Scottish football needs to say no to newco and get 'robust' governance

The Herald Scotland

2 days ago

It was a far cry from the outrage, anger and animosity which erupted far and wide when Rangers were forced, after HMRC were among those creditors who rejected a company voluntary arrangement, to go down the same road way back in 2012. The ill-feeling caused by that seismic event still lingers to this day.
The fact that Dumbarton are, despite their long and proud history, a part-time provincial outfit with a small fanbase who have long languished in the lower reaches of the senior league set-up is largely responsible for the lack of hysteria.
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The majority of their own supporters, who have grown increasingly concerned about the motives of their enigmatic owners Cognitive Capital in recent years, are probably firmly in favour of the drastic move.
Mario Laponte, the Canadian musician and entrepreneur who will own Dumbarton Football Club 1872 in its entirety, has publicly stated that he is not interested in using the land around the stadium for a lucrative property development. Hopes are high that 'Vintage', as he is known as a performer, will be an upgrade on what has gone before him.
Anyway, this is not the first time that Dumbarton have started again. They ceased playing in 1901 and returned to action 1905. Suggestions they were a new club were swiftly dismissed by the SFA and the Scottish Football Combination so they could be fast-tracked into their competitions. This sort of chicanery, then, has aye been.
Blair Nimmo, the experienced insolvency practitioner who was involved in the battles for survival which were waged by Airdrieonians, Hearts and Rangers during his professional career, was confident that Inverness Caledonian Thistle would bounce back in some capacity when the Highlanders went into administration in October last year.
'Virtually every club to go into administration in the past 20 years has survived in one form or another,' he said. 'Over the years, Rangers, Hibs, Hearts, Falkirk and Airdrie have all been bust. Gretna is probably the only one that didn't come back.'
(Image: Mark Scates - SNS Group) There should, however, perhaps be more concern expressed about the plight of this ancient institution than there has been. Going out of business and starting up again as an entirely new entity, as a phoenix club, should never be regarded as a convenient solution to a complex problem. Having watertight safeguards in place which ensure things don't get to that stage would be a far better plan.
That, of course, is far easier said than done. Rule 10.2, the so-called 'fit and proper' person test, in the SFA Articles of Association attempts to ensure that directors and owners are solvent, honest and competent. But there are ways to circumvent that process. Plus, perfectly reputable and well-meaning individuals can run into all kinds of issues once they become embroiled in the weird and wonderful world of soccer.
Suggestions that Scottish football should follow the lead which has been taken by England and introduce an independent regulator prompt howls of derision in boardrooms across the land whenever they are aired. Directors and chairmen feel is that it is difficult enough running a club and breaking even already without some interfering busybody poking their noses in. They want to retain control.
The cost involved in creating another level of bureaucracy also leaves many uneasy. Fraser Wishart, the chief executive of the professional footballers' union PFA Scotland, recently stressed that his organisation is against creating a regulator because it would drain the game of much-needed funds.
However, Wishart offered an important caveat to that statement. 'That's dependent on the governance model changing,' he said. Clubs governing clubs is, for him and many others, unhealthy and leads to myriad problems. There are several sensible administrators who agree and feel passionately the game in this country urgently needs to put the greater good first.
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Ian McMenemy, the former Stenhousemuir chairman who served on a number of SFA and SPFL committees, is one of them. 'We can't achieve change because of our own self-interest,' he has said. 'A regulator might be able to help us unlock that by having that independent voice that takes all that on board and allows us to get to a point that is absolutely better for us.'
Ian Maxwell, the SFA chief executive, told the health, social care and sport committee at Holyrood that governance procedures were 'robust' and 'fit for purpose' back in 2023.
Since then, both Dumbarton and Caledonian Thistle have been plunged into existential crises. The latter only came through it because of the benevolence of a wealthy local businessman who was prepared to plough in over £1m of his own personal fortune. Many other clubs teeter on the brink amid a challenging financial climate.
Whether Scotland should create an independent regulator is possibly a moot point. Maree Todd, the minister for drugs and alcohol policy and sport, refused to commit the government to creating one due to the exorbitant costs involved last year.
There have been round table discussions since. But seasoned observers of MSPs, who have been reluctant to involve themselves in the regulation of the support since the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Act 2012 was repealed seven years ago, aren't holding their breath.
More, though, needs to be done than is currently the case or more, far more, Scottish clubs will be left staring into the abyss and facing the same difficult decision that Dumbarton have made.