Yet More League Reconstruction Proposed

[ChewinGumMacaroonBaaaz]

What is the minimum number of league games allowed? I presume UEFA or FIFA specify an amount?

[G SUS]

What is the minimum number of league games allowed? I presume UEFA or FIFA specify an amount?

 

Nope.

[G SUS]

Oh dear! Still the obsession with playing each other 4 times per season!

 

Play each other once at home and once away = 26 matches. At that point, split into a top 7 and a bottom 7 (yes, I know it's an odd number and means one team will have to "sit out" each week, but in the last third of the season they'll all be grateful for that!), and play each of the other 6 teams home and away = total of 38 league matches (yes, I know that is tantamount to the 4 times per season obsession in the top and bottom halves, but every team will have something to play for!).

 

You seem obsessed with 4 times a season too.

 

My solution( a 6/8 split) makes more sense than having a 7/7 and teams "sitting out". Who do you make sit out the last weekend? How do you know they won't be involved in Europe/relegation trouble? It's impossible to predict

[McKennan]

Doncaster on Radio Scotland: short on detail; long on using the phrase 'going forward'.

[Duck snort]

Doncaster on Radio Scotland: short on detail; long on using the phrase 'going forward'.

 

I don't think I've ever hated another human being as much as I do Doncaster. The man is an absolute joke. All he cares about is 4 Old Firms games a season. He should be removed from the position immediately.

[Lenziejag2]

In reply to G SUS, I promise I have absolutely NO 4-times-a-season obsession! My concern with a 6/8 split (which has certain logical advantages) is that it would mean the top six teams having a 36-match season, whereas the bottom eight teams would have a 40-match season. The first prerequisite (I would suggest) is that all teams play the same number of matches - hence the 7/7 split and we can live with the effects of "sitting out".

[G SUS]

In reply to G SUS, I promise I have absolutely NO 4-times-a-season obsession! My concern with a 6/8 split (which has certain logical advantages) is that it would mean the top six teams having a 36-match season, whereas the bottom eight teams would have a 40-match season. The first prerequisite (I would suggest) is that all teams play the same number of matches - hence the 7/7 split and we can live with the effects of "sitting out".

 

But isn't that a good thing?

 

The top 6 would, generally, have the "bigger" clubs, so there would be more fans attending these games - including OF(in all likelyhood).

 

The bottom 8 would get the consolation of 2 extra home games to try and help their finances.

[Duck snort]

How can anyone in the SPL think the 12-12, followed by 8-8-8 idea is sensible or fair. If the proposal goes ahead the split will come after 22 games in early January. Using this season as a guide, Hearts are currently 9th after 16 games, but only 6 points off 4th place. It's quite conceivable given the way this season is going that the standings will be similar after 22 games. If so Hearts will find themselves trying to avoid relegation post split when under the current structure they would be only a couple of wins away from European qualification. The attendances they'd get under the SPL proposal in the 2nd tier of 8 will be considerably lower than those they'd get under a more conventional set up.

 

Apparently the 2nd tier of 8 will start on zero points post split. How is that fair? Thistle and Dunfermline are currently 9 points ahead of Raith in 4th and that's likely to increase over the next 9 games.

 

The whole idea is total nonsense.

[lady-isobel-barnett]

Apparently the 2nd tier of 8 will start on zero points post split. How is that fair? Thistle and Dunfermline are currently 9 points ahead of Raith in 4th and that's likely to increase over the next 9 games.

Good point and looking at it from another angle doesn't make much sense either. Unless there's something to carry over from the initial league it's only as good as the fourth team. If say the fourth team is 13 or 14 points behind the leader with four games to go then the leader has effectively nothing to play for over these four games. We're used to relatively meaningless games towards the end of a season but how many are going to turn up to see a game in late winter when the result is academic. In fact I'd imagine most managers would play weakened sides, which in turn would/could throw up daft results.

