24 Feb 2009Smith backs SPL reserve team proposals

Football Clubs News | Football Leagues/ Association and Governance

The Scottish Football Association (SFA) has welcomed the idea of top-flight clubs fielding reserve teams in the lower leagues, it was revealed yesterday (February 23rd).

Celtic are reportedly weighing up a bid to get a B team into the Third Division after the Scottish Premier League (SPL) announced recently that it is set to scrap its reserve league.

Now SFA chief executive Gordon Smith has explained that such a move could have benefits for both the big clubs and the smaller clubs plying their trade in the lower leagues.

He told BBC Scotland: "This is something I proposed quite some time ago when I was a BBC pundit.

"I thought it would be good for Rangers and Celtic but might also be good for the clubs in the lower divisions as it would give their crowds a boost and could be profitable.

"Albeit it would be their reserve teams, but we could still have a very strong squad of players playing in the lower division."

If the proposal goes through, it would bring Scotland in line with a number of countries across Europe which allow their top-flight clubs to run reserve teams in lower divisions.

Last week, it was confirmed that an independent arbitration panel commissioned by the SFA backed plans to form a second tier of the SPL.

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