Happy Easter Rhodes for Scotland

Rangers SFA Challenge Upheld

A judge has ruled that the Scottish Football Association (SFA) acted beyond its powers in imposing a year-long transfer ban on Rangers FC.

The ban was given, along with a fine of £100,000, after the club was charged with bringing the game into disrepute.

Rangers challenged the ban at the Court of Session in Edinburgh, on the grounds it was not one of the sanctions listed in the SFA's own regulations.

Lord Glennie said the ban should be reconsidered by the SFA appeal panel.

Rangers administrators Duff and Phelps said the club's position had been vindicated and that they would study the judgement and consider their course of action.

The SFA said it was surprised by the verdict and would consult its legal advisers.

BBC Scotland has learned that a number of SPL clubs are extremely disappointed with the ruling.

One club chairman said there was an "increased animosity" towards Rangers after they took the case to court.

One of Europe's leading experts in sports law has also told BBC Scotland there could be wider implications for Scottish football.

An SFA disciplinary tribunal originally imposed the fine and placed an embargo on Rangers signing senior players for 12 months in April this year.

The disrepute charge was handed down mainly over the club's failure to pay more than £13m in taxes last season.

That decision was upheld by an SFA appeals tribunal, including the judge Lord Carloway, earlier this month.

The club went to the Court of Session to challenge the decision on the additional transfer ban sanction in a judicial review of the tribunal decision.

Lord Glennie ruled that the SFA appeals tribunal was wrong in holding that it had the power to impose the additional sanction in the case and that in doing so they were acting outside their powers.

The judge set aside the decision and said he would send it back to the SFA appeal tribunal to look at it again in light of his decision.

He said the fact that he had found the extra penalty imposed on Rangers to be outside of the powers available did not necessarily mean the club would escape a lighter punishment.

Lord Glennie said that was a matter for the association.

The judge also rejected an argument made on behalf of the SFA that the correct venue for deciding any dispute was the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Rangers counsel Richard Keen QC, the Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, told the court: "We are the victim of an unlawful sanction and we have had imposed on us a sanction that the SFA panel had no right to impose."

Mr Keen had argued that the transfer ban was outside its powers and said that under the appropriate rule a fine, suspension and expulsion were available.Original tribunal

Aidan O'Neill QC, for the football authorities, had argued that the tribunal sought to find a sanction which would fit the breach committed.

He said it was clearly thought that the fine was "simply not enough given the gravity of the issues here".

Mr O'Neill said that if their powers of penalty were restricted to sanctions such as suspension or expulsion then suspension would have to be looked at.

He added the current sanction allowed Rangers to continue to trade and play.

Paul Clark, joint administrator with Duff and Phelps, said: "We welcome the decision by Judge Lord Glennie today that vindicates the club's position that the original SFA judicial panel tribunal and the appellate tribunal acted beyond their powers in imposing a transfer embargo on the club.

He added: "Both we, and the SFA, will have to study the full ramifications of the judgment when it is published and either side has 21 days in which to decide the next course of action or whether they wish to appeal."

The decision now places Rangers on a possible collision course with football's governing bodies.

Prior to the court's decision, the world governing body Fifa said: "Fifa will ask the member association (SFA) to take action so that the club withdraws its request from the ordinary courts.

"Fifa will closely monitor the situation so that the issue is resolved as fast as possible."

In an interview with Newsnight Scotland, Dr Gregory Ioannidis, who has represented a number of clubs at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, warned the consequences of the judge's ruling could be damaging for Scottish football.

He said: "If the Scottish Football Association decides to not take action against Rangers, in relation to Rangers submitting the application to the Court of Session, then Fifa can actually penalise the SFA, and the individual club, and the national team of Scotland, and impose an international ban on all of them."

Donovan Treble Beats Scotland

Days after wondering publicly how much longer he will have the hunger to play at an elite level, Donovan scored his first international hat trick in five years, leading the Americans over Scotland 5-1 in an exhibition game Saturday night.

As the Americans began a stretch of five games in 18 days, Donovan returned to the U.S. national team following an eight-month absence.

"I don't want to be mistaken for not caring," Donovan said. "I care, and I like being a part of this team. I'm a professional, and I know how to do my job. I've been doing this a long time."

Donovan beat goalkeeper Allan McGregor on the rebound of his own initial shot in the third minute, then added goals in the 60th from a Jermaine Jones layback and in the 65th off aMichael Bradley pass. Donovan raised his career total to 49 goals with his third international hat trick and made an American record 125th international start, one more than the previous mark set by defender Jeff Agoos from 1988-03.

