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That was an absolute disgrace today. Strachan has always talked down the game here, but today was a new level. There are generally so many threads I want to pull it is unreal. Mainly, however, it seemed to be an inferiority complex (incredible, I know, from the man who was a successful small player and went full eugenics...) All comparisons and his feelings of shame tend to be directly linked toward the English leagues (a country 10x larger). Surely similar populations (Wales, Ireland, NI - if we had to stick to close neighbours) would make more appropriate comparisons... but noooooo... then we would have to admit that we actually have a fucking brilliant 'product' (get that phrase in the fucking bin) and one of the most successful 'products' in terms of direct interest (attendance to population in Europe, if not the world). Absolute drivel. ETA: As a Raith Rovers fan, we have, and always will be (in the grand scheme of things like most Scottish clubs), fucking murder. That has no bearing on me supporting my team. Strachan, and all these other c***s have no idea what it football is actually about. Waking up at stupid o'clock for away days on trains, singing songs in pubs before and after the games, arranging your weekends/relationships/holidays to follow your team, posting on P&B, doing fundraising for your club, group chats with constant planning/banter about games (past, present and future). In short, 99% of players (and therefore pundits) have no fucking idea what football is really about because they played through the time they would have been following football as a fan. They, the players, are fucking nothing without the clubs - and the clubs only exist because of fans. In a Scottish football context, I found that discussion today sickening.

“This is not the time to be expelling one of the League’s biggest and best resourced Clubs from the Premiership.“ “In short, the Premiership needs Hearts more than the Championship does.”

One of Tina Turners less popular B sides

Right, I've had the weekend to calm down - this is what I'm sending our MP, Silent Knight. Attn: Greg Knight MP East Yorkshire Tuesday 26 May 2020 Dear Greg Knight, I am one of your constituents. I am not a supporter of the Conservative Party. Nor, indeed, am I impressed with your performance as my representative. However, I must write to you again, hoping to get a more positive response than the previous times I have had cause to contact you. I have allowed myself time over the weekend to calm down after reading about Dominic Cummings' behaviour. Many a time an immediate response obscures reason with emotion. Now, however, I find myself beyond angry. This man, who is seemingly "the power behind the throne" in Downing Street, rode roughshod over the rules which he himself was involved in drafting, and was so assured that he was doing the right thing that he felt it necessary to keep his actions secret not only from the public, but also from his employer - even going so far as to, in concert with his wife, concoct a story for public consumption which had them remaining in their home in London - as they should have done. Questions I would like to see being asked in the House of Commons when Parliament resumes, please: 1. Why does having a child make Cummings and his wife exceptional? As far as I am aware, there are many people in this situation. 2. How did crowds show up to abuse him at home when, as we all know, the country was in lockdown? Has Cummings contacted the Police at any time over this harrassment? Please bear in mind that Cummings claims ths was happening BEFORE his road trip. 3. If we were to accept that Cummings is exceptional, as he told us yesterday, and that his concern was for his child, what enquiries did he make among his employer,friends and family before driving over 260 miles, with likely Covid infection in the car, to an area whose residents' safety he evidently was NOT concerned about. 4. Why did he have to do all the driving? Could a man in his position not request Government transport? Has his wife not got a licence? Could his (healthy) sister in Durham not have come to collect the child? 5. After being summoned home by his wife when she was unwell, why did he return to work in direct violation of Government Guidelines? 6. In what universe does a man who is unsure about his ability to drive (but exceptionally concerned about his child's safety) test his eyesight by driving sixty miles with his wife and child in the car? 7. Are members of the public, who have been fined for non-compliance with the guidelines, now entitled to seek redress? As I have no expectation of your presenting any of these questions to your superiors, could I ask that you at least give an answer to, or at least share your opinion of each point above to me, as your employer? I have absolutely no doubt you will, in common with your Parliamentary colleagues, hope for this issue to wither on the vine. Be aware, however, that this is not some abstract discussion about electoral law breaches or islamophobia in the Tory Party - this is something which has the entire population angry simply because they trusted your Government, and your Government has basically laughed at them. Single mothers in flats with no communal space, elderly people cut off from relatives - I don't (or shouldn't) have to tell you what the people of this country have gone through, "pulling together", "in it together", all leavened with allusion to WWII and the like. They did this in the belief that this was a national endeavour. Now they find that your Party, Your Government, Your Prime Minister is simply laughing at them. An analogy I heard at the weekend seems absolutely fitting, when referring to Conservative MPs - "365 seats, less than twenty spines". Please tell me why this should not apply to you personally. I have seen two of my grandchildren at a distance as they go for their exercise. The third, I have not seen for over two months. Her mother (my daughter) has both physical and mental health issues, and her husband has to continue working as normal, being a key worker. In fact, he is working more hours than normal in this situation. I would love to be able to go and help her (she lives in easy driving distance - a lot less than 260 miles), just to make the odd meal or tidy up for her, as she is really struggling. My wife and I have endured the almost daily telephone conversations which inevitably end with both parties in tears, because we believed it was the right thing to do, in the grand scheme of things. Are we now to believe that, if only we could say we were exceptional, we could ignore the guidelines? Yours sincerely, A seriously pissed off WhiteRoseKillie p.s. Please be aware that I do not give my permission for my personal data to be used for any reason outside of this communication. Thank You.

