IT is good to talk.

The lines of communication between Newcastle and Glasgow have been open for some time - and they are only likely to get busier.

The ties that bond Newcastle United and Rangers could well be broken, well some of them at least, in the coming days but the main one - Mike Ashley - will not be weakened.

With close Ashley allies Derek Llambias and Barry Leach still ensconced inside Ibrox and five Toon kids on the books, although only one on the field, there is more than a hint of black and white alongside the blue and red.

Representatives from the Newcastle United Supporters Trust have been in contact with their peers on this side of the border for some time.

But it is the discussions between Ashley and Dave King that will be the most important communications, with Rangers' prospects in the short and long-term very much on the line.

With commercial and merchandise deals signed and sealed and weighted in his favour, Ashley holds the aces in the pack as King looks to strike a deal.

After seeing the Cockney billionaire enhance his position as the power behind the throne in recent months as he became Rangers' bank of last resort, Rangers now need him to loosen his grip.

Taking a step back, giving rather than taking, is not how Ashley has made his cash, though, and while his shareholding in Rangers remains relatively small, his importance cannot be underestimated.

"I have looked into him in the financial papers as well as the sports pages and he isn't going to negotiate, he doesn't do that," NUST vice-chairman Peter Fanning told SportTimes.

"For us, our biggest gripe is that he doesn't apply the same kind of ruthless ambition to the football club that he does to Sports Direct.

"It is clear that Newcastle United are just a marketing tool for his main business interest.

"We are watching from a distance but the Rangers situation has little impact on what he does at Newcastle.

"What he does at Rangers is of interest to some of us who can see there is a bigger picture here. The day to day fans, to be honest, are not interested.

"He owns our club, it is his club and he can do with it what he wants.

"Our attempts to get him to explain himself or to do things differently, or just to talk to us, don't get anywhere. He ignores us."

The Ashley influence at Ibrox may diminish in the coming days when Llambias and Leach, two of his trusted lieutenants from Tyneside and his business empire, finally head for the exit door and King, Paul Murray and John Gilligan assume control.

After seeing his attempts to increase his shareholding in Rangers to 29.9% knocked back by the SFA last year, Ashley was this week fined £7500 by the Hampden hierarchy for breaching dual ownership rules.

Just hours later, Rangers announced they were looking to draw down the second tranche of £5million on the table and take another loan from the 50-year-old.

Fanning said "I have never been convinced of the theories that he will offload Newcastle and buy Rangers. The money is still in the Premiership.

"With the latest TV deal, why would you want to give up on a Premiership club when he can use it to market Sports Direct?

"It is worth a phenomenal amount of money and he is not going to get that if he buys Rangers. He will get out of it what he can.

"He is clearly feeding money into the club but he is not in a position, or it would not appear, that he is looking to own the club.

"Whether he will be allowed to own the club or not, I don't know. The decision by the SFA on Tuesday proved that, in their view, he has broken rules.

"It was interesting. But they hit him with a £7,500 fine. He probably spends more on a Saturday night out.

"I don't see what the purpose behind that fine was, other than highlighting the situation.

"It is symbolic, it shows they believe that he has broken the rules. What happens next? Who knows."

The role Ashley will have to play in the here and now and the future at Rangers remains significant as King and Co. get set to sit round the negotiating table.

But the cameo appearances of Llambias and Leach appear, at least for now, to be coming to an end after King declared a 'landslide' in his battle against the board.

Rangers fans have finally got their wish but the same cannot be said of the Toon faithful who, despite seeing Llambias stepping down as Managing Director two years ago, remain very much under Ashley's vice-like grip.

He said: "The politics behind it all are interesting. It will be interesting to see if the actions taken by the fans has helped to generate the momentum and speed up boardroom change.

"It can happen at Rangers because Ashley only has 9% of the shares. At Newcastle, he has 100%.

"He doesn't have any shareholders who can take action against him. It is only him and he can do what he wishes."