League Ready For change

[derekweir29 505]

http://www.<No links to this website>/2010/04/16/terrified-chairmen-in-secret-talks-to-revolutionise-shambolic-spl-86908-22189542/

[papaguy51 941]

Terrified chairmen in secret talks to revolutionise shambolic SPL structure

Apr 16 2010 By Nuremberg Hugh

SCOTTISH football last night stood on the brink of revolution amid fears more than one SPL club is going to the wall.

Record Sport understands a move towards the restructuring of the SPL will start as soon as this season's championship and relegation issues have been decided.

Concerned chairmen have been holding emergency talks in secret for weeks. Matters are now coming to a head in advance of financial figures being released which will show the catastrophe that's on the way unless the Top Twelve is expanded into an 18-team league.

SPL chairmen met at Hampden yesterday as calls mounted for a change of direction and even the SPL chief executive Neil Doncaster has now publicly admitted the split isn't the answer to falling crowds and declining standards.

One concerned club spokesman said: "There are balance-sheet figures about to come out which are appalling.

"Clubs will go to the wall. unless there's change across the board, and soon.

"We can't go on paying salaries that the clubs just can't afford. Income must become relative to clubs' expenditure.

"Chairmen have been talking to each other in the background but it would be inappropriate to speak out before the major issues have been settled.

"Scottish football needs restructuring because the game is the big picture.

"If you sort out the product then the financial picture gets better in time.

"It might be sore to begin with, and income might drop by as much as 30 per cent, but if we don't take steps to find our true level then there will be serious consequences."

Rangers manager Walter Smith has already stated his preference for an 18-team Premier League, reducing the number of fixtures to 34.

That would take away the complaint that the same teams are meeting each other too many times during the season.

Support for that change to the current system was growing last night .

Formal moves to alter the structure of the SPL and redraw the remainder of the clubs in the Scottish Football League are now only a matter of weeks away.

Here's the story, so that no-one gives them money from website hits

And good news if true.

[Stu1993 101]

Its time for change. the prospect of playing Hamilton 7 times a year frightens me.

Does anyone else not think playing 2 OF games a season is better ?. i do, i think it would cause the gome team to go for the win as you only have the one at home.

[RM Monitor And Standards Officer 112,988]

Its time for change. the prospect of playing Hamilton 7 times a year frightens me.

Does anyone else not think playing 2 OF games a season is better ?. i do, i think it would cause the gome team to go for the win as you only have the one at home.

The atmosphere would be

[ClintonGrey 365]

Its time for change. the prospect of playing Hamilton 7 times a year frightens me.

Does anyone else not think playing 2 OF games a season is better ?. i do, i think it would cause the gome team to go for the win as you only have the one at home.

The atmosphere would be

The bad news would be that the old firm games would not be title deciders any more.

[papaguy51 941]

The good news is that that mob would only pollute the Ibrox air once a year!

[RM Monitor And Standards Officer 112,988]

Its time for change. the prospect of playing Hamilton 7 times a year frightens me.

Does anyone else not think playing 2 OF games a season is better ?. i do, i think it would cause the gome team to go for the win as you only have the one at home.

The atmosphere would be

The bad news would be that the old firm games would not be title deciders any more.

Well id be gutted by that

I just want a more competitive leauge and the 1st couple of years would be pants, but once it got up and running it should be fine. Also 1 trip a year to places like tannadice and pittodrie would be better than 3(altho good away days) there realy tough games

[Stu1993 101]

i just think it would make the Home OF Games alot more intense. they would be a must win, i know everygame is a must win but having only one OF Game at home would mean so much more to win.

[scotty657 1]

It would also increase season ticket sales?

More people would be desperate to get to that ONE OF at Ibrox, therefore buy a season ticket to guarantee it.

[hutchy14 4]

The league needs freshend up. 1 team down 1 team up is no use its boring. Playing the same 11 teams as u did last season.

[Duncan 23]

If an 18 team league were to happen then i would be happy with that! Not sure what would happen to season ticket prices though.

17 home games that would involve the likes of Dundee, Ross County, Dunfermline, ICT etc.... surely prices would have to come down meaning even less money?

[the brown brogue 1,964]

Of course its a good idea, anyone with half a brain can see it!

The split and subsequent uneven allocation of home and away ties is frankly ludicrous, how can it ever be classed as a fair league when a rival may have the advantage of playing you 3 times at home and once away?

I'm pretty sick of hearing the paper-thin arguments against an 18 team league. The past few seasons have shown that First Division sides are more than capable of competing with most of the SPL, theres no way they'd be getting hammered every game like I've heard being argued. Another argument against it has been the amount of meaningless end of season games it would create. Again I think this is nonsense and in fact I think it would give the mid-table sides who are in no danger of being relegated but cant get into Europe the freedom to fill their teams with young lads and play without pressure or fear for a few games, surely this is in the best interests of scottish football as a whole?

I also think it would lessen the gap between the Old Firm (or just us this season) and the rest of the league. At the moment most sides in the SPL are capable of raising their game and winning one of the four ties we would play against them. However assuming we win the other three thats a six point gap already. Should we play a team only twice then if they win one game against us and we win the other then its an even points spread, thus reducing the gap straight away.

The Old Firm have subsidised the other clubs long enough with their inflated prices for away games. Hopefully the other chairmen can see now that if a better standard of product was on offer then crowds would increase and TV deals would improve and this would make up for the loss of revenue from the reduced number of Old Firm games.

Scottish football is dying, change is needed before it really is too late.

[Bradfield 35]

I'd love some fairly radical changes, but the chairman, clubs and powers-that-be in the Scottish game have always been self-preservationist, and that's shown by the number of clubs saying they'd vote against the change; you know that these 5-6 clubs that said they'd vote against reform are the 5-6 that regularly get into the top half after the split (other than Rangers and Celtic).

To put it in context, we'll have played 54 games by the end of the season; 17 of those will have come against Dundee United, Hamilton and St. Mirren alone. That's just mad.

[J_RFC87 766]

Having an 18 team league would spread the wealth out more, which means the teams that are currently in the SPL suffer more.