Rangers: Board hits out at Malcolm and Paul Murray

A consortium led by Paul and Malcolm Murray has been blasted by the Rangers board in the wake of suggestions that the club are under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office.

Sandy Easdale now controls over a quarter of shares in Rangers. Picture: Johnston Press

A statement released by the club accuse the group, known as requisitioners, of destablising the club and portraying themselves as “guardians of corporate governance.” The statement goes on to challenge the consortium to substantiate claims that the Ibrox side are subject to SFO scrutiny amid allegations that an ex-employee had reported payments made to shareholders at the time of the IPO (initial public offering).

In the statement, Rangers said: “We to be deeply concerned at the unsubstantiated allegations being promoted by the requisitioners.

“These men, in particular Paul Murray and Malcolm Murray, portray themselves to our loyal fans as potential guardians of corporate governance, yet every action they take threatens to destabilise our club, could further influence the share price and may hamper theclub’s ability to attract additional commercial partners in the future.

“The requisitioners are appearing at a public meeting in Glasgow this evening. We challenge them to prove their allegations but if all they can provide is rumour and hearsay they should now cease causing further damage.

We note that the requisitioners had the opportunity to put 1,000 words in the AGM pack - they chose not to do so yet.

“Instead they have decided to wage a campaign in the media using fans to further their own agenda.

“Any statement issued to shareholders by them will now increase the costs on the club.

“Instead of putting forward their views to shareholders, fans, players and corporate partners through a letter included in the AGM notice, the requisitioners have chosen to mount personal attacks on individuals.

The statement also suggested the requisitioners are guilty of hypocrisy because Malcolm Murray, the former Rangers chairman, was in a position to address complaints made by the consortium during his time as a board member.

Rangers chairman David Somers said: “We are now on board and the fans can rest assured that costs incurred by previous directors prior to our appointment have already been thoroughly examined by a forensic accounting exercise and there is no evidence of any financial irregularity.

“The Company’s auditors have also provided an unqualified audit report.

“The fans and the media need to understand that the assets were bought out of administration - the cost of equity was therefore going to be much higher, given the risk, with no football licence, the lower league issues and the fact that previous poor corporate governance of the club added to the costs of an IPO.

“Mr McColl may claim that the normal IPO costs are 5% but, despite his lack of experience in the sports world, even he must understand that the behaviour of some of his proposed directors contributed to those costs.”