Liverbirdie
Ryder Cup Winner
Into the valley - great song!
Scottish v English football
- Thread starter CMAC
- Start date
Into the valley - great song!
gdunc79
Assistant Pro
The Scottish play offs are most definitely a nonsense. Feel for teams outside of the SPFL as odds so stacked against them ever getting to join! Here's hoping the Accies can prove me wrong...
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c1973
Guest
Completely agree, it should be 2 up 2 down at least. The play offs are a joke designed to keep teams in the higher league imo, another reason why I lost interest in going to the game if I'm honest.
Your spot on with the Skids.....facepalm moment!.........how did I forget that? Doh!
can someone explain how this works? not up to speed with it but I see in the States they use playoffs extremely effectively and it generates even more interest and revenue and keeps the season alive even if theres a runaway team
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Deleted member 15344
Guest
The States use the playoff system to bring in different winners and runners up from multiple groups to find an overall champion
Their playoffs aren't for sorting out promotion or relegation
The playoffs for promotion in the FL were brought in to keep the season alive for many clubs and right up until the final day instead of having 3 teams automatically promoted - I believe they work and certainly keep things interesting
What it appears they are doing in Scotland is a promotion or relegation play off - the team that finishes bottom 3 I think it is will then Face a team from the 1st division to decide who gets a spot in the prem
I believe those systems are not fair - if you don't win enough games to stay in the division then you shouldn't get another wild card chance to stay up
The hockey leagues do and whilst it brings a bit of money and excitement in so far it has seen teams win their league and not lose a match to not being promoted via a playoff system - they are thankfully considering changing it
SwingsitlikeHogan
Major Champion
Don;t forget that the Scottish Premiership also has a Top/Bottom 6 split - so teams have plenty of opportunity to save themselves through playing the other five bottom 6 teams.
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Deleted member 15344
Guest
Doon frae Troon
Ryder Cup Winner
There was a tremendous dog fight involving all of the bottom six teams in the SPL.
Considering Hearts were doomed [I tell ya, doomed] it makes for an exciting end to the season and I welcome it.
Considering Hearts were doomed [I tell ya, doomed] it makes for an exciting end to the season and I welcome it.
SwingsitlikeHogan
Major Champion
Maybe - but also don't forget Scottish football has suffered the trials, tribulations and visitation of Armageddon - following the demise of Glasgow Rangers. But whatever is in place must have worked as Scottish football is still with us - For evidence see near 50,000 crowd on Saturday for 'diddy' team (St Johnstone) vs 'spiteful' team Dundee Utd (remember Rangers fans boycotted Tannadice as they didn't like what Dundee United said and did when Glasgow Rangers were on the tumble).
And look at the starting 11s on Saturday - the vast majority were Scottish and plenty of youngsters as well. And that has to be good for the health of the game in Scotland. A successful Scottish team (and for us success is relative) and you will get more through the gates of the likes of McDiarmid Park - winning the Cup should also help.
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Deleted member 15344
Guest
The final was ok - was a bit of passion and fight but the quality was what I would expect.
Scottish Prem League Football is still with you - it's no longer a two team league it's now just a walk in the park for one.
SwingsitlikeHogan
Major Champion
Well it was previously a walk in the park for Celtic and Rangers. Looking at the league as an outsider you may not be interested in watching a one horse race - but from the inside it is in may ways much more interesting.
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Deleted member 15344
Guest
How can a league be interesting when the winner is known before a ball is kicked ?
It can only be interesting for teams fighting out for minor places - that's not healthy for a league.
gdunc79
Assistant Pro
Exactly - great post.
*referring to SwingsItLikeHogan's last post
*referring to SwingsItLikeHogan's last post
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c1973
Guest
Gawd, can ye not celebrate the greatest day in yer clubs history without a pop at Rangers? Lol
Rangers fans did not boycott Tannadump for the reason you claim. Yet more nonsense perpetuately repeated as fact I'm afraid. Usually by supporters of other clubs I might add.
#itsallabouttheRangers Rightly or wrongly (depending on your own moral compass I suppose), in the eyes of the support the boycott was to do with a previous cup tie that was abandoned.
Anyhow, I won't get into that too much as the spite and (it has to be said) outright hatred shown towards my club up here genuinely turns my stomach at times.
(Not directed at yourself btw, just in general).
gdunc79
Assistant Pro
Ask any Scottish footbal fan that does not support Rangers or Celtic and you will likely hear the same answer - the last 3 years have been a breath of fresh air for the "diddy" teams and the SPFL has been much improved. These teams clearly understand they have no chance of winning the league but the likes of Motherwell, Aberdeen and St Johnstone have found themselves enjoying memorable European and domestic cup runs (as well as battling for 2nd place in the league which was previously out of sight), the likes of which were previously rarer than sightings of the Pope in Govan. Fans of these teams will think the current situation is healthier than the past (and more than likely, the future too).
