Dundee having the casting vote is hardly likely to give us a fairytale end to season
August. The SPFL seem to be using Sky’s big contract, which kicks off on August 1, as one of their excuses.
But surely whether the new campaign starts on August 1 or September 7 wouldn’t have made any dif ference under these circumstances?
The deal is for the amount of live fixtures over a season and that won’t change even if the start has to be delayed. If they tried to rob clubs of funds, there might not be clubs left for next term.
Same for BT Sport, who are coming to the end of a successful stint where they’ve bui lt up terri f ic relationships with Scottish clubs. The
At least the immediate fate of Scottish football is in safe hands.
Say what you like about Dundee but over the years they have been a steady ship, a calm voice of reason and a source of common sense for years.
Well, apart from the fact they’ve gone bust a couple of times, are losing up to £2million a year and have American owners who come out of the shadows now and again to promise the Dundee Dome they’re planning to build using magic beans and wishful thinking.
Now they have the casting vote on one of the biggest issues the Scottish game has ever faced.
Hop in to the clown car, there’s room enough for everyone.
The SPFL is a Mad Hatter’s tea party at the best of times but they’ve gone so far down the rabbit hole this week they’re likely to pop out under the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
A 5pm voting deadline that was only really advisory has turned the entire process in to a shambles – and it now leaves any result looking dodgier than a banana republic election.
Dundee’s apparent no vote didn’t go in and they are now the ones calling the shots. To hell with the 85 per cent of clubs who have already voted for the season to be ended in the lower leagues and a move to do the same in the top flight.
They are now the political pinball in the middle of Penniless Arcade.
They shouldn’t be. Dundee’s late call should just be classed as a no vote and get on with it, because the end result has now been compromised.
There shouldn’t be any bartering or negotiations with the Dens Park club. No reconstruction promises, no assurances given, no pressure applied.
The vote was rushed out in 48 hours and it fell short.
Get back to the drawing board, get on to the Zoom kinds of things. They could phone calls and get busy on come out at any time and a new plan. say, ‘Don’t worry chaps,
UEFA will step in next we’ll be cool no matter what week anyway, so we might happens.’ as well now wait and see Look at what happened what they say. when they lost their four
This lot can’t agree what Old Firm games a season time it is let alone find a last time. collective path forward so We got kicked to the kerb. take it out of their hands. That’s what this is all
Remove the cynical selfabout – hang on in the short interest that pollutes our term and live to see the long game. Throw ourselves term. at the mercy of a higher Let’s face it, they are power and let them call the suspending disbelief right shots and to hell with the now. We all are. club boards who can’t see The government has beyond the bridge of their said no training until the noses. middle of June,
We know n no games until Scottish clubs mid-July
m e earliest. me at the are crying out for cash. The season
Rangers is over. Now it’s might have been ju just a matter of on to something deciding when to
dda a with their plan admit it. but as usual If they want to
ssi they are about stick the fingers as diplomatic as in the ears for a
bbb an ambassador bit longer so be it from the Taliban. but dish out the
They are so concerned prize money now. Maybe with keeping their fans on even hand it out in side and buying season proportion to where we are tickets they have to bang in the season. on their chests like angry Top it up when the gorillas when it’s statesman shutters do go back up. craft and solidarity that’s Because they will. required. The majority of clubs are
This is not about them. It’s trying to get it done now but not even about handing the that ship has sailed after title to Celtic early. The Old Friday’s shambles. A few Firm and their online hordes more weeks won’t matter.
There’s every chance of myopic halfwits have there will be no crowds hijacked it as usual. getting in to games until the
No one wants the nuclear end of the year, depending scenario but the majority of on what clubs are actually clubs are facing oblivion if left by then. they don’t get money now We are staring into the and make sure we don’t abyss and in a few months invalidate the new Sky TV we will look back at the deal due to start in August. nonsense of the last few
Sky will understand. days and realise we have Aye, because companies been arguing over the losing millions by the colour of the wallpaper minute usually tend to be when the house was about sympathetic about these to be levelled in a blitz.
SPFL claim, on their legal advice, they can’t do it. So tell us exactly why.
Who’s threatening to sue? Call them out, stand up to them. Tell the supporters who is holding a gun to your head. Who’s applying pressure?
We’ve heard clubs are concerned about legal battles over season tickets or sponsorship.
And obviously if there was a danger of it happening you’d have to tread carefully.
But are we to believe that fans would sue their own clubs for a chunk of their season book cash because there were still a handful of home games to go? Really? Knowing it might hurt the club?
Again, I can’t see it.
And as for sponsorship, it would be suicidal from a PR and marketing point of view for any company to potentially sink a club for the sake of a few hundred grand.
Imagine Celtic or Rangers supporters telling punters in no uncertain terms not to bet with Ladbrokes or drink Magners – because they’d
attempted to take advantage of the pandemic by clawing money back. In terms of their image, it would be crazy if they pursued it.
That’s where clubs – and the league – would have to be strong in shaming them.
Some said the null-and-void option was crazy. But look at the alternative. We’re in the midst of that very s*** storm right now. At least it would give cast iron clarity and end the fighting.
What happened on Friday night was a dark day for our game.
While supporters were losing loved ones to a deadly virus, the people in charge of football were quarrelling about which way Inverness Caley Thistle’s vote might go.
It was a shambles and can never be repeated. Devlin was right. Find a solution that upsets the least people. But irrespective of what happens next or what box John Nelms ticks before hitting send on the Dens Park fax machine, what we’re going to end up with certainly won’t do that.