Gretna left without a home

Published on Saturday 15 March 2008 18:46

GRETNA'S desperate struggle for survival took another twist yesterday as it emerged their groundshare arrangement at Fir Park could be scuppered by the need to completely overhaul the Motherwell pitch.

The Lanarkshire club's chairman John Boyle responded to the postponement of his team's home encounter with Celtic by announcing the need for immediate "drastic action" to remedy drainage problems at Fir Park. A new undersoil heating system and pitch will be installed, with all matches scheduled for the ground over the "next three or four weeks" to be moved elsewhere.

Gretna, placed into administration in midweek, were due to meet Celtic at Fir Park next Sunday. The 100,000 revenue expected from this televised game was considered crucial to ensuring the Raydale Park club remain in business.

The SPL will urgently address the issue this week but Boyle appears relaxed about the two clubs finding alternative venues. Yet, if both clubs are considered a single entity, then any club willing to make their pitch available would be agreeing to a three-way groundshare. Kilmarnock, Airdrie and Hampden have been mooted, with Celtic offering to host the match next weekend at their stadium.

"We have been talking to the SPL who are sympathetic to our position and the priority is ensuring that fans have certainty when it comes to games going ahead," said Boyle.

"We have an agreement in place with Gretna and we are legally and morally bound to find them a pitch to play their home games. I do not see that as a problem as there is no shortage of suitable venues. We have to draw a line in the sand where Fir Park is concerned. I was shocked and appalled that we weren't able to play the Celtic game and feel sorry for the supporters who have travelled from as far as Northern Ireland and Aberdeen. We are bringing in top-class engineers on Monday and I do not expect them to advise other than we take expensive and drastic action that will take weeks to complete."

Gretna could well benefit from a pitch being found for their home games that would not be compromised by weather conditions. The SPL this week agreed to advance the team around 100,000 they were due in end-of-season fees to ward off any immediate threat of closure. Short of finding a buyer – and several notes of interest are believed to have been received – administrator David Elliot appears to have banked on a similar sum being accrued from hosting Celtic. If that game is guaranteed, Gretna should be able to limp along to the split – by which time all teams ought to have played them three times.

Should Gretna stay afloat until that natural break, regardless of whatever then happens to them this season, points won in games involving Gretna would not require to be expunged. That would appear the preferred option, even if Gretna were to disappear in the next couple of weeks. In such circumstances, three points are likely to be awarded to opponents in lieu of their outstanding games against them.

"Circumstances would have to be taken into account if Gretna cannot fulfil their fixtures," said Blair. "There are various ways the situation can be handled and we are looking at precedents as contingency. In recent European history, there are precedents which expunge the records, and precedents that retain the records. We will not get involved in discussions over the consequences of Gretna going out of business within the season. These would not be helpful."

The SPL have admitted they are powerless to prevent 'another Gretna'. Following the decision of Brooks Mileson to withdraw his financial support, they are on the brink as they were entirely dependent on Mileson's munificence to remain viable. Now calls are growing for the SPL to put in place safeguards preventing any club being in thrall to the whims of one individual.

Such regulations are considered unworkable, however.

"I am not sure what criterion you would bring in as a measure, other than the UEFA club licensing system," said SPL executive chairman Lex Gold. "That is a backward-looking system that covers certain standards being reached on the financial side.

"Clubs get to run the SPL, we don't get to run the clubs.

We are not an organisation that audits our clubs, in a financial sense. I'm not certain it would prevent us seeing what has happened with Gretna in the future. You could go as far as posting bonds but Celtic and Rangers would have to post huge bonds for their running costs. The cost could prevent clubs being judged in more than a sporting sense, what (the media] have had a go at us for with stadia criteria."