Junior football, what is the future?

[GNU_Linux]

I am coming around to the thought of the Scottish Junior Football Association being in the Senior Non League Pyramid next season.

Using some of  Kilbowie Benches logic I can suggest that the SJFA are not really a proper national association as they do not cover large swathes of the country incuding much of the Scottish Highlands and none of the Scottish Borders etc.  Some might argue that the SJFA for historical reasons is in reality an "expanded Scottish Midlands Region organisation" with extensions from the Central Belt into Tayside and Aberdeenshire

In the Senior Pyramid next season the SJFA will be on the same level as the East of Scotland FA and should be treated similarly in my view.  We should all be one family with no triumphalism or illusions of grandeur. The Juniors/Seniors bickering should be well and truly laid to rest.

 

the big difference though is county fa's are only involved in running cups & some youth football and they have no influence or oversight on leagues. Also in terms of size the biggest county fa is the EOSFA at some 40 odd members. the SJFA is 131. Every other county fa ranges from single digits to about twenty or high teens.

 

Furthermore if/when current junior clubs join the pyramid they'd be free to join a county FA eg Pollok could join the Glasgow FA. It's not possible to be in membership.of two county FA's at once so the comparison of SJFA=county FA doesn't really work for the above points mentioned.

[Kilbowie Benches]

16 minutes ago, Inanimate Carbon Rod said:

D 
I dont think youre actually reading the posts you reply to anymore. Ive already said I dont think there will be a majority, however I dont need an egm, those wishing to stay junior do.
Im finished arguing with you over this. Theres no need for the snide add ons.

What I said wasn’t simplistic at all!

You’d put the clubs finances under strain,have players leave and supporters inconvenienced just because you don’t like TJ?

[Inanimate Carbon Rod]

What I said wasn’t simplistic at all!
You’d put the clubs finances under strain,have players leave and supporters inconvenienced just because you don’t like TJ?

Im not going to respond to that on a public forum but you know exactly why I dont trust TJ or the SJFA. Fact is the board are changing tact from the last egm and fans are being told nothing except what they read on here, club hasn’t even issued a statement and we’re only a few months from the end of the season. The lack of progress or news on any progress is shite.

[NickyRFC]

13 minutes ago, Inanimate Carbon Rod said:

Im not going to respond to that on a public forum but you know exactly why I dont trust TJ or the SJFA. Fact is the board are changing tact from the last egm and fans are being told nothing except what they read on here, club hasn’t even issued a statement and we’re only a few months from the end of the season. The lack of progress or news on any progress is shite.

The board has not delivered anything! No support system or future aims it is sad that it’s came to this however I agree with you 

[Kilbowie Benches]

13 minutes ago, Inanimate Carbon Rod said:

Im not going to respond to that on a public forum but you know exactly why I dont trust TJ or the SJFA. Fact is the board are changing tact from the last egm and fans are being told nothing except what they read on here, club hasn’t even issued a statement and we’re only a few months from the end of the season. The lack of progress or news on any progress is shite.

The goalposts are changing on a daily,weekly basis where the pyramid is concerned.

We could have a meeting and within a week everything has changed.

 

 

[Inanimate Carbon Rod]

The goalposts are changing on a daily,weekly basis where the pyramid is concerned.
We could have a meeting and within a week everything has changed.
 
 

Doesnt even need to be a meeting Benches, a newsletter/blog with regular updates would be fine, I dont think its a lot to ask for, just want them to be transparent. I’ve already resigned myself to the fact this is the route the board is taking the club down so fair enough, all im asking for is for it to be transparent and for the trust members to be kept up to date officially and not for the umpteenth time learning news about the club on unrelated media sources.

[FairWeatherFan]

1 hour ago, Pyramidic said:

I am coming around to the thought of the Scottish Junior Football Association being in the Senior Non League Pyramid next season.

