Real reasons to smile

For a group football fans who think that the Tina Turner song “simply the best” is somehow apposite to their match day experience these are strange days for the Ibrox klanbase.

It is a forensic fact that since the new club was created by Charles of Normandy in 2012 it has not won a single major honour.

In the normal course of events, this would lead to the fans of the club to understand their place in the scheme of things.

However, the Stenography Corps are on duty to insulate the poor dears from such cruel realities.

In the new season, they will turn up in large numbers to the stadium that John Brown played.

They will brag to the world that they will win the SPFL title and fraudulently attach it to the honours won by the previous Ibrox club.

However, the cold financial reality is that Mr Let’s Go will have a fraction of the football budget that Neil Lennon has at his disposal.

This should be front and centre of any narrative from the sports desks.

However, feel good pishful thinking apropos Sevco’s chances is just what the spin doctor ordered.

Of course, Celtic can mess up in this transfer window.

After all, they have previous for that.

However, given the disparity in the finances between the champions and the basket of assets, the margin for error at Celtic is massively bigger than what Sevco operates under.

That is an inconvenient truth and something that the Ibrox customer base wants to hear.

It’s undeniable that it is also an awkward fact that the role of the Fourth Estate is to provide the public with that pesky evidence.

It is worth remembering the famous advice from C. P. Scott:

“comment is free, but facts are sacred”.

Evidence-Based journalism would also point out that in the last year the Sevco High Command has been forced to borrow twice from a lender who serves distressed companies.

Moreover, the current legal wrangle with General Ashely is very much a case of picking a fight on terrain that the enemy has allowed you to choose because he knows you’re making a huge mistake!

I suspect that the legal defence of “we didn’t really know what we were signing in 2017” is unlikely to carry much weight in the High Court.

Probably not the Conveyancing Consigliere’s finest hour…

Through it all, in the coming days, the Stenography Corps will do all they can to keep the dignified demographic smiling.

In a few short weeks they will turn up to Ibrox kitted out in the traditional Sevco livery of Norwegian Blue with smiles radiating Herrenvolk hubris.

Of course, it is a welcome development that the Ibrox klanbase are smiling as the face they usually present to the world is not so pleasant.

As the new season starts perhaps this stunning image sums up the reality on Planet Fitba better than any of my words could ever do.

A hat tip to the very creative lady  @LDTEEstore who snapped it.

When I look at that vista of Paradise I can’t help but smile.