Killie to ask for fixture talks if they get a triple whammy
BALANCING ACT CALENDAR CHAOS Jeff: I called for league revamp a decade ago and cannot believe these fixtures fights are still raging
KILMARNOCK will ask for showdown talks with the SPFL if they are forced to play Rangers at Ibrox for a third time this season.
Record Sport revealed yesterday the league are facing a potential post-split fixture headache if the top six remains as it is – with Killie currently sixth.
Rangers have played all five of their rivals in the top half of the Premiership twice at home so far this term.
But the Light Blues will
JIM JEFFERIES called for the league split to be binned a decade ago because it threw up winners and losers in the fixtures every season.
So it pains the ex-Hearts and Kilmarnock boss to see the same old arguments still rage on.
Rangers are at the heart of this year’s chaos. If the top six teams stay the same until April’s league split, two sides will be forced to make a third trip to Ibrox.
With league chiefs unlikely to upset the balance of Old Firm games it means Aberdeen, Hearts, Hibs or Kilmarnock are facing another clash in Govan.
The controversial top-six split has divided opinion since it was introduced in season 2000-01.
The uneven nature of the fixtures has led to many clubs feeling they’ve been hard done by over the years. And Jefferies can’t believe league chiefs are still persisting with what he considers a flawed system.
The 67-year-old said: “In 2008 I called for a total revamp of the league. Every year one club or another either ends up out of pocket or angry about the post-split fixtures.
“I read with interest the Record story where Aberdeen, Hibs, Hearts and Kilmarnock may have to go to Ibrox a third time because of the post-split fixtures. That is not an ideal scenario for any of those clubs.
“If you’re having a league competition then you have to be as fair as you can. It’s unfair to ask any of these clubs to play Rangers at Ibrox a third time.
“Ibrox is never an easy venue to go at the best of times. But we’re reaching the business end of the season and European places are up for grabs.
“Aberdeen and Hibs are flying and battling it with Rangers for the European spots. So having to go to Ibrox a third time could be the difference between getting into the Europa League or not come the end of May.”
Two of Jefferies’s old clubs could also suffer if Hearts and Killie have to face Gers on the road again. He said: “Kilmarnock are strong contenders to finish in the top six. Steve Clarke has done a great job and they’ll fancy their chances of overhauling Hearts in fifth place.
“Another away trip to face Rangers could damage their hopes of achieving that. There are times after the split where teams have five meaningless games because they’re safe in seventh and can’t reach the top six and can’t be relegated.
“I know there’s prize money up for grabs with every place but the supporters don’t really see that. A lot of fans end up not going to end-of-season games because they feel there’s nothing to play for.”
The veteran believes our top flight has gone stale and would like to see an expanded league.
Jefferies said: “The sensible solution to all these problems would be to just scrap the split.
“We should get back to the old system of playing each other once, home and away.
“I also believe the top league should be extended. Playing each other four times a season doesn’t excite the supporters any more. It would bring a freshness and excitement back.
“Are you trying to tell me clubs like Dundee United, St Mirren, Falkirk, Dunfermline and Morton couldn’t add something to the top division?
“You would actually help a lot of people if you expanded the league and let in more clubs.
“Dundee United are a big club and if they don’t get up to the Premiership this season they will have to make even more cuts.
“The league would still be very competitive even if you allowed more teams into it.
“I voiced my opinion on this subject 10 years ago and nothing has been done about it. But I’m not surprised. I won’t use the rude word that accompanies this phrase but it goes to show when it comes to revamping Scottish football you’re, ‘You know what … in the wind.’”