LOCKED OUT
Sturgeon rejects SPFL plea to allow return of fans
SCOTTISH football’s desperate bid to get fans back into stadiums next month was rejected out of hand by Nicola Sturgeon yesterday.
Despite SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster warning that a continued loss of gate receipts would represent ‘the death knell for some of our best-loved clubs’, the First Minister gave no indication that she would meet with a delegation from the country’s most popular sport.
Doncaster sent an open letter to Sturgeon in a bid to highlight the inconsistency in Boris Johnson partially relaxing restrictions on supporters south of the border — while Scottish fans remain locked out of games.
And the hope is that, even if Holyrood authorities do not bend on this issue, they will finally release cash which the promised ‘emergency sports fund’ agreed in principle last month.
Insisting yesterday that she will not be following the Prime Minister’s lead in allowing up to 4,000 fans to attend matches, Sturgeon said: ‘There is a difference right now between case levels in England and Scotland.
‘However much Neil Doncaster, for reasons I understand, is only looking at football, we can’t see any sector, or any part of society in isolation.
‘It’s difficult for football, I know that, but it’s difficult for lots of people, lots of businesses, lots of sectors.
‘We can see that light getting brighter on the horizon, but I’m afraid the next few months will still involve some tough decisions.’
Doncaster wrote in his letter to the First Minister: ‘For almost nine months, and despite the enormous financial consequences, our clubs have fastidiously followed every directive and every instruction from your government.
‘Clubs, supporters and players have been hugely patient as we have played our full part in the national effort to combat coronavirus.
‘However, with the very welcome news that clubs in England are being allowed to bring back fans in limited numbers, we are seeking urgent talks with you to ensure that Scottish clubs, and Scottish fans are permitted to do the same in very short order.
‘Thousands upon thousands of Scottish fans are simply desperate to get back to watching their teams in the safety of a carefullymanaged, open-air environment.
‘Scottish football is on its knees and clubs big and small the length and breadth of the country are in the most dire straits, with income projected to drop by £100million this season alone.’
In a fiery public statement a c c o mpanying the l e t t e r, Doncaster said: ‘ If the First Minister refuses to allow football fans all over Scotland to watch their beloved teams in carefullyregulated, l i mited numbers, complete with track and trace, she will have to explain to them the clinical difference between Scottish fans and English fans.
‘Make no mistake, failure to get fans back in the very near future will sound the death knell for some of our best-loved clubs and no one wants that.
‘Scottish football fans are the most passionate in Europe, with more league attendances per capita than any other country, so our clubs have been hit far harder by the lock- out than those in England because we depend much more heavily on gate receipts.
‘Every major club in Scotland has very detailed, well-founded plans in place for safely returning f ans back to stadiums, and thousands upon thousands of Scotti s h f a ns are s i mply desperate to get back quickly to watching their teams in the safety of a carefully-managed, open-air environment.
‘Despite the enormous financial consequences, our clubs have followed every directive and every instruction from the Scottish Government for month after month.
‘Clubs, supporters and players have been hugely patient. It’s now time to get the fans back.
‘We are now calling on the First Minister to do the right thing by Scotland’s hard-pressed football supporters.
‘If it’s good enough for English fans, it must be good enough for Scottish fans.
‘The clubs have done the hard work of putting their plans in place for the safe return of fans in limited numbers.
‘All we need now is for the First Minister to say Yes. The First Minister alone has the opportunity to put a smile on the faces of Scottish football fans and give t hem a much- needed early Christmas present.’
Meanwhile, Celtic last night gave their backing to the SPFL’s plea to the First Minister.
A club statement read: ‘ Celtic FC understands that Covid-19 presents significant challenges f or people, businesses and sectors across Scotland, i ncluding f ootball, and that responding to those challenges whilst protecting health and safety will i nvolve striking a difficult balance of a number of factors and considerations.
‘As we have made clear, the club is committed to working with the f ootball authorities and the Scottish Government to welcome supporters back to football as quickly and as safely as possible. From the work that we have carried out with our supporters, we know how important that is to them, too.
‘We therefore fully support the SPFL’s request for an urgent meeting with the First Minister to discuss the safe return of supporters to stadia in Scotland as soon as possible.’