Buddies are the template for a Brexit strategy
GANNON COL
Sifting through the wreckage of a no deal Brexit isn’t just about increased food banks and mile upon mile of lorries backed up in Dover.
Scottish football is bracing itself for impact of an impending exit of the European Union. If not, it should be.
The state of readiness for what will see a shockwave of new restrictions and regulations is about to be tested - a new normal of squad building modelled on….St Mirren.
Politics and sport in these times of pandemic are proving a toxic mix and picking your way through the complexities of no longer taking freedom of movement as a given for players from the EU is another low point.
Here’s a simplified long-ball approach to what our clubs will have to get their heads around.
The days of recruiting players from across the continent willy nilly will at a stroke be over. New work permit requirements will ensure the SPFL’s provincial clubs will no longer be able to sign the smattering of foreign players which has become the norm over the last three four decades.
A points-based system will see the bar raised on who will allowed to strut their stuff in the Premiership.
Even the Old Firm could discover Brexit blocks their plans to bring in middle of the road European players which, let’s be honest, has been the case for years now.
New signings from the EU will be far more expensive and in many cases outwith their reach as factors such as number of international appearances the player has made, the calibre of club he’s with and their pedigree in European competition will all become relevant.
It signals an end to mining for diamonds at small European outposts in the hope of developing them and selling them on for a fortune.
Recruiting young European players and selling them on to England is a huge part of the business model at Celtic and Rangers but taking a punt on a kid from relative obscurity is about to be a thing of the past.
The December 31 date is fast approaching and the race is on at the SFA to strike a deal with the Home Office to keep current freedom of movement rules in place until next summer.
Which brings us back to St Mirren. Football management without a cheque book, the days where the miles were put in, scouring the country for diamonds in the rough and finding missing pieces of the jigsaw.
Buddies boss
Jim Goodwin has shown the value of good contacts and putting in the hard yards alongside assistant Lee Sharp.
It’s a lesson to others about how to assemble a squad on a shoestring which many will have to follow.
Although the rules on hard and soft borders remain unclear, Goodwin’s Irish signings have been instrumental within a team which is fast becoming the success story.
Jamie McGrath, a freescoring breath of fresh air in midfield. Jake Doyle-Hayes, a steal of a signing by Goodwin after the playmaker was released at Aston Villa, destined for a higher football calling.
Dylan Connolly and the elegant young Conor McCarthy, just two others who were recruited for next to nothing to augment a squad of mostly Scottish players.
They may have had their struggles but Saints are about to become the template for the SPFL’s poster boys post-Brexit.
Taking a punt on a kid from relative obscurity is about to be a thing of the past