In my youth the term “C4” meant something that made a big bang.
These days it means Channel 4, specifically their flagship news programme.
Regular readers here will know that I am of the opinion that when it comes to Planet Fitba journalism in Scotland has been inert for as long as I can remember.
The impulse to uncover and publish about the soccer establishment in Glasgow ,was defused a long time ago.
This cosy arrangement gave everyone a quiet life.
There was an understanding that there wasn’t anything that was going to go off unexpectedly.
That is why the Dallas email story broke the rules and the Mark Daly documentary was highly atypical.
The allegations made by Hugh Adam, that undisclosed payments to players at Rangers were the norm at the club from the 1990s, begged for a serious news organisation to get involved.
Despite the impressive façade at Edmiston Drive and Hampden I haven’t been convinced since the Dallas email story that the foundations were secure.
For the last two years I have waited to see what another tremor would do to the superstructure of Planet Fitba.
Tonight at 19.00hrs we might see the impact of a well-placed charge on C4.
A charge of cheating…
Jimmy1940
When theives fall out the truth eventually pops up it’s ugly head.!!
April 25, 2013 at 12:09 am
MartyD
DailyMash getting in on the act
http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/sport/sport-headlines/celtic-set-to-sneer-at-grubby-stadium-201203235049/
March 23, 2012 at 10:03 am
jayeff
well done again phil
March 22, 2012 at 7:41 pm
jayeff
c4 didnt do 2 well on phil,stuff we already know about,ah think theyre running scared of u well done 2 u phil a oneman typing legend hail hail
March 22, 2012 at 7:39 pm
franAg donnelly
eh, DAVY the illegal payments and contracts started in 1995 according to HUGH ADAM .
March 22, 2012 at 12:36 pm
David
Just a quick observation (and these are FACTS);
Hugh Adam resigned from the RFC board on 30 September 2000.
The first payments to the Rangers Employee Benefit Trust were made in the year ended 30 June 2001.
The first payments to the Murray Group Management Ltd Remuneration Trust were made in the year ended 30 June 2002.
In light of this, Mr Adam, how on earth have you any idea how these trusts were operating when you had already left the board before they started?
If that’s the best our beloved media can come up with & that’s their “star” witness, its pretty clear there’s no case to answer.
March 21, 2012 at 11:27 am
David
I love all these comments, clearly from Celtic supporters, who claim some sort of favourable relationship betwwen the SFA & RFC when two of the board of the SFA are also on the board at Celtic; Peter Lawwell & Eric Reilly.
I may be wrong but I don’t believe RFC have any current directors on the SFA board?
Its also amusing listening to them go on about uncovering the truth about underhandedness at RFC when their own majority shareholder Dermot Desmond has been found out as a fraudster in Ireland by the Moriarty Inquiry & information has, as recently as yesterday, been passed to the SPL/SFA in relation to third party payments made to ex-Celtic players Roy Keane & Robbie Keane by him (for which he has famously, by his own admission, been quoted as saying he “paid them from his own pocket”) – 3rd party payments against the rules?
Lets see if the media pick up on this as eagerly as they have against the other side of the Old Firm. After all, its only allegations against RFC, but there’s real proof against CFC.
March 21, 2012 at 11:02 am
Mark
If Celtic have done anything wrong in terms of contracts to players then I welcome an enquiry.
What Rangers fans like yourself fail to grasp is that this is beyond whataboutery.
The Scottish game needs to be cleaned up. What Rangers have done to our league is disgraceful. It’s story after story of mismanagement and scandal.
If found guilty of tax avoidance I would hope Rangers face the worst possible punishment from our governing body. We need our sporting integrity back. If this means all the other clubs in the SPL cutting our cloth accordingly because there’s no longer a Rangers in our league, then so be it.
And any other club found guilty of not following the rules should also face serious punishment.
March 22, 2012 at 6:49 pm
roythebhoy
Listening to the retort from Stewart Regan to Alex Thomson’s question on how the SFA ensure compliance, I felt that SR was correct in stating that it was unreasonable to expect the SFA to check every appointment and contract arrangement but………………using best practice it is certainly not unreasonable to expect a governing body to conduct regular audits of their member clubs in the same way a business would their vendors.
My suspicion is that the SFA have no policy or procedure even to this effect. It’s reasonable to suspect (and there’s plenty evidence throughout time to corroborate) that a rogue organisation would see this as a loophole to exploit a system.
What I’m saying is that neglect of a moral, if not legal duty may be evident here and Mr Regan may have chosen the wrong person to argue semantics with.
Let’s all keep our shovels handy, there’s more dirt to dig here I’m sure.
