Scottish clubs will survive TV crisis, says new SPL chief

NEW Scottish Premier League chief executive Neil Doncaster is confident Scotland's top clubs can survive the loss of Setanta television money and ultimately prosper.

London-born Doncaster was unveiled yesterday against a backdrop of uncertainty as the 12 SPL clubs continue to ponder a mooted joint television deal with Sky and ESPN. While Doncaster will take a back seat in these discussions, he yesterday stressed that the Setanta setback need not be viewed as a critical blow. "If I was pessimistic about the prospects for the SPL I would not be here," he said. He described his brief as "driving revenues and increasing the profile of the SPL in Europe". Doncaster is the first full-time chief executive since the departure of Roger Mitchell in 2002, following the collapse of a proposed in-house SPL television channel.

Although he accepted the current situation is also trying, Doncaster reflected on his own experience as chief executive at Norwich City during the collapse of the ITV digital channel in 2002 after a £315 million television rights deal with the Football League had been struck. A much less valuable replacement deal with BSkyB left the League with a £132m shortfall.

Although the figures are smaller in the case of Scotland, the consequences could be graver given the paltry income streams which Scottish clubs are able to access.

As expected, Doncaster was determined to talk up the SPL. "I am looking forward to the challenges but also the opportunities of working with one of the biggest leagues in Europe. The SPL has standing within Europe already. I will be working in the top tier of an organisation with a huge number of very big clubs – clubs with a great pedigree and history. Football is the national game up here. It has an intensity and passion which gives us good cause for optimism. I understand the current worries. This is the case throughout Europe – it is not restricted to Scotland."

Lex Gold, who reverts to his original role of SPL chairman, described the process by which Doncaster was selected as "vigorous". The 39-year-old was the unanimous choice of the board.

He can offer previous experience of steadying a badly listing ship. He had been chief executive at Norwich City for just a year when the ITV digital channel was placed in administration in March 2002.

"Clubs then had a series of decisions to make," he recalled. "So I understand what clubs now are going through. I have been at one for the last seven years.

"Norwich budgeted to receive £3m a year in TV money and we ended up with a deal which provided just a £1m of TV money a year," he explained. "We therefore had a £4m hole in our budget over the next two years. It was very difficult but we faced that along with a number of other clubs."

Due to the timing of his arrival, Doncaster has been relieved of much of the responsibility for the new television deal. He will, however, speak with all 12 clubs as soon as possible. Doncaster will invite them to air their concerns. He will engage with issues such as SPL 2 and the question of the Old Firm's commitment to the league only when he has accumulated enough knowledge of the intricacies involved. But, he stressed, "the TV bid will be led by Lex and the board".

Doncaster, who was a member of both the English FA and Football League boards, will have an active part to play in attempts to introduce better dialogue between the SPL, the Scottish Football League and the Scottish Football Association.

"I am looking forward to meeting (SFA chief executive] Gordon Smith and (SFL chief executive] David Longmuir," he said. "I have come from an environment which has three institutions – the League, the FA and the Premier League. This is not unfamiliar to me."

His own football experiences extend back to a childhood spent watching Crystal Palace in the Seventies. He was taken to matches by his grandfather.

"We used to go and stand on the terraces – Jim Cannon was the skipper in those days," he said. "Then I went to university at Bristol and used to go and watch Bristol City. From there I went to Norwich City. I have been a football fan throughout my life. I have moved around, but I have always had an affection for Crystal Palace."

His only prior connection with Scottish football has been through those Scots employed by Norwich City during the last decade. "We had Peter Grant as manager and Jim Duffy was his assistant," he said. "Jim Duffy sent me a 'good luck' text so I will be catching up with him at some point. Scottish managers are held in high esteem throughout Europe. That is part of why I think there are exciting times ahead."