Murray: Boycott by fans will make money an issue

NEW Rangers chairman Malcolm Murray says he'd be a "madman" to say that working capital would not be an issue if fans carry out their threat of boycotting the club.

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And he admits that it would be "naive" to say the players will stay with the club if there is no guarantee of SPL football.

The Rangers Supporters Trust has called for fans to hold off renewing season tickets as they try to force Charles Green to accept a £6million offer from former manager Walter Smith and his backers.

Green's Sevco consortium bought the club's assets with £5.5m believed to be in the form of a loan that the club pays back, having paid £2 for Craig Whyte's now worthless majority shareholding.

Murray who has admitted they might "think about" an offer from Smith's consortium if it meant the Sevco group doubled its money, called for unity.

"Working capital could be an issue but it is not at the moment," he said. "If nobody turns up at games, then it would be a madman to say that working capital isn't an issue.

"Emotions are running out of control at the moment, common sense will prevail and I am quite sure they will realise everything's positive and if we get on the same page it is for everyone's benefit.

"I've never seen a situation where a company exists for 24 hours and then there's a bid for it involving an attempt to get the customers who have been harassed and harangued, going through hell for four months, to boycott it."

He said manager Ally McCoist had a tough job to motivate players to stay with the club "when you can't tell them where (which division) you're playing in".

He said: "Will players stay? They are on holiday. There are agents everywhere. It would be naive of me to say they will stay. I think if we can retain top tier status, a significant amount will stay.

"If the doomsday Third Division was to happen, it would not be fair to ask inter-national players to play there. But I don't want to talk about that."

Asked if they had factored in the possibility of Third Division football in their business plan, he said: "We are putting it in as a low probability.

"It's the wrong way to go for the whole of Scottish football. Anyone with any numerical ability would know that. That's just vengeance on Rangers fans and the new team and management for errors and mis- judgments of a few individuals in the past.

"Division Three is not going to help the national team or anything else."

Asked if Sevco would still be around if the club had to start in the Third he said: "Yeah, I would think so. But I don't want to predict that will happen.

"We are not just trying to get off the hook for the sins of the past. Correctional activities are much better than continual punishment."

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