From Today's Herald

http://www.theherald.co.uk/sport/72594.html

Former trialist scores SPL deal
GRAHAM SPIERS, Chief Sports Writer

The Clydesdale Bank executive who yesterday pushed through the announcement of a new £8m sponsorship of the Scottish Premier League is a self-confessed "huge football fan" who once played for East Fife as a trialist against Aberdeen.
Steve Reid, Clydesdale Bank's general manager, co-hosted yesterday's announcement of the deal with Lex Gold, chairman of the SPL, which will mean Clydesdale taking over from the Bank of Scotland as the league's new sponsor at the start of next season.
Reid, a Celtic supporter, conceived and nurtured the idea of his bank becoming a major sponsor of the Scottish game, and took his proposal all the way to the top of the National Australia Group, owners of Clydesdale, and to John Stewart, the chief executive of NAG, who is himself from Gorgie and a Hearts supporter.
The Clydesdale deal will mean an infusion of up to £8m in the SPL coffers over the next four years, an increase of £1.7m on the previous sponsorship.
Reid broke off from yesterday's announcement to confess that, had his boyhood dream been realised, he might have been involved in Scottish football on the field instead of wearing a stiff suit at a corporate announcement off it.
"I played as a trialist for East Fife against Aberdeen and can even remember on the pitch being up against Dougie Bell that night," said Reid. "I actually thought I played quite well but it wasn't a view shared by the East Fife manager, who never spoke to me again."
Gold, who brokered yesterday's deal, claimed that a number of blue-chip companies had been vying to take over from Bank of Scotland as sponsors, but that the SPL had agreed to go with Clydesdale because of mutual benefits.
"Recent events have been very positive for the SPL and, on top of our deal with Setanta for television coverage, this deal with Clydesdale means our clubs have a solid base from which to work and can plan confidently for the next four years," he said.
Gold said he believed the "strong competition" for the new sponsorship deal is evidence of a healthy league.
Setanta took over the television rights in 2004 and extended the deal in the summer to ensure an annual sum of £13m flows into the club coffers.
Last season attendances grew by 3.4% on the 2004-2005 figure and a report earlier this month showed SPL clubs had made a collective profit for the first time since the breakaway league was launched in 1998.
Gold, though, ran into controversy when he also announced that the SPL had agreed to meet "within the next 10 days" with a number of Scottish Football League clubs about the proposed breakaway SPL II, an event which would further diminish the SFL.
Such a meeting is viewed by the SFL as contrary to an agreement reached between the two bodies within the past month. "We believe that an SPL II would raise the game at the top level in Scotland, though we need to be sensitive to those club who would be left in divisions two and three," said Gold. "
Peter Donald, the secretary of the SFL, responded yesterday by accusing the SPL of going back on their word over a way forward on any SPL II.
"In a modern democracy anyone should be free to talk to anyone else about matters of mutual interest but the reason for our chagrin is only due to the fact that Lex Gold and the SPL had given us an assurance that any debate about a proposed SPL II would be conducted between representatives of the SPL and the SFL, and not with the clubs directly," said Donald.
"My view remains that any possibility of an SPL II is still some way off. It has also been suggested to me that this so-called dispute between the SPL and SFL might end up in court, but this is nonsense. If it came to it, the issue would go to arbitration and be settled by the SFA."
The Clydesdale Bank executive who yesterday pushed through the announcement of a new £8m sponsorship of the Scottish Premier League is a self-confessed "huge football fan" who once played for East Fife as a trialist against Aberdeen.
Steve Reid, Clydesdale Bank's general manager, co-hosted yesterday's announcement of the deal with Lex Gold, chairman of the SPL, which will mean Clydesdale taking over from the Bank of Scotland as the league's new sponsor at the start of next season.
Reid, a Celtic supporter, conceived and nurtured the idea of his bank becoming a major sponsor of the Scottish game, and took his proposal all the way to the top of the National Australia Group, owners of Clydesdale, and to John Stewart, the chief executive of NAG, who is himself from Gorgie and a Hearts supporter.
The Clydesdale deal will mean an infusion of up to £8m in the SPL coffers over the next four years, an increase of £1.7m on the previous sponsorship.
