Brave new world

County chief gets behind SFA despite banding snub But MacGregor warns of financial challenges ahead

ARCH-CRitiC Roy MacGregor l ast night l eapt on board t he Project Brave juggernaut — despite seeing Ross County afforded only a secondclass place in the new youth development system.

MacGregor, who had previously accused the SFA of ‘cutting the legs away’ from ambitious clubs, retains his belief that County belong among the eight clubs awarded Elite status yesterday.

But the Staggies’ owner said he would not be taking up his right to appeal the decisi on to stick t hem i nto a newly-created Progressive tier.

‘the new banding helps because the reality is that Progressive clubs do everything the Elite clubs do — until they reach that level,’ MacGregor told Sportsmail.

‘there are the same demands, the same costs on the Progressive as on the Elite.

‘the costs are still quite onerous — and all of us will have to take on extra staff. But that was a key part of Project Brave, because we all want to get more youngsters playing in the first team and then into the Scotland teams.

‘there will be tweaks. You never get anything 100-per- cent pure, but it’s a step forward. i know Malky (Mackay, SFA performance director) is very committed to supporting the clubs.

‘Hopefully, we will produce Scotland players at County. that’s the aim.

‘i think there’s a realisation that, as a nation, we’re not doing well enough. the only Home Nation going to the World Cup is England.

‘Nations with populations of between three and seven million are going to have to produce exceptional players. We need to find a formula here to do what iceland have done, for example. Project Brave giving the kids more time with the ball is part of that.

‘At County, we had the first academy, in a physical sense, which we built 12 years ago.

‘ Now t he SFA are bei ng proactive i n supporting the academies. We’re finally getting that right in this country.

‘the clubs who really want to work at it will be rewarded and supported. the clubs who are not committed to developing players won’t be rewarded.

‘And the reward isn’t totally money. it’s support as well.’

County failed to make the top grade because they didn’t have a high enough score on what the SFA call Measurable Performance Outcomes — getting players into the first team and then on to represent Scotland.

McGregor said: ‘ Clubs l i ke Motherwell and Kilmarnock have a high score because of the great work they’ve done in the past, bringing through players l i ke James McFadden, for instance.

‘As a f airly young club, we obviously don’t have a history of that — even though we are now producing players for the Scotland Under-19s and Under-21s.

‘ But the SFA have gone to historical data, which they say is the only way they could be fair to everyone. i understand that.

‘We thought about appealing for leniency as a young club, but realised it would probably be in vain. it was impossible for us to reach the top eight on those terms.

‘By the time this all starts, we should be an Elite level club in all bar MPO points. So we’ll take our chances and work it through in the system. We’re happy that we’re going to get there.’

Addressing his earlier objections, MacGregor (right) explained: ‘i was on the Project Brave board. And 95 per cent of what was there, i agreed with.

‘But i felt community clubs, young clubs, would be affected by the way they judged the clubs.

‘Having said that, i don’t want to penalise a Motherwell or Kilmarnock by making a fuss when, i n the past, they did produce players for the Scotland team. i’m appreciative of that.

‘So, while i’m not happy that we’re not in that top level, i am happy that they have recognised that we’re on the way there.’

Mackay, back in the day job after his brief spell as interim head coach f or the national team, stressed the potential for clubs to move between groups according to their commitment to youth development.

‘this is a significant milestone for Project Brave,’ he insisted. ‘From day one, it has been a collaborative activity. the clubs have been engaged at every step, with daily dialogue to help with their applications.

‘What i would like to stress is that the bandings are not fixed and they will be reassessed in June 2018. No door is closed to clubs outside of the Elite bracket with aspirations to move up. ‘As a result of the conversations we had with clubs, a new middle tier was created. the Progressive category was designed to ensure “smaller” but ambitious clubs with academies could find their natural place in the system with scope to push on. ‘For those in the top tier, we will continue to monitor their work.’ Motherwell revealed they needed a ‘significant financial outlay’ to secure ‘elite’ status. Chief operating officer Alan Burrows said: ‘Despite our fairly public reservations, we had no other option but to strive to be at the elite level, alongside the seven other clubs named. ‘What it means for us in real terms is a significant financial outlay in terms of the staff and infrastructure, but that’s part of our commitment to youth football and the production of good young players.’