- Joined
- Nov 15, 2005
We need to clear out the dinosaurs in the SFA and SPFL and move away from the leagues that see everyone play everyone else 4 times a season because, quite apart from the drudgery, the leagues are too tight and don't allow managers any leeway to include youngsters regularly, which is a must if we want the NT to progress positively. We also need a competitive reserve league brought back in so that youngsters can go from development squads to reserve football to perhaps a wee loan spell in a lower league and then games for the first team.I know I've mentioned them a few times here, but I've no issues with the grandparent rule or foreign players born here.
The hardship there, is convincing them for Scotland in the youth and unders programs. They only want to play for us once they know they won't play for England or wherever else.
Or have players like McGeady who see greener grass in Ireland.
I'm all for us having a pathway like a Spain, same players in all those categories coming up and succeeding together. I just don't think Scotland is a country that can accommodate that.
Not unless they all play for Hunco and Celtic actual squads. With the handful who go away and actually succeed going away and making up the rest. Robertson, McGinn, Ferguson types. But they're few and far between.
2 or 3 players in our current unders squad will make the full team. The rest of the full team are either in the squad now, or will declare for Scotland later. A handful might burst into the scene in their 20s having never played a youth international.
And that's how it'll always be I think.
Apart from that, of course, we need a forward-thinking manager at the helm of the NT, but with the SFA doing the searching, it's more likely we'll end up with the cheapest option available.
I know that bringing youngsters through regularly will take time, but if we don't start, it will take forever.


