Dundee hit out at SFA for Project Brave ‘risk’

DUNDEE last night accused the SFA of encouraging clubs to risk their financial futures over Project Brave. The governing body this week announced the structure of their new youth development scheme, with clubs having gone through a selection process for its three tiers. Dundee were placed in the third ‘Performance’ group, but claim the club would have been jeopardised had they invested up front the money required for inclusion in the second ‘Progressive’ tier. A club statement said: ‘The club was — and is — prepared to increase its financial investment in order to be accepted into the Scottish FA’s Performance Progressive standard. ‘This commitment stood, even with recognition that the funding contribution from the SFA would have been considerably less than the costs we would incur through appointing several additional full-time members of staff. ‘However, in light of the club having suffered two insolvency events in recent memory, it would have been utter folly to employ several new full-time staff members without prior confirmation from the SFA that, if we did so, we would be accepted into the Performance Progressive level. ‘It remains a source of great disappointment we have lost out in this situation because we would not gamble with the club’s financial stability. ‘We are particularly surprised the SFA’s “cart-before-thehorse approach” was effectively encouraging clubs to take such a fiscally irresponsible chance.’ The six-month period until the SFA reassess the scheme would allow Dundee ‘to continue to build up our youth infrastructure so we can be ready to take the next step, but without jeopardising the club’s financial future’.