Reid broke off from yesterday's announcement to confess that, had his boyhood dream been realised, he might have been involved in Scottish football on the field instead of wearing a stiff suit at a corporate announcement off it.
"I played as a trialist for East Fife against Aberdeen and can even remember on the pitch being up against Dougie Bell that night," said Reid. "I actually thought I played quite well but it wasn't a view shared by the East Fife manager, who never spoke to me again."
Gold, who brokered yesterday's deal, claimed that a number of blue-chip companies had been vying to take over from Bank of Scotland as sponsors, but that the SPL had agreed to go with Clydesdale because of mutual benefits.
"Recent events have been very positive for the SPL and, on top of our deal with Setanta for television coverage, this deal with Clydesdale means our clubs have a solid base from which to work and can plan confidently for the next four years," he said.
Gold said he believed the "strong competition" for the new sponsorship deal is evidence of a healthy league.
Setanta took over the television rights in 2004 and extended the deal in the summer to ensure an annual sum of £13m flows into the club coffers.
Last season attendances grew by 3.4% on the 2004-2005 figure and a report earlier this month showed SPL clubs had made a collective profit for the first time since the breakaway league was launched in 1998.
Gold, though, ran into controversy when he also announced that the SPL had agreed to meet "within the next 10 days" with a number of Scottish Football League clubs about the proposed breakaway SPL II, an event which would further diminish the SFL.
Such a meeting is viewed by the SFL as contrary to an agreement reached between the two bodies within the past month. "We believe that an SPL II would raise the game at the top level in Scotland, though we need to be sensitive to those club who would be left in divisions two and three," said Gold. "
Peter Donald, the secretary of the SFL, responded yesterday by accusing the SPL of going back on their word over a way forward on any SPL II.
"In a modern democracy anyone should be free to talk to anyone else about matters of mutual interest but the reason for our chagrin is only due to the fact that Lex Gold and the SPL had given us an assurance that any debate about a proposed SPL II would be conducted between representatives of the SPL and the SFL, and not with the clubs directly," said Donald.
"My view remains that any possibility of an SPL II is still some way off. It has also been suggested to me that this so-called dispute between the SPL and SFL might end up in court, but this is nonsense. If it came to it, the issue would go to arbitration and be settled by the SFA."
The Clydesdale Bank executive who yesterday pushed through the announcement of a new £8m sponsorship of the Scottish Premier League is a self-confessed "huge football fan" who once played for East Fife as a trialist against Aberdeen.
Steve Reid, Clydesdale Bank's general manager, co-hosted yesterday's announcement of the deal with Lex Gold, chairman of the SPL, which will mean Clydesdale taking over from the Bank of Scotland as the league's new sponsor at the start of next season.
Reid, a Celtic supporter, conceived and nurtured the idea of his bank becoming a major sponsor of the Scottish game, and took his proposal all the way to the top of the National Australia Group, owners of Clydesdale, and to John Stewart, the chief executive of NAG, who is himself from Gorgie and a Hearts supporter.
The Clydesdale deal will mean an infusion of up to £8m in the SPL coffers over the next four years, an increase of £1.7m on the previous sponsorship.
Reid broke off from yesterday's announcement to confess that, had his boyhood dream been realised, he might have been involved in Scottish football on the field instead of wearing a stiff suit at a corporate announcement off it.
"I played as a trialist for East Fife against Aberdeen and can even remember on the pitch being up against Dougie Bell that night," said Reid. "I actually thought I played quite well but it wasn't a view shared by the East Fife manager, who never spoke to me again."
Gold, who brokered yesterday's deal, claimed that a number of blue-chip companies had been vying to take over from Bank of Scotland as sponsors, but that the SPL had agreed to go with Clydesdale because of mutual benefits.
"Recent events have been very positive for the SPL and, on top of our deal with Setanta for television coverage, this deal with Clydesdale means our clubs have a solid base from which to work and can plan confidently for the next four years," he said.
Gold said he believed the "strong competition" for the new sponsorship deal is evidence of a healthy league.
