I caught a quote from St Johnstone owner Adam Webb this week, when he hoped the league size would grow “to 16 in the future”. With the way St Johnstone have played this season, that would have consequences for the Championship. That league currently has 10 clubs, so would presumably have to take from League One. Encouraging news for Cove Rangers, Alloa and Montrose.
Or maybe the reality of St Johnstone playing against so many clubs with significantly fewer resources than their own would convince Webb that the idea has less merit. For 16 years St Johnstone have earned out of visiting Celtic fans and from a TV deal which Celtic fans significantly carried. Your money is not far from his mind.
St Johnstone are rooted to the bottom of the table, but have lost only once (to Hibs) in all competitions since 23 February. That’s fewer defeats than Celtic have in that period. They may be doomed to relegation, but there is a last gasp of fight at the club.
Brendan Rodgers will be very keen to put a winning run together before these two clubs meet 14 days later at Hampden. The Scottish Cup is now the most important trophy in our consciousness.
Give St Johnstone no reason for hope, though best of luck in expanding the Championship to 16 teams, maybe take a couple from the top flight, leave us with the 10 team league most of Scottish football prefers.
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Hola
Happy Friday 👍
Aipples fools day.
Ha PHILCOOL!
Happy Friday all!
Indeed, Aipple, lol.
Can’t understand why you’re so keen on the 10 team league, Paul67.
Give St Johnstone no reason for hope, though best of luck in expanding the Championship to 16 teams, maybe take a couple from the top flight, leave us with the 10 team league most of Scottish football prefers.
Of all the opinions i e heard on pods and seen on forums a top 10 league is very much in the minority, certainly amongst the fans, but suppose if you go all trumpian you can just make stuff up and say it as if it’s the truth
Yes Paul,
How many times have we seen a relegated club reach a final or actually win it!!
Give St Johnstone no reason for hope, though best of luck in expanding the Championship to 16 teams, maybe take a couple from the top flight, leave us with the 10 team league most of Scottish football prefers.
================
trump level untruths.
i havnt heard or seen a single comment supporting a league of 10.
Good afternoon all from the Brazen Head. Day 2 of Aintree. Can’t be any worse than day 1.🙄
“ The tail wagging the dog “
James Sanderson @ ages ago
I support a top 10. Would be better quality, and competitively balanced . Combine with 10 team championship and more fluid relegation, all more interesting.
Scotland can’t support more than 20 proper professional teams.
36 games means more prep for Europe and two less freezing games in January.
the rags
—————
Willie Haughey has confirmed he is to end his financial backing for Queen’s Park when his current five-year agreement ends in June 2026, but the businessman has promised he will leave the Scottish Championship club debt free. (Scottish Sun), external
Queen’s Park are to scrap their youth academy, leaving more than 200 players and coaches without slots next season, as they prepare for life without financial backing from businessman Willie Haughey in two seasons’ time. (Daily Record), external
Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin says “brave” captain Ross Docherty must prove he has put his injury woes behind him in the concluding weeks of the season if the 32-year-old midfielder is to earn a new contract beyond the summer. (The Courier), external
Scotland midfielder Scott McTominay, who joined Napoli last summer, has revealed he felt “misprofiled” at Manchester United, where he was used as a number six or centre-back when his strengths have always been getting into the box and scoring goals. (The Athletic), external
Friday’s English & European transfer rumours
Published
13 hours ago
Thursday’s Scottish Gossip
Published
1 day ago
Northern Ireland Under-21 midfielder Francis Turley says there was “no chance” of him joining Rangers despite interest from the Ibrox club, Aberdeen, Ipswich Town and Burnley before the 19-year-old achieved his boyhood dream of signing for Celtic in 2022. (Belfast Telegraph), external
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers wants “huge” transfer backing this summer as the Northern Irishman prepares to sit down for showdown talks over his future in the off-season, when he will have just 12 months left on his contract. (Football Insider), external
Aberdeen are believed to be opposed to a smaller, 10-team Scottish Premiership in principle after the Scottish Professional Football League competitions working group agreed to a request to explore a revamp of the current four-tier model. (Press & Journal), external
Rangers have warned fans that they may scrap the singing section at Ibrox, mostly frequented by the Union Bears ultras group, over “issues of concern” after the club were fined by European governing body Uefa and threatened with a partial stadium closure. (The Herald)
awoody on 4th April 2025 12:29 pm
I support a top 10. Would be better quality, and competitively balanced
how
Kevin de Bruyne has confirmed he will leave Manchester City when his contract expires at the end of the season.
De Bruyne, 33, has won 16 trophies since joining City from Wolfsburg in 2015, including six Premier League titles and the Champions League in 2023.
He has scored 106 goals in 413 appearances in all competitions for City, but has started just 19 games this season.
“Every story comes to an end, but this has definitely been the best chapter,” the Belgium midfielder wrote on social media.
Doomed you say?
I still have an outside hope of St Johnstone losing to us this weekend then going on a wee bit of a run with Kilmarnock slipping down to 12th.
Valakari has stabilised them but likely just too late to survive.
From memory though they’ve performed well enough against bottom six?
