You have been presented with a narrative that we should collapse the Scottish Premier League this summer and have the SFA register a new, two-division, league system to resolve the problems inherent in having too many bodies running our game. This is complete nonsense.
Those pushing for a SPL 2 are, perhaps with good intentions, trying to pull a deal together to reduce the impact of the demise of Rangers FC buy allowing a phoenix the chance to gain entry into the league structure two levels higher than what they now face.
It’s a stupid proposal.
As things stand, there is no chance of a Newco getting access to the SPL next season. Despite Neil Doncaster heavily advocating the notion, the idea is simply undeliverable. Our club has been committed to opposing the proposition from the beginning, while many others now realise they have to observe the strong feelings of their own supporters on the matter.
Doncaster should have realised this was a campaign he could not win before he boxed himself into a corner over it. SPL 2 is an attempt to address the ‘No to Newco’ concerns while bringing the income some in the game hope Newco will deliver.
The unnamed SFA source who briefed the BBC on this topic last week made no reference whatsoever to Newco, their focus was all on the administrative challenges of having multiple bodies in charge of the game, but this was disingenuous. If there was a prospect of Newco getting into the SPL we would not be having this debate.
Tell us the truth, be honest, and these random, ill-considered, notions will perhaps be received in a better light.
The hope is that fans of the former club, Rangers, bring their cash along to watch Newco, which would play SPL 2 football next season and would be subject to whatever penalties the various independent bodies impose for years to come for the illegal actions of Rangers. This would allow Newco to claim the history of Rangers, would perhaps maintain the existing BSkyB TV deal and would meet the ‘No to Newco’ demands.
There are several huge obstacles to overcome. The SFA will soon instruct Lord Carloway’s Appellate Panel to consider a new punishment for ‘Rangers’ for misdeeds during the Craig Whyte era. I expect him to suspend the ‘club’ for 12 months. A new independent judicial panel will consider the case against ‘Rangers’ for subverting our game for over a decade through the illegal registration of players. If/when the First Tier Tribunal finds against Rangers a fresh wave of charges will be brought against any club claiming to hold that identity – as a guide, think of the punishments for the Craig Whyte era multiplied by 12.
These three independent judicial panels will destroy whatever is left of what we used to call ‘Rangers’ and there is nothing the football authorities can do about it.
Sevco, who own Ibrox and have applied for SPL access, already face an enormous challenge to meet trading costs for a year, even in the SPL, never mind a lower league (as Dave King correctly concluded). They are prime candidates for another insolvency event any time soon. Best of all, a Celtic fan has now bid for the assets (more on this later)!
Even if Newco overcame these enormous challenges, the SFA and SPL executives, having realised they cannot convince fans of 11 clubs to hold their noses and put up with a Newco-Rangers, will now try to convince former Rangers fans to cough up cash to support a Newco that will be rendered impotent by the most severe penalties in the history of our game.
I cannot see former Rangers fans accepting their role as cannon fodder for St Mirren, Motherwell and (cough) Kilmarnock in a league where the Mighty Celtic romp home by 30 points.
I don’t have an objection in principle to a two-league SPL but plan it properly, don’t allow knee-jerk reactions to dictate thinking. There’s no point in us getting paranoid about this, it’s not some attempt to help the remnants of ‘Rangers’, it’s just a stupid proposal from people who have yet to see the big picture.
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(thumbsup)
mon the hoops
No newco.
We gonna rock down to Electric Avenue. (thumbsup)
Fervent plea to Celtic FC.
Whatever you say,…………..SAY NOTHING !
Leave well alone.
Moonbeams WD. Kano 1000 \o/ Supporting Neil Lennon 100%. Champions. C’mon Wee Oscar. on 21 June, 2012 at 06:55 said:
Donate to Wee_Oscar Appeal Here
MWD
why should newco be automatically promoted ?
Wee Oscar’s appeal page http://www.justgiving.com/OscarAppeal
Please, please make a small donation if you can and help give my wee lad the best possible chance of life.
You can also donate by text message in the UK, simply text KNXY99 followed by an amount eg ‘KNXY99 £5’ to 70070
Also if you’ve got Sky TV tune in to BBC1 NI tonight at 6.30 (channel 973 i think) as he’s going to be on the local news with the Merkel Flag Crew!!!
Knoxy
dammit,didnae work
(shameless plug i know!!!)
Hail Hail
Good luck with it al knoxy
From the last thread – Patrick Barclay is a Dundee fan I think.
Shambles after shambles.
Bhoys I thought Patrick Barclay was Scottish and a Celtic fan. He also has a non anti-English attitude like Kevin McCarra which I can understand as the Anybody But England attitude gets a bit wearisome…..until I see John Terry and it returns in an instant. I know some say Terry is a big Celtic fan but the likes of him we can do without.
It is a complete embarassment for England that he is still playing for them in my opinion.
Again, I boycott the podium.
The SPL2 proposals make no sense. They should be known as the Chewbacca Proposals. We must acquit.