Using some of  Kilbowie Benches logic I can suggest that the SJFA are not really a proper national association as they do not cover large swathes of the country incuding much of the Scottish Highlands and none of the Scottish Borders etc.  

SJFA is a national association. The clue is in the name.

[Inanimate Carbon Rod]

The board has not delivered anything! No support system or future aims it is sad that it’s came to this however I agree with you 

Look im not saying the board havent delivered anything, thats certainly not the case, we have progress at Holm Park, however feel we’ve moved from a very forward thinking position this time last year to appearing to be one of the most cautious of the west region teams.
It doesnt appear that there is any long term plan for licensing and that the club will probably be unable to achieve it for a good few years now anyway.
The folks on the board work their arse off and at no time have I ever suggested otherwise, I just feel like so much has changed over the last year and officially supporters have heard nothing.

[Burnie_man]

Look im not saying the board havent delivered anything, thats certainly not the case, we have progress at Holm Park, however feel we’ve moved from a very forward thinking position this time last year to appearing to be one of the most cautious of the west region teams.
It doesnt appear that there is any long term plan for licensing and that the club will probably be unable to achieve it for a good few years now anyway.
The folks on the board work their arse off and at no time have I ever suggested otherwise, I just feel like so much has changed over the last year and officially supporters have heard nothing.

Is it true or just one of those popular myths, that the SJFA made known to Clydebank that if they moved to the EoS this season, they would not allow them to groundshare with a Junior club when they needed to move from Holm Park?

[Kilbowie Benches]

34 minutes ago, Inanimate Carbon Rod said:

Doesnt even need to be a meeting Benches, a newsletter/blog with regular updates would be fine, I dont think its a lot to ask for, just want them to be transparent. I’ve already resigned myself to the fact this is the route the board is taking the club down so fair enough, all im asking for is for it to be transparent and for the trust members to be kept up to date officially and not for the umpteenth time learning news about the club on unrelated media sources.

If anything official happens the club tells the members/fans.Some people talk about speculation and things that have been agreed but not signed off on.

The club always waits until official confirmation and won’t comment on speculation.

Edited February 4, 2019 by Kilbowie Benches

[AlanCamelonfan]

30 minutes ago, Kilbowie Benches said:

If anything official happens the club tells the members/fans.Some people talk about speculation and things that have been agreed but not signed off on.

The club always waits until official confirmation and won’t comment on speculation.

Like you telling people tier 6 done deal when clearly it's not. It's just a proposed plan. I ask u the question.  If sjfa would allow WRSJFA in pyramid and ersjfa not to be

[Kilbowie Benches]

9 minutes ago, AlanCamelonfan said:

Like you telling people tier 6 done deal when clearly it's not. It's just a proposed plan. I ask u the question.  If sjfa would allow WRSJFA in pyramid and ersjfa not to be

It was said at the West general meeting last week that the West was in at tier 6.

What else are clubs to think when they’re getting told it’s a done deal? 

From what I’ve heard the ERJFA will be in too but to be honest it’s not a question for anyone at a West club to answer.You'd need to ask what’s being said at East Region meetings.

[GNU_Linux]

It was said at the West general meeting last week that the West was in at tier 6.
What else are clubs to think when they’re getting told it’s a done deal? 
From what I’ve heard the ERJFA will be in too but to be honest it’s not a question for anyone at a West club to answer.You'd need to ask what’s being said at East Region meetings.

Sounds a bit like the in at tier 6 from back in the October email ie whats being said & whats actually happening/has to happen to get the claimed outcome seem very removed from each other. Of course I can't lay any blame at west clubs as they can only go on what they are being told by those negotiating on their behalf.

[Burnie_man]

Here’s where we probably are IMO.....

The SJFA are finally pulling a plan together to give to the PWG, so the West Region have done that and let clubs know how it could look, I presume the East Region are doing likewise.  North? Nobody seems to know and there may well be nothing much happening at all up there.  Meanwhile, discussions continue with regards to aligning rules and regulations.

