Angry fans of Scottish Championship side Rangers have "accused the club of secretly engineering the sale of the club's Murray Park training base," according to Keith Jackson of the Scotland DAILY RECORD. The "explosive claim came from coalition group the Union of Fans who believe the under fire regime are drawing up plans to cash in on the Auchenhowie HQ in order to cobble together sufficient funds to see out their Championship campaign." The claim came "less than 24 hours after Rangers released an official statement" saying that "they have no intention of raising money from a sale and leaseback deal on the club's Ibrox stadium" (DAILY RECORD, 7/28). The HERALD SCOTLAND reported the statement "made no mention of the club's training ground." The supporters' group had "tried to force the board to offer security over the stadium and training ground in return for their season ticket money," but about half of the 34,000 fans renewed "directly through the club, while the Rangers board announced plans to raise much-needed money through a share issue later this year." The statement said, "The board continues to refuse to give any legally binding safeguard over Ibrox and we believe they are actively looking at a sale and leaseback of Murray Park -- a vital asset if we are ever to properly develop our own talent. They have shown no commitment to protecting the club's assets" (HERALD SCOTLAND, 7/29).
