CityDave94 Posted May 24, 2023 Share Posted May 24, 2023 Good point raised, how if Aberdeen can't afford to play a B team in this proposed Conference, Queen's Park who were in League 2 just a couple of seasons ago can? Queen's Park the back up plan found by the same rag within hours as that first rag described the Conference as a done deal. Done deal?? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigkillie Posted May 24, 2023 Share Posted May 24, 2023 Aberdeen can afford to do so but don't think it's value for money. Queen's Park can't afford to do so but have delusions of grandeur. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongTimeLurker Posted May 25, 2023 Share Posted May 25, 2023 If the Old Firm are so committed to developing their own youth players how come it was Hamilton Accies that just won the U-18 league? Ajax and PSV have their B teams playing full-time clubs in the Dutch second tier, but the quality of Scottish football is going to be revolutionised by having four B teams playing in an otherwise part-time fifth tier. Aye right, a cosmetic measure that doesn't do anything to genuinely match what happens elsewhere in Europe on this but instead just messes up the pyramid. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PossilYM Posted May 25, 2023 Share Posted May 25, 2023 14 minutes ago, LongTimeLurker said: If the Old Firm are so committed to developing their own youth players how come it was Hamilton Accies that just won the U-18 league? Ajax and PSV have their B teams playing full-time clubs in the Dutch second tier, but the quality of Scottish football is going to be revolutionised by having four B teams playing in an otherwise part-time fifth tier. Aye right, a cosmetic measure that doesn't do anything to genuinely match what happens elsewhere in Europe on this but instead just messes up the pyramid. Can the Glasgow Giants afford to hang around waiting on a 16 year old? What the Glasgow Two have are football factories, they developed young players and move them on for coin if they can get it. If you can offload say 50 players a year at roughly 20K each and you've covered costs. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dundee Hibernian Posted May 25, 2023 Share Posted May 25, 2023 2 hours ago, LongTimeLurker said: If the Old Firm are so committed to developing their own youth players how come it was Hamilton Accies that just won the U-18 league? Better coaches? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 25, 2023 Share Posted May 25, 2023 43 minutes ago, Dundee Hibernian said: Better coaches? And players shirley. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparticus Posted May 26, 2023 Share Posted May 26, 2023 If the sfa/spfl are willing to extend their number of teams for a bteam conference that no one can vote for, surely they could make league 2 bigger and open up more promotion relegation places without any bteams? add 6 teams to league 2 for a 30 game season . Extended playoffs and promotion would make up for the six games lost. Perhaps some other system. or simple automatic relegation for club 42 and a playoff for club 41. Easier to go down but easier to return? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Moonster Posted May 26, 2023 Share Posted May 26, 2023 11 hours ago, PossilYM said: What the Glasgow Two have are football factories 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Mantis Posted May 26, 2023 Share Posted May 26, 2023 Bonnyrigg Not Sitting On The Fence Proposal to be voted on at SFA AGM on June 6th As has been widely reported in the written and digital press, there will a vote on the creation of a new Conference League at Tier 5 at the Scottish FA AGM on June 6th. The proposal Creation of a 10-team Scottish Conference League consisting of four B Teams. The first Season of the Scottish Conference League will be Season 2024/25. Top two Highland League teams at the end of Season 2023/24 included. Top four Lowland League teams at the end of Season 2023/24 included. B Teams cannot be promoted or relegated from The Scottish Conference League. The Scottish Conference League to be funded by a B Team participation fee: with six non-B teams receiving an estimated payment of around £40,000 each per annum. Minimum five-year commitment required from B Teams. Highest placed non-B Team at the end of the Season will enter a promotion/relegation Play Off with SPFL Club 42 as per current model. Lowest placed non-B Team at the end of the Season will be relegated to the Highland or Lowland League, replaced by the winner of the Highland/Lowland League Champions Play Off. Second-lowest placed non-B Team at the end of the Season will enter a promotion/relegation Play Off with the loser of the Highland/Lowland League Champions Play Off. B Teams must include a minimum of seven Scotland eligible players in their starting XI, and their matchday squad must include no fewer than eleven Scotland eligible players. We have held two previous supporter consultations on B team entry into the Lowland League in 2021 and 2022, which are