Junior football, what is the future?

[Ranaldo Bairn]

3 hours ago, cmontheloknow said:

Gartcairn and Rossvale for starters, but as mentioned a few elsewhere, Edinburgh University have one that is used by Leith Athletic, Mid Annandale and Lochmaben share one in Lockerbie. Newton Stewart have improved theirs by adding a covered enclosure.

I raised 3G cages in first place as example of the Juniors going for quantity over quality.

Not Juniors, but one of the best views from a 3G cage in the Amateurs here...

Is that Lochgilphead Red Star? My mother/s side are from LGHD and my uncles all played for LRS at Ropework Park, not the present place!

[cmontheloknow]

7 hours ago, Ranaldo Bairn said:

Is that Lochgilphead Red Star? My mother/s side are from LGHD and my uncles all played for LRS at Ropework Park, not the present place!

Yeah it is. The Ropework is still used but not even lined just now. Can't take a wee drop of rain...!

[cmontheloknow]

7 hours ago, Robert James said:

The rumour is that St Bernards were advised to withdraw their EoS application, as their ground is not yet up to standard. Try again next year apparently ?

Same's been said for Musselburgh Windsor, accurately or otherwise.

[Jambo'ness]

15 hours ago, cmontheloknow said:

That's Haddington confirmed they've notified SJFA of their departure:

The full list: (updated with self confirmations)

Blackburn United
Bonnyrigg Rose
Camelon Juniors
Crossgates Primrose (facebook)
Dalkeith Thistle (website)
Dunipace (facebook)
Easthouses Lily (twitter)
Edinburgh United (facebook)
Haddington Athletic (facebook)
Hill of Beath Hawthorn (twitter)
Hillfield Swifts (twitter)
Musselburgh Athletic
Tranent

 

The list above is what leaves me shaking my head in bewilderment at my clubs decision to stay put for the over-riding reason of a gate against lithgae.

They seem to have forgotten that any money made from that will be eaten up by the trips next year to Broughty, Carnoustie, Lochee, Forfar (who are unlikely to be relegated & Tayport (who will likely go up to make the numbers).  That is without cup draws, which are now even more likely to include trips north.  We had 3 this season, 2 in Dundee & 1 in Brechin.  Maybe we should advocate a Tayside League and join that, as that seems to be the way we are heading. 

 

 

[GordonS]

3 hours ago, Burnie_man said:

I thought you were supposed to support your club through thick and thin, regardless of opponent or competition. You support your club, not the grade, not the league, the club. Perhaps I'm wrong.

 

I do support the club and not the grade, I'm a big fan of a merger of the non-league grades and everyone finding their level. But if the club were ever to change those things about it that I love - if they started charging £28 for my daughter and I to watch Dumbarton, or they terraced the Academy end, or they stopped selling cans of juice for a pound and replaced it with a paper cup of postmix crap at £2 - then all those things would chip away at why I love it. We all have a finite number of Saturdays in our lives and there's no point doing things that make you unhappy.

3 hours ago, BENJI BOY said:

Thank goodness their is someone else who shares the reason I follow my local team at junior level....But now we are moving......onwards and upwards....to a new money orientated valhalia......we are seen as modern day FOOTBALL ludites by those who are willingly leaving the ranks.....Good luck to them...and maybe they don't need us anymore week in week out in all weathers...and a new army of supporters will emerge to fill our place on the terraces each season.

Wouldn't you fancy a league with Bonnyrigg, Linlithgow, Kelty, Bo'ness, Talbot, Glenafton, Pollok, Beith, Ladeside, Clydebank, Spartans, EK, East Stirling, Cowdenbeath, Gala and a few others?

2 hours ago, The Mantis said:

 

Like most people I get your drift Gordon but I think you tend to over-egg things...

To some extent all of that is right. If I'd moved to Whitburn instead of Linlithgow 18 years ago would I be so big on non-league football? I dunno, but having regular Junior Cup finals and Scottish Cup runs must have had an effect.

