St-ow!
-
Posts
51 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Store
Posts posted by St-ow!
-
-
3 hours ago, Oldster said:
Yeah, my fault too etc etc.
I think it's pretty funny that at the top of page 61 you're suggesting a 14 team top division that has TWO splits, and now you're suggesting a 16 team bottom division where teams can also earn points by beating non-pyramid colt teams!
You do realise Scottish football is a Conservative place, right?
Kevin only knows what you want for the middle tier...
Rubbish!
It's less than ten years since the introduction of the pyramid, changes to the league cup and, least conservative of all, the new challenge cup format.
I'm sure you can remember the '90s when the league seemed to be restructured every other season. Forgive a bit if caution rather than go back to a state of continual flux.
Or maybe you only look old because you've smoked so much...
0 -
On 10/09/2020 at 16:37, anonanist said:
Comparing the travel distances for East Fife for the two scenarios mentioned (League One this coming season vs the proposed North Conference), I found the approximate one-way milages to be:
North Conference
Brora 193, Elgin 164, Brechin 57, Kelty 18, Cowdenbeath 15.
Total 447.
League One
Dumbarton 74, Partick 61, Airdrie 52, Clyde 46, Falkirk 36.
Total 272.
I didn't add the milages for the away trips that both leagues would have in common - to Forfar, Montrose, Cove, and Peterhead.
This clinched it for me. Shame, as I was very keen on parallel conferences at the third tier.
0 -
Sportsound is great but they should stop with the calling me Richard.
Surely.
0 -
Your proposal - colts at tier 5 of the pyramid, but within their own division, in parallel with the Lowland and Highland leagues:
17 hours ago, Oldster said:Or instead just add a Development League as the third side of the pyramid in parallel with the HL and LL. With pyramid play off semi finalists being the bottom SPFL team, HL winners, LL winners, and Development League winners.
14 hours ago, SecretCEO said:A Development League as a third side to the pyramid is interesting. I would worry about a youth team actually being promoted to the SPFL, although perhaps it isn't likely because the pyramid play offs would be of a high enough standard to prevent it.
It would be good, in that context, to give the best youth teams something real to aim towards and that motivation could spur their development.
Perhaps a Development League could encompass the youth, or combined academy, teams down through to the Lowland League and beyond, linking up the divisions initially and then leaving it to run. It would be good to give sixteen to nineteen year olds who aren't quite developed enough for first team football genuinely competitive divisions to play in, with promotion and relegation issues to drive their engagement.
12 hours ago, Oldster said:I prefer my idea because it delivers on the Competition Working Group's approved proposal of a couple of years ago of colts being entered at tier 5, which seems also to be their approximate level if the Challenge Cup is anything to go by.
I also think my idea would hush the Old Farm as they would have their way, but with the indemnity of the pyramid playoffs to prevent their actual progression into the SPFL.
1 -
Your proposal - colts teams, not part of the pyramid, but playing some games against SPFL lower league opponents, each earning points towards their respective leagues:
22 hours ago, SecretCEO said:What about if our bottom senior national division had sixteen teams, playing every opponent twice.
And if we had a non-pyramid top development league of eight teams, playing every opponent twice.
Then we asked those seniors to play each youth team once as part of their points-earning regular season. These could be eight midweek games across their season, giving the seniors a 38 game season each.
The top development teams would therefore have sixteen games each per season against senior pros, and a thirty game season each in total.
There could be a second level of development teams who would aim for promotion to that elite level. Unless perhaps the Lowland League would want to participate in something similar.
That's a bit sketchy, so maybe fits with all the changes to the league's attempts at player development and the changing faces at our national association's equivalent.
It always seemed like there were good intentions, yet I could never see the final step in their development programmes.
For me, it would be a mandatory quota of two or three Scots teens in first teams. Maybe supported by a seniors v youths pathway, as described above, which doesn't compromise the integrity of the pyramid.
19 hours ago, DiegoDiego said:20 hours ago, Stag Nation said:I believe that would be illegal racial discrimination, under the Equality Act. "Race" is defined as including "nationality" and "ethnic or national origins".You could classify it as three Scottish trained players. They would need to have been registered at Scottish clubs for a certain amount of years before a certain age. It wouldn't matter what their nationality was but you'd find the vast majority would be eligible to play for Scotland anyway. That's how hockey got away with it.
17 hours ago, Oldster said:8 midweek games per club, yep, but 16 midweek matchdays to get through it all since the 8 development teams can only take on one opponent at a time.
