Burnieman

I have to agree that the rules should change to highest placed licenced club within the top 3 positions. So for example Beith win the league, it goes to second, and then third to find a licenced club for the play-off. If there are none, then no play-off participant. Should have been that from day one really to remove "blockers" from the equation. It can't be any more unfair than a club finding themselves in the fortunate position of auto promotion to the LL due to no licenced Champion in the other two leagues and therefore no play-off at all. A fortune of circumstance/timing. You'd hope that eventually the rule would become redundant anyway as more clubs become licenced.

I see the airport has new owners, let's see if it improves anything other than increasing the drop-off charge https://www.scotsman.com/business/edinburgh-airport-sale-majority-stake-sold-to-french-based-vinci-airports-in-ps127bn-deal-4593915

There appears to be no organisation. It's not the first time when entering the tin shed that it's largely empty, but you still have to walk up and down the lines. Nobody with the brains to open a shortcut to speed things up. There's also the usual question of why no dedicated desks for UK passport holders, but that's not the airports problem I guess.

Nah, they're Heilanders now. They were never part of the East Region JFA either until about 2002, so it's not as if traditional clubs were being excluded.

The Lowland League area already has far more clubs in it than Highland but the same promotion opportunities, that would make it much more unbalanced than it already is. Leave them where they are.

My passport never works at egates in the UK, but anytime abroad and having to use them, it works. Work that out. Basically, Edinburgh Airport cannot cope with the amount of flights it handles. In reality the terminal building needs demolished and rebuilt.

Discovering this thread 9 years later. It's not changed, well, you pay a shitload more to drop off/pick up. Landing into Edinburgh from outwith the UK/Ireland and then having to climb 3 flights of stairs if you're not fortunate enough to have an air bridge, walk along small gloomy corridors, back down 3 flights of stairs and then face the disaster that is the Border Control tin shed is a terrible welcome to Scotland. Last year I spent an hour trying to get through after landing from Madrid, 1 person on the desks and the e-gates working for about half the people.

atavistic adjective formal UK /ˌæt.əˈvɪs.tɪk/ US /ˌæt̬.əˈvɪs.tɪk/ happening because of a very old habit from a long time ago in human history, not because of a conscious decision or because it is necessary now: an atavistic fear of the dark Every day is a school day........

From what I saw in the games against Hearts B, Cowden have the basis of a very decent team. Haven't seen you against anyone else but if you can find consistency then you'll be top 6 (inc B teams) next season.

I suppose it's fairly straightforward. As soon as the competition starts to materially effect the WoSFL to the detriment of the rest of the Pyramid, then it needs binned. There is a danger it could happen IF entry to the SCC is made non-compulsory by the WoSFL against the wishes of the LL, EoSFL and SOSFL, and instead the Junior Cup is handed priority on fixture scheduling. That undermines the SCC and the Pyramid, it may also get the SFA looking at it. Again as you said, all hypothetical at this stage and may never happen at all and the WoSFL continue to juggle things, but that's the argument should things go down that road. Effectively, you're either fully committted to the senior Pyramid and it's competitions, or you're not.

That sounds like a solution.

No, although perhaps the season could be extended beyond the third week in April some way.

Everyone does, but here we are. We know the climate is only getting wetter so it's going to affect the leagues more and more. Just think 20th April is too early to be finishing.

As I said, best moved to the LL threads. I understand there isn't much opposition from clubs to B / Reserve teams in the EoS as long as all the boxes are ticked so all of this is really a moot point being discussed on here.

I think that the LL/HL finishes at least a fortnight too early to be comfortable. Playing 4 games a week at this stage shouldn't really be happening. Not sure what the answer is other than putting in another couple of midweek rounds during the season, or getting the League Cup out of the way at the start with two games a week.