So still in their hands.
As for the other parts of your leader Paul, clearly you are surfacing “talks” or “discussions” which are not fully transparent to the public.
Whatever your reasons, fair enough.
“Teams fearful of relegation suggest league expansion to save their ass” shocker.
Don’t we get this type of thing every season?
A top ten Premier League is a must in a small country like Scotland. More football clubs than people in our top flight isn’t the answer.
Paul67 et al
“….most of Scotland prefers”
How could you possibly know that Paul?
Did Big Pete tell ye?
Obviously the Club are driving the 10 team agenda
Sionnaigh on 4th April 2025 12:38 pm
A top ten Premier League is a must in a small country like Scotland. More football clubs than people in our top flight isn’t the answer.
what has the size/popuation of a country got to do with how many attend its favourite sport ? nothing.
all the teams have the right to exist, and to form the leagues they desire.
if a 10 is for celtic benefit only that is piss poor stakeholder management.
how does it really benefit celtic ? one less fixture at home but charge the same or more for tickets.
thought we were now benchmarking europe as the promised land ?
18 September 2024
More people attend top-flight football matches in Scotland than any other country in Europe as a proportion of population, according to a Uefa report.
On average just over 18 people out of every 1,000 attended Scottish Premiership matches last season.
The next highest was Portugal’s Primeira Liga at just over 10 people per 1,000.
The Dutch Eredivisie and England’s Premier League were third and fourth in the rankings contained in Uefa’s European Club Talent and Competition Landscape report.
It also found nearly 3.8 million fans attended top-flight matches in Scotland last season – the eighth highest in the whole of Europe – with the average league attendance of 16,500 the seventh highest on the continent.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cwylxzv1q4qo#:~:text=More%20people%20attend%20top%2Dflight,Scottish%20Premiership%20matches%20last%20season.
there are 25 countries in europe with a higher population than scotland, but we rank 7th in total attendances in our leagues.
fact
LQN and has been for a long time, going back to the bring me the silver bullet time, the about turn was clear since then.
No gig again for full time VAR ref since Easter Rd stolen point.
Hmmm CSC
“Obviously the Club are driving the 10 team agenda”.
I think that’s a fair assumption.
So if the Club thinks it would be in the best interests of Celtic, why do so many oppose it?
If the Club were in favour of an expanded league of 14, would folk want a league of 10?
Strikes me that a good few are just being awkward for the sake of it.
BSR – I was told by a decent source he’s been canned permanently.
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers wants “huge” transfer backing this summer as the Northern Irishman prepares to sit down for showdown talks over his future in the off-season, when he will have just 12 months left on his contract. (Football Insider)
__________________________________________________________________________
Saint Stivs
It’s not really a Football Insider is it? More like a wishful thinking Hun Insider! ‘Huge’ transfer backing, is that taller players?
‘Northern Irishman’ what’s that? Does this include all males living in Donegal as well?
The Blogger Formerly Known As GM on 4th April 2025 1:21 pm
BSR – I was told by a decent source he’s been canned permanently.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
And if true it is the only option. He either did not understand his remit (he did) or he chose not to follow guidelines (he did). Let’s be honest everyone knows he chose to ‘see’ what he wanted and that is cheating.
https://youtu.be/bjDaETpoF5E?feature=shared
The Blogger Formerly Known As GM on 4th April 2025 1:19 pm
“Obviously the Club are driving the 10 team agenda”.
I think that’s a fair assumption.
So if the Club thinks it would be in the best interests of Celtic, why do so many oppose it?
—————————————
simply because they have not said why it is in the best interests of the club.
i oppose 2nd rangers supporters being allowed into celtic park. the club said it is a good thing for that fixture but they havnt told us why.
a 10 team league with certain relegation for the 10th club, would lead to boring, lets not lose football, even more than today,
it is what happened before, maybe people dont remember.
‘Northern Irishman’ what’s that? Does this include all males living in Donegal as well?
they would be north western irishmen
but i do believe it is an ecumenical matter
GM
Hoisted by his own petard ? 👍
Hi Everyone,
Just wanted to say thanks for all your comments from the other day. That was something that had weighed heavily for years on my mind and my heart, just wish I had a wee bit more courage to help those worse off than the rest of us. People in power do an amazing job manipulating those that are weaker, and I unfortunately see it everyday now over here in how America is being run. My love of Celtic Football Club runs deep, like all of you, and it is gut wrenching that we are in this position and it is difficult to defend, no tthe club, but the people who were in charge at that time. Other folks will use this as point scoring against our fantastic club and what it stands for. The club has acknowledged what went on and I can’t use the words that we are trying to right the wrongs of yesteryear because nothing can. We have to make sure that our kids are protected and that evil twisted men like that are never in a position of power and trust in our beautiful club ever again. It is a chance for wrongs to be righted in other clubs, as this problem is rife, whether it was in the past or is still being brushed under the carpet today. Our young uns are the best wealth that our countries have. As much as I love Celtic, my wife and kids and family come before them. I talked to a good friend yesterday for a long time trying to explain how we Scots and Irish are not the best at telling those around us that we love them, at least I wasn’t growing up, but we had no problem expressing our feelings for the green and white. Maybe I am in the minority when I write this and you expressed your feelings more than I did within your close knit groups, but in Wishy, it was a wee bit different:)))
I am sorry if I ever offend anyone with what I put down. I always hope that it just comes across as honest drivel from someone in another part of the world, just longing for the chance to go back and see Donegal again:)))) Thank you all for all that you contribute on this great site. We may not all agree with each other but we all have one thing in common and that is our love of the Green and White.