"Tonight was one of those nights when most things went right," Donovan said. "While most goals fell to me, a lot of people did a lot of things right to make that happen."

Donovan scored four goals against Cuba in the CONCACAF Gold Cup in July 2003 and had three against El Salvador in a March 2007 exhibition.

The U.S. had won three consecutive games by a score of 1-0, including a victory at Italy, but entered talking of generating offensive firepower as the Americans prepare for World Cup qualifying.

"Now, we have Landon back and he gave us the goals," U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann said. "We can't complain tonight."

On the sixth anniversary of his national team debut, Bradley scored on a spectacular 30-yard, right-footed half-volley in the 11th minute. Jones got his second international goal in the 70th off an assist from Donovan, who had skipped eight national team matches in a row because of injuries and commitments to the Los Angeles Galaxy.

"Obviously, we were very pleased," Klinsmann said. "I think we set the tone and kept the rhythm through the entire game. Obviously, as a coach it was fun to watch."

Scotland scored in the 15th minute when American defender Geoff Cameron chested Kenny Miller's header past Tim Howard for an own goal.

The U.S. has won five straight following an 0-4-1 start under Klinsmann, who replaced Bob Bradley after the 4-2 loss to Mexico in last year's Gold Cup final.

Forward Terrence Boyd got his first start for the U.S., which used an attacking 4-3-3 formation. Midfielder Joe Corona entered in the second half for his national team debut. Fabian Johnson was at left back, a position he played for Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga, paired with Steve Cherundolo on the right.

"Tonight, you saw many elements of what we're always talking about, what we're trying step-by-step to develop," Klinsmann said. "It's a fast-paced game. All those elements I think we saw a lot today. It's obviously a lot more difficult to play that way against Brazil or Italy, but the players they understand more and more what we're trying to achieve. Today, it was really fun to watch."

Clint Dempsey -- who has not played together with Donovan under Klinsmann -- missed the match while recovering from a groin strain. Jozy Altidore also missed the game because AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands refused to let him report until Monday.

Before a crowd of 44,438 -- the largest to see the national team in Florida -- the Americans wore new home jerseys with red-and-white horizontal stripes and silver numbers that were hard to read from a distance. Names were restored to players' jerseys for the first time since Klinsmann took over.

"It was really a fun night to be a part of," Donovan said.

Preparing for the start of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup, the U.S. plays Brazil on Wednesday at Landover, Md., and Canada next Saturday at Toronto. The Americans open qualifying on June 8 against Antigua and Barbuda at Tampa, Fla., then play at Guatemala on June 12.

The U.S. won by four goals for the first time since beating Grenada 4-0 in the 2009 Gold Cup and the Americans scored five for the first time since routing Cuba 6-1 in a World Cup qualifier in 2008. The U.S. had not scored five goals against a European opponent since beating Norway 5-0 in 2006.

"It went well," Klinsmann said. "What we want to do is take the approach of pushing ourselves from game to game and not think about what we just did. We just want to think about what's next and what's next is Brazil. That's another challenge and another learning curve for us."

Scotland lost by four goals for the first time since a 4-0 defeat at Norway in a World Cup qualifier on Aug. 12, 2009.

The Scots, who failed to qualify for the European Championship, are now off until an Aug. 15 exhibition against Australia in Edinburgh. They then open qualifying at home against Serbia on Sept. 8.

"We'll take it on the chin and be much better next time out," Scotland coach Craig Levein said. "They're extremely disappointed, as you can imagine. It's not something we haven't experienced before, but losing with five goals is disappointing."

Klinsmann Add to Scotland Squad

U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Jurgen Klinsmann has added 11 additional players to the initial squad of 16 that is training at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida  The newest players begin reporting Sunday and will continue throughout the week as their club schedules are completed.

The team will train in Orlando until May 25, when Klinsmann will select a final 23-man roster for the upcoming five matches. The group then departs for Jacksonville and the match on May 26 against Scotland. 

Prior to matchday, the team will host a public training session May 25 at EverBank Field.

“We are excited now to get towards full numbers with the MLS guys and also the players from Europe who are coming in with great form,” said Klinsmann. “We want them to pick up the rhythm as fast as possible and make them understand that we are taking the next couple weeks very seriously. We will continue with our rhythm of two trainings a day and see where the players are really at before we make our final decisions on the 23-man roster for the upcoming games.” 

The nearly month-long series of training and games has been designed to mimic the circumstances the team will face in a tournament format, with meticulous planning dedicated to technical aspects, travel, nutrition, logistics and the rhythm of team movement to create a performance driven environment.

