Link to a survey on views about a newco rangers being readmitted to SPL or made to start again in div 3.

http://www.splsurvey.co.uk/

No. If Rangers go into liquidation, that should be the end of them. I'd rather have the likes of Spartans, Gala Fairydean, Inverurie Locos etc fill the gap. Fair's fair.
If a phoenix Rangers team gets straight back in, boot Annan Athletic out and let Gretna 2008 in. Fair enough?

If they are immediately reinstated, the other 10 teams outside of the OF should apply to join the SFL. Obviously they will start in the top league of a newly formed OF free SFL league structure.

Forget TV money for now, SKY and ESPN won't be interested in a 2 team SPL. Once the Kingdom Classic has been established (East Fife V Dunfermline Athletic), SKY and ESPN will be fighting each other for the rights to broadcast this bigot free derby.

Back to money, I'm sure their are plenty of talented footballers in Leith who would love to play full time, top flight, COMPETITIVE football for Hibs for an honest full time weeks wage of say, £375 per week. Same goes for Aberdeen, Hearts, Motherwell, Dundee United etc.

Fans will come back if a) prices are lowered (halved), and most importantly b) their team is COMPETING instead of just PARTICIPATING.

You might think reducing admission prices by half is extreme, but 10,000 fans paying £10 is better than 1500 fans paying £20. Or in our case 1997 fans paying £6 is better than 500 paying £13. I would go every week if it was £6. Infact, I would buy a season ticket.

Stenhousemuir have a great number of youngsters at their games. Why? They get a free season ticket. What will they do once they are over 16? Club together with their mates for a reasonably priced Flexi Season ticket (1 full priced ticket + up to 3 additional adults paying £80 each).

We don't have to go to the extent of letting under 16's in for free - sell under 16 Season Tickets for £15. Market it as a gift card. Better than a £15 HMV, iTunes, Waterstone's, Debenham's gift card that will lie in your drawer until you realise you have two days left to use it. Use it, don't use it, it's £15 in the club's pocket that 1000 empty seats won't give them.

Has anybody with under16's thought about applying for a Stenhousemuir season ticket? 2 games at Ochil View = £12 per child.

I realise that the majority of this rant has nothing to do with this thread, but there are a few points worth discussing.
Please don't quote reply this, just copy and paste any points you wish to reply to, highlight etc, as the post is massive!

Rangers have dodged the tax, and now through liquidation will dodge the debt. If the rest of Scottish Football allows this behaviour to go unpunished, all clubs are tarnished and as a result may find it difficult to get credit with companies they do business with.

There should be no special treatment just because this is "Rangers". There should be no fear in punishing them......Scottish Football is stronger than one club. If Rangers were to fold out of existence (I hope they don't and don't think they will) other clubs will step up to fill that void.

The extent of the debt (and its non-payment) is severe.....any punishment should match. Relegation to the bottom division is the just punishment IMO.

First of all, great post, Davie. I like your thinking.

Mary - I agree Rangers should be punished but totally disagree that they should be relegated to the 3rd. This will punish all sfl teams and bring the SFL into disrepute as next season's 3rd division, the following season's 2nd and the season after that's 1st probably become pointless.

I don't see why we should take the SPL's dregs into our league at all. I'd toss them out completely before I would ruin 3 years of the sfl just to accommodate them.

Sadly, all the OF-withoot-a-ticket brigade will pee their breeks with excitement at Rangers playing in the sfl and come crawling out of the woodwork. If we believe in the sfl, we should reject these spl rejects out of hand. Let the 'elite' sort out their own mess.

Great post Davie. Imagine a Scottish football league living within clubs means where any one of about 10 teams could realistically challenge for the title each year.
RE TV /TV money, someone pointed out that as recently as 80s/90s televised highlights were often of the top game whether that was in the premier or Div 1 (Such as Lanarkshire Fife/Tayside derbies) rather than on the criteria it has to involve one or other of the bigot brothers.

I have this notion that football doesn't "need" TV money but simply has become too used to having it.

The pernicious thing is that the money goes to a small number of clubs who used it to pay silly money for players instead of improving facilities, developing young players, establishing community links etc.

It also exaggerates the gap between the "rich" and not rich clubs.

Remove tv money and while the SPL clubs will scream in anguish, over time Scottish clubs will settle to a state of greater equality in resources thus greater competition. OK so a Scottish team might never win a European competition again. So what!

With a solid underpinning structure of good resources and proper nationwide systems for youth development allied to interesting and meaningful matches at all levels we could eventually have a strong national team too.

Exactly - the SPL clubs have got telly money the now and they're not exactly wiping the floor with Barcelona and AC Milan, so far as I've noticed.

"And holders Barca were dumped out of Europe last night when, despite his best attempts, Lionel Messi was unable to breach the Motherwell central defensive pairing for the second week in a row."

I had a good chuckle to myself the other night when the rangers supporters trust dude was on the radio threatening to boycott any team that votes against them in the upcoming SPL meeting.

Does he really think clubs would bother - I'm pretty sure that an increase in crowds due to a more competitive SPL would more than make up for the lose of 2000 rangers fans that are in the huff.

This is the same rangers dude that called on rangers fans to hurt Lolyds bank by moving their accounts elsewhere ...... As if the bank would even notice!

The arrogance is laughable.

The only sympathetic voices I'm hearing from non-rangers fans are ironically from Celtic fans. Kick them both out - they are a drag on the Scottish game.

not sure I agree with everything but lots of food for though here!

I have nothing against Rangers or their rivals and It is the other clubs in the SPL who need to put their foot down here. The need to look a little further than the end of their noses. Rangers go and if they come back it must be in the bottom division. They would only take three years to get back into the SPL. What is the problem. The three divisions would get a boost, Rangers would get breathing space to sort their heads out and look to the future. All that will happen with a new co is that some half hearted team will take over Rangers and screw it up again trying to chase Celtic and Europe.