Burnieman Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/local-sport/pumpherston-boss-says-move-east-23735962?fbclid=IwAR3v5CXh_-FQBpvtm8QRqDo_WQUMJOAW6CTrr8tSl0izUbuiej6Y1I2Atng 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Patterson Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 Forfar West End should be told to take a hike. There's two options for them (and the rest of the Tayside clubs): 2 League Tier 6 - North Caley and a "Grampian" Super with Aberdeenshire and Tayside divisions below that 3 League Tier 6 - North Caley, North Super, Tayside League. Playing in the East of Scotland is a bit of a joke to the league system, hopefully the EoS clubs reject their application. 15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongTimeLurker Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 Something to bear in mind before getting too bogged down over Tay Bridge line of latitude issues is that the SPFL, HL and LL are actively negotiating changes to the existing structure: https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/56412970 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GordonS Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 4 minutes ago, Burnieman said: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/local-sport/pumpherston-boss-says-move-east-23735962?fbclid=IwAR3v5CXh_-FQBpvtm8QRqDo_WQUMJOAW6CTrr8tSl0izUbuiej6Y1I2Atng Interesting what he says about it getting more difficult to compete with EoS clubs for players. That looked like something that would happen so it's useful to see it confirmed. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairWeatherFan Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 Just now, LongTimeLurker said: Something to bear in mind before getting too bogged down over Tay Bridge line of latitude issues is that the SPFL, HL and LL are actively negotiating changes to the existing structure: https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/56412970 Considering the SPFL Play-off stays the same with the bottom club of SPFL2 entering a play-off. I'm not sure you can say they're really negotiating anything and are just along for the ride. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyclizine Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 (edited) 17 minutes ago, GordonS said: I think supporters of a lot of clubs - Linlithgow Rose included - would be pretty peeved if their club finished runner-up in the EoS to a club that was never going to be allowed into the promotion play-offs because of their location. This needs to be resolved in agreement with the LL and others, and not just left to the EoS to guess what might happen in future, to make sure more nonsense anomalies aren't thrown up. At the time the Lowland League was set up, it was only clubs in the SoSFL and EoSFL that would have been eligible for promotion and there wasn't any evidence (quite the opposite) that the WRJFA and ERJFA were coming on board, so the Line™ wasn't an issue at the time coming from below. Now however, we definitely need a resolution to this. I'd be surprised if there aren't discussions going behind the scenes that we're not privy to. In the grand scheme of things it probably doesn't matter how the North of Tay issue is resolved, so long as all clubs can fairly access the pyramid, I have my personal opinions on what the best way to approach this is, as we all probably do, but ultimately this is about the clubs not egos. There do need to be clear rules around where clubs go though, particularly at critical promotion/relegation points so there's not the potential for clubs from the same town playing in different leagues at the same level. Edited March 16, 2021 by Cyclizine 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GordonS Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 4 minutes ago, LongTimeLurker said: Something to bear in mind before getting too bogged down over Tay Bridge line of latitude issues is that the SPFL, HL and LL are actively negotiating changes to the existing structure: https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/56412970 Comparison with the Croatian second league there. The average attendance in that division in the last full season was 486. One of the features of football in the UK compared with many other countries is decent support for a broader range of clubs - and real football clubs don't want their matches reduced to the level of a development opportunity for some young players, especially not at two hated clubs. The inherent arrogance in assuming it's the OF that should get the two berths - Celtic haven't won the reserve/ development league since 2016 and last year's winners were Accies, with Hearts runners-up. If there are two spots open then one of them should go to the best youth side in Scotland over recent years - Hamilton Accies. I hope this gets voted down the same was as all the previous attempts, but you get the feeling one of these days it will get pushed through. If it does this time, at least it means a 16-team league, which is much better, especially if it comes with an automatic relegation place. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyclizine Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 (edited) 24 minutes ago, LongTimeLurker said: Something to bear in mind before getting too bogged down over Tay Bridge line of latitude issues is that the SPFL, HL and LL are actively negotiating changes to the existing structure: https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/56412970 I'm not disagreeing that there are probably discussions going on elsewhere, but the article you linked doesn't mention anything about SPFL, HFL and LFL "actively negotiating" anything. This seems to be entirely between parties in the SPFL. All it says is two Highland and two Lowland clubs to SPFL2 and that the current SPFL2/HFL/LFL playoff will remain the same. The only parties mentioned directly are SFA and SPFL as needing a special general meeting. Edited March 16, 2021 by Cyclizine 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongTimeLurker Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 4 minutes ago, GordonS said: Comparison with the Croatian second league there... Think Lokomotiva Zagreb were playing in the prva liga as Dinamo's thinly disguised B team at one point so B teams no higher than the druga liga is slightly less messed up than what was happening prior to that. Good to see the glass ceiling would be League One in a Scottish context, but suspect that won't be enough to get it voted through. The article mentions the existing playoff being kept for Club 46 but says nothing explicit about the Tay Bridge boundary. A finer detail worth keeping an eye on. