St Mirren deny stalling talks on reconstruction
ST MIRREN have denied that they were one of the six clubs who forced league reconstruction talks to collapse.
Plans for a league overhaul came to a halt following a meeting involving the top-flight teams last Friday, with Aberdeen confirming there was not enough support at this time to keep going with discussions on the issue.
The Buddies have since been named as one of the clubs who were against the plans, along with the Dons, Ross County, St Johnstone, Hibs and Dundee United. However, the Paisley outfit have clarified their stance and insist chairman Gordon Scott, who was part of the reconstruction task force, made it clear that Saints had been keen to continue dialogue with regards to a potential shake-up.
A St Mirren statement read: “We are being quoted in the media as one of the clubs that has scuppered reconstruction talks. We feel that it is important to put the record straight within our own support.
“At the meeting, our chairman clearly stated that we were in favour of continuing reconstruction talks but only if it was a permanent change for the benefit of Scottish Football.
“We also made it clear that any final decision would be made by the St Mirren board.
“Reconstruction is one of the points within the shareholders’ agreement that requires agreement between SMiSA [St Mirren Independent Supporters Association], Kibble [shareholder] and Gordon Scott, so the board would never make a final decision without the correct protocol being followed.
“With reconstruction off the table for now and the resolution failing, it is important now that we all concentrate our energy on finding a way to populate stadiums safely and get back to playing and watching the game we love.”
Meanwhile, Clyde insist a robust review of the SPFL is needed after claiming it is a “structurally-flawed model of self-interest and partisanship”.
The Bully Wee have revealed why they abstained from
Tuesday’s vote calling for an independent investigation into the league body following the fall-out of last month’s ballot over ending the season.
The move by Rangers, Hearts and Stranraer failed to achieve the required 75 per cent support from each of the three voting blocks after a total of 13 clubs favoured the motion. However, the League One outfit insist that their decision not to vote was not a statement of support in the SPFL.
A statement read: “As a board, we were unanimous in our view that the resolution and the supporting report had merit but, in truth, it pointed mostly to behaviours and practices which would not have surprised many in the lower leagues. With that indictment it was difficult not to want to support some form of investigation or review.
“However, after extensive reflection in context of a number of major factors, the board decided to abstain from the vote.
“We took our decision having regard to a number of factors. Given the desperate situation that the country finds itself in, with significant societal and economic challenges, this really is not a priority.
“These were not new behaviours. In our opinion it was not an investigation that is required, rather it is a robust review of how governance of a structurally-flawed model of self-interest and partisanship can better work for the benefit of all members.”