Setanta took over the television rights in 2004 and extended the deal in the summer to ensure an annual sum of £13m flows into the club coffers.
Last season attendances grew by 3.4% on the 2004-2005 figure and a report earlier this month showed SPL clubs had made a collective profit for the first time since the breakaway league was launched in 1998.
Gold, though, ran into controversy when he also announced that the SPL had agreed to meet "within the next 10 days" with a number of Scottish Football League clubs about the proposed breakaway SPL II, an event which would further diminish the SFL.
Such a meeting is viewed by the SFL as contrary to an agreement reached between the two bodies within the past month. "We believe that an SPL II would raise the game at the top level in Scotland, though we need to be sensitive to those club who would be left in divisions two and three," said Gold. "
Peter Donald, the secretary of the SFL, responded yesterday by accusing the SPL of going back on their word over a way forward on any SPL II.
"In a modern democracy anyone should be free to talk to anyone else about matters of mutual interest but the reason for our chagrin is only due to the fact that Lex Gold and the SPL had given us an assurance that any debate about a proposed SPL II would be conducted between representatives of the SPL and the SFL, and not with the clubs directly," said Donald.
"My view remains that any possibility of an SPL II is still some way off. It has also been suggested to me that this so-called dispute between the SPL and SFL might end up in court, but this is nonsense. If it came to it, the issue would go to arbitration and be settled by the SFA."
The Clydesdale Bank executive who yesterday pushed through the announcement of a new £8m sponsorship of the Scottish Premier League is a self-confessed "huge football fan" who once played for East Fife as a trialist against Aberdeen.
Steve Reid, Clydesdale Bank's general manager, co-hosted yesterday's announcement of the deal with Lex Gold, chairman of the SPL, which will mean Clydesdale taking over from the Bank of Scotland as the league's new sponsor at the start of next season.
Reid, a Celtic supporter, conceived and nurtured the idea of his bank becoming a major sponsor of the Scottish game, and took his proposal all the way to the top of the National Australia Group, owners of Clydesdale, and to John Stewart, the chief executive of NAG, who is himself from Gorgie and a Hearts supporter.
The Clydesdale deal will mean an infusion of up to £8m in the SPL coffers over the next four years, an increase of £1.7m on the previous sponsorship.
Reid broke off from yesterday's announcement to confess that, had his boyhood dream been realised, he might have been involved in Scottish football on the field instead of wearing a stiff suit at a corporate announcement off it.
"I played as a trialist for East Fife against Aberdeen and can even remember on the pitch being up against Dougie Bell that night," said Reid. "I actually thought I played quite well but it wasn't a view shared by the East Fife manager, who never spoke to me again."
Gold, who brokered yesterday's deal, claimed that a number of blue-chip companies had been vying to take over from Bank of Scotland as sponsors, but that the SPL had agreed to go with Clydesdale because of mutual benefits.
"Recent events have been very positive for the SPL and, on top of our deal with Setanta for television coverage, this deal with Clydesdale means our clubs have a solid base from which to work and can plan confidently for the next four years," he said.
Gold said he believed the "strong competition" for the new sponsorship deal is evidence of a healthy league.
Setanta took over the television rights in 2004 and extended the deal in the summer to ensure an annual sum of £13m flows into the club coffers.
Last season attendances grew by 3.4% on the 2004-2005 figure and a report earlier this month showed SPL clubs had made a collective profit for the first time since the breakaway league was launched in 1998.
Gold, though, ran into controversy when he also announced that the SPL had agreed to meet "within the next 10 days" with a number of Scottish Football League clubs about the proposed breakaway SPL II, an event which would further diminish the SFL.
Such a meeting is viewed by the SFL as contrary to an agreement reached between the two bodies within the past month. "We believe that an SPL II would raise the game at the top level in Scotland, though we need to be sensitive to those club who would be left in divisions two and three," said Gold. "
Peter Donald, the secretary of the SFL, responded yesterday by accusing the SPL of going back on their word over a way forward on any SPL II.
