RANGERS fans today gave a tentative welcome to plans to play some of the Ibrox club's games on Friday nights.
But the SPFL, the new governing body of Scottish football, has been warned not to tinker with kick-off times too much. Satellite broadcaster BT Vision has the rights to screen Gers' matches in the Second Division next season. And they are keen to show Ally McCoist's team in action on Friday night during the 2013/14 campaign.
The new unified police force has softened its stance on Celtic and Rangers playing its games on a Friday night. The joint deal with BT Vision and Sky could be worth up to £7million to our senior clubs over the next four years.
Drew Roberton, spokesman for the Rangers Supporters' Association, has welcomed the injection of cash into the game in this country. However, he believes switching Rangers games to a Friday evening could prevent many fans from attending.
Roberton said: "I can't say I'm overly enthusiastic about Rangers playing games on a Friday night. I am a traditionalist. I would like to see a return to all games kicking off at 3pm on a Saturday afternoon and 7.45pm on a Wednesday evening.
"But I suppose that, at the end of the day, if the clubs and the football authorities accept television cash there is not very much fans can do about it.
"I appreciate how important television income is to clubs. In the current economic climate it is absolutely vital. Clubs draw up their budgets based on the television income they have."
Roberton added: "But I don't imagine that Rangers fans who travel from a fair distance, from Northern Ireland and the north of England, will be very happy about this."
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