In such cases there would have to be some serious incentive to ensure teams keep competing towards the end of the first stage. We already see teams in the lower leagues take the foot of the gas when they've safely qualified for the play offs. This would be similar only worse.

[yoda-jag]

Duck Snort's last two posts and Libby's post, are spot on. They particularily highlight just a few of the many downsides to the SPL proposal (and to a slightly lesser extent, the SFL one).

 

Any talk of splits, 12/12 leagues, 24-18 bull, 16-10-16 nonsense, or even leagues of 14 are just plain daft, and will further contribute to the slow death of Scottish Football.

 

I have said it before, and will continue saying it....NO Splits, NO pishy wee changes to number of teams in a league, NO more playing league opponents 4 times in a season, NO reconstruction to simply pander to the media and bigotted lust to get the Dead Club back to the top league quicker ..... YES to regionalised mini-leagues for League Cup, YES to leagues of 18, 18 then regionals, feeding down to lower leagues, with minimum 2 up 2 down from each league (and a 3rd bottom v 3rd top playoff for top 2 leagues), YES to playing league opponents once home and once away season (even seed the Scottish Cup so teams in same league can't meet until 5th round), YES to league reorganisation for the good of the clubs, the fans and Scottish Football.

 

F u c k s sake, it's not rocket science.

Edited December 4, 2012 by yoda-jag

[lady-isobel-barnett]

Duck Snort's last two posts and Libby's post, are spot on. They particularily highlight just a few of the many downsides to the SPL proposal (and to a slightly lesser extent, the SFL one).

 

Any talk of splits, 12/12 leagues, 24-18 bull, 16-10-16 nonsense, or even leagues of 14 are just plain daft, and will further contribute to the slow death of Scottish Football.

 

I have said it before, and will continue saying it....NO Splits, NO pishy wee changes to number of teams in a league, NO more playing league opponents 4 times in a season, NO reconstruction to simply pander to the media and bigotted lust to get the Dead Club back to the top league quicker ..... YES to regionalised mini-leagues for League Cup, YES to leagues of 18, 18 then regionals, feeding down to lower leagues, with minimum 2 up 2 down from each league (and a 3rd bottom v 3rd top playoff for top 2 leagues), YES to playing league opponents once home and once away season (even seed the Scottish Cup so teams in same league can't meet until 5th round), YES to league reorganisation for the good of the clubs, the fans and Scottish Football.

 

F u c k s sake, it's not rocket science.

 

With my cynical bunnet on I'd point out that Mssrs Doncaster, Regan, Longmuir etc are paid handsomely. Not for them to come up with a commonsense answer when they can pretend to justify their fat salaries by concocting something convoluted and make it sound oh so clever.

Taking my cynical bunnet off for a moment I found myself in broad agreement with Campell Slippery-Ogilvie. So much so when I read this last night I had to pour an extra large malt to combat the shock.

http://sport.stv.tv/...eague-numbers/?

 

Ok, it's not offering up any league format but it is getting to the point and the point being that the move for re-construction is driven by financial demands and has little to do with pleasing the customers.

 

I might differ slightly from yoda-jag in that I detest the status quo so much I think that just about any proposed reconstruction I've heard of lately is better than what we currently have. Acknowledging that the powers that be will only pay scant attention to what us fans think probably means we've got to accept whatever daft system they come up with.

[McKennan]

I don't think I've ever hated another human being as much as I do Doncaster. The man is an absolute joke. All he cares about is 4 Old Firms games a season. He should be removed from the position immediately.

 

Thing is, Ducky, Disaster's not really in the popularity business, he's in the old maximising profit business. He and his are doing what they think is best - even if that means ignoring their customers.

 

I'd be happy if he vanished somewhere else, but you'd see him replaced by someone with the same calcified thinking.

 

Also, he's got a long way to go in this year's reputation lower than croc p*ss stakes to beat Mr Regan of SFA parish.

