BigDak 814 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Does anybody else think it's time for Scottish football to start getting real?The nation's game is in a state, there's no money and not many supporters going to support their team (with the exception of us of course ).Do you not think that by getting rid of all the shite from the bottom two leagues, and maybe even half of the Championship, that it would create a more concentrated support and ultimately help get bums on seats?We have a total population of, let's say, 6M and if you be generous and say that half of them like football that's 3M people interested in football. Even over the whole expanse of the US, which has a population of over 300M, there are only 32 professional American football teams yet we have 8 more football teams than that entire continent.Now obviously there are folk who take pride in going to see their local team but I think they need to get a grip. That was all well and good when it took 3 days to get from Edinburgh to Glasgow so everything was much more localised but we're a small nation and you can practically travel the length and breadth of it in under 5 hours. Plus there are only about 200 of them go anyway, and some Junior teams get a crowd that size.I also appreciate that there are some guys who are better than average players who want to play competitively but they need to get real too. In the modern game if you haven't made it by the time you're 21, possibly even 18, then you're never going to make it.Yes, there will be a lot of folk who were/are good players who will be let down but that would let the coaches to concentrate on the people who have more potential. You can still play football in different skill levels, just not professionally. Most of the guys playing in the bottom 2 leagues are Junior players anyway who have been signed because the teams can't afford to buy each other's players.I just think we'd do much better with a more concentrated structure of about 15 teams and we'd have a much better product.Quality over quantity I say. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnstone Burgh 1,658 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 I don't know why we have 4 leagues, we should have 2 at most. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDak 814 Posted March 27, 2014 Author Share Posted March 27, 2014 I agree. I think we're trying to compete with the other nations but we're a fraction of their size. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheKingObv 10,657 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 US have college teams which are pretty much like our lower league ones. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDak 814 Posted March 27, 2014 Author Share Posted March 27, 2014 US have college teams which are pretty much like our lower league ones.And they still get more support than most, if not all, of the top tier Scottish teams and they never play competitively against the pros. I just don't think there is the level of population to support such a wide variety of teams in Scotland and think it's a bit ridiculous that we have the number of teams in our top leagues.I think those teams in the bottom 2 leagues should go Junior. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlCapone 7,678 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 So how will killing off 20 teams full of part time players with about 15,000 fans between them improve the game at the top? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
harlands plater 17,063 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 I think we've always had too many clubs in this country but a lot of those wee clubs extended the hand of friendship to Rangers over the past two years while so-called "big" clubs were putting the boot in. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
corkinator 611 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Shut down the whole thing Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GOAT 30,449 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Teams like Falkirk, Stenhousemuir, East Stirling etc should all merge. Teams like Ross County and Inverness, should merge. Teams like Forfar, Brechin, Arbroath and Montrose should merge. All the Fife clubs should merge into one or two clubs. East and West Fife. Motherwell, Hamilton, Airdrie and Albion rovers should all merge into one or two clubs.I've said as much for years tbh. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
harlands plater 17,063 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Teams like Falkirk, Stenhousemuir, East Stirling etc should all merge. Teams like Ross County and Inverness, should merge. Teams like Forfar, Brechin, Arbroath and Montrose should merge. All the Fife clubs should merge into one or two clubs. East and West Fife. Motherwell, Hamilton, Airdrie and Albion rovers should all merge into one or two clubs.I've said as much for years tbh.Not to mention Celtic, Shamrock Rovers and Bohemians. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GOAT 30,449 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Not to mention Celtic, Shamrock Rovers and Bohemians.Are they not the same anyway? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Straight-Edge-Loyal 6,696 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Not to mention Celtic, Shamrock Rovers and Bohemians.Only if they fuck of and play in the roi Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDak 814 Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 So how will killing off 20 teams full of part time players with about 15,000 fans between them improve the game at the top?I think it would help by concentrating those 15,000 fans, and their money, between professional teams who actually have a chance, one day, of maybe getting into Europe, winning a cup or even the league.The events of the last couple of years have just made me realise how boring the Scottish league is when you take the Old Firm out of the equation and I don't think that's healthy.All of the teams, with the exception of the tims, have known for the past 2 years, and for the next couple to come, that the Premier league campaign is a race for second place and that's sad. There's never been any thought in anybody's head that there would be a challenger for first place.I just think it's about time we stopped fannying around with glorified junior teams. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidermansGaffer 2,552 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I've thought the same for years, merge a lot of the wee teams into regional clubs, that with a combined support/income would surely have a better chance of competing at a higher level. Making football in Scotland a much more interesting place. It wouldn't happen overnight, but surely the supporters of the merged teams would eventually see the bigger picture & get behind their stronger regional team which has a more realistic chance of competing with the top teams. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Straight-Edge-Loyal 6,696 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I've thought the same for years, merge a lot of the wee teams into regional clubs, that with a combined support/income would surely have a better chance of competing at a higher level. Making football in Scotland a much more interesting place. It wouldn't happen overnight, but surely the supporters of the merged teams would eventually see the bigger picture & get behind their stronger regional team which has a more realistic chance of competing with the top teams.I dont think it.would work like that.their.fans support.them as they.are.from.the same town normally if their club gets taken.away.for some reason most if not all.would stop watching football Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
