Mcinally’splea TOSFA: Clubs needmorecash
Peterhead manager Jim Mcinally reckons that the Scottish FA should be compensating clubs for lower- league players that cannot be placed on furlough.
The Blue Toon brought in Andrew Mcdonald from Elgin City and Niah Payne from non-league English football and registered them via the SFA on January 10.
The following day, the governing body took the decision to suspend all football below the Premiership and Championship.
Mcinally said: “When we registered Andrew and Niah with the SFA, no- one mentioned any issues with a suspension.
“However, less than 24 hours later, the SFA made the announcement, following meetings with the Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing, as well as the Joint Response Group meetings and the SFA board.
“Plenty of other clubs made signings that weekend as well and, like us, they are now in a position where they are paying wages that they would not be paying if the players had not been registered.
“If we had known football was going to be stopped, or there was a review taking place, we would not have committed the club to further expenditure.
“As it was an SFA decision – and not a government one – we have to look at the SFA to compensate us.”
Stranraer boss Stephen Farrell, reckons that forcing players to drive to games individually is a high price to play for restarting the lower leagues.
The SFA suspended football below the Premiership and Championship on January 11 for three weeks.
On Friday that suspension was extended to February 14 to allow proposals, such as having players and coaching staff travelling to games individually – as opposed to on a team bus – looked into further.
Stranraer would arguably be affected most by that proposal. Not only does the town lie over 80 miles from their nearest opponents, the majority of their team come from the Glasgow area.
Farrell said: “It would impact severely on our players and staff.
“Travelling individually would add a lot to the working day of our players and also put one of the best things about playing for Stranraer, the bonding formed on bus journeys, on a back burner.”