All to play for as SFL hopefuls arrive for D-day

AS IN any election, today's ballot at Hampden to decide the newest member of the Scottish Football League will be influenced as much by the vested interests of those casting their votes as it will by the credibility and merit of the campaigns mounted by the five candidates.

The 29 incumbent SFL chairmen who will decide which club fills the vacancy created by last month's demise of Gretna have been provided with detailed information on the pros and cons of each application by their own organisation's working party which carried out thorough site inspections of each one.

It would be naive, however, of anyone to imagine that today's decision will be taken purely on the basis of which one of Annan Athletic, Cove Rangers, Edinburgh City, Preston Athletic and Spartans are best equipped to join the Third Division for the new season and subsequently flourish as a senior league club.

The slick and often imaginative media campaigns mounted by some of the applicants, most notably Spartans and Cove Rangers, will have influenced many of the SFL clubs. So too, however, will the behind-the-scenes canvassing undertaken on behalf of the five hopefuls since the election process began in earnest four weeks ago.

In a contest in which, according to sources within the SFL management committee, there is not one outstanding candidate with an overwhelming case for membership, the personal standing and connections within Scottish football of those involved in the rival bids could be as crucial a factor as any.

Cove Rangers, the Highland League champions, will certainly hope their honorary president Alan McRae has been able to make a persuasive case to many of his colleagues in the administrative structure of the game in Scotland.

A vice-president of the SFA, McRae is optimistic his club can follow the path of their former Highland League rivals Inverness Caledonian Thistle, Ross County, Peterhead and Elgin City into the SFL.

Cove, who failed in bids to join the SFL in 2000 and 2002, will move from their current ramshackle Allan Park to a new 1,300-seater stadium at Calder Park in 2010 and McRae does not believe the close proximity of SPL neighbours Aberdeen will handicap their chances of election.

"We are convinced we have a very strong case for entry this time," said McRae. "We expect to have the paperwork required for the new stadium to be completed before Thursday's meeting. We have a two-year period in which to get the development started.

"We are looking to become a good SFL club. We haven't got ambitions to become an SPL club and our new stadium wouldn't be suitable for the top league.

"Our neighbours Aberdeen are also supporting our bid. There is room for two senior clubs in the area."

Another club with a vastly experienced SFA committee man to help press their claims are Annan Athletic, whose secretary Dick Shaw is also a board member on the sixth floor at Hampden.

Annan finished third in the 2000 election behind the successful pair of Peterhead and Elgin, but believe improved facilities at their Galabank ground and their geographical catchment area should tip the scales in their favour this time.

"There is only one choice and that is Annan Athletic," is chairman Henry McLelland's bullish claim.

"We're the only club all ready to play immediately," he added. "We have the infrastructure, the ground, the financial base, the fan base and we are entrenched in the community. I am confident that the majority of clubs will vote for the club which is the best proposition and that undoubtedly is Annan Athletic."

Preston Athletic, whose campaign has been led by their secretary, former SFA grade one referee Dr Andrew Waddell, will change their name to East Lothian Football Club if they are elected and claim they can attract crowds of around 600 to their Pennypit ground in Prestonpans.

"This is not just an application for the Third Division," said Waddell. "East Lothian Council is very progressive in developing sport and leisure and is hugely supportive in working with us.

"Indeed, I expect to be able to make an announcement on Thursday that will considerably increase the credibility of our bid, but the SFL clubs will be the first to hear. Our bid will take the Scottish league into new areas. We are not competing with any other league clubs as there is a gap from Edinburgh to Berwick that needs to be filled."

Spartans, considered by many as favourites to be elected, have certainly won the media battle over the past month and are confident concerns raised by the SFL over the readiness of their new Ainslie Park ground will not damage what is their first attempt to gain membership.

"The SFL clubs tell us they will review the applicants on a wide range of criteria," said Spartans chairman Craig Graham. "If so, we are optimistic clubs will vote for us."