both worth reading. On both occasions our supporters overwhelmingly rejected the motion and while our supporter base has grown in number, our belief is that their thoughts haven’t. As a supporter owned and supporter run club for 142 years we will listen to and carry out the will of our fanbase in motions such as these, even when we are in the minority as per the two previous occasions and when there is a perceived financial benefit should be find ourselves back in Tier 5 in the future. Our circumstances have changed but our principles haven’t, or shouldn’t. We made these points back in 2021 but they are worth repeating: It isn’t that long ago that 13 East of Scotland sides and their board decided unanimously not only to allow us and 25 others entry to the East of Scotland League, but to allow us to play at the same level as existing teams and creating the Conferences. If that didn’t happen we wouldn’t have been promoted to the Lowland League at the first attempt as we would have been in (at least) the 2nd tier of EoS football if we were made to join at the bottom and who knows what might have happened then. Looking back on our first season in the EoS league our supporters remember the hurdles we had to jump through off the field once the team did the business on it in order to join the Lowland League and Tier 5, with the installation of floodlights in three weeks and campaigns on several different fronts before we were eventually admitted. We, alongside Kelty Hearts, Bo’ness United, Caledonian Braves, Tranent Juniors and Linlithgow Rose all had to start at the bottom in order to gain our status at Tier 5 and there are now over 150 clubs trying to do the same. Our members have no problem whatsoever with any B team joining the pyramid, but that they are treated in the same way as every other new joiner and starting at the bottom and allowed to progress up to Tier 6 in line with other current reserve teams in the EoS and SoS leagues. Simply put, by voting this proposal through we turn Tier 5 into one for hire and that can’t possibly correlate with any semblance of either sporting or pyramid integrity. 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CityDave94 Posted May 26, 2023 Share Posted May 26, 2023 23 hours ago, PossilYM said: Can the Glasgow Giants afford to hang around waiting on a 16 year old? What the Glasgow Two have are football factories, they developed young players and move them on for coin if they can get it. If you can offload say 50 players a year at roughly 20K each and you've covered costs. Well there's a fail there by a long way if this is the plan for youth football, deluded. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PossilYM Posted May 26, 2023 Share Posted May 26, 2023 35 minutes ago, approximately dave said: Well there's a fail there by a long way if this is the plan for youth football, deluded. There isn't any plan ffs. You got the money, you buy in How players do the Glasgow Giants get out of a youth policy? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CityDave94 Posted May 26, 2023 Share Posted May 26, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, PossilYM said: There isn't any plan ffs. You got the money, you buy in How players do the Glasgow Giants get out of a youth policy? Most players get released at some point and are either picked up by other clubs or give up football, their dreams shattered. Hundreds of players going though only to be told that Celtic are looking at the Japanese market because Scottish players aren't good enough. Lots of fail there. Both Celtic and Rangers are guilty of hoovering up some of the best young players around the country only to bin them because there is no room in the age group above bloated with foreign players. B teams in the pyramid for the future and good of Scottish football, all lies. Edited May 26, 2023 by approximately dave 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmontheloknow Posted May 27, 2023 Share Posted May 27, 2023 (edited) https://www.pollokfc.com/2023/05/27/club-statement-on-proposed-conference-league/ Having now received full details of the SFA’s plans for a new “Conference League” at Tier 5 of the Scottish football pyramid, Pollok FC wish to make it clear that we are totally opposed to this proposal. Whilst we accept the intent to improve the development pathway for footballers is sincere, this proposal is not the solution. We believe that this proposal would be to the detriment of the vast majority of the remaining 200+ clubs in the football pyramid and at the same time is highly unlikely to achieve its stated aims. The main purpose of a football pyramid system is to allow its member clubs, through promotions and relegations, to progress towards a level at which they are competing more or less equitably, and this proposal completely undermines the integrity of that structure. In recent years a significant number of non-SPFL clubs, including Pollok FC, have shown their commitment to the pyramid philosophy by pursuing and acquiring a SFA club licence. To do so they have