Wee Oscar needs our help Bhoys n Ghirls
Donate to Wee_Oscar Appeal Here
MWD
From Italian Press
Celtic has a new goalkeeper: Fraser Forster from Newcastle arrives. the player will sign ‘a two-year contract. The Bhoys will pay the Magpies around 2 million
KNOXY2000
Thanks-and good luck!
Dick
I reposted because I thought I was on my ownsome on the last thread.
Was it Tommy G that made him a Dundee fan?
Patrick Barclay supports Dundee.
knoxy2000… RAISING AWARENESS OF NEUROBLASTOMA on 21 June, 2012 at 12:09
Not a shameless plug at all Knoxy, I’m sure a lot of CQN’rs will be happy to stump up a few quid for the wee man. It only takes a minute to do lads.
HH
http://henryclarson.wordpress.com/2012/06/21/stop-the-fight-ref/#comment-399
A good read.
CSA Statement
Why should Celtic be weakened by the actions of others?
On a daily basis suggestions are being made about how best to accommodate a Newco football team into the SPL, obviously with the least restrictions placed upon that team. The latest talk is of the formation of an SPL2, and that the Newco team would join that league.
I have to say, if the football authorities had acted in a fair and decisive manner about 3 or 4 months ago, the whole sorry saga would probably be forgotten about now, and all the honest teams in Scotland could be going about their normal business of running a football club.
Why should Celtic FC suffer for the sins of another club which is now dead? Why should all the other clubs in Scotland be under pressure from their own supporters because of the Newco issue?
Celtic, and I imagine other teams are going to lose revenue because the people in power failed to act, some Celtic supporters won’t renew their season ticket if a Newco is allowed into the SPL, whether its SPL 1 or 2, some Celtic supporters won’t renew their season tickets if the Newco are not allowed in to SPL 1 or 2, and some sadly will use it as an excuse for not renewing.
Celtic finished last season as worthy League Champions, we probably could have, and indeed should have won the Treble, so we should be looking forward to being stronger in the market this coming season, not weaker, and we will be weaker if we don’t reach at least the season ticket numbers of last season.
Now we have the added problem of the other ten premier league clubs using the turmoil within the SPL to further their own ends by trying to change the voting system with regards to financial affairs in the SPL.
If changes need to be made in that regard it should done in a normal business manner, and that would be by discussion and mutual agreement, if Celtic are to have any chance of competing on the European stage, they cannot afford to drop a significant amount of their revenue, and that’s what will happen if the voting system is changed.
If some supporters are not renewing their season tickets now for whatever reason, how many would give theirs up if all Celtic’s home games were televised live on SKY or ESPN? And that would be possible under a new voting system.
The same could be said of sharing the home gate money, even if Celtic had to give 25% to the visiting team, that could cost us anywhere between 5 and 10 million pounds per season, obviously that money would be lost from the playing budget, so significantly reducing the quality of the playing squad.
Peter Lawwell said earlier we have a stand-alone business plan, but that comment was based on the clubs finances either remaining at the same level or higher, it would certainly not be stand-alone policy if we lose a significant amount of income.
The Celtic Supporters Association’s branches will discuss and vote on a selective boycott this coming Sunday; I believe we need to face the fact that, a change in the voting system would cause us far more damage that any Newco being in or out of the SPL.
I would certainly state that in most cases the Celtic Supporters also have a stand-alone policy, we stood alone on opposing the Offensive Behaviour at Football Bill, that’s for sure. I certainly hope that those supporters who have not yet renewed their season tickets do so in the near future. We need to stand strong, we need to continue to grow, not be dragged down by the failures of others to do their job properly and honestly.
I find it a bit ironic that it is property developers who are the latest in the long line of buyers. Tesco/Asda for the Broomloan Road?
Knoxy
DM on twitter buddy.
MWD
Billy’s Bhoy, 12:14
He’s a Dundee man (and a nice guy)
Wonderful news…well done paul.
Ps.we could have done with you and phill in the mid 90’s when my heart was breaking.
It must be hard to chase podia when you have webbed feet. (thumbsup)
Paul67
History? What history?
There’s no amount of penalties to the new club that will convince anybody they can just ‘take’ a defunct clubs history.
New club- No history.
MWD, perhaps something could be done with that piece of paper with the names on it I sent you last year which might help young Oscar ?
I hadn’t heard anything about any plans for it, and this is as worthy a cause as I’ve seen.
Rangers are history. (thumbsup)
So has the goalie-go-round finished with Big Fraser ending up back where he started?
Rang#rs are paleaentology
Patrick Barclay is a Dundee fan
Rangers are Norwegian Blue
Fantasm
Good point. Email me if you still have my addy.
MWD
Anyone who thinks that ibrox is going to be developed is living a fantasy. The land around there is very inexpensive and there are already huge tracts of undeveloped land after council house clearances. It is only worth money to a team who want to play football in it.
We Arra Pterydactyl