St Johnstone make their move in planning war with council

The planning war between St Johnstone and Perth and Kinross Council has led the club to move for a legal ruling.

Saints owner Geoff Brown confirmed he has applied for a “certificate of lawfulness” to establish that the training pitch used by the team for 18 years has valid consent.

The local authority is still pursuing plans to use a compulsory purchase order to build a major roadway through the grassy area next to McDiarmid Park on Crieff Road, with the aim of unlocking land for multi-million-pound developments beyond the city’s western bypass.

Mr Brown said the club will meet the council “head on” and pledged to “fight them all the way”.

He claimed building a road on the site would force players to train next to the busy new route.

“It would be an accident waiting to happen,” he said.

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