developed and improved the facilities at their grounds, trained staff and implemented policies required to show that they are ready. This has taken a huge amount of work, mostly by unpaid volunteers, and has also cost considerable sums of money. To then have another League hurdle imposed is needlessly insensitive to those efforts. We are more than ready, should we earn promotion, to move up from our current Tier 6 to compete at Tier 5 for another promotion to Tier 4 and League 2 of the SPFL, continuing to develop and improve our infrastructure as necessary along the way. The proposal would place four Lowland League and two Highland League teams in the new Conference League, the criteria for this selection has not been specified, alongside four B teams. This is not an attractive proposition for the six “competing” teams who would receive £40,000 compensation for having to play almost half of their matches against ‘B’ teams of youngsters along with increased travel and fewer competitive rivalries. Also, depending on what positions the ‘B’ teams who cannot be promoted or relegated finish in at the end of the season, a non-B team in 5th place could find themselves in either a promotion or a relegation play-off. It is entirely possible that after a couple of seasons were the two Highland League teams to be relegated, this Conference League would look like the present Lowland League but with fewer teams. Recently Aberdeen FC have said that they are not going to put a B team into this League and Rangers manager Michael Beale has said, “I don’t think the Lowland League is a good bridge, so we need to look at other games,” and yet the Conference League would look just like the Lowland League but smaller. Unless there is a hidden agenda, which may not be that well-hidden when the office bearers for the company behind this new League are taken into consideration, then on the face of it this proposal is without merit. It is overtly the only option that does not require a vote that would be against the self-interests of the majority of SFA member clubs eligible to vote at the AGM on the 6th June. Because it is the only option is not good enough reason for it to become a reality. Pollok FC is wholly opposed to the formation of this Conference League and although, as a recently licensed SFA member, we are not ourselves able to vote at the SFA AGM, we would urge as many other voting clubs as possible to reject the proposal. Edited May 27, 2023 by cmontheloknow 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lithgierose Posted May 27, 2023 Share Posted May 27, 2023 IMO if a club like yours spends money and jumps through the hoops put Infront of you. To gain a licence, "ground improvements etc " to meet these requirements should earn a vote ?. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmontheloknow Posted May 27, 2023 Share Posted May 27, 2023 17 minutes ago, lithgierose said: IMO if a club like yours spends money and jumps through the hoops put Infront of you. To gain a licence, "ground improvements etc " to meet these requirements should earn a vote ?. Not sure current rules but new members often have to wait a few years for voting rights. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanburn Dave Posted May 27, 2023 Share Posted May 27, 2023 (edited) My opinion is that if you have a licence then you SHOULD have a vote. Obviously the bulk of the current clubs who have a vote don't want to dilute their influence by extending the right to vote to others. Equality and Democracy is all we are looking for. Edited May 27, 2023 by Deanburn Dave 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lithgierose Posted May 27, 2023 Share Posted May 27, 2023 10 minutes ago, Deanburn Dave said: My opinion is that if you have a licence then you SHOULD have a vote. Obviously the bulk of the current clubs who have a vote don't want to dilute their influence by extending the right to vote to others. Equality and Democracy is all we are looking for. Correct fit the bill . You get a vote. -1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshbairn Posted May 30, 2023 Share Posted May 30, 2023 Thread on the SFA's international justifications for B-teams. https://twitter.com/Nareystoepoker/status/1663481275468873729?s=20 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burnieman Posted May 30, 2023 Share Posted May 30, 2023 (edited) On 27/05/2023 at 12:38, cmontheloknow said: Not sure current rules but new members often have to wait a few years for voting rights. You now only get voting rights if you were a member pre-2018, or play at tier 5 and above. Pollok will get a vote only if they get promoted to the Lowland League, many clubs will never get a vote as it stands. The SFA is not a democratic organisation, some members are more equal than others. Edited May 30, 2023 by Burnieman 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CambieBud Posted May 30, 2023 Share Posted May 30, 2023 Has any club come out and stated that they support this nonsense? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.