I REALLY don’t envy the task in hand right now for the supremos of the SFA and SPFL – the weight of the world must be on their shoulders.
The entire Earth is in crisis and that’s rightly where our big concerns should lie – how can society as it is get through this.
There will be plenty of folk out there shouting down others thinking about how this all affects football and the rest of the sporting world because there are greater issues at play.
They are right. But, at the same time, I also completely disagree.
While our minds are being blown with stress and mild panic about being shut in our homes and where we’re going to locate our next roll of toilet paper, we all desperately need a release to think about something else.
Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney + and the rest will be doing a roaring trade right now as people figure out what to fill spare time with.
It’s exactly the same for football debate – there’s no games but that doesn’t stop the debate, thankfully.
Doesn’t make life easy for a football writer, mind you . . .
Nor is it easy for the likes of Ian Maxwell and Neil Doncaster as they attempt to navigate the minefield that is now our game.
The big clubs haven’t wasted any time in applying pressure for what they want to see – Celtic want to be awarded the title, Rangers obviously disagree and Hearts don’t want to be relegated.
I have to say, apart from the Hearts viewpoint, it’s all pretty nauseating.
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What the heid honchos have on their plate right now is probably the biggest decision ever in the history of Scottish football.
The Rangers/Sevco debate pales in comparison and it’s not like we’ve ever heard the end of that one in Glasgow.
Definitely rather them than me. Stuck between a rock and a hard place, whatever decision they come to, it’s going to hurt somebody.
And I think they were right to give themselves some breathing space with Monday’s statement.
Personally, I’d have picked a date in the middle of April and said we’ll see what’s what at that point with some plans thought up in the meantime.
Initially, I was in favour of restarting the season in the autumn and then running straight into the new one, maybe scrap the League Cup. The transfer window and players’ contracts ending in May/June just makes that a can of worms.
Now, though, I’ll echo my colleague Lee Wilkie’s thoughts yesterday – expand the structure and keep as many clubs happy as possible.
As in so many situations in life – do what big Wilkie says . . .
It was only right Uefa postpone the European Championship until next summer – there was no other call to make.
The championships would have put a completely unreasonable time limit on getting club football – whenever it gets going again – finished in time.
However, the decision to knock the qualifying play-offs back to June seems very short-sighted.
I would be delighted if any football is played before June, to be honest.
I really think we’re in for a long, long haul of society shutting down to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.
And Uefa should be aware they will likely just have to kick the can on the play-offs down the road again in three months’ time.
They are such massive games for countries like us and I’m sure Scotland boss Steve Clarke (above) will want his players to have been in action for a few weeks going into the Israel game.
Very little of this situation is fair but I can’t help but think Uefa have been a bit quick to make these decisions.
Dundee and Dundee United have more to lose from this season being cancelled than almost anybody.
Hearts would be the exception and possibly Partick.
However, missing out on a place in the Premiership, particularly for United when it was nailed on, would be massively unfair. The Dark Blues can make an argument themselves about the play-offs, too.
The work, and pots of cash, already put in this season has to count for something.
THE world might be going down the drain but I have to try to see a silver lining. With the season stopped and, possibly declared null and void, my team Queen of the South can’t be relegated, so there’s that . . .
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