Food is a big deal for me, as my girth would attest, and there's a huge variation in price and quality. Junior clubs generally get theirs from the local bakery or butcher and they're often excellent (what the hell do they put in a Buffs pie? I'm obsessed); bigger clubs have catering contracts so it's often rubbish. And drinks is actually a big deal, because you're not allowed to bring juice into a league ground (other than shitey wee Capri suns) so charging £2 and over really pisses me off. A pie at Queen's Park is £2.30, btw, and it's the same again for a cup of tea. 

Cappielow is a grand old ground, the main stand is a bit of a state but the rest of it is a great. Bit more cover wouldn't go amiss. But at £24 for me and my daughter I would be picking and choosing what games I go to. 

1 hour ago, LongTimeLurker said:

Banks O'Dee and East Kilbride are probably the closest on that.

Banks O'Dee is the weirdest place I've watched football, which is bizarre as it's a new ground. It also has the worst artificial pitch I've seen a competitive match played on. The madly-high-stepped terrace, the unnecessarily high roof that only stops vertical rain, the stand off to one side, the slots in the fence through which you can watch the game, the torture equipment behind the goal... I've never seen anywhere like it.

[Jacksgranda]

1 hour ago, GordonS said:

 

Banks O'Dee is the weirdest place I've watched football, which is bizarre as it's a new ground. It also has the worst artificial pitch I've seen a competitive match played on. The madly-high-stepped terrace, the unnecessarily high roof that only stops vertical rain, the stand off to one side, the slots in the fence through which you can watch the game, the torture equipment behind the goal... I've never seen anywhere like it.

Aiberdeen, min, fit's it like?

[Ginaro]

3 hours ago, Jambo'ness said:

The list above is what leaves me shaking my head in bewilderment at my clubs decision to stay put for the over-riding reason of a gate against lithgae.

They seem to have forgotten that any money made from that will be eaten up by the trips next year to Broughty, Carnoustie, Lochee, Forfar (who are unlikely to be relegated & Tayport (who will likely go up to make the numbers).  That is without cup draws, which are now even more likely to include trips north.  We had 3 this season, 2 in Dundee & 1 in Brechin.  Maybe we should advocate a Tayside League and join that, as that seems to be the way we are heading.

Dunbar are also 6th in the East Premier at the moment so they would be the third team to be promoted. And if there's no proper integration of Juniors clubs next year then no doubt the rest of the Edinburgh/Midlothian teams will move over to the EoS - it'll be just West Lothian, some Fife teams and all of Tayside left in the East Juniors.

[Burnie_man]

Bill Leckie in The Sun today (I know) sticking the boot into the SJFA over the Pyramid, he's not holding back.  Even alludes to the Glenafton manager of all people criticising them.

Not sure if its online anywhere.

[patriot1]

I've literally just read it but It's not on the Sun website.

He makes a lot of sense.

[Ginaro]

Hill of Beath put it on twitter

[heedthebaa]

Good read

[RedLichtie86]

With all the talk of which East junior team is leaving, who will be next etc.
Then what West teams will do the same etc.

What is happening with the North Junior teams?

They dont have the option to move into the pyramid as the Highland League is a closed shop as there is no feeder league(s)

Anyone heard anything?

[Burnie_man]

32 minutes ago, RedLichtie86 said:

With all the talk of which East junior team is leaving, who will be next etc.
Then what West teams will do the same etc.

What is happening with the North Junior teams?

They dont have the option to move into the pyramid as the Highland League is a closed shop as there is no feeder league(s)

Anyone heard anything?

The way I see the current situation developing;

North – the NRJFA reform themselves as the NoSFL and enter the Pyramid as is, and seek agreement with the HL over promotion/relegation.

West – the WRJFA reform themselves as the WoSFL and enter the Pyramid as is, with promotion to the LL.  May need to integrate SoSFL into the structure in some way.

