Junior football, what is the future?

[Robert James]

53 minutes ago, Burnie_man said:

There was no WoSFL when Clydebank applied.

You simply can't have some teams in West Lothian playing EoS and some WoS.  As I said before, maybe Blackburn should then apply to jump leagues and guarantee tier 6 next season  (we're only 6 miles from the Lanarkshire border),  maybe Newtongrange too or Sauchie? It would be a mess, and makes absolutely no sense.   It also makes the stance over the HL/LL dividing line  a bit hypocritical when it comes to Tayside.

No need to open a can of worms, keep it simple. There's more than enough teams in the west to get the WoSFL off the ground.

BM  :     "Keep it simple"

Yes.... if the West is to be sorted out in time for 2020/21. 

The clock is ticking.

[Sunrise]

Can't wait for Rigside to form a team

Used to have an amateur side of some renown. There must be stories...

[FairWeatherFan]

8 minutes ago, Burnie_man said:

You're suggesting that this would be perfectly acceptable, afterall no boundary.

Yes.

I'm also not a fantasist.

So what do you have instead of a fixed boundary?

One a club actually weighing up the leagues and choosing to apply to something that appears outwith their local area.

Two. Once somebody actually applies they would face a vote of the league membership. Would a majority actually accept a club from outwith their local area?

 

 

[cmontheloknow]

One of the first things that needs to be addressed is the boundaries at level 6. Wishy washy boundaries in the past are all well and good but have no relevance when there is going to be region-wide coverage.

[AsimButtHitsASix]

1 hour ago, Robert James said:

Glasgow Uni wouldn't join an SJFA run west league (at Tier 9).  An independent WoSL is however, at least, worth considering. No idea about Oban Saints., but if there is to be an independent/pyramid West League, an application from them would be welcomed. 

I know it's not happening now (if it was every an option) but if the WRJFA did move, en masse, to be the new WoSFL why would Glasgow Uni be so against joining it compared to joinging a brand new league?

[Burnie_man]

Yes.

I'm also not a fantasist.

So what do you have instead of a fixed boundary?

One a club actually weighing up the leagues and choosing to apply to something that appears outwith their local area.

Two. Once somebody actually applies they would face a vote of the league membership. Would a majority actually accept a club from outwith their local area?

 

 

How can it be fantasy when the very thing you think is acceptable can actually happen?

 

That's why you need rules on eligibility.

 

[Burnie_man]

One of the first things that needs to be addressed is the boundaries at level 6. Wishy washy boundaries in the past are all well and good but have no relevance when there is going to be region-wide coverage.

It's not even a debate that needs to be had.

Keep. It. Simple.

[surely not!]

Glad to see someone has had the foresight to consider the players, who have perhaps so far been ignored/sidelined in this malarkey/skullduggery.

Ultimately the ‘players’ shouldn’t be really consulted on this one. Granted there will be some who have contracts that go beyond this season and that therefore is a game changer for those- but that’s a very small minority at this level.

How many players this season will be playing in 15/20 years time? The good of the game needs Scottish football to progress and move forward, and although players play a vital part in this, consulting a specific group at any given time isn’t necessarily the best thing to do.

Interesting that most of the players would prefer the pyramid ( which is definitely what i want to happen) but I’m also willing to bet that some of those players would have had offers from pyramid clubs and knocked them back.

[Guest]

One of the first things that needs to be addressed is the boundaries at level 6. Wishy washy boundaries in the past are all well and good but have no relevance when there is going to be region-wide coverage.

I wasn't always in agreement with this, but my disagreement was mostly down to an expectation of my own that the sjfa in the west would move over as a bloc. Imagine my surprise when TJ missed the open goal from half a yard out.

I'd agree with this now, what would stop clubs close to the middle ground applying from the wrsjfa or eos to a new wosfl and entering at tier 6 or jumping to tier 6. It's not a great start for me.

I'd say a west/east common sense boundary, although there are about 4 clubs who sit right on that boundary. The same set up as the highland/lowland line would suffice.

And then I start to have a sore head trying to think how the south would work.

[Jacksgranda]

9 minutes ago, FairWeatherFan said:

Yes.

I'm also not a fantasist.

So what do you have instead of a fixed boundary?

One a club actually weighing up the leagues and choosing to apply to something that appears outwith their local area.

Two. Once somebody actually applies they would face a vote of the league membership. Would a majority actually accept a club from outwith their local area?

