managed to have Resolution 11 withdrawn which would have allowed shareholders to block the voting rights of dual ownership shareholders. The AGM passed without major incident; however, chairman Dave King announced the adoption of the living wage for company employees and the repayment of a £5m loan from Ashley's Sports Direct. Although, on 11 December, it was reported that the company had not repaid the £5m loan despite earlier claims to the contrary. On Christmas Eve, Rangers announced that the loan had been repaid to Ashley in full and it was later revealed, on Ne'erday, that Rangers had borrowed £6.5m from King and others in order to do this. On 4 February, it was announced by the Rangers board that they had given Sports Direct formal notice that they wish to end their retail deal for club merchandise. On 18 May, Rangers indicated its intention to end the joint venture with Sports Direct for selling club kits and merchandise. This included the withdrawal of the rights to use club trademarks. On the football front, Rangers appointed its fourteenth permanent manager on 15 June in the shape of Mark Warburton, who agreed a three-year contract. Warburton was joined at the club by former Rangers centre-back David Weir, who became his assistant manager. The start to the season saw Rangers embark on a run of eleven straight victories in all competitions. This helped Warburton overtake former Rangers manager Bill Struth's record of eight consecutive wins by a manager at the beginning of their Ibrox career. Ultimately, this would could not continue: the series of victories came to an abrupt halt in mid-September as the club suffered a 3–1 defeat to St Johnstone in the League Cup. Despite this, Rangers continuing a winning steak for the first eleven games of the league season which gave the club an eight-point lead over second-placed Hibernian at the top of the table by late October. Eight points were picked up from a possible eighteen over the next six league games, including two defeats to Hibernian and Falkirk. This left Rangers tied with the Edinburgh club on forty-one points ahead of crucial match between the two during the festive period. Rangers played Hibernian on 28 December at Ibrox, beating Alan Stubbs' side 4-2. They then embarked on an unbeaten run of ten matches, winning nine, with only Alloa Athletic managing to take points off them. Alongside this