March 21, 2012 at 10:57 am
petegrant
Phill C4 last night ,nothing i dident know
but then i read your work,yav been been a one man band
and a good one at that,as for celtic men in the sfa
and the like, always in the minorty.great work Top Cat
March 21, 2012 at 9:10 am
George Collins
Although I was disappointed with Alex Thomson on C4 last night, I suppose the best way to look at it is to realise that this program is going to be watched, mainly, by English people, so, therefore, there wouldn’t be quite the spotlight we’re all looking for. However, it was watched by perhaps millions. By putting the story into the limelight like this, no matter how much we’d like to see a full scale banging-down-the-doors of the corridors of Scottish powers, they’ve at least put it on the map. Here’s hoping the torch is carried on from here.
March 21, 2012 at 8:36 am
George Collins
Graeme : the point is mentioned in my post. Rangers are the ones being investigated for tax-evasion and for non-registering of players. Therefore, the spotlight is on them to prove that (a) Ogilvie et al weren’t being duplicitous in occupying positions of strength to hide or misdirect evidence pointing to breaches of rules or evidence of criminality (b) the S.F.A. hasn’t indulged in collusion with Rangers and its directors to hide evidence of wrongdoings or criminality relating to said actions. The S.F.A. must be seen to be transparent. Of course it can’t be impartial, as the nature of the beast means that members from different clubs will form part of the make up of the association. Celtic will be represented (they would need to be, given the history of antipathy, at best, towards Celtic)- as they should be. I may be wrong, but I detect a hint of Celtic/S.F.A. bias in your post; a notion that has gained ground in recent years for no discernible reason. Because Rangers don’t get as many decisions as they used to – what with employer equality rules, a U.K. and Europe-wide desire to stamp out intolerance, and rumblings about financial clarity from UEFA bigwigs – doesn’t mean that there is a papist/taig/fenian/bead-rattlin’ conspiracy. How many Rangers managers have been Scotland boss? How many Celtic managers have been Scotland boss? Why is it that Rangers and Scotland swap members regularly? Isn’t there something peculiar going on when Gordon Smith can walk into his Scotland position then, when it all goes pear-shaped, walk into Rangers? And this at a time when there has been obvious deviousness going on at Ibrox. (Owning up to using those EBTs is, in effect, an admission of guilt. According to the SFA’s rules, that is.)
March 21, 2012 at 8:27 am
graeme
@ george collins
the relationship between the sfa and Rangers? lol. is this the sfa that peter liewell and eric riley are involved with as well as being celtic directors? lol.
March 20, 2012 at 11:59 pm
George Collins
It’s good to see the S.F.A. deliberately trying to shift the focus from Rangers onto Scottish football in general by asking for details of all clubs’ activities financially. This is a disgrace. They’re supposed to be dealing with Rangers, the question at hand. This shows clear bias, along with the refusal to look into Rangers accounts. Unless we press hard, those scumbags are going to try to sweep everything under the carpet – again.
March 20, 2012 at 11:53 pm
tambutnotbam
Alex Thomson just turned the tap on tonight and I believe that will escalte to a stream, a river to be follow-followed by a flood of proof of what so many of us have always accused the SFA and the SPL and Rangers to be part of…………..I dont want to say anything stronger as it may not pass the mods………..But Chanel 4 tonight is just the beginning.
Well done Alex Thomson and boy oh boy did Stewart Regan not look petrified in front of camera : )
March 20, 2012 at 10:28 pm
Gordon Irvine
I think that was just not a very incisive report – more a round up of stuff we already knew and I was more uncomfortable with a very frail Hugh Adams in front of the camera than Regan.
March 21, 2012 at 12:35 am
tommy
Mick – you forgot to start your reply with the words “Once upon a time !!” lol
Seriously the games a bogey if this mob walk.
March 20, 2012 at 9:33 pm
Andybhoy
I think the c4 news was for little England and not us up here,we know as much as the next guy up here but down south they are not up to speed,,I think they were just laying the foundations for bigger stuff to come out,
March 20, 2012 at 9:32 pm
Mick Curran
Seems to me,despite all the mis-deeds,regardless of the wrongdoing they are going to make deals with HMRC, Whytes’ walking away considerably wealthier, Ticketus get their money back, the raided pension pot is replenished, Dunfermline,Dundee Utd. and Inverness Caley receive their dues, Strathclyde police are paid in full,players contracts are reinstated,the administrators take their £1m+ fees, the EBT scam will be not provan and the double conracts laughed at. Tell me I’m wrong Phil. I need to be convinced again, or I’m going to be hiding in a very dark place.
March 20, 2012 at 8:49 pm
Sean O'Coinin
It wasn’t Earth shattering stuff there tonight, but I got the distinct impression that C4 News were posting this story tonight knowing that they will have a huge number of follow ups in the pipeline.
