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Rangers Chair King Slams Ashley, Says Club May Release Its Own Kits

Scottish Premiership side Rangers Chair Dave King "has branded Mike Ashley a quitter who couldn’t stand the heat of handling Rangers," according to Gary Ralston of the Scotland DAILY RECORD. King revealed Ashley "has disappeared from the scene after a series of high profile run-ins" and defeats against King in British courtrooms. The Johannesburg-based tycoon said that his club is "now considering going it alone -- reluctantly" -- if it cannot strike a new deal with Puma to manufacture its replica kit. He "is adamant the club’s legal position in their controversial retail agreement with Sports Direct has never looked stronger." King: "Mike Ashley went off the (Rangers Retail) board so he kind of cut and ran, I suppose, when the going got tough. He’s disappeared, we don’t deal with Mike Ashley at all. ... It's emotionally easier to deal with others because of the nature of the individual. But, commercially, we have proceeded on a basis we felt was commercially robust." The club announced in May that it was "ripping up the contract" with Rangers Retail, a jointly owned company with Sports Direct. Rangers withdrew its trademarks from Rangers Retail, "but were stunned last week" when Puma -- which has close links to Ashley -- "pushed ahead with a kit launch, to the disgust of fans" (DAILY RECORD, 8/8). In Glasgow, Matthew Lindsay reported King admitted the club could launch its "own strips this season." He expressed optimism "a resolution to the dispute" could be found "in the next couple of weeks." He said, "So I am feeling very confident about where we are relative to Sports Direct. The complication we have, of course, is Puma. Puma are in the middle of this through no fault of their own. So what we are trying to do is get a balance right where we go beyond the mere legal dispute. Puma could be drawn into legal dispute with the club, but that wouldn’t be fair on Puma. The dispute really belongs between ourselves and Sports Direct." Asked if fans "should buy strips at the moment," King said, "It is a decision supporters will have to make themselves" (HERALD SCOTLAND, 8/8). In Edinburgh, Alan Pattullo reported King insisted Manager Mark Warburton "will be backed to bring in reinforcements in this transfer window." While King admitted the "ongoing row" with Sports Direct "was having an impact on the Ibrox club's finances, he promised Warburton will be granted funds to sign players." He said, "I certainly anticipate the possibility of more signings before the end of this window. From a financial planning point of view, we have already catered for the fact that we will have to look at the position again in December and probably do some business in January as well" (SCOTSMAN, 8/8).

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