We're all good for the St HibMirrenian cooperative axis of torpedoing this bullshit right to the bottom of the sea where it belongs, right?

Going by Strachan's rationale, on leaving Celtic, Andy Robertson would now be working in a warehouse somewhere in Glasgow and watching the Champions League final in the house with some cans of Tennents and a Domino's pizza. Teams now above Dundee in the pyramid would still be playing Highland League and Lawrence Shankland wouldn't be scoring goals regularly against Dundee and making international squads as a Championship player. All of the above are exactly the reason why Strachan, Budge and whoever else wants to kill off clubs further down the Leagues need called out, voted against and ultimately told where to go at every opportunity. Its not all about the size of crowds, bank balance or number of trophies (wfaanw). Its far more important than that. Its our national game and as long as clubs live within their means I sincerely hope every single one of them, and more, continue to contribute to this great game that impacts lifes from week to week and has the power to shape communities for the greater good, not many pursuits or industries can have that effect. Our communities need this positivity more than ever and collectively so does the country. Dundee board meetings with the likes of Strachan and Nelms must be great fun and as an extension the thought of expanding the lower leagues for Lowland or Highland league teams must be further away than ever. Part time teams can raise their standards to unbelievable heights and you could argue they have to if they want to compete as well as they do. The likes of Arbroath and Alloa in the Championship have proven that and will continue to do so. If by Herr Strachans' plan of attack and they were in some Central / East Coast Part Time League then the likes of Tam O'Brien and Kevin O'Hara, or whoever their star players were at that time, would simply be going through the motions at training and in games because they knew they didn't have to do any more. Its human nature. Strachan coming across like your old uncle who once knew his onions and just wants to be heard now for the sake of it.

I’m only going to entertain one of your points as you are clearly fishing or perhaps hard of thinking. Bereaved families very much have the moral high ground in this shit show and to infer they have no shame is shameful on your part. But I suspect with your rod in your hand you know this.

Imagine reaching a stage where the Scottish Tory MPs are showing up the rest of the party's lack of integrity.

They've gone all in on this. If Cummings was to come out later today and say that he had a pokey bum w**k in the car park at Barnard Castle and it cured his eyesight, Gove or one of the minions would be on Breakfast TV tomorrow morning carrying it out live on air to prove he's telling the truth.

He’s only doing the interview to check his hearing

Photoshopped IMO. Original is here.

Nah - you're absolutely fine as you are: The idea of you being, "a little nicer sometimes" is simply laughable.

What do you mean by 'elite' top level league? All of Scotland's top, and therefore 'elite', teams play there already. How will punting clubs like Albion Rovers or Stirling Albion from the league system help? What will it actually accomplish, and what will he different? Also what do you mean by 'ambitious'? Are you one of those folk who equate ambition with money? I think all our clubs are ambitious, but most are sensible enough to know that doesn't mean chucking huge sums of cash they can't afford at it to try and climb the leagues. Arbroath could have ended up in the playoffs this year. They're very ambitious but it's taken them a while to reach that level. They've done so sustainably and patiently, often spending long stretches in the lower leagues. Kelty Hearts are being touted by the usual idiots as an ambitious club, but they're another Gretna waiting to happen. Chucking loads of cash at something and using a model dependent on a benefactor to fund it all is not ambition, unless that ambition is to reach new heights of stupidity.

