Rengade Master

Morning Ross You will find I generally don't make too many comments regarding what's going on on the pitch, I didn't think Grant was the right appointment nor Yogi, but we as fans have no influence on the board in their appointments. We the fans can only hold them to account in respect of their decisions. Football has changed dramatically especially over the last 10 years or so, and so have supporters. The biggest factor I feel is as supporters we supported our team, abused, berated the opposition players, fans, management and officials. Nowadays the abuse is directed to our own (same with most clubs) and this comes as we have seen on social media, on the pitch, at home even buying petrol or going to the shops. Stevie Crawford, John Potter and Ross have all spoken about it. For young players on a football pitch living in a social media driven environment it must be god damn bloody awful having your life scrutinised by some awful people. Imagine 2 players from the club now owning clubs and pubs in the town and working in them most nights...........In those days John and Norrie were heroes win, lose or draw and you would find many players and club staff out enjoying themselves and mingling with fans and happy to speak about on and off field shenanigans. However, scepticism into current events I don't think is a bad thing with recent events at the club and common situations with Hearts and any club who has had investors show an interest or buy into or all the club. Newcastle under Mike Ashley is another example. The initial team after administration, Purvis, Leishman, Garmory and a few others made assurances to the fans that this will never be allowed to happen again. The club was run quite successfully in that guise for a number of years with good teams and promotion battles. We now have a club in freefall these guys have gone a new regime in (to a degree) yes devoted supporters and certainly good guys, but the club is not in as good a place as when they took over. The future is where to look and to try and foresee is impossible as fans. But to blindly accept this is the best way forward unchallenged with no plan (except a training ground) is naive. Surely hearing things like we want to invest in the team and have granted additional funds to the manager to allow him to strengthen the team to prevent relegation as this can not be allowed to happen to our great club. We have Meggle using his extensive knowledge of German football to recruit some players until the end of the season ? My final line, a con man/woman doesn't walk into your home and tells you he's here to con you out your life savings. 9/10 they build up trust with you and all around you and they are the most charming person you have had the pleasure to meet. By the time you and those around you have realised they have totally mugged you off they are long gone, and you have the silent folk standing around saying I knew there was something not right but I was told to shut up, or I didn't say anything. With no emotional attachment in business it is even easier as it is nearly always financially driven, as long as money is being flashed everything is going to be great. I would like to think I'm way off the mark. Maybe I have done too much digging into a lot of the things around the club. But I remain sceptical.

ok all understood, like I say I've missed or can't recall a lot of those discussions or press releases/board statements. Good for it to be cleared up. From the above document regarding EEP does that still remain current and correct do you know?

Sorry you are correct PUCIC can appoint 2 of the directors to PUEEP. But the dilution of share issue has consequences to PUEEP and does appear to against the original resolution. https://dafc.co.uk/pdf/Pars_United_Q&A_East_End_Park.pdf

Yes Berry, I believe a formal request to lift the restrictions in all stadia has been made to SG to allow crowds to be allowed in on Saturday. The argument is well founded on how can 2000 in EEP on Saturday be any worse than 60.000 in Celtic park on Monday evening.

One of the overruling decisions on EEP is that only club directors can be considered to join the other 3 directors or replace the directors on the board of EEP. Current valuation of EEP is ridiculously low. Certain other factors which are probably not best discussed on a public forum concern but we shall see.

That is my concern. GmbH have only bought/invested in the clubs name and the current players. They have nothing else to show for their investment. Leasehold is very much different to owning the training ground. Bob Garmory I think it was who said after the last administration that we must not ever let the club get to a situation where an individual is able to do what GM did to our club, and a 49/51% ownership of shares was put in place. With the PST holding 30% of those shares. The investment is very much welcome but still can't quite understand how a guy from Germany who has spent his life in shipping investments, who seems to have very little involvement in football previously and no connections with the town suddenly decides to invest (with very little hope of a return) in a provincial club in the 2nd tier of Scottish Football during a Global pandemic.

Previously however with changes announced on a Tuesday they have almost nearly all started at midnight on a Thursday/Friday or 4am on a Friday, including travel, supporters and hospitality. Celtic and Hibs playing Monday night had no bearing on this you tell me? They've had weeks of scientific data from England to show that fans in outdoor stadiums have had little or no effects on transmission as Scotland currently has higher rates than most of England despite not even having stadiums open.

So basically every director, investor and share holder has agreed to a share dilution? Interesting I can't remember the PST mentioning this or agreeing to it. Who may I ask owns the ground at the moment and is that totally separate and what is the share balance here and are GmbH investing in the ground? What stake are GmbH taking in the training ground complex and how will the ownership be defined? Separate company or merged in as part of the club. I'm concerned that eventually GmbH will own 80% of the club something that we were told would never be allowed to happen again and the whole reason the PST were allowed to take a 30% stake in the club.

Theres an idea.

The lower leagues weren't threatening to play their games in England were they! So no F's given. Still no breaks for hospitality though! No restrictions for supporters buses or in the grounds but theatres, cinemas and restaurants have to run at 1/5th capacity making them unviable. 52 folk in a coach for 2 hours fine singing, chanting and chatting, 6 people from 3 households 2 metres apart from the next table eating in a restaurant fine. Madness!

