SFA chief executive, Stewart Regan, clearly sees opportunity among the carnage that is Scottish football at the moment as he leaked plans to ambush clubs into a radical overhaul of the league structures to the media yesterday.
Henry McLeish made several recommendations in his paper on the future of our game, one of which was for a smaller professional setup of two leagues (SPL 1 and SPL 2), sitting on top of a grass-roots pyramid of community based clubs, as well as a 10-team top division. I agreed with both recommendations but relegation-dodgers in the SPL refused to countenance such a deal.
While it seems a 10-club top division is as far away as ever, the SFA are keen to push through a SPL 2 proposal before the start of the new season, something which borders on ultra-ambitious.
An unattributed SFA source (surely Regan himself) briefed BBC’s Jim Spence on their plans but the language was curious:
“Someone has to take a lead and sort out the internal bickering and point scoring and also to ensure that the Rangers situation never happens again.
“We need to use the mood for change among supporters in the country to tackle the current inertia and do what is right for the game.
“Change has to be democratic, but the time for talking has passed. We need action now to save the game.
“The fans are demanding fundamental change. The Rangers situation has intensified the need for a resolution and, over the next few weeks, we will meet with the SPL and SFL to find a solution.”
In order to “ensure the Rangers situation never happens again”, why don’t the SFA start by ensuring former directors of Rangers, who participated in the controversial EBT scheme which precipitated the crisis, are removed from the SFA board?
The SFA president received loans from Rangers EBT which he did not repay despite the club going bust last week. There is a belief that those loans were never meant to be repaid and that many of Rangers EBT loans were accompanied by written confirmation that they were never to be repaid, making these ‘loans’ an illegal tax scam.
The SFA chief executive claimed to have investigated and cleared the president of any wrong-doing. No one else is aware of this investigation. There is a suspicion that all he did was listen to the president’s version of events, compounding an already dreadful situation for the SFA.
We would love to hear how Mr Ogilvie explained why he didn’t repay his loan.
Two weeks ago we spoke about the SFAs inadequate corporate governance on these matters. If only corporate governance was the extent of the problem, they appear quite shameless.
“Someone has to take the lead…. tackle the current inertia and do what is right for the game”.
Sack the clown before you start to preach to the rest of the game.
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Morning
Bhoys and Ghirls. I have been adding my occasional tuppence worth on CQN for a number of years now. So, for those of you who know that sort fo comments I’ll add, you would also know I am not in the habit of making ridiculous claims. So, with that in mind, I say the following and just hope to God what I have heard is wrong.
However, in keeping with Paul67’s recent statements regarding the SFA, including the above aritcle, may I tell you of the little bombshell I have heard this morning?
I have heard form a source that Walter Smitth is being alleged to have received an EBT whilst manager of Scotland!!!!! If, and it has yet to be proved, this is true, then it shows that the level of corruption within the SFA is simply mind-blowing. Also, if true, just exactly what would Ogilivie’s knowledge have been in this matter? It would also clearly bring Reagan right into the firing line. He might not have been with the SFA at the time, but was he made privy to this after his appointment? If he was, why was nothing done about it?
I’m sure there will be those far more knowledgable than I, who will be able to discuss the full ramifications of this. However, if this is true, then the entire SFA needs removing immediately. It’s not simply a case that they are not fit for purpose, they are far worse than that. They are a liability that will get all Scottish clubs and the national team suspended from all competition outside of Scotland. These people will surely bring our game to it’s knees.
Hail Hail
David Malbandian could be the kind of player Club12 are interested in, if ole Elbows walks away.
Ex Gers Players In Time Machine Shocker
Exclusive from The Daily MSM (Masonic Stream Media)
MSM can exclusively reveal that a host of ex Gers stars are set to go back in time to rejoin their beloved Rangers. Rino Gattuso and Jean Alain Boumsong are among the more prominent players who wish to go back in time to when Rangers existed and re start their careers with the crisis torn ex football club.
Ally McCoist is also rumoured to be joining the group as manager although it is not clear if the time machine is able to transport people with their on gravitational pull.
If Celtic wanted, they could find a newly created club and come to an arragement.
Celtic agree to transfer their ‘share’ to New Club
New Club agree to take on Celtic’s share
It’s then down to the SPL board, or pass the buck to the SPL Chairmen, to agree whether Celtic and New Club can transfer the ‘share’.
This is what’s happening at Dead Rangers and Club 12. They’ve an agreement to transfer share, but need the SPL to agree to it happening.
I’m gonna set up a Dublin based team and apply to Dead Rangers for their share. Doubt they’ll hear me out though…
on = own!!!