Not much variety in EPL winners either...only once in the last 8 years has it left Manchester, which I'm sure you are well aware of
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Deleted member 15344
Guest
Ask any Scottish footbal fan that does not support Rangers or Celtic and you will likely hear the same answer - the last 3 years have been a breath of fresh air for the "diddy" teams and the SPFL has been much improved. These teams clearly understand they have no chance of winning the league but the likes of Motherwell, Aberdeen and St Johnstone have found themselves enjoying memorable European and domestic cup runs (as well as battling for 2nd place in the league which was previously out of sight), the likes of which were previously rarer than sightings of the Pope in Govan. Fans of these teams will think the current situation is healthier than the past (and more than likely, the future too).
Not much variety in EPL winners either...only once in the last 8 years has it left Manchester, which I'm sure you are well aware of
Certainly a lot more variety in the EPL than the SPL - only 2 different winners of the SPL since 1985 and that won't change for a long time.
With the lack of competition for Celtic in the SPL it won't be healthy to help Celtic Europe which will effect Co efficient and the amount of places available in Europe
What memorable European Runs have there been ? A few teams get through final qualifying into the group stages ?
Telly companies wont want to pay too much money for a league already won before the first ball is kicked.
The SPL is now around League 1 level - got to be careful it doesn't keep dropping.
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c1973
Guest
The only interesting thing in Scottish top flight football are;
1) Who finishes in top 6, (possibility of an extra 'big gate' against (for the moment Celtic) and Rangers (when back at the top table).
2) Who gets pumped out in the first round of Europe next year by finishing as close to Celtic (for the moment) as possible.
3) Who gets relegated (even that was guaranteed this year).
And they wonder why no one would sponsor them...........
No amount of dressing it up can disguise a very poor product and it has been pretty poor for a while now. Sure, you can get exciting 'blood and snotters' games, but you can get that kind of excitement watching amateur football for free.
Imo what is wrong is the fans acceptance of mediocrity and I believe this (in part) stems from the Tranny Army...sorry Tartan Army
'celebrating' defeat in water fountains and town squares the world over. Defeat and constant disappointment should have the fans screaming for change and more importantly getting it! Most fans when asked wanted bigger leagues playing each other twice a year, did they get it? No! And that's just one example.I feel sorry for the punters who pay good money to watch a very poor product with very little difference from the season before (1 new team usually), again one of the reasons I stopped going. Scotland would possibly benefit from the pyramid system in place in other countries ( cue the usual suspects with snidey comments about (the) Rangers and Sunday league football). It's a poor product and unfortunately won't improve anytime soon I don't think.
Doon frae Troon
Ryder Cup Winner
Until a couple of years ago the EPL was a three club race. Did not seem to do them any harm.
Like many of my countrymen I like seeing a team of young Scottish players playing in their own league.
If I watched a Finnish league game and the players were all foreign carpet baggers I would be disappointed.
There is a sense of pride in watching your team and your country.
gdunc79
Assistant Pro
The only interesting thing in Scottish top flight football are;
1) Who finishes in top 6, (possibility of an extra 'big gate' against (for the moment Celtic) and Rangers (when back at the top table).
2) Who gets pumped out in the first round of Europe next year by finishing as close to Celtic (for the moment) as possible.
3) Who gets relegated (even that was guaranteed this year).
And they wonder why no one would sponsor them...........
No amount of dressing it up can disguise a very poor product and it has been pretty poor for a while now. Sure, you can get exciting 'blood and snotters' games, but you can get that kind of excitement watching amateur football for free.
Imo what is wrong is the fans acceptance of mediocrity and I believe this (in part) stems from the Tranny Army...sorry Tartan Army
I feel sorry for the punters who pay good money to watch a very poor product with very little difference from the season before (1 new team usually), again one of the reasons I stopped going. Scotland would possibly benefit from the pyramid system in place in other countries ( cue the usual suspects with snidey comments about (the) Rangers and Sunday league football). It's a poor product and unfortunately won't improve anytime soon I don't think.
Not an unpredicatble post given where your loyalties lie.......
1) I think Motherwell and Aberdeen fans would argue the race for 2nd place was worth playing for
2) You may take getting pumped out of Europe for granted (well perhaps not these days...) but for fans of other clubs who don't get the opporunity to follow their team to the likes of Turkey and Norway as St Johnstone fans have done in the last 2 seasons it has been a fantastic experience for them
3) Hibs along with Hearts may still get relegated - I'm sure you predicted that at the start of this season
I would love to see Rangers and Celtic leave and go to England a la Swansea and Cardiff for many reasons. Don't try and tell me it would be "Armageddon" if this happended - SPFL doesn't have a sponsor at the moment so wouldn't be much change there and 3 or 4 visits of 5000 Old Firm fans per season would be outweighed by the additional fans who would be back every week to see their teams who would then have an opportunity to win the league.
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Deleted member 15344
Guest
Even a three horse race is better than a one horse race
And even then the other top clubs in the prem where still challenging in Europe
Not one single Scottish Club reached the group stages of the Europa - they have a co efficient lower than Cyprus and unless they improve performances in Europe they will start to lose places in Europa and the ones in it will have to start at the same level as the Welsh clubs.
Who are "carpet baggers" ?!
You will have to stick with the young Scottish lads - because the top players won't want to play in such a non competitive league and teams that don't compete on foreign soil.