March 20, 2012 at 8:47 pm
willie
Well that was a damp squib. A compete waste of time. This lot are going to walk from this.
March 20, 2012 at 7:56 pm
PaulMc
Be calm Willie. It was only the opening salvo from a proper journalist. I fully believe there is much more to come.
March 20, 2012 at 11:59 pm
gordon
I spoke to the journo on twitter and said there was nothing new in his report. He said that I was not watching and said “Hately, Regan and a new accusation from Adams” Hately? An ex player giving an opinion is not exactly a big news story.
I think it is pretty clear cut.
Rangers probably survive
The tax tribunal makes a decision
If Rangers have been cheating then they lose the trophies won under the years they were cheating
Move on with better rules in place
March 21, 2012 at 11:29 am
George Collins
Disappointed with C4′s showing. I expected more about the relationship between the S.F.A. and Rangers. (I haven’t been watching the C4 news every night, so I can’t say if they have already mentioned this.) Instead, we got the usual platitudes about how Scottish football needs to look at itself (from the Scots featured). Having said that, it does bring Rangers into the spotlight, where, hopefully, we can expose them to some probing examinations. Maybe Alex is just easing them in gently.
March 20, 2012 at 7:48 pm
aldobhoy67
Come on c4 give us the unbiased news instead of the usual pr drivel served up in Scotland
March 20, 2012 at 7:21 pm
brunobhoy
The establishment wagons were circling again last night at Govan as yet another Scottish first minister came to the rescue. Henry McLeish said Rangers were coming back from their predicament (and this is before they even know the size of the problems). Where were all these fine politicians when Celtic were facing the end? And, does Gordon Smith pick up directorships based on his looks?
March 20, 2012 at 4:45 pm
peter john edwards
Thanks for the reminder Phil ,HAIL HAIL
March 20, 2012 at 4:38 pm
Timabhouy
go get them channel 4
March 20, 2012 at 4:37 pm
Peter D
Has anyone noticed that the scottish press have been very quite since four or five of them had a nice roast lunch at mintys expence, it now seems that everything is good in the land of the orc but lets hope its anything but.
March 20, 2012 at 4:22 pm
philmac48
Looking forward to the news item and the repercussions.
March 20, 2012 at 3:57 pm
Duff
Alex Thompson well respected journalist, has he found the smoking gun Phil? Should be a good watch!
March 20, 2012 at 3:57 pm
Mark
Interesting stuff Phil, I don’t get CH4 over on this side of the Atlantic but I’ll be checking the internet forums and blogs to see what this revelation will be. Hopefully it’s another nail in RFC coffin!
March 20, 2012 at 3:56 pm
Mouldy67
Let the charges commence
March 20, 2012 at 3:45 pm
joe macdougall
You,ve hit the nail on the head for too long the media here in
scotland have been totally and unashamedly happy to agree with
all that has been said by those at ibrox and the sfa. Time for a proper enquiry into all that’s gone on
March 20, 2012 at 3:44 pm
VinnyCSC
I will wait and see. This story has stagnated and all you hear now is that someone is going to rescue them and it will be business as usual next year.
March 20, 2012 at 3:41 pm
Pedro Agathe
Hoping that that the 7pm C4 News isn’t another damp squib. There seems to be the some sort of revelation every other day, whilst you’ve got the rest of the media proclaiming a fourth bid for the good ship dignity.
March 20, 2012 at 3:39 pm
Dean Mckenzie
I actually thought there would have been something written in the tabloids about the biggest story of cheating since caster semenya won the ladies 800m with a bigger package than john holmes. Scottish media for you, probably tucking into a nice bit succelent lamb at the time lol
March 20, 2012 at 3:23 pm
john m
I can hear the rattle of the olivetti springing to life as the red tops continue to print the PR nonsense still flushing out of Ibroke. We have more bids for something without a price with an unknown debt unknown preferred creditor unknown owner of seats and an unknown future as old friends break ranks and expose double dealings. Vultures dont eat live flesh they wait til the last breath….
March 20, 2012 at 3:19 pm
Tommy McCormick
Hopefully it be more enlightening than last nights Radio5s damage limitation exercise.
March 20, 2012 at 3:17 pm
martin brennan
It was a travesty, blatant refusal to face reality. Politicians, former footballers and former directors all pretending that this was an act of God rather than financial malpractice. The presenter accepted every specious argument as gospel. BBC standards plumetted to an all-time low. If Carlsberg did pandering to bigots – they’d hire R5 to do it for them.
March 20, 2012 at 5:59 pm
Phil Mac Giolla Bhain
In fairness to the Beeb it was their docu last year that did for Whyte.
March 20, 2012 at 6:02 pm