posted Feb 20, 2008

i hope brooks gets well soon , but they have done nothing but drag the spl down since they got promoted >

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posted Feb 20, 2008

The big difference between ICT and Gretna is that ICT had sufficient plans to move back to the Caledonian Stadium and actually moved 6 months ahead of schedule, Gretna are still to submit formal plans and start work and those plans will need to be scrapped now if their predicament is as bad as the media are saying.

Wish Brooks a speedy recovery though.

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posted Feb 20, 2008

In a word, yes, its over. The fairytale was good while it lasted, especially the Scottish Cup run but at the end of the day, they are just not an SPL team in every way you look at it.

Team, Stadium, Finances, Infrastructure are just not acceptable.

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posted Feb 20, 2008

This was never a fairytale. It was about a fan with cash following his heart rather than his head. Unlike other clubs who have invested in their infrastructure, including youth acadamies to bring young players through, the Gretna business model was never sustainable. It was always about buying a team to deliver instant success - not about building a club. With no fans, no stadium and no decent players left their fall from grace may well be as spectacular as their rise to the SPL. Best wishes to Brooks for a full recovery. No-one blames him for dreaming, but it is high time that those in charge of Gretna woke up and concentrated on building a sustainable club before they end up back in the pub leagues.

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posted Feb 20, 2008

What fairytale? This was merely a media invention, particularly promoted by the BBC, which was bound to end in tears.
They were never worthy of attaining SPL status and maintaining it, so it comes in no shock to find themselves in the mess they are in. This was inevitable.
But all the best to Brooks hopes he makes afull recovery.

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posted Feb 20, 2008

The only fairytale was the Scottish Cup run. The fact they rose up the Scottish Leagues was no surprise. Throw a bit of money at a few experienced SPL campaigners and any team could do that. Now they have been found out, and with no money could easily find themselves back in Kenny Deuchar's favourite stomping ground - Division 3. The fact is they aren't really a proper pro football club. Fans? Stadium? History? Youth Setups? Amateur all the way.

Farewell Gretna, but get well Mr. Mileson.

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posted Feb 20, 2008

Like anyone else, I hope Mr Mileson makes a full recovery. As far as I can see he is blameless in this fiasco. There was never a 'fairytale', still less a 'romance'. As noted by others above, this myth was created by media people with interest in the well-being of Scottish football a secondary consideration.
When Gretna were given entry to the SFL (fist mistake by others), Brooks saw what was obvious, namely that with minimum funding a team could be built to comfortably reach the First Division in successive years. It is clear for all to see that most teams in the SFL have no money.
The second error, again made by others, was to permit Gretna access to the SPL without making a firm commitment to compliance within a season. Ground sharing should never be an option, but I would suggest that henceforth the ground facilities should take precedence over number of seats for promotion criteria. I state this as a season ticket holder of a club which was forced to expand to 10,000 seats a number of years ago, seats which have never to my recollection been totally filled since. That club is St Mirren incidentally.

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posted Feb 22, 2008

self interest stills rules Scottish Football!

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Never a truer word spoken!!!!

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posted Feb 22, 2008

What's wrong with the best supported team (as a proportion of catchment area) getting to the top league? Too much jealousy and sticking in the past (too many Scots with the English disease?)

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posted Mar 2, 2008

These are sad days for sure but what exactly is wrong with a fan putting his money into a club he loves? What's wrong with a club rising above their "natural level"?
Even if it is over, they've given local people memories that will last a lifetime.
A lot of media folk see Gretna as a soft target. They daren't write anything that might offend the Old Firm supporters, but queue up to make snide comments about us (Hugh Keevans is the worst but there are many others).
We all knew it wouldn't last forever - what does in sport?
And no offence to St Johnstone, but they're only the third best team in Division 1 at the moment - what would they have contributed to the SPL exactly?!
And it goes without saying, get well soon Brookes; you're the man!

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