The SPL fixtures are decided by a computer – but there are various parameters set for the program. These include the dates of derbies and pairs of teams that cannot play at home at the same time.
There was talk a while ago of three sets being prepared – taking into account that ‘Club 12’ could be Dundee, Dunfermline or Sevco 5088 (alphabetical order used to indicate no hint of bias).
So I wonder which set of assumptions will have been used in the set that is published today.
BRTH-Police investigating a complaint of assault by Nalbandian,dearie me,some people must have too much time on their hands.
Ole Wattie says he wants to help Club 12?
But, he’s on holiday at the moment.
Boxing day :
Club 12 v Celtic
Dundee United v St Johnstone
The fixtures have certainly not taken into account the possibility of being Dundee, there are more instances.
I think the fixtures show a remarkable lack of foresight (perhaps not too surprising given what we know about the incompetence of those in charge)-
It would have made far more sense to put Celtic and Club12 at home together than DUFC and Club12. If club12 turns out to be rangers in another guise, they would never play at the same time as Celtic in any case as on of the two would always be a TV game.
I have to assume that those who wrote the fixtures (or who set the parameters of the program) are fairly certain that Club12 will be Rangers.
QuadBhoy on 18 June, 2012 at 10:01 said:
In theory, it’s pretty straightforward but as a (not very good) programmer, it’s not something I’d like to instigate at short notice.
I wouldn’t be totally susprised if the software is written with Celtic and Rangers hard-coded into it. If I was writing it, I know I’d be reducing the number of variable factors as much as possible and I bet at the time the thought of the SPL with no Rangers was more or less inconceivable.
As with many aspects of this whole farce there is the way things should have been done and there’s the way things have been done. Not all of them are based around a corrupt set up. Some of them just arise from slight incompetence.
Wednesday January 2, 2013: Derby day??
Aberdeen v Dundee United
Celtic v Motherwell
Hearts v Hibernian
Ross County v Inverness CT
St Johnstone v Club 12
St Mirren v Kilmarnock
Looks like Dunfermline are being catered for in the fixture list,rather than Dundee.
There was an article on the BBC web site about a year ago interviewing the guy from the Canadian (I think) company that comes up with the fixture list. He talked about setting pairs of clubs for derbies on set dates and not being at home at the same time, then the rest is worked out around these fixtures,
Is Club 12 located in District 9?
Past winners of fantasy, science fiction and horror awards: seems to fit.
;o)
My questions earlier are 100% serious.
Has no one seen an argument (whether you agree with it or not) other than WATP?
How ironic is it that Club12 are away to Killie first game. If it is ‘The rangers’, they can sell their ground out to them again and a have a big hun love-in.
Celtic_First,
Here’s the argument.
Sevco 5088 Ltd should be in the SPL because it is really Rangers, The real Rangers. Not the bad stuff, that was just a few folk not Rangers, And the rest of us shouldn’t be punished for that should we?
In fact Scottish football shouldn’t be punished for what a couple of bad men did. It would be unfair to all the diddy clubs if we weren’t here to help them out. And what about TV? All these wee clubs would get less money if we weren’t in the SPL.
Look, maybe things weren’t quite right here and there. But we are a new, shiny and improved Rangers now. And for the good of the game we must be in the SPL.
weeminger on 18 June, 2012 at 10:13 said:
I wouldn’t be totally susprised if the software is written with Celtic and Rangers hard-coded into it. If I was writing it, I know I’d be reducing the number of variable factors as much as possible and I bet at the time the thought of the SPL with no Rangers was more or less inconceivable.
I would. The software will most likely be written to work for any fixture generation in the most generic way possible. “Once solved, never repeated” is a slogan of Atos, who would look to re-sell this solution to other leagues / sports.
The available dates, teams and rules (pairings etc.) will be defined in input files (most likely xml as the code was due a re-write in VB.NET according to this Computing article last year).
QB
the tell tale sign scumbag-newco wont exist
next season is week 2 on the calendar.
celtic v dundee utd
club 12 v st mirren
its dundee that will be in spl.
Will the rules be relaxed to allow Club 12 to play with 12 players, or will it just be the usual 11+MIB combo?
My dear old dad introduced me to football when he took me to see my first Club 12 game. I fell in love with my team that day and have followed them ever since. Ah!
rt rev david hay
Week 2 is the week Celtic has postponed to play Real Madrid, so I would not read too much into that.
ernie lynch on 18 June, 2012 at 09:19 said:
Some man ……LOL
On-line petitions have been started with Sky’s help team on twitter trying their best to avert a subscription boycott with Scottish football fans ready to cancel their £40/month payments if Sky pull the plug on the SPL.