East – the ERJFA folds and Fife/Lothians clubs merge with the existing EoSFL.

SJFA – Dissolved as there is no further need for it to exist, funds would be distributed to each existing member which would equal £2,500-£3,000 per club.  That would be a nice kick-start to funding a Licence for those clubs that wished to do so.

The problem that affects both North and East is the Tayside/Perthshire clubs who fall north of the HL boundary and therefore should seek integration with the NoSFL. Whether they would be happy with that who knows.

Any clubs that don’t want to integrate either remain part of a smaller SJFA if there’s enough clubs to make it viable, or they drop into the Amateurs and the SJFA dissolves.

The problem with this scenario of course is that TJ is fighting to keep his job, so he needs to keep the SJFA together and enter the Pyramid as an existing body.  He is the stumbling block, self-preservation as opposed to what’s best for the clubs as alluded to in Leckie’s article.

[Junior_Arab]

23 minutes ago, RedLichtie86 said:

With all the talk of which East junior team is leaving, who will be next etc.
Then what West teams will do the same etc.

What is happening with the North Junior teams?

They dont have the option to move into the pyramid as the Highland League is a closed shop as there is no feeder league(s)

Anyone heard anything?

I would have thought the SFA will need to have a wee word in the Highland League’s ear about that. Surely they can force them to implement some type of relegation? They can hardly insist that Lochee and co (maybe a bad example given some of the president’s posts on here) have to join the Highland instead of the Lowland set-up only to leave them hanging in purgatory. Not that the Dundee sides will particularly want to play Highland League (I bet there’d be a few suspicious play off results) but a few of the the bigger Aberdeen teams presumably would. 

[Jason King]

The difference in distance to Wick from Dundee and  Aberdeen is around 30 miles, if Aberdeen teams are looking to get into  the HL then distance shouldn't be an issue for other teams currently North of the cut off line of theTay.

Yes I know Aberdeen teams would be more local to everyone else but if clubs are looking to progress then they have to bite the bullet.

 

 

Edited April 30, 2018 by Jason King

[Burnie_man]

9 minutes ago, Jason King said:

The difference in distance to Wick from Dundee and  Aberdeen is around 30 miles, if Aberdeen teams are looking to get into  the HL then distance shouldn't be an issue for other teams currently North of the cut off line of theTay.

Yes I know Aberdeen teams would be more local to everyone else but if clubs are looking to progress then they have to bite the bullet.

 

There is very little difference in Dundee to Peterhead as there is Dundee to Dunbar.

[Khufu2]

54 minutes ago, Junior_Arab said:

I would have thought the SFA will need to have a wee word in the Highland League’s ear about that. Surely they can force them to implement some type of relegation? They can hardly insist that Lochee and co (maybe a bad example given some of the president’s posts on here) have to join the Highland instead of the Lowland set-up only to leave them hanging in purgatory. Not that the Dundee sides will particularly want to play Highland League (I bet there’d be a few suspicious play off results) but a few of the the bigger Aberdeen teams presumably would. 

If clubs must commit themselves to the pyramid, HL  clubs can't just say there is no pyramid below us. A pyramid goes down as well as up.

[superbigal]

Yes the highland league are not technically dodging the pyramid. It is just there is nothing in place below them currently.

What I am unsure about is if they can enforce their own tougher entry rules when the leagues below them are formed, such as floodlights, when the lowland league is not so strict.

 

Then again those tough rules may actually suit "certain nameless clubs"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cmontheloknow]

Leckie is wrong though to say the SJFA is less of a part of the SFA than the schools and women. I feel his ignorance on the nutsand bolts does lessen any point he is trying to make.

[Burnie_man]

29 minutes ago, cmontheloknow said:

Leckie is wrong though to say the SJFA is less of a part of the SFA than the schools and women. I feel his ignorance on the nutsand bolts does lessen any point he is trying to make.

It could be slightly more accurate, but his message is "Integrate into the Pyramid or die a slow death", I don't think that is really undermined.