 

 

[cmontheloknow]

2 minutes ago, G4Mac said:

I wasn't always in agreement with this, but my disagreement was mostly down to an expectation of my own that the sjfa in the west would move over as a bloc. Imagine my surprise when TJ missed the open goal from half a yard out.

I'd agree with this now, what would stop clubs close to the middle ground applying from the wrsjfa or eos to a new wosfl and entering at tier 6 or jumping to tier 6. It's not a great start for me.

I'd say a west/east common sense boundary, although there are about 4 clubs who sit right on that boundary. The same set up as the highland/lowland line would suffice.

And then I start to have a sore head trying to think how the south would work.

*if* the West forms, the South as a separate league seems up for debate. Its clubs are old money district sides. Tier 7 seems the right place for them. But it's a debate to be had.

[glensmad]

I understand that there is a Lowland League board meeting tonight, and also a West Region SJFA Management meeting. On Thursday night we have the well-documented SJFA Management meeting which Rod Petrie is attending.

Watch out for a game of statement tennis this week. [emoji23]

[cmontheloknow]

More like statement UFC - "gonnae grab you and not let go!"

[Robert James]

7 minutes ago, AsimButtHitsASix said:

I know it's not happening now (if it was every an option) but if the WRJFA did move, en masse, to be the new WoSFL why would Glasgow Uni be so against joining it compared to joinging a brand new league?

If SFA Members GUFC had wanted to be in a league, operating under the rules of the SJFA, they would have done so years ago.

A new independent pyramid league is a different proposition, although the Uni has not stated it will apply to join it.

[GNU_Linux]

More like statement UFC - "gonnae grab you and not let go!"

SFA & SJFA hq aren't too far away from 12 Ruel Street...

[wow-wee]

2 minutes ago, glensmad said:

I understand that there is a Lowland League board meeting tonight, and also a West Region SJFA Management meeting. On Thursday night we have the well-documented SJFA Management meeting which Rod Petrie is attending.

Watch out for a game of statement tennis this week.

Yup going to be interesting might get a statement late tonight or tomorrow from the LL then that puts pressure on SJFA to try and stop the tide.

[FairWeatherFan]

10 minutes ago, Burnie_man said:

How can it be fantasy when the very thing you think is acceptable can actually happen?

 

That's why you need rules on eligibility.

 

Have Heriot-Watt University, Whitburn, Pumpherston chosen to apply for the WoSFL? If they do apply will they be accepted by the organisers this year, or by a majority of its league members in future years?

[FairWeatherFan]

29 minutes ago, G4Mac said:

I would suggest any club who are currently out of the pyramid, who had the choice between the possibility of playing at tier 6 in the west against the likes of petershill and clydebank or against tweedmouth and peebles at tier 8 in the east would most definitely choose tier 6 west in a heartbeat.

 

To think this wont form part of any decision is either very naive at best or stupid at worst. Of course it will form a decision of a club.

 

If that's the case would the wosfl accept a current eosfl member who is facing the possibility of tier 8 in the east?

 

Likely Tier 8 clubs from the EOS next year if it happens: Tweedmouth Rangers, Arniston Rangers, Hawick Royal Albert United, Peebles Rovers, Easthouses Lilly MW, Craigroyston, Ormiston, and Burntisland Shipyard.

I mean they're free to apply. Get to jump up to Tier 6. Absolutely nothing to stop them. How many do you see applying to the WoSFL in the first place?

[Burnie_man]

On the subject of near misses, I think both Luncarty and Harthill Royal can be considered exceptions.

Luncarty straddles the HL/LL line, with the ground in the north part of it. Should they be allowed to join the LL area? IMO Yes

Harthill is in North Lanarkshire, outwith the EoS area, but their ground is about 20 yards inside West Lothian. Should they be allowed to join a WoS? IMO Yes.

These are the only two examples I can think of where exceptions can be made if the clubs themselves wanted it.

Otherwise North and South Lanarkshire are vinegar, West Lothian is sauce. Keeping it simple.

 

 

Edited February 11, 2020 by Burnie_man

[AsimButtHitsASix]

9 minutes ago, Robert James said:

If SFA Members GUFC had wanted to be in a league, operating under the rules of the SJFA, they would have done so years ago.

A new independent pyramid league is a different proposition, although the Uni has not stated it will apply to join it.

But SJFA in the pyramid would be a different story to their current set up. And would it not be fall foul of the commitment to the pyramid required to keep a license?