One heralds unprecedented success on his watch, the other the Petrofac Cup, but who will leave the greater legacy?

IF this week of annual general meetings in Glasgow has taught me anything, it is to be a bit more judicious when selecting my annual leave days next year. Lesson learned.

As it was, I traipsed along to the yearly gathering of Celtic’s shareholders on Wednesday morning, which came just a day after Rangers had held their own agm across the city.

Given that Celtic are in the midst of a period of unparalleled domestic success, and are going pretty well in Europe under Neil Lennon too, you may think that the only danger to the Parkhead hierarchy at their agm would be the risk of lesions from some over-enthusiastic backslapping. And there was a good bit of that, to be fair.

But between pops at the Green Brigade and praise for the work that Lennon is doing with his team at home and on the continent were lingering murmurs of discontent about the Celtic board’s stance on Resolution 12.

For the uninitiated, Resolution 12 relates to an ordinary motion put forward by the so-called requisitioners in 2013 – and every year since – that calls on their club’s board to refer the Scottish FA to UEFA over their decision to give Rangers a licence to play European football two years earlier, despite not meeting the necessary financial obligations to do so at the time. Failing that, it also calls on the Celtic board to refer the SFA to the City of London Police over the matter, with Celtic fans arguing that the club were denied access to the greater prize money available in the Champions League in season 2011/12 as a result of the SFA’s decision.

The Celtic board don’t think that the carrying of the motion would be in the best interests of the club, and have blocked its passage. Instead, they continue to push the SFA for an independent review.

That is a position that is clearly disappointing to a great many Celtic supporters, but their antipathy towards chief executive Peter Lawwell on the subject is striking. Particularly since, as Lawwell explained, there isn’t a great deal more he can do about it. Even so, the timbre of the “move on” message hasn’t struck a particularly satisfactory note with many fans.

Lawwell went as far as to call UEFA on the morning of the agm to give himself fresh armour with which to repel the questions which were sure to be fired his way, telling the assembled shareholders that as the five-year time period for any punishments has passed, and that any reprimands would apply to the oldco Rangers in any case, that UEFA simply don’t give two hoots.

This puts the board, and Lawwell in particular, in a difficult position. He is their face, with chairman Ian Bankier taking more of a back seat when the fur was flying, save for an intervention to defend the salary of the man sitting at his right hand.

At Rangers, chief executive Stewart Robertson is the man cast as the Bonehead to chairman Dave King’s Liam. We all know who the star is. It is King who is the public face of the club’s hierarchy, and he chose this moment to announce his abdication.

As many Celtic supporters were quick to point out, while he still has four months or so before he eventually does step aside, the announcement comes when his legacy amounts to nothing more than a Petrofac Cup win in terms of silverware. But for the Rangers fans, he will be remembered for a whole lot more.

There is a huge contingent of the Rangers support who credit King for giving them their club back, making them competitive again, bringing in Steven Gerrard and allowing them to get back to somewhere near where they feel they belong.

For that, he was almost carried out of the Rangers agm on shareholders’ shoulders. While Lawwell left Celtic’s agm with praise ringing in one ear for Celtic’s on-field achievements and his stance with the Green Brigade among the older demographic present, but with question marks over his worth to the club and his position on Resolution 12 clanging in the other.

Perhaps, then, we have learned something from this week after all.

Lawwell, at the helm for a triple treble and basking in the warm glow of vindication that has come from his decision to appoint Neil Lennon as manager in the Hampden showers back in May, could in fact be in danger of tarnishing his legacy at the club in the eyes of many fans.

Perhaps there is a danger of overamplifying those voices of protest at the Celtic agm, much as those who shout loudest on social media tend to be mistaken for representing the view of a broader supporter base. After all, an overwhelming if silent majority re-elected Lawwell as chief executive for another year.

But still, there is no doubt that King will probably go down as something of a club legend in the eyes of Rangers supporters despite

failing to bring the silverware he so desperately craved back to Ibrox during his tenure.

Funny old game, innit?

And another thing

FAR be it for me to suggest that the absence of any discernible personality should discount someone like, oh I don’t know, Lewis Hamilton for example, from being in the running for the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year Award.

But, leaving the award’s misnomer aside, it’s disappointing that a man whose achievements and character more than qualify him for a shot at the national accolade – Scotland’s own Josh Taylor is conspicuous by his absence from the shortlist.

Taylor has been dubbed the British fighter of the year by BBC 5 Live’s Steve Bunce, with his world title win over IBF champion Ivan Baranchyk and his victory over WBA champion Regis Prograis in the World Super Series Final making him “untouchable”.

Maybe a win over Jose Ramirez will get him on there next year.