14 hours ago, SecretCEO said:Thanks - sixteen midweek fixture dates seems to make sense. It should keep the within-league games that supporters are more interested in scheduled on weekends.
14 hours ago, Salvo Montalbano said:Surely the lower league sides wouldn't be playing their full strength sides against these development sides? Why would they risk injury or burn out if there were no points up for grabs? You'd essentially have these development squads playing de facto reserve and/or youth teams which arguably is worse than what already have!
12 hours ago, Oldster said:^
I think his idea was for senior teams to earn points towards their own league (League 2, or whatever we're calling it) tally if they won or drew any games against any of the youth teams, and the youths would do likewise earning points towards their Development League tally if they had a result against the seniors.
0 -
Can't wrap my mind around that first idea you've posted there - might take some work!
For the top division of 16, you could split after 30 games. Then
top 4 play again, home and away.
middle 8 play again, home or away. Team finishing top plays off against 4th for final European place.
bottom 4 play again, home and away.
Same for Championship, but 5th qualifies for promotion playoff.
I like your 2 divisions of 10 for League 1. But might need to promote the champions of each automatically, with 2v3 and 3v2 to keep things interesting (winner plays other winner plays 14th of Championship). Relegate one per L1 division, and 2nd bottom of each play off v 2nd in LL and 2nd in HL.
0 -
The board don't think that the teams will manage to fit in all of the games if there's any Covid resurgence. And maybe that part timers are more likely to have Covid postponement issues.
So they're looking for the clubs to come up with a contingency plan.
As I understand it.
1 -
Hearts had a great opportunity to be a bigger club by playing at Murrayfield instead of Tynecastle. Their attendances for bigger games at Murrayfield were beyond Tynecastle's current capacity and so they'd be making more money each season. They also effectively spent a thousand quid+ per additional seat of capacity in order to upgrade their main stand when they could just have sold the lot to developers. Not prudent.
-3 -
1 hour ago, Sergeant Wilson said:
In this case there would be a split, then the play offs with the team finishing 55th dropping out. Am I getting that right?
Think so.
All 5 teams would be involved in the head2head matches (that are effectively playoffs) but maybe you'd want the team in 5th at the split sitting out the final matchday (with an odd number of teams in each mini league of 5 after the split, 1 team has to sit out each matchday) because they would be least likely to be involved in the battle for 1st (automatic promotion) and 2nd (playoff v 9th from division above).
Not sure what they're actually proposing, though.
0 -
1 hour ago, Sergeant Wilson said:
Why would the League 1 clubs reduce their chances of promotion?
5 minutes ago, Thom & Gerry said:In effect the extra games are the play offs otherwise you have the top 4 give or take playing each other again.
0 -
The other way to do it would be to seek the agreement of Championship clubs to reduce the playoffs to just 9th v 2nd, because this would save a couple of fixture dates and the split more or less gives head2head playoff matches anyway.
Can't see Championship clubs refusing fewer playoff games for their 9th place team, as it would be less risky for them than having to go through the usual 2 ties.
So - 22 games with split, push back the playoffs to give leeway for fixtures, and only have 9th v 2nd playoff finals since the split sorts out the best playoff candidate anyway.
2 -
On 05/03/2021 at 05:36, EdinburghBlue said:
Still unclear whether we will play 18 or 22 games according to report in today’s Record.
Looks like, in order to approve the 22 game option, all that the SPFL board want from League One and League Two clubs is consensus on a method of deciding how to deal with clubs who cannot complete 22 games.
Therefore, the clubs only need to assure the SPFL board that points per game will be used in such a scenario for the SPFL board to give the 22 game with split proposal their approval.
0 -
I was keen on reserve leagues with a set quota of youths in each team's XI, as a way to progress their development alongside senior pros. Don't know where we are with that now.
Then again, maybe that didn't ever produce very many really good players in the past, who would actually improve the national team.
Maybe the best development comes from good young players actually signing permanent contracts with clubs down the leagues, and being fully part of that club's efforts for a couple of seasons - because my impression is that loans don't really do much for player development.
0 -
6 hours ago, Left Back said:
I'd guessed you were referring to that but it says nothing like what you implied. the important bit of this rule is in bold which you've conveniently ignored.
I think the bit you highlighted is about meeting stadium criteria, licensing stuff, etc.
0 -
I take it this issue will just keep returning unless Scotland consistently qualify for the major championships.
So maybe find a better way to bring on youth development, then there would be no argument for the colts (even if youth development isn't their genuine reason for wanting colts in the league).
