GARY RALSTON
THE BURNING ISSUE FRASER WILSON GORDON PARKS
ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON once wrote that compromise is the best and cheapest lawyer.
No league title or relegation issue should ever be decided without all its fixtures being fulfilled.
Therefore, under normal circumstances, Celtic should not be crowned Premiership champions – or Dundee United, Raith Rovers and Cove Rangers rewarded in their respective leagues.
But these are not normal circumstances and SPFL chiefs have been caught between a rock and a hard place.
Legal opinion states the SPFL cannot declare its season null and void as they would effectively be stating it never happened.
As a result, they would
THIS is not just about Celtic, Rangers and the destination of the title, Hearts, Hamilton and Dundee United or the make-up of the next top-flight campaign.
Look across the entire Scottish football landscape and there are more than half the 42 SPFL clubs still fighting in one way or another to achieve something. Or to save their a***s.
That’s why the season simply cannot be stopped and current standings declared final.
The buzzword is sporting integrity and that is exactly what it is for our clubs. Having fought for three quarters of the season to keep their dreams alive – and budgeted to realise those ambitions – don’t stop them in their tracks just as we enter the business end.
How often has a runaway leader blown up under pressure or a side who seemed doomed
AT a time when all of the focus should be on trying to keep loved ones safe, talk of whether Celtic should be awarded the title now should maybe take a back seat.
But Scottish football’s suspended state is going to have serious long-term ramifications so decisive action is required.
The SFA should ask UEFA to make a judgment on how to move forward with regard to titles, relegations and Europe.
It may be as simple as them declaring the winners to be the team who were top of the league at the time the campaign was brought to a halt.
Celtic were never going to be caught. Their excellence this season should be rewarded with the title if the season isn’t to resume. It should be straightforward and simple to potentially lay themselves open to lawsuits from everyone.
Whether history views it as nine in a row for Celtic or the first Scottish club to win eight-and-three-quarters, one thing is for sure.
The coming weeks and months are going to put the glorious nonsense of football into its sharpest perspective as we are all reminded of the really important things in life. pulled off a miracle escape? Unpredictability is one of the most alluring features of the beautiful game.
These are uncharted waters and, of course, any solution is likely to have rocky consequences.
But the calmest and fairest outcome has to be sought.
That’s delaying the season. Wait for the authorities to give the all-clear and then pick up from where we left off. take the league table as it stands just now and apply the prizes and relegations appropriately. Of course it’s a controversial move but these are not normal times, we are in uncharted territory.
Even the most optimistic Rangers fan will know that Celtic were never going to get caught. There aren’t enough games left for the type of collapse required to allow the Light Blues back in.