Hail Hail and all the best.
Sean
“leave us with the 10 team league most of Scottish football prefers”
Most of Scottish football, namely Peter Lawwell……
from old blog
TOSB@9:41am
Did the Government demand all seated stadiums after Nottingham 1983?
No they didn’t but it might have given them some ideas.
Thatchers goons weren’t ordered to kill Celtic fans in Nottingham, or that’s what would have happened. I was there that night and the cops were getting along fine with Celtic fans, not trying to crush them in a cage like the 1989 events did to Liverpool fans. So no plans to use this as a reason to introduce all seated stadiums as far as I could see??
What happened in 1983 was an accident. Where as 1989 was staged to be used as a red flag by the Government and on message National Media pushing the terrifying “football terraces are unsafe” narrative.
Just like that eh.
That’s why the Establishment spent the next 30 years lying about Hillsborough to the Liverpool victims families. Covering up their crimes ala Bloody Sunday etc.
Nottingham 1983 gave the Thatcher led Establishment ideas. Imho.
Curiously enough, articles were in the Scottish media before and after Nottingham, asking Desmond White if Celtic fans should be all seated like Ibrox is?
Desmond White said – “Our fans prefer to stand. That is the impression, and the feedback that we get. But if fans demanded us to give them more seating, then we would have to take that on board. Celtic fans more than most know that putting too many seats into stadia reduces the atmosphere, and that unique bond between Celtic players and fans might suffer because of that. If you ask a fan would you rather stand costing £2 or sit costing £7, then most fans would probably be more inclined to stand.”
Desmond White was more acutely aware of the financial, and sectarian employment predicaments of most Celtic fans at that time than the boards who have followed him. That is why White and the board allowed up to 30% of Celtic fans to be lifted over the turnstile at home games, and 50% of gate receipts went to opposition teams.
So how the old board made all of the Celtic fans money disappear is the biggest myth since the Titanic being sunk by an iceberg.
Also, at the build up to Celtic vs Forest 2nd leg, the media tried to pressure and trick Celtic into allowing the game to be broadcast live on TV throughout UK.
Desmond White said – “That wouldn’t be fair on the tens of thousands of our fans who stood for hours in the cold to get tickets for the game. But another reason is that, if you put too much games live on TV, then over time stadia would start to empty. And couple that with the lack of atmosphere if more seats were also installed, then that wouldn’t be a wise road for us to go down. We have spoken with our many friends down in England and we would resist fully if attempts were made to drag Celtic FC down this road.”
So, the Thatcher led Establishment had to come up with a “trick” to get seating into stadiums, and sadly 97 Liverpool fans paid the price for that. RIP.
White and his many friends down south, ManUtd, Liverpool, Forest, Everton, etc, were also being badgered by the media to put more seats in, so the Government knew that there would have been a lot of resistance to all seating.
And it looks like Celtic’s visit to Forest in 1983 might have given Thatcher and her goons some ideas. Especially after Desmond White died in 1985 and Celtic became a vulnerable basket case who then wouldn’t have been able to resist without such a formidable statesman like Desmond White fighting Celtic’s corner..
PS, Desmond White’s views were all in the Celtic View about the above.
Of course with Celtic PLC facing the very real prospects of further compensation payouts to victims of Celtic Boys Club, (an organisation do not forget that at one time had as its’ President the Vice-Chairman of the Celtic Football Club Board), it may well be that the present Board, whose own role in delaying the recent compensation is nothing less than shameful, believes that the reduction in the number of SPL clubs to ten, will enable CFC to benefit from a greater share of broadcasting rights, and be in a better financial position from which to pay any redress agreed or indeed ordered by a Court.
If Celtic are in fact one of the main proponents of such change at the SPL, it would certainly explain its’ advocacy by Paul (NewCo) 67 a long term lackey for our present Chairman and former CEO.
Celtic Mac – I think you’ll find compensation will be paid by public liability insurance and as such, the compensation process was handled by the insurance company lawyers.
SS – re the huns back at our stadium, see the manager and captain’s pre-match pressers. I’m sure their comments were on message. Re. league reconstruction – I believe it’s a proposal and nothing has been decided yet? Do you expect Celtic to be putting out statements every 10 minutes covering each and every stage of the process?
The hard of thinking makes this place a real challenge at times.
The 40 goals in a season league
Jimmy McGrory
Joe McBride
Bobby Lennox
Brian McClair
Kenny Dalglish
Charlie Nicholas
Henrik Larsson
Leigh Griffiths
next up Daizen Maeda sitting on 30 goals ? and he’ll play if he’s fit.