One of the more interesting emails received on this site was from a fellow I will not name, but the content certainly piqued my interest.
It went something like this:
“As Rangers fans we want the best for our team and our Club. As a member of, and monthly contributor to the Rangers First Fund, it dawned on me that the way to get Ashley and Sports Direct out of our Club is to hit him and them where it hurts… in the wallet. As he has shares in Rangers why don’t Rangers First have shares in Sports Direct and create a noise from within his camp?
We want him (and his crew) out of Ibrox as quickly as possible – primarily because he’s getting away with daylight robbery; and we ‘seem’ powerless to stop him. It is often said that you have to ‘speculate to accumulate’, that is, you have to pay to gain. What if Rangers First bought shares in Sports Direct with an entirely sole objective of giving them away? Yes, ‘giving them away’? What a waste of Rangers First money? Ah, no! We pay to gain! Gain what?
If Rangers First were giving Sports Direct Shares away, no one else would be able to sell their Sports Direct shares and no one would want to buy any either. Sports Direct shares would in effect be worthless.
We could buy up £100,000 worth per month to give away on a monthly basis. We could have a very public monthly give away of these shares. It seems hugely costly, and seems like we’re giving our money away… and oney that could be used for buying Rangers shares. It’s not wasteful if it gets Ashley and Sports Direct off our back sooner than the inevitable 7 years.
The value of Sports Direct would drop (plummet?) on the stock exchange and become worthless if people could receive shares for free. The bad press surrounding this for Sports Direct would be another cost.
Shareholders in Sports Direct wouldn’t be long in demanding a complete withdrawal from all things Rangers, to protect their investment.
Making it known that this was being considered would worry many at Sports Direct. But the key is to be ruthless – like Ashley himself – in seeing it through, and doing it. If it had to be done for many many months it would be worth it. Even if it was for 6 years it would be worth it if Ashley and Sports Direct were to depart just 1 year before the contractual 7 year termination of contract agreement. The shareholders in Sports Direct wouldn’t want their shares valueless for that long. Just imagine what damage this could do to that company.
We have the power. We are Rangers. Ashley and the Sports Direct shareholders don’t know how determined or ruthless we can be for the life of our Club. We should play him at his own game, and win.”
Is this madness, genius, or a bit of both?