"In a modern democracy anyone should be free to talk to anyone else about matters of mutual interest but the reason for our chagrin is only due to the fact that Lex Gold and the SPL had given us an assurance that any debate about a proposed SPL II would be conducted between representatives of the SPL and the SFL, and not with the clubs directly," said Donald.
"My view remains that any possibility of an SPL II is still some way off. It has also been suggested to me that this so-called dispute between the SPL and SFL might end up in court, but this is nonsense. If it came to it, the issue would go to arbitration and be settled by the SFA."
The Clydesdale Bank executive who yesterday pushed through the announcement of a new £8m sponsorship of the Scottish Premier League is a self-confessed "huge football fan" who once played for East Fife as a trialist against Aberdeen.
Steve Reid, Clydesdale Bank's general manager, co-hosted yesterday's announcement of the deal with Lex Gold, chairman of the SPL, which will mean Clydesdale taking over from the Bank of Scotland as the league's new sponsor at the start of next season.
Reid, a Celtic supporter, conceived and nurtured the idea of his bank becoming a major sponsor of the Scottish game, and took his proposal all the way to the top of the National Australia Group, owners of Clydesdale, and to John Stewart, the chief executive of NAG, who is himself from Gorgie and a Hearts supporter.
The Clydesdale deal will mean an infusion of up to £8m in the SPL coffers over the next four years, an increase of £1.7m on the previous sponsorship.
Reid broke off from yesterday's announcement to confess that, had his boyhood dream been realised, he might have been involved in Scottish football on the field instead of wearing a stiff suit at a corporate announcement off it.
"I played as a trialist for East Fife against Aberdeen and can even remember on the pitch being up against Dougie Bell that night," said Reid. "I actually thought I played quite well but it wasn't a view shared by the East Fife manager, who never spoke to me again."
Gold, who brokered yesterday's deal, claimed that a number of blue-chip companies had been vying to take over from Bank of Scotland as sponsors, but that the SPL had agreed to go with Clydesdale because of mutual benefits.
"Recent events have been very positive for the SPL and, on top of our deal with Setanta for television coverage, this deal with Clydesdale means our clubs have a solid base from which to work and can plan confidently for the next four years," he said.
Gold said he believed the "strong competition" for the new sponsorship deal is evidence of a healthy league.
Setanta took over the television rights in 2004 and extended the deal in the summer to ensure an annual sum of £13m flows into the club coffers.
Last season attendances grew by 3.4% on the 2004-2005 figure and a report earlier this month showed SPL clubs had made a collective profit for the first time since the breakaway league was launched in 1998.
Gold, though, ran into controversy when he also announced that the SPL had agreed to meet "within the next 10 days" with a number of Scottish Football League clubs about the proposed breakaway SPL II, an event which would further diminish the SFL.
Such a meeting is viewed by the SFL as contrary to an agreement reached between the two bodies within the past month. "We believe that an SPL II would raise the game at the top level in Scotland, though we need to be sensitive to those club who would be left in divisions two and three," said Gold. "
Peter Donald, the secretary of the SFL, responded yesterday by accusing the SPL of going back on their word over a way forward on any SPL II.
"In a modern democracy anyone should be free to talk to anyone else about matters of mutual interest but the reason for our chagrin is only due to the fact that Lex Gold and the SPL had given us an assurance that any debate about a proposed SPL II would be conducted between representatives of the SPL and the SFL, and not with the clubs directly," said Donald.
"My view remains that any possibility of an SPL II is still some way off. It has also been suggested to me that this so-called dispute between the SPL and SFL might end up in court, but this is nonsense. If it came to it, the issue would go to arbitration and be settled by the SFA."

It must have been a reserve match because Dougie Bell signed for Aberdeen in 1979 and we haven't played them since March 1974.

We haven't played them for 32 years !!!!

There can't be another team we've avoided that long surely ??

My childhood best mate was an Aberdeen fanatic and we always used to want to be drawn together in the Cup but it never happened...

I still always want Raith, Aberdeen, Rangers or Celtic every season.