scotland. Their wage bill though vastly reduced still ensures that is the case. Punishment indeed.

I’ve said many a time that Ibrox is in a parallel universe where normal rules of the game don’t apply. Since Walter Smith returned in 2007 and the drum of financial constraints was beaten with such constancy that it was never questioned we have only won there twice in the league. Lost 17 goals and only scored 8. Add to that the peculiar officiating that seems to take place.

We have committed 186 fouls at Ibrox in 11 games. This has seen us get 39 yellow and 4 red cards. Them? 165 fouls and 20 cards. For every 4.76 fouls we commit we see a player booked. It’s every 8.25 for them.

The MIB’s would be as well booking two of our players in the tunnel.

Callum Murray last time out at Ibrox saw them commit 19 fouls and gave one yellow card. We committed 14 fouls and saw two straight reds. Compare this to Sunday when our 13 fouls saw 1 booking in the last minute and their 9 fouls saw 2 yellows.

These stats meant I shouldn’t have read anything into the previous Ibrox game. We did have history and a phenomenal home record on our side.

Celtic lined up to face Rangers Swifts (Rangers history claim that the Swifts were the most successful reserve side ever, which shows the needless and completely pointless triumphalisim that surrounds that club and the clownshoes that follow them. Though the game was billed as The ever so successful Swifts the team sheet points it being a Rangers XI not just a reserve side) in 1888 at the Old Celtic Park in our first ever game and the first ever Old Firm Derby.

Renton Bhoy Neil McCallum scored with a header to opening the scoring. Celtic won by 3 clear goals. In the last ever Old Firm Derby we opened the scoring with a header and won by 3 clear goals. In another historical alignment my first ever derby in 1988, saw Billy Stark score the only goal of the game in a 1-0 victory. Sunday saw Charlie Mulgrew opening the scoring. Both used to play for Aberdeen.

We were magnificent. None of the goals were poor or the type of goals that we seem to concede. Mulgrew’s 9th goal of the season basically saw him execute one of the greatest diving headers I have seen. I’m sure its the first in air plank on the football pitch.

Commons showed none of the signs of nerves that a man who hasn’t scored this season should when he raced through on goal. His chip was a right good old gallus piece of skill worthy of a Hoop jersey in this fixture. That’s 3 goals he has scored against them. The last entry into the H*nskelper annual?

The third saw Rhys McCabe – The Scottish Xavi – get dispossessed and Sammy feed the ball to Hooper. Hooper still had loads to do and his finish was rocket like and the net strained to hold it.

Yes, we partied. My word we did. We had a lull after the third goal but…..it’s hard going laughing so much. Internal organs were nearly bursting after 60mins.

Sunday saw us surpass our home points total for last season. We have averaged 2.05 goals per game at home. We have only lost 6 goals all season at CP (Dundee United x 2, St Johnstone, Aberdeen, Dunfermline & Kilmarnock). We have only dropped 4 points all season at home to St Johnstone and Hibs.

Home comforts.

We are a beast at home. That beast ensured that the history books will have an Old Firm definitive ending and one that we shall remember for many a year.

This could be the last time sang Jagger. It’s a bitter sweet symphony sang Ashcroft. Don’t look back in anger boomed the PA at the final whistle.

It was a perfect cacophony.

I left Scotland 10 years ago. It’s always difficult to be away when the Rangers games hit even though I can access the best sports betting sites.

I’m particularly pensive when it comes to playing “them”. I don’t think anyone was expecting Sunday’s result. Rag…. and doll.

Being an ex-pat, these games are especially significant to me; a special opportunity to hear the Celtic support at their best and, from a distance, wins or lose, revel in everything that is Celtic.

The games over here are early, 8 hrs behind most of your selves. I’ve slept through a few, following a few shandies the night before. After a loss, I’m as disappointed as Aberdeen having thoroughly collapsed after the departure of Ferguson.

Well, they had Eoin Jess..at one point.

Buildings in San Francisco have to be “up to code”, ie. they are retrofitted so that if another earthquake occurs they will endure. A Celtic win seeks to challenge those boundaries. If someone slams their car door outside the whole apartment building, literally, shakes. That is the safest response to an earthquake. Roll with the punches rather than be static. If Celtic win, or score, what would barely be audible back home is amplified to the point of someone shouting in your ear like a mad man.