Project Brave, reserves leagues - something must work.
0 -
-
3 hours ago, theboke said:
Intuitively against the colt firm but gave it some thought this morning. Possible benefits depending upon how it's done
1. League expansion to 44 teams could push everyone up a couple of notches in a 14, 10, 10, 10 setup. I'd demand this as a tradeoff for their inclusion.
B. Colt teams would likely be relegated immediately from L2 because they'd be pants inconsistent so they would stop current L2 sides being relegated and would therefore expedite promotion of real teams in their place. So demand that they could be relegated to the LL and beyond as a tradeoff for their inclusion.
I can see the logic - keep saying no, see how much it means to them by what they offer, and maybe yes if it's something very beneficial to all clubs.
It's still not for me, though. I don't understand why they have such a hard-on for League 2 when surely their ambitions are elsewhere. Off to the EPL's U23s with you. Goodbye.
0 -
Surprised the old firm aren't looking at putting their colts in with the English Premier's equivalent, where they think they belong. Don't know what the standard is like there, but it seems more like the sort of glamour they aspire to.
1 -
1 hour ago, jagsfan57 said:
They obviously are. The SPFL consists of all 4 divisions. Two of those divisions are being allowed to play, two aren’t. In fact, prior to leagues stopping in January, the protocols being followed by the Championship clubs were the same as L1 & L2. They were allowed to introduce testing to play. L1 & L2 weren’t.
Supposedly we are now being driven by data, not dates. Where is the data that shows that part time players are testing positive in larger numbers than championship or premiership players.Hearts is why they're treated differently, I tells yer.
0 -
21 hours ago, Day of the Lords said:22 hours ago, St-ow! said:Tempted to vote for Scottish Labour now.
Like what Sarwar says about no indyref this parliament, to recover from Covid.
I'm a Yes voter, but am ashamed that my team can still plan for an independence referendum at this worst of times. They really are irrational about independence and are putting me off. It isn't the solution to everything.
I like the background rumblings of Starmer, Findlay, Brown about looking again at Devo More or Devo Max. Hopefully something will come of that, and we'll see independence a good bit further down the road.This really is hopelessly obvious trolling. A more than generous 1/10.
It isn't.
These are my genuine beliefs, at this moment. Absolutely scunnered with the SNP sleaze damaging our constitution. And so are many others, if today's papers/polls are to be believed.
Also tempted by the other pro-indy party, if it materialises, but I want both to give Mr Sarwar his chance and to wait until after Covid is long gone before we look again at independence. The economy (postBrexit, too) is too frail for any ither major changes ('shocks') right now.
1 -
Tempted to vote for Scottish Labour now.
Like what Sarwar says about no indyref this parliament, to recover from Covid.
I'm a Yes voter, but am ashamed that my team can still plan for an independence referendum at this worst of times. They really are irrational about independence and are putting me off. It isn't the solution to everything.
I like the background rumblings of Starmer, Findlay, Brown about looking again at Devo More or Devo Max. Hopefully something will come of that, and we'll see independence a good bit further down the road.
-15 -
Sturgeon being given the dreaded vote of confidence by that Blackford guy today.
The writing's on the wall for our wee Nippy Sweetie, methinks.
Never mind - that Kate Forbes ladyperson will be an excellent replacement.
0 -
The reason that the Championship was allowed to continue was because one of Scotland's superclubs, Hearts, were/are in there.
If they weren't and if they hadn't been treated controversially last summer, only the Premiership would have continued.
Am I wrong?
0 -
54 minutes ago, Spyro said:
And then you have Gloucester City playing in the Conference North (National League North).
It’s a silly idea especially in Scotland where the tier 5 split after a few seasons will be straight through the middle of the central belt. I don’t think teams like East Stirlingshire are going to be chuffed playing in a “North” league and travelling 100’s of miles while Linlithgow play in the “South” league!
The English system looks good in paper but simply doesn’t work, we should be looking at the German system and adapting that to suit our own circumstances
Um - I'm ignorant of the German system, but when I originally came on P+B it was to promote just that type of split for Scotland at tier 3. Needless to say, I had my erse handed to me.
0
What is the point of Labour ?
in The Politics Forum
Posted · Edited by St-ow!
Goood night.
Further to my 'troll' post of a few weeks ago where I said it may be time to have another look at Scottish Labour... having done so and having also seen Douglas Ross for a while now...I have decided to vote for... neither.
Or vote at all, in fact.
Ever.
Again.