Plan for reconstruction including 14-team top flight could go to clubs in a fortnight

A plan for a 14-team Premiership could be finalised this week and circulated to Scottish clubs within a fortnight.

The proposal would spare Hearts, Partick Thistle and Stranraer relegation but would require an 11-1 vote from top-flight clubs.

The Scottish Professional

Football League’s 15-person restructuring task force, led by Hearts owner Ann Budge and Hamilton’s vice-chair Les Gray, hope to agree a preferred model and put it to all 42 clubs in the next two weeks.

A plan for three leagues of 14 teams has been discussed, as has a 14-14-16 set-up to include Highland League winners Brora Rangers and Lowland League champions Kelty Hearts in the bottom tier.

A 14-10-10-10 system is not being ruled out but that is only a slim possibility given all 1tenleague 2 clubs intend to vote only for a three-tier 14-1414 proposal. It remains to be seen if they could be persuaded to accept a 16-team third division.

Hearts are keen to expand the Premiership given they currently sit bottom of the table and face a drop into the Championship.

Thistle and Stranraer are also seeking to dodge the drop after the SPFL voted to end the Championship, League 1 and League 2 campaigns early, with the Premiership possibly following suit.

Financial redistribution has still to be finalised before the official proposal is revealed.

Changing prize money distribution and/or admitting new teams would mean a change to the SPFL articles. That requires votes in favour from 11 Premiership teams, eight in the Championship and 15 across League 1 and League 2. Premiership officials will discuss the matter during a meeting tomorrow.

Gray said: “We had a good meeting yesterday and we are ready to progress that further and take it to the Premiership clubs, probably by the end of this week.

“The guys will be working through the models that we have agreed look the most favourable. I think we will be in a position over the course of the next week to see exactly what that is.

“The guys on the group speak to the other member clubs in their league and bring their feedback.

“All the clubs are keen to try to bring this to a head and find out what way it is going. “Scottish football has a lot bigger problems than just reconstruction just now, so we need to get these issues out of the way so we can deal with the larger issues.”