ROSTER ADDITIONS BY POSITION

DEFENDERS (4): Geoff Cameron (Houston Dynamo), Clarence Goodson (Brondby), Oguchi Onyewu (Sporting Lisbon), Michael Parkhurst (Nordsjaelland)

MIDFIELDERS (1): Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)

FORWARDS (6): Juan Agudelo (Chivas USA), Jozy Altidore (AZ Alkmaar), Terrence Boyd (Borussia Dortmund), Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy), Herculez Gomez (Santos), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)

Fenlon at a Loss About Cup Loss

Manager Pat Fenlon apologised to the Hibernian supporters after watching his side's drubbing in the Scottish Cup final against Hearts.

Pa Kujabi was sent off in the 5-1 defeat at Hampden as Hibs collapsed in the face of a Hearts onslaught.

"We didn't turn up, we didn't shine, we didn't deserve to win the game," said Fenlon.

"We didn't show anything. I apologise to the fans for having to sit and watch that."

The defeat means Hibs' drought without a Scottish Cup final victory will now stretch to at least 111 years.

“There's no desire and we've got to change the players to change the outlook of the club”Pat Fenlon

James McPake pulled a goal back just before the break after Darren Barr and Rudi Skacel had given Hearts a two-goal lead.

However, Hibs' hopes were dashed at the start of the second half when Kujabi was adjudged to have fouled Susa in the box.

The Hibs defender was given his marching orders with a second booking and Danny Grainger scored from the spot.

Ryan McGowan's header and Skacel's second compounded a miserable afternoon for Hibs in the first all-Edinburgh Scottish Cup final since 1896.

"The club has been like this for a while," added Fenlon.

"There's no desire and we've got to change the players to change the outlook of the club.

"We'll work as hard as we can to turn things around."

Celtic Trio Consider EURO 2020

Wotte is New SFA Performance Director

Mark Wotte

Former Den Haag and Southampton boss Mark Wotte has been chosen as Scotland's first performance director.

The 50-year-old is a former technical director with Feyenoord and has managed clubs in Egypt, Qatar and Romania as well as his homeland and England.

Wotte was in his second spell at Egyptian top-flight side Ismaily.

Scottish Football Association chief executive Stewart Regan said: "This is the key appointment that could turn around Scottish football."

The SFA had stated before announcing the appointment that the post would not be filled by a top coach or manager as it would require a combination of coaching and administrative experience, as well as political awareness.

Regan said that the successful candidate would be asked to "develop a new Scottish style of play" and suggested that the creation of the role was the single most important recommendation in the Review of Scottish Football carried out by former First Minister Henry McLeish.

Wotte will focus on developing elite players from the grassroots to the senior men's and women's national teams in a role that had been honed following "extensive consultation with the league bodies, SPL and the SFL, and their members, along with key players in Scottish sport, including Sir Alex Ferguson, David Moyes, Walter Smith and Ian McGeechan".

This is a key role in the modern game and it is my intention to help restore Scottish football to its former gloryMark WotteScotland's performance director

He will work alongside team coach Craig Levein, who said: "He was the best candidate by a mile. He ticks all the boxes.

"This is a pivotal day for the future of the game in this country.

"I have long championed the cause for a more consistent and collaborative approach to elite player development and Mark's arrival gives us that opportunity.

"He will be a vital part of the machinery in the conveyor belt of talent in this country and will play a key role in assisting the clubs and the Scottish FA in maximising the potential of our most talented footballers."

The Dutchman was a defender with Vlaardingen, Feyenoord, Den Haag and SVV before injury ended his playing career in 1986.

During his long managerial career, Wotte's clubs have included Den Haag, Utrecht, Den Bosch, Willem II Tilburg and Waalwijk in his homeland, Qatar outfit Al Ahli, Romanians Universitatea Craiova and Southampton.

Wotte, who also had a spell in charge of Netherlands Under-21s, had joined the Saints in 2008 to look after the youth set-up but was appointed head coach in January 2009 following the resignation of Jan Poortvliet.

However, after the Championship outfit went into administration, he was not retained following the takeover by Markus Liebherr.

Wotte, who has been given a rolling contract and will be based in Scotland, says that his new country's performance leading up to the 2014 World Cup will be the test of whether he has been successful in his new role.

"It is a hell of a challenge, but I'm pleased to be here," he said, Scotland having failed to qualify for the last six major international competitions.

"This is a key role in the modern game and it is my intention to help restore Scottish football to its former glory.

"Qualifying for major championships again is the main priority, but we can no longer leave it to chance: Scottish football must work collectively and strategically to ensure we cultivate the most talented players at all age groups.

"This country is renowned across the world for its unparalleled pride and passion: now we must add performance to those qualities once again."