Reacting to that threat Sky’s PR team are in today’s newspapers denying that they are about to ditch Scottish football.
A spokesman is quoted saying: “Sky has never, ever discussed pulling out of covering Scottish football.
“We have not discussed that possibility, either with the SPL or any other footballing authority. Nor has that been on the agenda for consideration within Sky, despite all the problems and difficulties being faced by Scottish football at present.
“If Rangers are not in the SPL, that would change things for us, naturally. It would leave a quality hole in Scotland’s top division.
Competition would deteriorate and, in that event, we would have to renegotiate.but let us be very clear we have always tried to be supportive of Scottish football and have never made any negative noises or sent any negative messages.
“Scottish football is still very much in our plans for the future. Walking away has never been on our agenda.
“We have, in the past, been asked for our opinions, but we believe that football should be run by the football authorities. We are a TV company.”
Last week Sky signed a three year extension to their contract with the English Premiership sharing the rights to live matches with BT.
With ESPN losing out the American based channel may turn to showing more Scottish football while BT will be looking for more than four live Premiership games per month to fill their schedule.
Celtic’s non-executive director Ian Livingston is the chief executive of BT and conducted the negotiations to secure the live Premiership rights.
Celtic_First on 18 June, 2012 at 10:20 said:
My suggested answers were 100% serious. Although Gordon’s answers are, I expect, very similar to those which would/will be put forward by Newco, they would be dismissed in very short time in any country apart from Scotland. The only reason they are being given serious consideration here is that they are a gloss on the fundamental argument that they arra peepel…
I think club 12 is Dunfermline. Or at least there have been no assumptions programmed that CLub 12 is paired with another club.
QuadBhoy on 18 June, 2012 at 10:26 said:
Do you think there’s a possibility that with such a limited number of fixtures available on any given weekend that it can’t cope with two matched pairings?
You’d think it wouldn’t be an issue and that article (thanks for that btw) makes it sound like pretty straightforward set up but you never know.
If it only takes 5 minutes to run, I’m sure they can quickly re-do it after NewClub’s application is rejected.
Yorkston was touting Pars to get the club 12 spot on radio last week.
I know he would, but do the rules not say no relegation and one up?
Then one club from each league shuffles up to leave a nice wee space at the bottom :O).
BTW
Happy 70th Bithday Macca
‘Club12’ sounds like dodgy after shave, maybe Blue Stratos but even more toxic to the ole skin.
Good morning all on cqn
How is it that whenever the working week starts the sun makes an appearance, I wouldn’t be surprised at all if it stayed out until Friday at 4.00, when the rain will come back.
Anyway with all of the events regarding The Rangers, The The Rangers and Club 12, wouldn’t it be expected that the SFA or SPL would arrange meetings rather more quickly than in two weeks time, if they were disciplining someone say a manager with red hair who may or may not disparage an official the meeting would have been called, and justice meted out before I could finish this post. Surely something as seismic as the downfall of the evil empire would stir the powers that be to convene post haste or are they like the trees in Lord of the Rings who take hundreds of years to make decisions.
ASonOfDan on 18 June, 2012 at 10:33 said:
Considering the damage Sky have done to Scottish football by making it uncompetitive with England in wage terms and so reducing the standard, the least the bs can do is make some compensation by NOT reducing what they pay.
A withdrwal of subscription is a message that they have done enough damage.
On the CEO part that experience I hope will be used by Celtic, maybe subscriptions via BT Vision to make games available in UK soon after they finish on mobiles as well as TV.The article explaining why BT got involved suggests the Football deal is but part of a wider strategy.
Fred C. Dobbs on 18 June, 2012 at 10:36 said:
____________________________________________
Indeed it does…………..for Spartans.
Rt Rev david Hay
Celtic v Dundee United in the second week of the season has been postponed due to heavy rain so we’ve taken the oppurtunity to go on a jaunt to the States to play Real Madrid and make a few bob;)
HH
So if Dundee/ Dunfermline come into the SPL and sides move up from divisions 2 and 3, then who will the new team in the third division play on the opening day?
It would also be a lot easier to change a United or Dundee fixture to a Sunday rather than a Celtic game due to the sheer number of fans. With the NewCo (no new club even exists yet) it is impossible to predict if they would have a large fanbase or not.
rt rev david hay on 18 June, 2012 at 10:28 said:
They have put us in for 2 home games to start with because we will not be playing the 2nd one (Dundee Utd) on that date, we are in USA to play Real Madrid.
They won’t let us cancel an away game to play a friendly as it would probably affect the gate size for DU when it would be re-arranged for a midweek.