Next step is to present the “plan” to PWG for discussion and approval, and to get the rules and regs aligned. The suggestion is that the latter is causing issues which could hold things up, and of course the former is going to have a problem in the east, and then if the NRJFA are not included how does that leave the mandated position of the SJFA to enter as a block?

Nothing has really changed from last year, except that at the next PWG meeting a plan of some sort may finally be put on the table, that’s probably when the fun actually starts. I doubt it will all be agreed for next season.

[Pyramidic]

1 hour ago, FairWeatherFan said:

SJFA is a national association. The clue is in the name.

Of course the SJFA is a currently a national association - one that undoubtedy retains some clout at the moment.

However to enable the SJFA to be seamlessly absorbed into the Senior Pyramid, our esteemed leader will need to either "eat humble pie" or "fall on his sword" and accept that the SJFA will be working at a lower level in future (the same level as the East of Scotland FA) and therefore cannot expect any special benefits or privileges.

If the SJFA (the expanded Scottish Midlands Region FA) and EoSFA are recognised as being at the same level from 2019/20 onwards, I do not see a problem. However if the SJFA have a very different agenda which has not been divulged I can foresee all sorts of issues arising.

The above is my logic Burnie_man - in other words not to alienate but to asbsorb and develop.

Edited February 4, 2019 by Pyramidic

[Kilbowie Benches]

16 minutes ago, Burnie_man said:

Here’s where we probably are IMO.....

The SJFA are finally pulling a plan together to give to the PWG, so the West Region have done that and let clubs know how it could look, I presume the East Region are doing likewise.  North? Nobody seems to know and there may well be nothing much happening at all up there.  Meanwhile, discussions continue with regards to aligning rules and regulations.

Next step is to present the “plan” to PWG for discussion and approval, and to get the rules and regs aligned. The suggestion is that the latter is causing issues which could hold things up, and of course the former is going to have a problem in the east, and then if the NRJFA are not included how does that leave the mandated position of the SJFA to enter as a block?

Nothing has really changed from last year, except that at the next PWG meeting a plan of some sort may finally be put on the table, that’s probably when the fun actually starts. I doubt it will all be agreed for next season.

It’s not the SJFAs plan it’s the SFAs plan and the SJFA are doing what the SFA are asking them to do.

[Burnie_man]

1 minute ago, Pyramidic said:

The above is my logic Burnie_man - in other words not to alienate but to asbsorb and develop.

Fair enough but let's just think back to the attitude of the SJFA prior to July last year, if anyone is being alienated, it was the SJFA doing it to themselves.

As it stands the SJFA want in lock, stock and barrel with their structure intact, they want it all on their terms.  That's unlikely to happen due to the issues we all know about, they'll have to compromise. To compromise they have to return to the clubs for agreement, they can't just leave the North behind or the East.

The only way I can see a way forward with the ERJFA coming in, is if there is a binding agreement that for season 2020-2021 both the ERJFA and EoS merged in some form, along with resolution to the Tayside question. If the EoS agree to let them in with no strings attached, there would be artificial division for years to come.

[Pyramidic]

What is the latest position re the Lowland / Highland divide? Has the suggestion that the Highland Boundary Fault line may be used to accommodate the East Juniors been binned?

 

[Burnie_man]

2 minutes ago, Pyramidic said:

What is the latest position re the Lowland / Highland divide? Has the suggestion that the Highland Boundary Fault line may be used to accommodate the East Juniors been binned?

Nothing has happened as far as I am aware, unchanged.

[grazza]

Would be nice gesture for junior clubs to invite non SPFL senior clubs to complete in the Scottish Junior cup. I understand listening to Talbot fans on radio Scotland that the competition has lost what it was with many of the east teams now leaving.  Would also secure that competition if juniors fully integrate into the pyramid this cup could still be continued and boosted.