Back to football.

It doesn’t matter what state “they” are in. EVERY Rangers game is a big game. The “Can’t win the big games” crowd were silenced on Sunday (if they were ever vocal in the first place). It’s a ridiculous notion I’ve never subscribed to and is generally the opinion of fairweather fans. Sunday was significant.

Following our previous encounter, where we were mercilessly bullied, something of a paradigm shift occurred. McCoist relies on outdated tactics and a team populated by unskilled “hammer throwers”. This system is easily rattled by opposition that press high up the pitch and that attempt to play football.

Scottish football is rarely that adventurous and Walter Smith instilled somewhat of an “Immortals” mentality that has prevented teams from doing the logical; comprehensively breaking them down with some kind of intelligent attacking formation.

Enter Neill Francis Lennon. The oldest cliché in football is that attack is the best form of defence. Following a rather even opening exchange, Lennon deployed the classic Martin O’Neill 3-5-2. The result was devastating. Quite simply, Lennon saw where the play was going and outthought McCoist (ironically something that the more rigid O’Neill was unable to do in certain games). Rangers were absolutely dominated from beginning to end.

We’re entering interesting times as Celtic fans. The most significant period since 67 (Seville/stopping 9IAR in my time). I truly believe this was our last game against them.

In years to come, to your children and grandchildren, you’ll recall the 6-2, where Henrik gloriously chipped Klos. However, if you have the time, take a moment to recall the 3-0 at Parkhead; the final nail in an otherwise spectacularly punctured coffin.

Trying to keep up with the desperate attempts of the Scottish media to excuse certainly one, and possibly over ten, years worth of financial doping by Rangers is nigh on impossible.

One headline in particular recently caught my attention. It was the headline “This will be the last Old Firm played on a level playing field”.

This is what is now considered ‘a level playing field’ by some of the Scottish press;

A club has had a large tax bill levied against it for issues going back over a decade and yet continues to buy players instead of setting money aside to pay it.

The same club has a small outstanding tax bill and agree to pay it, then not pay it.

The same club can agree to buy players from more than one club and not pay fully for them.

The same club can agree to sign players on loan and not pay the loan fee.

The same club can get goods and services from lots of small businesses in their local area and not pay for them leaving these businesses themselves in a perilous state.

The same club does not pay income tax to HMRC after it has deducted it from its employees’ salaries in order to keep the business going.

The same club does not pay National Insurance to HMRC after it has deducted it from its employees’ salaries in order to keep the business going.

The same club does not split the ticket revenue for a Scottish cup game with the opposition as per the rules of the competition.

The same club accepts tickets for away league games, sells the tickets, and does not forward the cash to the home team.

The same club has a business model which is dependent on entry to the group stages of the Champions League to balance the books but when this policy fails they continue to buy players knowing that this is going to create a bigger black hole in their balance sheet.

The same club enters administration and, unlike every other football club in this position, has no players made redundant. Indeed they attempt to sign one.

The same club, when in administration, virtually blackmails its own players into taking hefty wage cuts to allow the footballing side of the business to carry on untouched.

When the governing body investigates some of the above issues and delivers a judgement the team manager goes on television in a blatant attempt to instigate trouble demanding to know the names of the anonymous board members despite the fact that the names are known within the club itself.

The same club allows one of its ambassadors to threaten other clubs as well as the governing organisation using terms like ‘we will remember those who kicked us when we were down’ and ‘we will not forget or forgive’.

This is what now passes for ‘a level playing field’ in Scotland where adopting fiscal prudence along with a robust business model is for everyone else.

Ripping off your competitors by taking their players to make you stronger, them weaker, and not pay for them is a must.

Paying Tax and National Insurance is for saps.

Fleecing smaller businesses is standard practice.

Bully anyone who says you are wrong in what you are doing. Threaten them and make sure your friends in the media give it as wide an audience as possible to intimidate everyone.

Decisions over the next couple of weeks, whether it is the new penalties on insolvency or the appeal to the recent judgement, will determine whether there really is a level playing field for all or whether the sport we all love is finished in this country.

The media still don’t get it.

Lose one club or lose the sport entirely.

This is what is at stake here.