Think it might do the lad good if he gets some confidence back into his football. If he starts banging them in for Arbroath however it will bring up some painful questions as to what is so wrong at EEP. It's also something in itself that Dick can see a striker in him that Yogi can't. Dare say it would suit Wighton too, if he does help them get promoted and we get relegated he will surely be released or have a release clause.

Raymie, as a businessman I need an up and running economy, looking after over 400 hospitality venues who are earning no money due to these draconian measures affects me and my clients immensely. If it is any consolation we are now now looking after the Network Rail environmental services and that unfortunately means all the train strikes, we are averaging 4 suicides a week and they have been at unprecedented levels for the last 18 months and that is the side of things that no-one is speaking of but we are seeing at first hand. The average age is 23 it's bloody tragic. As for Boris, if Nichola was getting as much attention from the media as he is then you wouldn't be able to split them for some of the rule breaks, but this is the final straw for Boris. Cheerio.

So how are England managing? Far more sporting events far bigger crowds etc. Is this a hidden admission the Scottish NHS is in a far bigger mess than England? She has expressed an interest to going to the Calcutta Cup at Murrayfield on 6/2/22, I don't know if that is supposed to be a wink in the direction towards Scottish Rugby that they don't need to book St James Park. The 3 week review in not until the 17/1/22, no restrictions have been lifted earlier than an official review date so I wouldn't expect anything today except encouragement for an announcement,ent next week.

Reading now SPL clubs are exploring the options of playing their games over the border once the winter break is over if the restrictions are left at 500 supporters. https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/sport/football/8240286/scottish-premiership-clubs-considering-moving-games-england-fan-restrictions/ Would the threat of this happening have any bearing on future decisions? It would certainly make a mockery of the rules if you had coaches full of fans travelling down to the North East and North West to play there games and I don't think they would struggle to fill the stadiums even with local representations. 2-3 hours will get you to Burnley, Sunderland, Bolton, Blackburn, Newcastle, Middlesborough all big stadiums.

They also have links with Kaufland.

Once again it has to be asked who applied for the job, was Yogi really the best candidate, or was the choice made on an old reliable set of safe hands to get us through the season. Because it's not working, and I think this may well be the problem with the players, they have not been brought up playing for old school managers, the modern game even at grass root level is far more modern than what many think. Getting a modern player to start playing against the way they have been coached from a young age is going to be difficult, buying into it when you are not playing your best and losing games even harder. Where Stevie was probably a lot better after his time at Plymouth where they are a lot further ahead with the that side of things, SC would have had a bit of both sides to his coaching. John Collins had the same issue at Hibs as did to a degree Stephen Kenny with us, modern managers with older players, we have now gone full circle older manager younger players.

https://www.theoffsideline.com/questions-government-bail-out/ Never realised that. Obviously makes the comment below a little bit obscure. Why would the SNP do anything to help a bunch of Pish Drinking Tory Weirdos 😂

Wow what a generalisation that is, Rugby is a subject to a definition of class! Who knew! Either way surely the pro active approach they have considered to circumnavigate the stupid 500 fan rules should be welcomed if it is going to benefit all sports desperately in need of the income supporters bring. As we can see in our current transfer activity, it's one in for one out. Would we have been able to increase the squad, add better, pay slightly higher if we'd had the added income from fans over the festive period, possibly. Could not having those additional funds hamper our fight over relegation, possibly. Ultimately if we do get relegated what could the long term effects of all this be on the club, players, staff etc The short term inconvenience to fans could lead to massive implications to the club.

I think Scottish Rugby has a lot to thank for this if it happens, they were already looking at playing their home games in Newcastle if the restrictions were in force for the 6 Nations starting on 6th February.

Surprised by this and the fact he is even interested in it. Thought he would be aiming a little higher after all he knocked back the rangers job, thought he would at least wait for a premiership team, no certainty that Kilmarnock will go back up this season unless he can make some serious additions to their squad.

Actually saw it on the BBC News site where they show the front pages of the days papers. But obviously not reported by the BBC! I'll never be older than you 😉

Front page of the Sunday post this morning. https://www.sundaypost.com/

USA 5 Day Isolation. UK (except Scotland) 7 day Isolation. Scotland 10 day isolation. That is what is causing that issue Raymie.

Scotland has some of the counties with the highest case rates in the UK despite the draconian restrictions we have been living with for months. According to records released half the people going to hospital are only testing positive when they arrive and not going to hospital because of covid. I saw a figure yesterday saying that in the whole UK only 20 people were in hospital currently solely because of covid and most likely the Delta variant as its symptoms are a little more severe. If Omicron was so severe as football fan we are all aware of the amount of players in teams testing positive, as soon as they have finished isolation they are back in the team, doesn't sound like they have just been battling a life threatening disease if they are playing football at an elite level 7 days after catching it! As for EEP being a danger to 2-400 fans sitting outside in a 12,000 seated stadium, but thousands sitting in the Ally Pally watching the darts isn't, how does that make any sense. Had it 4 weeks ago was like a nasty cold with 3 bad days nothing normal cold remedies couldn't keep on top off. Update from figures today. Only one person in Scotland has required ICU care for Omicron and less than 100 have required hospital treatment.

Berry Very valid points, but from personal experience the club does not welcome professional volunteers easily or willingly. Very similar to sponsorship, it was damn near impossible to speak to anyone within the club about sponsorship opportunities and costs involved. As said spending money on 1 or 2 of the right people could easily save the club money and potentially make a lot more.