As Rangers face liquidation and a possible battle to have a ‘newco’ admitted into the SPL, Ian Roache looks at the quandary facing the country’s football club chiefs.
Perhaps it is time to count your blessings and offer thanks that you are not the chairman of an SPL club.
Of course, those running our top-flight teams are on the whole relatively wealthy individuals and, were they not facing arguably the toughest decision Scottish football has ever thrown up, they would be figures to be envied.
Occupying a position of authority in their community, enjoying all the perks of match-days at boardroom level and, in many cases, living the dream by being in charge of the side they backed as a child. It sounds just great, doesn’t it?
Maybe so, but who would wish to swap places with any of the club chiefs when they have to decide to either accept or reject the application for admittance to the SPL from a newco Rangers?
That is the quandary they now face following HMRC’s dismissal of Charles Green’s CVA proposal.
Despite approaches to the broadcasters looking for clarity, SPL officials still have no idea if the Sky TV deal will stand or fall should the Ibrox men fail to make it on to the fixture list for next season.
The chairmen are being asked to vote without knowing if the tie-up with Sky will survive a rejection of a Rangers newco.
A collapse in TV revenue will leave most clubs facing massive cuts to their wage bills, without which even administration could cast its long shadow over some.
On the other hand, opening the door to a newco brings the likelihood of a real and serious backlash from their own fans the withdrawal of actual and financial support at a time when it is difficult enough to shift season tickets without this massive cloud hanging over the game.
Discussions will take place as the scale of the crisis sinks in but there appears to be no obvious solution.
The chairmen are in a lose-lose situation if ever there was one.
One thing that could offer some hope, though, would be if conciliatory utterances started emanating from the Rangers camp.
Perhaps an offer to leave the way clear for a scrapping of the current 11-1 Old Firm veto on SPL voting would help, or a greater redistribution of wealth from the top to the bottom and even a willingness to look at a general freshening up of the game, eg an SPL 2, winter break and the like.
If something tangible can be offered in exchange for allowing newco Rangers in, then maybe many supporters of the likes of Aberdeen, Dundee United, Hearts, Hibs and St Johnstone will not do walking away after all.
Mind you, given the horrendous choice that awaits the chairmen, many of them probably wish they could do walking away themselves.