Hearts reconstruction plans to go under the microscope as SPFL announce crunch meetings

Ann Budge has put forward a proposal to revamp the current league setup for an initial two-year period.

SPFL clubs will begin meeting next week to discuss Hearts' proposals on league reconstruction – after a lengthy summit on Wednesday.

The league's governing body have confirmed receipt of Ann Budge's paper on revamping the current setup for an initial two-year period.

She's proposed a 14-14-14 format - with an option to increase the bottom league to 16 teams to include Brora Rangers and Kelty Hearts.

Starting with Premiership sides on Monday, divisional meetings will be held to discuss the plan before it goes to a vote.

An SPFL spokesman said: “The board has now received Ann Budge’s paper to clubs on the topic of league reconstruction. As these matters are ultimately decided by clubs via a democratic process, we will now facilitate a series of divisional meetings, starting with the Premiership on Monday, at which all 42 clubs will have the chance to discuss the proposals in detail.”

The proposed 14-team top flight would split into a top six and bottom eight, with the top clubs playing fewer fixtures.

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However, it faces a potential stumbling block at the other end, as the potential new setup would leave Cove Rangers in the bottom tier despite the club being declared League Two champions in April.

Stenhousemuir and Elgin City have already signalled their intention to vote it down.

But, in a letter outlining her vision, Budge insists the plans are about than just sparing Hearts, Partick Thistle and Stranraer from relegation.

She wrote: “This is not about restructuring. It is about survival.

“The need to protect Scotland’s national game and our professional clubs is of paramount importance.

“I want to urge every member club to look at this proposal not as a way to save Hearts, Partick Thistle and Stranraer from relegation, but as a better way for Scottish football to deal with the current emergency, while at the same time righting an unintended injustice.

“The effects of this pandemic are not going to disappear overnight. They will be with us for some considerable time. Every business is fighting for survival. Football is no different.

“Determining how best to deal with the challenges posed by COVID-19 has been and will continue to be for the foreseeable future, incredibly complex.

“Across Europe and indeed across the world, different approaches have been taken and everyone is trying to learn from each other.

“Look at the proposal as a way to enable clubs with hugely varying levels of resource, to group together to help as many clubs as possible to survive through this difficult period.

“Doing nothing will simply lead to us being forced to take action in the very near future. It is better to take steps now in an organised, considered and timely way rather than wait until some of our clubs hit crisis point.

“Doing nothing could be seen as unforgivable by fans who wish to see Scottish football come together at an unparallelled time in the game’s history.

“The proposed changes, creating three bigger leagues means that if, unfortunately, some clubs cannot see a way to play this season, there will hopefully be sufficient clubs in each League to allow the season to go ahead, albeit in a modified form.

“In short, the  Premiership  needs Hearts more than the Championship does. The Championship needs Partick Thistle more than the lower Leagues do.

“Let’s focus on dealing with the problem of saving Scottish Football from a position, which plays to our strengths and minimizes our weaknesses.

“These changes will help us deal with the perceived unfairness issue caused by these one-off extraordinary circumstances and will build in greater flexibility for dealing with the as yet unknown challenges that lie ahead over the next 12-18 months.

“We will then have the opportunity when we are through this emergency to assess the best way forward for Scottish football.

“Unless, via the normal voting structure, there is agreement to do otherwise, this paper assumes we would revert to our current League structure at the end of Season 2021/22, consistent with this being an interim arrangement to deal with an emergency situation.

“We would recommend that in January, 2022, clubs would be asked to vote, based on what the landscape looks like at that time, whether to automatically revert or to further consider the most appropriate way forward for the betterment of Scottish Football.

“Assurances have been given by the SPFL Chief Executive, following discussions with his senior counterparts at Sky, that enlarging the Premiership to 14 teams will not be unacceptable to Sky and will not be used as a bargaining tool in any future negotiations. In fact, the proposed enlargement of the Premiership will be seen positively, bringing with it as it does, both Edinburgh and Highland derbies.

“It is also noted that based on recent viewing figures published by the SPFL, Sky’s numbers would be considerably impoverished by the current plans to relegate Hearts.”