Give it a fucking rest you twat.

The Championship needing Partick Thistle.

Please to introduce Tweedy and Meg to the P&B dog community.

No , we went into Provisional Liquidation as there was no administration at that time. The town rallied round , the players played for nothing and we even reached the Scottish Cup Final during it all. Falkirk survived and managed to pay every creditor in full (the polar opposite of that lot from East End Park). How about yourselves , or should I really ask how many times?

You are a shining example of someone who has a point of view and just sees what they want to fit. Every post you've had on this subject reeks of it.

So back to Clyde, Peterhead and Forfar being disadvantaged, aye cheers for that Ann! Get that well and truly in the sea!!

Kelty Hearts aren't being magically conjured out of thin air if they join the SPFL. They already exist as a club alongside those other Fife teams and already have their own supporters who are Kelty Hearts fans, not East Fife or Cowdenbeath fans. I'd imagine that what they are hoping to achieve is the same thing that every other club in Scotland is hoping to achieve - to be successful, finish as high in the league as possible and do well in some cups.

She comes across as accomplished, honest, sincere and empathetic due to being well-prepared , not shouldering the burden of having to remember Dom's script and not being an entitled, weaselly, lying shitbag.

Aye, but if it was 14-16-14 you'd be all over it like a tramp on chips, and screw Forfar. Point is that there is no need for any reconstruction, other than to save Hearts of course!

Get any proposal that gets ICT a free promotion in the bin, nothing against ICT as such, it's just Scot Gardiner is an absolute c**t.

Why are Inverness allowed to come up as part of her plan ahead of the others in the playoff positions? If it’s unfair to relegate Hearts based on where they finished in the league it’s surely unfair to promote ICT?

I at one point posted she's our best hope for a 14 team league when I was defending John Nelms. I truly didn't realise how much of a fucking trumpet she actually is.

Her comment of, '“In short, the Premiership needs Hearts more than the Championship does.' is fucking classic. Up there with 'We don't do walking away', 'If you sink us, we'll sink you' and 'We won't be bullied'. That plan can get to f**k.

Skye has completely taken over the big bed we bought for new pup. When asked to explain her behaviour Skye revealed that she did not regret her actions and that she felt that she acted reasonably and with all due care for herself. She did however, say that she was sorry if people felt that she behaved inappropriately.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52797428 Used to quite like Strachan, but he is monstrously out of touch with Scottish football with attitudes like this. Thank f**k he's nowhere near the Scotland job anymore. Having a go at part time teams for trying to play and survive in the professional leagues and the general product on show even in the Premiership is proper English pundit shite. Scottish football might not have the best players, the most money or the biggest fan bases, but f**k me its's constantly entertaining on almost every level. Give me the nonsense of Scottish football over the soulless English Premier League any day of the week.

Chin up, Moomsy. There are some decent blokes around - even among the Natters. I admit that, since the lockdown, many threads have become tricky if you don't toe the line but I usually avoid them and mostly stick to the main Rangers thread and here. Rather than leave why not just limit your activity to threads you like until we get back to playing football again? I'd certainly not want to see you go.

...how you behave on here affects others? Some folk can across as right dicks at times on here. Some have a sneering, arrogant act and some have a wind up act. I usually just ignore that sort of thing but some others may be more affected by it than you know. I imagine most folk don't actually want to upset anyone, but it definitely happens. Arguments will no doubt be made about how folk shouldn't be on here if they 'can't take it', but that's too easy and refuses responsibility. This is supposed to be a laugh for the most part with some sensible debate, or at least debate, thrown in. Some folk might be having a tough time, and of course you don't know (how could you?), but does anyone ever think that perhaps they've been a bit of a tosser, even if you haven't upset anyone? Certainly there's a few times where I've been a bit heavy on folk and have thought that there was no need for it reading it back, and even if the people in question didn't care or found it amusing, that doesn't really excuse it. I just think can maybe be a little nicer sometimes. I shall now open the floor to insults...

Worth pointing out that these countries did lock down properly and thats the reason its safe to open up further. UK did a half arsed too late version and now crayon munchers are seeing these countries open and think its safe for us to do the same.