Yes everyone has had youth players who broke into first teams, unfortunately there is no longer an U20/U21 league to play in that there was a decade ago, and the reserve league of old is long gone. As for "stock piling" what does that even mean? majority of these players have moved through the Academy, U18 and now B team. You know, a pathway. A lot of them will likely now move on. Anyway way off topic. There's B team thread in the LL forum if you want to continue it.

Tempted to make a first visit to Raydale on Saturday for my football fix.

The game on Friday was certainly a game of two halves. Bo'ness the better side first with the wind advantage and a cracker of an opening goal, but Hearts B literally blew them away with the wind in the first 20 of the second. A good game for the neutral and some fairly hefty challenges which I think the ref let go for too long before clamping down a bit. Crowd around the 450 mark.

Absolutely not the case with Hearts B, as I said their line-ups have been pretty consistent throughout the season, the only significant change being Makenzie Kirk's loan to Hamilton in January, and Tait being promoted to the first team around the same time. Denholm and Pollock came from last seasons B team, and Wilson stepped up from U18's this season and also has first team minutes. It's not often that the line-up is significantly affected by first team call ups, they've had more problems with injuries than anything else. As for promoting youth players, the B team for Hearts has - according to the club and coaches - been a valuable stepping stone between U18 and first team, particularly in the absence of anything resembling a proper reserve league, hence why they signed up for another 3 years. I'm guessing they don't spunk £100k a year on something they don't get benefit from. I get that some people don't like them, but let's not make stuff up to justify your dislike. Anyway, the B teams don't play in the EoS so it's very off-topic.

Yes absolutely they are. I've been to a fair few Hearts B games in the LL this season on a Friday night. Their starting XI's are very consistent, they play to a system that presses teams to win games. They don't let up. They are a "team" and they are having success in getting young players ready for the first team - Tait, Pollock, Denholm, Wilson being four who have first team minutes this season, with others on the bench. They seemed pretty happy at securing second place last Friday. I believe Celtic B have had a couple of players in the first team this season as well, Daniel Kelly and Rocco Vata spring to mind although I'm not sure how consistent their starting XI's are. It never struck me when watching Stirling Uni Reserves in the EoS that they were anything but committed to winning games, particularly when beating my team. It's far easier to develop players in a team who give a f*ck about winning than one who doesn't and is just going through the motions - not that you can go through the motions really.

I can assure you every team wants to win games, regardless of who they are.

So it's not "anti-Junior" to hold a different opinion about the SJFA/Cup. I doubt the committee's of Bonnyrigg or Linlithgow or Bo'ness or Penicuik or Broxburn or Musselburgh are idealogically anti-Junior, just that they understood that in order to better themselves some things needed to change and be left behind, the Junior Cup / SJFA being one. Although of course to move to the EoSFL, clubs had to resign from the SJFA anyway as they were the baddies (or "traitors" as used by some in the SJFA heirachy).

You don't seem to appreciate how the competition is viewed elsewhere. The fact that the EoS have maybe 4 SJFA member clubs illustrates than many have moved on. Not all WoS clubs are members either. A Talbot fan will view it differently from almost anyone else and that's understandable, same with a few other clubs. It's always been held in higher regard in Ayrshire than anywhere else. What cannot be denied is that many of it's "traditional" clubs have left the SJFA, have left the Junior Cup behind for their own benefit. They haven't suffered because of it and most now play at a higher level, two in the SPFL. If there's enough clubs who want it and can keep it viable then carry on, but that should come without any impact to senior Pyramid leagues and cups. I personally think winding it all up and distributing much needed funds to all members to be more of a benefit, certainly to those in the North and Tayside.

I don't think reserve sides do any harm at all and given the long history of reserves in the EoS, I don't think there is any level of opposition from member clubs as long as it's done correctly and with respect (which was lacking with the shoehorning of the B sides into the LL, but ultimately the LL member clubs voted for it). Livingston B will play games at the main stadium, so bring with them proper facilities, same with the Gala application, and they'll start at the bottom. I don't see any reason not to allow them to join as long as they tick all boxes.

Surely he has a rough idea? what's his election blurb?