Pyramidic

It is well worded and thought out statement. I am sure that when the dust settles the LL based Bo'ness United will benefit from the "cream" of the new club's intake progressing to the lead club in the LL.

Issues to resolve: https://www.kirkintilloch-herald.co.uk/sport/football/kirkintilloch-rob-roy-seek-answers-over-further-stadium-delay-3200908

A positive statement from a rebranded Bo’ness United Junior / Bo’ness Athletic:

Thanks for the feedback. Dev as well. It is clear that the EOSFL executive are policing their ground criteria quite robustly. The issue that arises in my mind is whether in the future the EOSFL should be endeavouring to form a Development Division for clubs like Letham AFC that tick some boxes but not all of them. It will be interesting to see if the WOSFL Development Division materialises and the standard of the grounds that are adopted. This could then act as an example of good practice that the the EOSFL may or may not seek to emulate to form their own seedbed / nursery. Forming a direct link at the moment with the Amateur Leagues in the East is probably a bridge too far.

Coverage in more than one thread suggests so. There are the ERJFA S10, Edinburgh City Reserves and they are not Club 12 apparently.

Can somebody explain why the facilities at the current home of Rosyth FC are acceptable for EOSFL football but Letham AFC is not. With reference to Google Maps their setups are very similar.

Any possibility of fitting in some cup games in early July before the 17th.? Undoubtedly there will be a third wave of covid and the more games we can fit in July to November the better. Friendlies could be played in second part of June. Warm up cup games in early July and the main league action starting on the 17th July.

According to the Daily Record the new clubs will go into First Division Conferences: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/local-sport/west-lothian-clubs-see-season-23898075 When have the press ever been wrong?

I am well aware of all this. Does the ERJFA become the ML or will they be two separate but related organisations?

Will clubs in the ML be affiliated to both the ERJFA and SJFA? I would have thought that the ERJFA would just be another layer of unnecessary football bureaucracy. The ERJFA officials can be shunted over as appropriate over to the ML executive and the ERJFA can be disbanded. Have I got it right or are their other factors at play? Alternatively will the ERJFA and the ML be one of the same, similar to the EOSFL / EOSFA? It is a little bit confusing. What will be the purpose and function of the ERJFA if the organisation is retained?

I suppose there is a possibility that Letham could apply if their facilities have prevented them making the cut in the EOSFL. Any views on that one Marten? How vigilant or flexible is the ML likely to be on ground criteria? Will they adopt the EOSFL criteria as the WOSFL have done?

It is very helpful to see an example of how the re-structuring can work. There is a hint there that Letham may have some hurdles to cross. I do hope they are accepted and if not they will surely apply to the ML and we will have another club south of the Tay boundary. Also things do not look too promising for Sauchie Community but what do I know!

I fear for the lower strength sides such as Eyemouth. I want them to survive and by keeping them artificially at a higher level their life support system may be turned off. They need to play at a level where they are not taking a tanking every other week. A quick route to the bottom tier will assist their survival in my view.

But Eyemouth and Tweedmouth would be Tier 8 Second Division and Bathgate and Whitburn etc could end up Tier 9 Third Division. Will not reflect relative strengths.

Agreed. I prefer this scenario but with 12 new clubs providing they meet the entry criteria.

It has to be Tier 8 for newly accepted clubs Following this scenario what happens to the 12 applicant clubs placed in Tier 8 at the end of the 2021/22 season? Do they remain at Tier 8 for the 2022/23 season and are joined by the 16 or so clubs that finished bottom of the Tier 7 conferences? So the 28 clubs and any new additions form 2 Conferences at Tier 8 for 2023/24? Regionalised conferences would make sense?

Or promote Jeanfield to round the number in the LL up to 18. There is then then the issue of whether all 12 applicant clubs are accepted to the EOSFL.

Why? Whichever way you look at the "dividing line" the three clubs who were rejected were north of it and firmly in ML territory. It is a little academic but would the three clubs have got in the EOSFL if they had applied three years ago with the first tranche? What is your gut feeling Burnie?

If you take the point that you are making to the extreme you would not allow 2 EOS clubs to ground-share under any circumstances. However I do not recall you making any fuss last year when Edinburgh South reached agreement to ground-share with Dalkeith Thistle. I do not understand the hysteria against Bo’ness Athletic and in this case they will be using a 3G pitch and sharing with a higher league LL side. Excellent facilities are available at Newtown Park and it makes sense to make the best use of them.

Will Scone be be left in an anomalous position in the MFL as they will be within the EOSFL administrative boundary? Not a problem if they are happy in the MFL and the two leagues respect their preference.

Criteria appears to be made up “on the hoof” at the present time. This is not a criticism but simply a reflection to EOSFL officials having to react to situations that are not laid down in the league constitution and standing orders. I suspect that there will be concerns about the precedent set if a SPFL reserve team competes in the 2021/22 EOSFL.

Tayport withdrew and the other 3 were rejected. That appears to leave us with 3 clubs within the EOSFL “administrative area” that will be disappointed. One of those clubs will probably be Edinburgh City Reserves so who are likely to be the other two clubs? Was there a phantom club that did not have a ground? What happened to Cupar Hearts? All will be revealed at the end of the month.

Thanks for all your feedback on the various threads. Has the Tay boundary been ratified or redefined or left as a rather nebulous void for further discussion/ division?

Thanks for the informed feedback.

Also heard that Leith Athletic have been dumped on as far as a return to Meadowbank is concerned. The 3G isn't compliant for EoS. That is so annoying. How could such an oversight arise? The club not watching the ball or a cost cutting exercise by the Council? I assume the Leisure Services or whatever they are called at Edinburgh City Council have overseen the scheme.