 

Apropos the latest SPL brainstorm, Disaster said he was confident that another 12 clubs would sign up. Should Thistle? What do you think? Pros and cons?

[McKennan]

The whole idea is total nonsense.

 

You're right, it's a nonsense and it's a nonsense because the people at the SPL have one aim, and that's to preserve their TV deal. That deal is best served by Old Firm games.

[lady-isobel-barnett]

Apropos the latest SPL brainstorm, Disaster said he was confident that another 12 clubs would sign up. Should Thistle? What do you think? Pros and cons?

Both the SPL and the SFL have broadly agreed to amalgamation. Even if it's only lip service the SFA should force that thru. When unified I've no doubt that the 42 clubs won't be able to come up with a system to please everybody but it would be a start in the right direction. Clearly the 12-12-18 proposal is so far apart from the 16-10-16 there's no realistic compromise in sight. Has to be the SFA that take the reins. But hold on, anyone got any confidence in Regan?

[McKennan]

After his part in his summer's Rangers fiasco I doubt there's much confidence in Mr Regan. He might as well up and join Jim Traynor at Mr Green's Freakshow and Asylum for Babbling Idiots.

[McKennan]

http://sport.stv.tv/football/clubs/rangers/204093-hmrc-to-seek-permission-to-appeal-rangers-tax-tribunal-verdict/

 

Seconds out ... round three.

[David Stevenson]

Both the SPL and the SFL have broadly agreed to amalgamation.

SFL has, SPL has decided it will cherry-pick the top 12 clubs from the SFL and ignore the 18 that remain. If the SPL were a successful organisation it might make sense that they tried to call the shots, but it is a disastrous failure on every count imaginable over it's 15 years of existence and the current Board and "shareholders" are no better than their predecessors since it's inception.

[jagfox]

 

SFL has, SPL has decided it will cherry-pick the top 12 clubs from the SFL and ignore the 18 that remain. If the SPL were a successful organisation it might make sense that they tried to call the shots, but it is a disastrous failure on every count imaginable over it's 15 years of existence and the current Board and "shareholders" are no better than their predecessors since it's inception.

 

Indeed, the Spl even failed in their raison d'etre last season by posting a loss of over £1,000,000

For the good of Scottish football let us get rid at the earliest opportunity or even hasten their departure.

[kni]

SFL has, SPL has decided it will cherry-pick the top 12 clubs from the SFL and ignore the 18 that remain. If the SPL were a successful organisation it might make sense that they tried to call the shots, but it is a disastrous failure on every count imaginable over it's 15 years of existence and the current Board and "shareholders" are no better than their predecessors since it's inception.

 

Would the SFA or UEFA allow the SPL to "cherry pick"? There may be UEFA or FIFA rules to stop it,

[Wiltshire Jag]

Thought I'd fallen asleep for 4 1/2 months and woke up on April 1st. Mum (86, so she likes Mills & Boon type stuff) buys the Daily Mirror, which yesterday contained the biggest load of bollocks ever written about league reconstruction. Their "Chief Sports Writer" whose name escapes me, wants the Scottish Premier Clubs amalgamated within EFL leagues. He states the top 4 clubs in Scotland go in to the Championship, next 4 into League 1, and last 4 into League 2. However, when he lists the leagues as they would be, there's a certain team in Scottish Division 3 that magically appear in the Championship and Dungdee are not mentioned at all. Article does not appear to be on their website, so wasn't able to ridicule it. Just as well as the allergies would have kicked in if I'd had to register on their site.

[lady-isobel-barnett]

Would the SFA or UEFA allow the SPL to "cherry pick"? There may be UEFA or FIFA rules to stop it,

A few seasons ago they could no doubt have done it on a minimum ground requirement basis, which more or less would cover the top SFL sides they'd want to "invite". Given the damage that criteria did to the likes of us and most ex SPL clubs now in the SFL I doubt they could go down that route again.