A quick summary of Ann Budge's statement for anyone who can't be arsed reading it.

Looking on the Hearts forum along with all the “everyone is against us rubbish”just the one post stands out as actually telling it like it is ( Don’t agree with the lassies team comment). Might be getting plenty of stick on there but they need more fans like this to get a grip and realise they put themselves in this position and as such move on. Budge should be taking the lead rather than the embarrassing and desperate attempt to avoid relegation, if this had been a St Mirren/Motherwell/St Johnstone it would have been very different. “Several reasons: 1. A decision has already been made 2. This is now just the Ann Budge Show 3. She should maybe have cared a bit more about being in the top flight about four years ago when the decline started and she was too concerned about a young lassies team and free digital innovation centres for the community 4. It is embarrassing watching this 5. We put ourselves in this position 6. We were the shitest team in the league. This is no-ones fault bar ours 7. She is ****ing clueless at all things football so like one of her teams over the past four years she will win **** all Step down please with immediate effect. Take your loser staff with you (all 4 million of the duds). Take this on the chin, rebuild, grow back our bollocks and start being a football club again.”

Unfair and unjust to relegate teams based on an incomplete season unless you happen to be Clyde, Peterhead, Forfar and Stranraer. No promotion for Cove either.

I'd agree with the poster who said that making use of The Forum's Ignore List functionality makes a huge positive difference. We're all on here for fun and to make new friends but some people can ruin it for the rest of us.

So her plan of 14-14-14 (16) back on the table!! So back to Clyde, Peterhead and Forfar being disadvantaged, aye cheers for that Ann! Get that well and truly in the sea!! How vocal can we be now and can she asked directly what her thoughts are on the specific issue around no club being disadvantaged? This is a nightmare scenario for us!

Did the firemen manage to cut you out of the railings ok?

Strachan's comments don't really deserve to be dignified by the amount of reaction on here, but I'd have more respect for the first public figure to come out and admit that as long as we have two major clubs whose supporters' primary motivation is religious bigotry then the game here will be forever fucked.

As a Dundee fan of more years than I care to remember, I winced when I read this pish yesterday. A football team's worth does not equate to whether you can get 60000, 6000 or 600 through the gates or whether you pay £8000, £800 or £80 a week. Celtic and Rangers are no more important than Dundee or Dundee Utd who are no more important than Montrose or Forfar. I appreciate Strachan being at Dens bringing on the kids but please, your days of pontificating on Scottish football are long gone and if this is a measure of it, thank f**k for that.

She said she did.

It's a misdirection - he's actually talking about this at the back.

Here's a wee anagram for you to help: nuckfugget

There is only two teams too many in Scotland. Two teams that hoover up fans from every nook and cranny of our small country and exploit religion to do so.

Yeah, there's literally no point in trying to prove anything to you then as you're completely blinkered and still clutching at straws. Nice touch with the condescending tone as well, as if it's me and not you who is currently showing themselves up to be a bit dim. If a lack of crowd changes the nature of the product, I've given a scenario where a crowd is provided. You cannot provide a counter to that despite 2 attempts by myself to get one from you. We are also currently 11-12 weeks out from the start date. The entire lockdown at point of writing has not even lasted that length of time. Given all that has gone on and how much has changed in the 10 weeks preceding, you are, to put it kindly, stretching if you believe that nothing will change in the next 11-12 weeks that will allow the league to get up and running by the agreed upon start date.

The season which has just finished is covered by a completely separate deal and will therefore have no impact on the new one. It's obvious that Sky and BT will be entitled to pay less than they normally would for an incomplete season - if they've already paid the full amount out they'll be entitled to a refund, and if they haven't paid it all yet then they'll reduce what they will pay. This will no doubt be covered within that contract. It has been suggested that Sky will sponsor the SPFL for the coming season(s) in lieu of this payment. As has been covered several times in a number of posts from a variety of different posters which you seem determined to ignore, it is unlikely that the deal has any particular assurances about the number of fans at the games, because the league can't ever guarantee attendance at any game. They are paying to show 48 Scottish Premiership games per season, and that is what they are getting.

Fucking hell, get us independence from these useless cunts immediately.