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marten Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 44 minutes ago, LongTimeLurker said: Something to bear in mind before getting too bogged down over Tay Bridge line of latitude issues is that the SPFL, HL and LL are actively negotiating changes to the existing structure: https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/56412970 The colt team proposal is obviously horrible and should be binned, but I wonder how they decide who to add from the HL and LL as I can't see those leagues resuming in time to play at least half a season (pretty much impossible already for the HL!). I'd guess Kelty & Brora would be 2 of the 4, but it will be interesting to see which other teams they will pick. It would bring the LL down to 15, I guess they'd fill that by application from either EOS or WOS. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morley Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 Now there is a real pyramid it's so disrespectful that any team can jump the queue straight into the spfl just because they have money. Scottish football isn't a vehicle for the old firm. If there was to be two colt teams it should be on the basis of the top two spfl colt (development) teams by performance which i dont believe is the old firm. Then every year the lowest ranked of the two colt teams drops out of the spfl back into the colt league (or what ever the equivalent is) and replaced by that seasons colt league winner for the season ahead. I would have more time for that although dont like it either. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongTimeLurker Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stulch Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 The very last time the LL invited applications, didn't they stipulate that clubs had to be south of the HL/LL line? That allied to their recent rejection of moving that line northwards to facilitate Brechin would suggest the addition of Tayside clubs into their half of the Pyramid would be problematic.I was about to say that... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stag Nation Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 1 hour ago, LongTimeLurker said: There is no fixed boundary between HL and LL zones. The only thing that has ever been agreed is where Club 42 gets relegated to and most of the parties involved want that modified. There are only three parties involved: SPFL, HL and LL. Which two want it modified? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongTimeLurker Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 SFA are also involved and could it have even got to a vote at the LL AGM last year if the SFA and HL were not OK with a change? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GordonS Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 34 minutes ago, LongTimeLurker said: "...no prospect of one." That seems a bit of an ooft to me. Is Pint of Bovril anyone known around here? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stulch Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 Any further news on the North Caledonian League linking up with the Highland League? May be that's the only way this moves on? A ripple effect, North juniors decide after all they're interested, after seeing it in operation for a bit, and then the north of the line East Juniors are attracted because they aren't just linking up with the NCL... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stulch Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 Can't some existing clubs from the EoS, former juniors, go and talk to the North Juniors about the benefits of the pyramid? With the facts not myths. I know most consider the North Juniors on par with amateurs but not a lot needs to change for a lot of them. May be a commitment to have no changes to criteria to get things moving. Allow them to play on public parks if they want to?I'd love to be a fly on the wall to the North pyramid discussions just to know what the issues are. Maybe they could get advice from the EoS for setting up a Highland feeder? Lack of anything in the North is continuing to cause problems in the Lowland League area... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VillanoXIV Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 Surely the answer to the Tayside question is have a EOS members vote to see whether they are happy to accept them? If they then either get promoted to the EOS Premier and/or get licenced, consult with the LL and HL and say “In the unlikely event [team x] are promoted, they would prefer to play in your league, are you happy with this arrangement?” If they’re not, they can choose to either with the least preferred option or not take promotion at all, I don’t see any issues in having them in EOS regional conferences where they are likely to remain and in the event they do go on some mad Leicester-style run to the EOS title, there is more than enough time for them to declare an interest prior to actually lifting the trophy and the pyramid shouldn’t be a rigid draconian joonyurs setup where rulings done a decade ago are set in stone and have to be obeyed just because. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyclizine Posted March 16, 2021 Share Posted March 16, 2021 27 minutes ago, GordonS said: "...no prospect of one." That seems a bit of an ooft to me. 18 minutes ago, stulch said: Any further news on the North Caledonian League linking up with the Highland League? May be that's the only way this moves on? A ripple effect, North juniors decide after all they're interested, after seeing it in operation for a bit, and then the north of the line East Juniors are attracted because they aren't just linking up with the NCL... @NiallFH is the man in the know, but it's not a secret up here that the NCL, NRJFA and HFL have been having positive ongoing discussions. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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