STUART McCall, the Rangers manager, last night revealed he will be surprised if the SFA fail to pass Dave King, the major shareholder at the Ibrox club, as a fit and proper person.

 

The governing body's eight man board is currently deliberating over whether King, who was convicted of 41tax-related offences in South Africa in 2013, should be allowed to become Rangers chairman.

An announcement on whether the Johannesburg-based businessman, who succeeded in ousting the former regime at the Glasgow club at an EGM on March 6, has been successful is expected imminently.

The Scot stated that satisfying the SFA criteria was "not critical" immediately after the general meeting and stressed he would continue to invest whatever the outcome.

However, McCall is confident King, the oldco director who was cleared to take up a place on the newco board by the Court of Session last month, will get the go-ahead after being subjected to "vigorous checks".

"I think he (King) will get his clearance," he said. "That's just my instinct. There has been a lot of in-depth work done. Even in the worst case scenario where he doesn't, he still puts some cash in. Just not as a director.

"But, listen, I think he has been through vigorous checks. They have really looked into everything and I would be surprised if he didn't get it."

Meanwhile, McCall has appealed to the SFA to adopt the English disciplinary system and wipe players' records clean before they take part in the end-of-season play-off matches.

Darren McGregor and Kenny Miller are both one yellow card away from a one game suspension entering the final SPFL Championship of the 2014/15 campaign against Hearts at Tynecastle tomorrow.

Their manager feels it is unfair the defender and striker could be ruled out of the play-off games in the coming weeks due to bookings they have received in league games - especially as the Championship club that makes it through to the final could played two games more than their Premiership rivals.

"Kenny Miller and Darren McGregor are both one booking away from picking up suspensions," said McCall. "I think Hibs and Queen of the South will also have one or two in the same situation.

"I think there should be an amnesty after the last league game. Even now. In England, when I was down there, I think they had a cut-off point of late March. I think it should be looked at up here.

"The Premiership sides play 38 games. By the time whoever it is comes to play the second bottom side in the Premiership, they will have either have played 38 or 40 games. The team that has finished third or fourth in our league will have played 40 games by then if they make it to the play-off final, as opposed to their 38.

"The way the set-up is at the minute, if anyone gets booked on May 17, they would then miss the the last leg of the final. I think the bookings should end at the end of the league games, I don't think they should go into the play-offs. I think it's poor.

"It should be league games. When I look back at my stats, it will say so many league games and then so many play-off games. The play-offs aren't in the league. You can't count this as a league game if we end up playing, or any team in this division, play a team from the Premiership, it can't be a league game because we are in different leagues. It's got to be separate."

Marius Zaliukas, the Rangers centre half who suffered an ankle injury in the 2-2 draw with Falkirk at Ibrox last weekend, is expected to be fit for the game against his former club Hearts tomorrow.