LongTimeLurker

May be the price that had to be paid to get the HL membership to sign off on it. Will be interesting to see how many clubs they plan to operate with in future and how an extra club getting relegated from the SPFL would be handled.

Tayside junior clubs are no strangers to enclosed grounds with large covered enclosures and devil's illuminations so things might move more quickly than many would assume if the ML unfolds as Marten has described.

Alex McDowell who wrote one of the two emails on the previous page is from Gartcairn Juniors and that's an Airdrie club. The top SJFA officeholders are from WoS clubs, so it's more complicated than that on footprint. A WoS officeholder from Rutherglen Glencairn a club that did not retain SJFA membership has expressed skepticism on here about the ML proposal being as close to fruition as the spin from junior blazers suggests.

19 applications definitely strongly suggests otherwise. Beyond any SJFA angle I suspect some clubs have looked at what the future fixture list for a ML would probably look like and have compared it to what they would have in the EoS and have decided that the EoS looks like the more attractive option.

Shetland is preferred as the name by Shetlanders. On many islands in Orkney and Shetland the ferries are a significant source of local employment so there is a strong lobby against fixed links. Orkney should be easy enough to do and a link to Shetland via Fair Isle would be a realistic long term goal after tunnels had linked all the major Orkney islands., but if the Shetland Islands Council can't find the political will to do something as straightforward as Lerwick to Bressay I seriously doubt it will ever happen.

That's definitely the way it looks. The HL have never had an issue with SJFA pyramid entry AFAIA. The EoS was always the main stumbling block on that as they were bitterly opposed to east region entry as a second tier 6 LL feeder.

Get help. I mean that sincerely.

^^^hopefully proves to be more accurate than similar emails from Tom Johnston and the end of the pyramid saga is really in sight. Time will tell. Would normally ignore "Junior Pub League" but it's actually completely comic that he spins what remains of the east region of the SJFA getting into the north pyramid as the end of the juniors when that's actually the scenario that is most likely to keep the SJFA on life support at this point. The Forfar WE approach of joining the EoS would be the real parallel with Kelty as that would break the link to the SJFA once and for all.

No, and people should take note when a WoS officeholder posts this on here:

No chance on Lochee United. They are the ones driving the ML proposal.

Surprisingly high given there is a maximum of only 11 east region south applicants (I'm assuming no Lithgae Rose CFC and Harthill), while Letham and Forfar WE are the only publicly confirmed ones beyond that. Fits the 4 from the east region north info posted on the juniors subforum last night.

People do need to bear in mind that the Midlands League is being pushed by some of the east region blazers that peddled the done deal board directive line a couple of years ago about the east region getting in at tier 6. If anything still needs to go to the HL membership for a vote it could be far from a done deal.

Getting back to Oban there's a 3G cage with lights at the High School that would probably be a better bet.

Sounds a bit ominous. Hopefully just means that it still needs to go through the SFA AGM.

Approval of the playoff competition format has already happened and the relevant rules are already in the SPFL constitution. The area of discretion that the SPFL still has on this that determines whether playoff games proceed relates to where there is a discrepancy between SPFL membership requirements and those for entry level licensing where the "Champion Clubs" are concerned rather than how said clubs were identified by the HL and LL: https://spfl.co.uk/admin/filemanager/images/shares/pdfs/SPFL Rules and Regulations 16-Mar-21 (MASTER COPY) CLEAN.pdf (h)In the event that one of the Champion Clubs in the SHFL or the SLFL fails to comply with the Membership Criteria in circumstances where it is required to do so as the Candidate Club in terms of the SPFL Rules, and the SPFL Board has not granted any waiver, relaxation or period of grace in respect of that club’s requirement to comply with the Membership Criteria, there will be no Play-Off Match in terms of rule III(a) and, the other Champion Club will automatically go forward to the Pyramid Play-Off Match in terms of rule III(b). (g)In the event that neither the Champion Club of the SHFL nor of the SLFL complies with the Membership Criteria in circumstances where it is required to do so as theCandidate Club in terms of the SPFL Rules, and the SPFL Board has not granted any waiver, relaxation or period of grace in respect of both Clubs’ requirement to comply with the relevant part of the Membership Criteria, there will be no Pyramid Play-Off Competition at the end of the relevant Season and Club 42 will retain its place in the SPFL in the immediately succeeding Season In the past the question of whether Brora's floodlights were up to SPFL standards was speculated to be a way that they could avoid the playoffs and stay in the HL. In the event they still wound up playing Montrose. -------------------------------- The Membership Criteria are:-. D4.1a Club participating in the League must be a member of the Scottish FA D4.2a Club participating in the League must have registered or be deemed to have registered its ground in accordance with Rule H13; D4.3a Club participating in the League must:- D4.3.1.itself, or through a subsidiary or holding company of such Club, own its Registered Ground; orD4.3.2.have such other rights of occupation or tenure in its Registered Ground as may be approved by the Board; D4.4any ground which a Club or the Candidate Club registers or is deemed to have registered as its Registered Ground, must, by not later than 31st March preceding any Season and for the whole of that Season: D4.4.1 with respect to Clubs entitled to play in the Premiership and the Championship have achieved and maintain with respect to stadia criteria at least the Bronze Standard set out in The Scottish Football Association National Club Licensing Manual 63 in force and as amended or supplemented from time to time; D4.4.2 with respect to Clubs and Candidate Clubs entitled to play in League One and League Two have achieved and maintain with respect to stadia criteria at least the Entry Level Standard set out in The Scottish Football Association National Club Licensing Manual in force and as amended or supplemented from time to time; D4.4.3 with respect to Clubs entitled to play in the Premiership and the Championship have had and have adequate winter pitch protection, as provided in Rule H10; and D4.4.4 comply with Rules H18 and H19. H18All registered grounds and grounds at which League Matches and Play-Off Matches are played must have floodlights. For Clubs entitled in any Season to participate in the Premiership, the Championship and the Premiership/Championship Play-Off Competition such floodlights must be and operate at least to the Silver Standard with respect to floodlighting as set out in The Scottish Football Association National Club Licensing Manual in force and as amended or supplemented from time to time. For Clubs entitled in any Season to participate in the League One, League Two and the Championship/League One and League One/League Two Play-Off Competitions such floodlights must be and operate at least to the Bronze Standard with respect to floodlighting as set out in The Scottish Football Association National Club Licensing Manual in force and as amended or supplemented from time to time. H19The dimensions of the field of play for all League Matches and the Premiership/Championship Play-Off Competition played by Clubs in the Premiership and the Championship shall be as follows:-MinimumRecommendedMaximumLength95 metres105 metres110 metresWidth60 metres68 metres72 metres and for all League Matches played in League One and League Two and matches played in the Championship/League One and League One/League Two Play-Off Competitions the dimensions of the field of play shall be as follows:- MinimumRecommendedMaximumLength90 metres105 metres110 metresWidth56 metres68 metres72 metres

