And if Fergus had not come? No-one else was ready to step forward. Why do you dislike McCann so much? You seem to beel about him.
It's a pretty unique nature/nurture combination. You need to have a zero boredom threshold gene and you need to be raised within a "culture" that encourages you to be wilfully ignorant. He's a product of both his environment and his genetic deficiency so it's not really his fault. It's extremely rare in the wild but it can be re-created under extremely controlled conditions in a lab.
More ****in lies. Former Celtic chief executive Fergus McCann has taken a swipe at the club - ending the silence he has maintained since leaving Parkhead. McCann, who left the position last year, is furious at criticism of the way he handled matters during his time at the club. The Canadian businessman issued a statement which read: "I have had my family's privacy invaded and have had them endure false and damaging attacks on my reputation in the form of articles, interviews and other publications by various individuals connected with, or claiming to be supportive of Celtic. "They have sought to take advantage of my absence and silence to advance their own agendas or indeed shift blame for their own failings. Disappointed "I am particularly disappointed that the club's own publications have been used on occasion for this purpose, although I have received apologies for this from the Celtic board and assurances that this will not recur. "My position is that, at this time, I shall continue to refrain from publicly responding to or dealing with the above as I feel it would not be in Celtic's best overall interests. "This is consistent with my practice during my time in Scotland where my reputation was at times distorted or even damaged while I took difficult decisions that were made for Celtic's benefit." Celtic reacted to McCann's comments by reiterating their acknowledgment of what the former chief executive achieved during his time at Parkhead. Celtic history The club pointed to chairman Brian Quinn's comments in the company report in August, which stated that McCann "contributed to the rebirth of Celtic Football Club and he's like a part of Celtic history". Current chief executive Allan MacDonald also praised McCann during the AGM on September 18 when he said: "Fergus McCann set about rescuing the club and with the support of key individuals raised the finances necessary to rebuild Celtic Park as the truly magnificent stadium that is our home today." A Celtic spokesman added: "Both the Celtic chairman and the chief executive acknowledge the key role Fergus McCann has played and now look forward to driving Celtic on to the next level." -------------------------- At a time when Celtic were facing bankruptcy, fans were protesting about the lack of action from the owners and the team were falling short time and again of the dominant Rangers Fergus McCann stepped in with money and ideas. The Scotland-born Canadian businessman and multi-millionaire bought a majority stake in the club 1994 and began a process of events that would bring Celtic out of the wilderness and leave them with a sustainable infrastructure, not to mention a new stadium structure. McCann, who had first offered financial assistance to the ailing Celtic in 1988, revealed his five year plan to build Celtic as a business, erect a new stadium and bring league championships back to Parkhead before moving on himself. Needless to say Celtic have been on a stronger footing thanks to McCann and it was during his ownership that the side stopped Rangers going for 10-in-a-row in 1997 to secure the club's first league title in nine years. McCann sold his shares in Celtic after five years as he promised he would from the outset. ------------------------------ Considering the nature and number of anniversaries that cause generations of Celtic supporters to drool with nostalgia, it is curious that the one that falls this week is, in the main, unlikely to trigger an emotional outburst in the masses. Yet, apart from the actual founding 116 years ago, it commemorates the most significant event - and the arrival of the most important figure - in the history of the club. If the appointment of Jock Stein as manager in 1965 and the capture of the European Cup two years later are, in the context of achievement on the field of play, unarguably the high-water marks of that entire period, the arrival 10 years ago of Fergus McCann as owner/managing director led to ramifications that have been wider-ranging and certainly more crucial. The Scots-Canadian millionaire's first act, to rescue Celtic from bankruptcy and closure, would be enough in itself to mark him as the most influential player since the earliest days. His subsequent achievements and legacy led directly to the team's present pre-eminence and to widespread recognition among business analysts that Celtic are one of Britain's most efficiently run clubs. In Frank Capra's film It's A Wonderful Life, George Bailey (James Stewart) is given a fairy-tale opportunity to see how life in his small town would be if he had never been born. A series of misfortunes - including a decrepit Bedford Falls in the hands of a plutocrat with its people impoverished and miserable - remind him of the enormous contribution he has made. McCann can claim a similar distinction. His resolute financial prudence, forceful execution of his business plan and refusal to wilt in the hurricane of criticism he had to face throughout his five-year tenure transformed Celtic Park itself from a midden into a 60,000-seat palace and his genius for marketing brought in 53,000 season-ticket holders. Without McCann, there would have been no renaissance, no Martin O'Neill as manager, no Henrik Larsson, Chris Sutton, Alan Thompson or John Hartson to help lift two championships, with a third on the way, no run to the Uefa Cup final last season to confirm Celtic's re-emergence as a credible presence in Europe. It was he who assembled a plc board of financial heavyweights such as Brian Quinn, former deputy governor of the Bank of England, Sir Patrick Sheehy, ex-chairman of BAT Industries, and Dermot Desmond, the Irish money machine. And it was they who continued his policies and, ultimately, appointed O'Neill. McCann's qualities also made him a serious amount of money, his original £9 million investment making five times that amount when, as promised, he sold up at the end of his five-year scheme. McCann never tried to conceal his intention to capitalise, claiming from the moment of accession that he expected a healthy return. He also knew that, in the event of failure, he could lose a substantial percentage - around half, it was said - of the fortune he made as an entrepreneur in the 25 years since he left Scotland for Canada aged 24. Curiously, there remain any number of people ready to paint him as some fly-by-night who ran off with the club's money. This is a failure to understand how capitalism works. But to mention McCann in the same breath as Stein, far less to argue that he was more important to the club (as opposed to the team) is, to a substantial number, to commit sacrilege. The most extraordinary aspect of McCann's extraordinary achievements is that he was vilified almost throughout his time at Parkhead. Rangers' predominance, founded on a willingness to spend untold millions that led to their present economic difficulties, blinded the majority of fans to the long-term wisdom of McCann's policies. They were not helped by a disgracefully hostile majority in the media, who portrayed the managing director as a tight-fisted, bumbling, dithering, selfseeking capitalist who knew nothing of football. When some tried to explain why Celtic could not afford to spend fortunes on players - for example, McCann was in the process of rebuilding a dilapidated stadium at a cost of £40m - they were largely ignored. The most embarrassing consequence of the tabloid spin occurred on the day in 1998 that McCann unfurled the league championship flag, Celtic having ended Rangers' run of titles at nine in May of that year under the managership of Wim Jansen. The managing director was loudly booed at the ceremony before the start of the first match of the new season because he was held to be responsible for Jansen's rancorous departure within a few days of the triumph three months earlier. He was some ditherer. In the present climate of financial meltdown, with clubs going into administration in bunches, every group of benighted supporters in the game will wish they had one like him.
I think you did it wrong. You need to repeat the same point over and over again ignoring any inaccuracies pointed out by anyone else.