there'sonlyoneamoruso 1,724 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Surely a lack of promotion/relegation have lead to the stagnation of Scottish football?The Lowland and Highland leagues will from next season be involved in a promotion play-off to get into League 2. I'm not saying it is a cure all ills move, but it might see some teams finding their natural level. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaudrupsPatrickBoots 13,540 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I dont think it.would work like that.their.fans support.them as they.are.from.the same town normally if their club gets taken.away.for some reason most if not all.would stop watching footballThis. It's unreasonable to expect that you could just kill off a team and expect all their fans to move on and support the next nearest club to them. It would do more harm than good IMO. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlCapone 7,678 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I dont think it.would work like that.their.fans support.them as they.are.from.the same town normally if their club gets taken.away.for some reason most if not all.would stop watching footballyip, its not really that hard to understand is it??? lets make football better by losing more fans Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlCapone 7,678 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I think it would help by concentrating those 15,000 fans, and their money, between professional teams who actually have a chance, one day, of maybe getting into Europe, winning a cup or even the league.The events of the last couple of years have just made me realise how boring the Scottish league is when you take the Old Firm out of the equation and I don't think that's healthy.All of the teams, with the exception of the tims, have known for the past 2 years, and for the next couple to come, that the Premier league campaign is a race for second place and that's sad. There's never been any thought in anybody's head that there would be a challenger for first place.I just think it's about time we stopped fannying around with glorified junior teams.So how will the redistribution of these 15,000 fans make the top 22 clubs better? for a start most of these fans will not follow amanlgamated teams and will just drift away...but for arguments sake say 50% of them follow the new teams. In a 22 team Scottish league that would put an average of 340 fans onto the attendances of each club. How would that allow these clubs to move forward and challenge Rangers and C*ltic?.... It wouldnt make a blind bit of difference.As Rangers fans the last couple of years have been a pleasure visting these clubs, its a bit arrogant of us to say they should be closed down when most of them are profitable and are well run business's.....perhaps not something for us to be judging others on!Take it to another level, we hope to be entering the CL soon and have no chance of winning it....so to give us a chance should all the Glasgow clubs amalgamate and become Glasgow United in a 100,000 stadium? would you go? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDak 814 Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 I dont think it.would work like that.their.fans support.them as they.are.from.the same town normally if their club gets taken.away.for some reason most if not all.would stop watching footballyip, its not really that hard to understand is it??? lets make football better by losing more fans Sorry guys but I don't agree with that. Do you mean to say that if East Stirling went away any children who "support" them would never watch football again? That's nonsense.Maybe an auld man who's 70 years old and has been going to watch them all his days would stop but I'm talking about the future here. I think anyone under the age of 30 would move on.I imagine most folk who support these wee teams have a "big team" who they would happily go see if they weren't dogged down by this BS about having to support your local teams or else you're a glory hunter. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDak 814 Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 So how will the redistribution of these 15,000 fans make the top 22 clubs better? for a start most of these fans will not follow amanlgamated teams and will just drift away...but for arguments sake say 50% of them follow the new teams. In a 22 team Scottish league that would put an average of 340 fans onto the attendances of each club. How would that allow these clubs to move forward and challenge Rangers and C*ltic?.... It wouldnt make a blind bit of difference.As Rangers fans the last couple of years have been a pleasure visting these clubs, its a bit arrogant of us to say they should be closed down when most of them are profitable and are well run business's.....perhaps not something for us to be judging others on!Take it to another level, we hope to be entering the CL soon and have no chance of winning it....so to give us a chance should all the Glasgow clubs amalgamate and become Glasgow United in a 100,000 stadium? would you go?Well what if those 15,000 were split between 3-5 teams instead? Then that would make a quite a significant difference if they went to the games. But obviously this is all hypothetical.I appreciate these teams have been very hospitable and welcoming but I'm sure if Rangers went to visit The Horse Shoe Inn's amateur team it'd probably be a delight as well if they put on a stadium for it. It's not meant as any disrespect to anyone I just don't see why a country as small as Scotland has so many outfits.To give us a chance in the CL it takes money, unfortunately. As was shown with Gretna, if you throw enough money at a team you can get them somewhere (although keeping them there is a different matter altogether) and there just isn't enough money in Scottish football for these teams to go anywhere. If the wealth was concentrated between 20 teams it would make a difference.To give an example, there are roughly the same number of people in London as there are in Scotland and they have 13 professional teams. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Straight-Edge-Loyal 6,696 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Sorry guys but I don't agree with that. Do you mean to say that if East Stirling went away any children who "support" them would never watch football again? That's nonsense.Maybe an auld man who's 70 years old and has been going to watch them all his days would stop but I'm talking about the future here. I think anyone under the age of 30 would move on.I imagine most folk who support these wee teams have a "big team" who they would happily go see if they weren't dogged down by this BS about having to support your local teams or else you're a glory hunter.Depends on how much your local pride is a factor in supporting these clubs if.its.just something to do on a Saturday.they will move on maybe finding a new.club if.they love.their.club like.we all.do there is no way.they will support.anyone else Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Straight-Edge-Loyal 6,696 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 yip, its not really that hard to understand is it??? lets make football better by losing more fans I can see a way we can make the world better by losing "60,000" of the bastards to.be fair cant you Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlCapone 7,678 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I can see a way we can make the world better by losing "60,000" of the bastards to.be fair cant youI think youll find its 38,000 now Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferdasyn 431 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Aye let's do away with all these teams and expect their fans to follow someone else Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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