Not the case. The HL vs LL playoff is an SFA matter and could not be held last year due to the lockdown at the end of 2019-20 according to the rules as written. The subsequent HL/LL winner vs SPFL42 playoff takes place under SPFL auspices. There was no HL vs LL winner available for Club 42 to play against at the required timing at the end of the season, so the SPFL was within its rights to cancel the playoff on that basis. https://spfl.co.uk/admin/filemanager/images/shares/pdfs/SPFL Rules and Regulations 16-Mar-21 (MASTER COPY) CLEAN.pdf (a)The League Champions of the SHFL and the SLFL at the end of season 2015/2016 and in each season thereafter will (subject to rule III(f)) take part in the Play-Off Match which shall consist of a home and away two-legged match approved and organised by the Scottish F.A to determine, subject to these rules, which club shall take part in the Pyramid Play-Off Match. A draw supervised by the Scottish FA will determine which club has home advantage in the first match. (b)The winner of the match detailed in rule III(a), or the team determined in accordance with rule III(f), will enter a home and away two-legged match against Club 42 known as the “Pyramid Play-Off Match”. The Pyramid Play-Off Match pursuant to this rule III(b) shall be approved and organised by the SPFL and the basis on which the Pyramid Play-Off Match shall take place shall be as specified in the SPFL Rules. The winner of the Pyramid Play-Off Match will be entitled to be a member of and play in the SPFL League Two during the immediately succeeding Season and shall thereafter comply with the Rules and Regulations of the SPFL.

Japanese public toilets often also a problem for that and especially in remoter areas you can wind up faced with no option other than using one of these:

...and the games had to take place at the end of season 2019-20 according the rule as written, so that meant Brechin had their escape route because the SFA were not able to hold the HL vs LL playoff game at the appropriate time due to the lockdown. As long as the HL vs LL playoff proceeds this year at the end of season 2020-21 under SFA auspices based on 2020-21 "League Champions" there is no obvious way out for Club 42 this time.

If the info about a Midland League formed by east region north clubs emerging as an HL tier 6 feeder next season is accurate, it looks like that ship has sailed now. All of the SFA, HL, LL and SPFL need to sign off on a Club 42 rule change, so the HL acknowledging unambiguously that Dundee, Forfar, Arbroath, Brechin (via Brechin Vics) and Montrose (via Montrose Roselea of the north region who will be another tier 6 feeder to the HL) as being in their catchment would be highly significant.

As is pretty much inevitable in these threads a certain poster has muddied the waters a bit since you posted that. This is the relevant rule: https://spfl.co.uk/admin/filemanager/images/shares/pdfs/SPFL Rules and Regulations 16-Mar-21 (MASTER COPY) CLEAN.pdf The League Champions of the SHFL and the SLFL at the end of season 2015/2016 and in each season thereafter will (subject to rule III(f)) take part in the Play-Off Match which shall consist of a home and away two-legged match approved and organised by the Scottish F.A to determine, subject to these rules, which club shall take part in the Pyramid Play-Off Match. A draw supervised by the Scottish FA will determine which club has home advantage in the first match. If they null and voided, the bolded part would no longer be applicable because there would no longer have been a league champion for the 2020/21 season since that season by definition would effectively not have even happened, so Club 42 would get a reprieve. Not for the first time LL officialdom does not appear to have grasped the full implications of what was actually in the relevant rulebooks (e.g. the mess that happened after Selkirk resigned midseason related to the definition of "bottom club").

Have I been reading posts correctly that they are now going to be called Kirkton? Think if Aberdeen and Dundee junior clubs embrace the concept of licensing and progression the HL could look very different in 20 years time from what it does now. There's a lot of low hanging fruit to replace in pro/rel terms.

Think that scenario is why they've been told it can't be null and void. Lawyers have probably advised the SFA that it won't stand up to legal challenge from Club 42 otherwise.

Narrower than Ashfield? Don't think that's got enough space available to be enclosed properly in a way that's suitable for a semi-professional level.