Fixture farce is tough to take

A lot has been made of the SPFL’s fixture announcement last week.

Motherwell, Partick Thistle and Hamilton have all pulled the short straw and been landed with two home pre-split fixtures against the Old Firm whilst most of the league get four.

The financial implications are huge, as shown by the strongly worded statement released by Motherwell a mere nine hours after the fixtures were made public.

For every club across the country, every penny is a prisoner and in tough times you need all the cash you can get your hands on.

Perhaps the SPFL forgot how to work out a fixture list with the Old Firm considering it’s been five years since they’ve had to do it.

More often than not, teams will get three games at home pre-split.

The fear which comes from Motherwell – along with Thistle and Accies – stretches beyond the obvious potential loss.

The biggest worry is that these sides do not fancy themselves to make the top six.

Thistle and Accies live in a world where safety is paramount and they are quite content with surviving in Scotland’s top flight.

Motherwell have only failed to reach the top six once in the past seven seasons.

That’s why as disappointing as the fixture announcement was for the Steelmen, it should now be a bigger incentive than ever before to get into the top six.

Last year looked like a scrap for safety and turned into a fifth place finish.

If Well can finish the season in such a strong position after a miserable first half of the campaign, just think what can be achieved with a stronger start.

I can understand the anger which comes from the Fir Park chiefs, other sides have a two-game advantage over them thanks to Old Firm fixtures and that is a significant cash sum.

It could be enough to pay wages for a couple of summer signings which could make the difference between top six and bottom six.

Next year is an extremely competitive league, perhaps the most competitive in years.

Celtic are expected to win their sixth title in a row but Rangers will be hoping to challenge Brendan Rodgers’side

Well must now look to finish in the top six