Chairman’s diary: We can’t give everyone what they want

Stenhousemuir’s Iain McMenemy believes there is renewed enthusiasm for reconstruction

Partick Thistle would be relegated to League 1 under the terms of the SPFL resolution. Picture: Alan Harvey / SNS

What a few days for football. I’ve spent the last few weeks calling for the SPFL to step up and make decisions and it seems that we’ve finally reached that point.

It became clear at the end of last week that something was happening. Video calls were being coordinated, Uefa was issuing warning statements to national leagues regarding the premature ending of league campaigns. The media felt something was afoot. Anyone who has ever worked in government or military intelligence will tell you, when the airwaves start to fill with chatter, it’s usually a sign of something imminent.

And so it was. The SPFL Board announced on Wednesday (typically to the media before the member clubs) that it was proposing to end the current season in the SPFL Championship, Leagues 1 and 2, based on an average points method. The Premiership may follow at a later date. And then war broke out.

Obviously there are some clubs more affected than others. For some, the news was good; automatic promotion. For others, the news was a lot less positive, it meant relegation. But also trapped somewhere in the league positions are many clubs who might have achieved more this season who have had that chance taken away. So arguably, there are more losers than winners.

Some clubs have taken this on the chin due to the current Covid-19 situation. Others have refused to go out without a fight. I don’t blame any of them. Yes, you can be philosophical and consider the greater good. But I can absolutely see the injustice in losing out due to an order imposed in an office as opposed to a poor performance on a pitch.

But in agreeing a solution, we need to accept there will be losers. We simply cannot give everyone what they want. Let’s not arbitrarily decide that pain for Hearts or Partick Thistle, somehow outweighs the pain for Stranraer or Edinburgh City. And let’s not forget Brora Rangers or Kelty Hearts who may be denied their chance to win promotion into the SPFL this season. I still hope we can find a solution that recognises this.

However, what are the alternatives to ending the current season? The Government has written to Scottish football imposing a ban until at least 10 June. They have also advised a six-week pre-season. Therefore, no football matches until August. This is if everything else goes to plan.

What is obvious is that those who are advocating that we should still try to finish this season are not able to give any alternative solutions as to how this might work. No fixture calendars, no firm proposals for rescheduling cups or renegotiating TV deals. They are only suggesting a ‘wait and see’ approach. So how long do we wait? What do they think is likely to change?

What is quite clear is that there is a renewed mood within Scottish football to see some form of reconstruction of the leagues. My own concern is that we simply adopt a quick fix to help a few clubs out of this season’s mess, rather than address some of the fundamental flaws in the current structure.

I would hope that if we are truly committed to reconstruction, then we take the next three months to do it right. Let’s be honest, we have the desk time to do it. Rather than simply trying to avoid teams being relegated this season, let’s look at what works for the game and dare I say this, let’s hear what fans think.

In fact, let’s not just listen to fans sitting on the side-lines, let’s involve fans in the reconstruction talks.

Let’s look at the number of teams in each division, let’s look at the number of times we play each other, why not consider some form of regionalisation, and can we take a look at structures reflective of whether you’re full or part-time? Is there a way to integrate the Highland and Lowland Leagues closer to the SPFL structures?

There are a number of scenarios within all of that where I fundamentally disagree, but let’s look at everything. Together. Let’s find where we agree.

Reconstruction is often seen as another word for open warfare in Scottish football corridors. Let’s take the time we have right now, and the willingness among clubs to find solutions, to finding a model that we can agree on for when this is all over. Let’s reform, rebuild, and make the product better.

• Iain McMenemy is the chairman of League 2 club Stenhousemuir.