Rangers dossier won’t have Hampden quaking

counsel is that this represents “material misrepresentation by omission” – and they believe Doncaster has to bear primary responsibility.

Much of the evidence goes over old issues, like Dundee’s missing email, the votes being made public before the final outcome was known, even the refusal to pay out end-of-season prize money before final placings were decided.

These have been addressed by several SPFL staff and officials, who have conceded that mistakes were made, as well as the Deloitte probe commissioned by non-executive director Karyn McCluskey, and are unlikely to convince many members to back the requisition at the general meeting on Tuesday.

However, the suggestion that SPFL board member Ross McArthur of Dunfermline and SFA vice-president Mike Mulraney of Alloa had “threatened” Dundee and Inverness Caledonian Thistle – they were, allegedly, told that second tier clubs would not receive as much money if they opposed the resolution – may not go down well.

Was this “robust lobbying”? Or did it go further than that and cross the line between what is acceptable and unacceptable? Doncaster, who Rangers demanded was suspended along with legal adviser Rod McKenzie, will have to explain why nothing was done when this was, if it was, reported to him.

It is also claimed that McArthur and Mulraney knew that Rangers’ alternative resolution had failed before the Ibrox club did. Rangers would like to see and external review determine why there was a leak and what the motivations for it were.

The dossier doesn’t, like this this sorry episode as a whole, paint Scottish football in a particularly positive light. But will it be enough to secure the 75 per cent Premiership, Championship and League 1 and League 2 backing required? It isn’t likely in the current climate. Clubs have greater concerns.

But the SPFL executive and board will still have to respond to stop the mud from sticking and survive.