Like Spartans, Edinburgh City believe the historical difficulty of establishing a third senior league club in Scotland's capital city should have no relevance to their bid.

St Bernard's, Leith Athletic and, in a previous form, Edinburgh City have all dropped out of the SFL in the past, while Meadowbank Thistle became Livingston in 1995 to escape the indifference which surrounded them.

Now based at Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh City claim they can learn from the mistakes of their predecessors.

"We believe that Edinburgh can support a properly marketed SFL club," said chairman Andy McDonald. "Our very central location allows us to draw people from all over the city.

"If admitted, we believe that attractive pricing, smart marketing and engagement with the local community will ensure a prosperous future for the club."

The lure of expediency should certainly not be underestimated. In 1974, the relative ease of travel to Edinburgh was a major factor in Ferranti Thistle's election to the SFL ahead of an arguably more credible Inverness Thistle bid.

It is why the outcome of today's battle to fill the Club X spot on the Third Division fixture list is anything but a foregone conclusion.

Spartans inquisition shows race for SFL membership has not taken place on a level playing field

COMMENT

TODAY'S election for membership of the Scottish Football League comes at the end of the most rigorous vetting procedure that the organisation has ever carried out ahead of such a ballot.

This is understandable. The last thing the SFL wants is 'another Gretna'.

But the level of investigation conducted by the SFL does not bear scrutiny itself. After the routine stadia inspections, Spartans were asked to respond to a 25-point supplementary questionnaire outlining serious concerns about their application. None of the other four clubs in today's ballot were subjected to this forensic treatment, which quibbled over matters as trivial as how many supporters Spartans took to a cup tie at St Mirren – 500 or 1,000 – and a misprint in the club's application brochure that read 'SFL' instead of 'SFL3'.

The query over the level of travelling support was ludicrous. Even if Spartans only took 500 fans to Love Street on a midweek night, the figure is a few hundred more than up to half of existing SFL members would have mustered.

There were, of course, more significant issues under discussion, such as the club's proposed home until their £3.5million facility at Ainslie Park is completed, and the provision of terracing around the pitch.

However on other issues, there does not appear to be a level playing field. Spartans are asked in the SFL questionnaire to confirm they will provide turnstiles, while Preston Athletic openly admit that they have "a man with a table at the gate". Spartans are asked about access to the stand, with the SFL concerned about the fact that spectators will enter and leave by the front of the structure rather than the sides – which in fact mirrors the set-up at rival applicant Annan Athletic.

Other aspects also suggest inconsistency in the SFL's approach. Spartans have been told that they must play a full round of matches at home once before moving to a new ground, presumably to be fair to other teams in the league. At least one current SFL member has moved ground mid-season without being asked to do this.

And there are serious flaws with other applications: Annan have no floodlights, and can only offer a promise to provide them, while Edinburgh City are based at Meadowbank where they can offer no genuine security of tenure while the city council proposes to demolish the stadium and build a smaller facility. It would be natural for the SFL to say 'we'll believe it when we see it'. They haven't.

It is just as well that the clubs today have a free vote, and do not require to follow the SFL report which may not be called a recommendation, but in effect is exactly that. And how ironic that Spartans this week became the first senior club in Scotland to receive a 'quality mark community club award' – from the Scottish Football Association.

All five applicants have their strengths, and each would bring something positive to the SFL structure. The Scotsman urges those who will cast their vote today to choose a modern, thriving, progressive club, with a facility that will become the envy of existing SFL members – one of which doesn't even have its own ground and has no prospect of getting one.

Spartans are not the only club to fit that bill, but they can also point to a track record of competitiveness against SFL sides, with Alloa Athletic, Arbroath, Berwick Rangers and Queen's Park among their recent scalps in the Scottish Cup.

Today is a rare chance for the SFL to strengthen its membership, and offer their vision of a model community club. May the best team be given the chance to win.