Forthcoming Fixtures

[Andy_P]

Just been taking a wee shifty at our forthcoming fixtures to try to get a feel for where we might see the Inverness game re-scheduled and the St Johnstone game that will be postponed because of the League Cup Semi. One or two wee oddities struck me.

 

Aberdeen up on 25th January less than a month after we went up there. Seems a shade quick no?

 

The St Johnstone match has been pulled from the fixture list on the 'fishel because of their involvement in the League Cup Semis but that would have been another case of being scheduled to play them twice within 4 or 5 weeks. Again quite a quick turnaround.

 

And again, if you were including that postponed St Johnstone game, we would have been due to play Thistle twice within seven games fixtures.

 

Yet in contrast we last faced Hibs on 3rd November and it will be just shy of 5 months before we meet them again towards the end of March.

 

Folk will draw their own conclusions whether these apparent quirks in the schedule will be to our benefit, detriment or don't make a blind bit of difference. Just seemed a little odd to me though.

[Steve Diggle]

I don't get the scheduling andy.

 

I can't figure out firstly why something so apparently illogical comes from a computer (allegedly)

 

Secondly when there are some strange groupings why there can't be some manual intervention to prevent us travelling to. Aberdeen over the festive period for example.

[texanwellfan]

I don't get the scheduling andy.

 

I can't figure out firstly why something so apparently illogical comes from a computer (allegedly)

 

Secondly when there are some strange groupings why there can't be some manual intervention to prevent us travelling to. Aberdeen over the festive period for example.

 

 

I was thinking the same thing about holidya fixtures. especially cramming a bunch into a short space of time. Surely make sense ( there's the problem ) to "regionalize" games over that period to allow for timely postponements, if needed, and limit travel times for supporters.

 

North: Aberdeen, Dundee Utd, Inverness, Ross County, St Johnstone

 

South: Celtic, Partick, St Mirren, Motherwell, Kilmarnock

 

 

Hearts and Hibs could fit in there somewhere.

[rambunctious]

I was thinking the same thing about holidya fixtures. especially cramming a bunch into a short space of time. Surely make sense ( there's the problem ) to "regionalize" games over that period to allow for timely postponements, if needed, and limit travel times for supporters.

 

North: Aberdeen, Dundee Utd, Inverness, Ross County, St Johnstone

 

South: Celtic, Partick, St Mirren, Motherwell, Kilmarnock

 

 

Hearts and Hibs could fit in there somewhere.

 

In fairness, Aberdeen are miles away from anyone. Dundee is closest, yet even that is over an hour in the car. The travel time from Motherwell to Aberdeen is about the same as Inverness to Aberdeen, and shorter than Dingwall to Aberdeen.

 

It's shite living up North

[Goggles & Flippers]

I don't know why during the intensive festive period of 4 games within a short period, when the emphasis is on family getting together and spending time together (no on a motorway), combine that with a bit of a financial dip next season when Hearts drop out the league and are replaced by either Accies or Falkirk, why the powers that be don't use a bit of nonse.

 

I don't know why the league at fixture setting time set the clubs into 3 groups of 4 to schedule 3 games around this period based on geographic location. I'd finesse Texan's suggestion from above slightly.

 

At present you're looking at:

 

ICT

Ross County

Aberdeen

Dundee Utd

 

Well

Partick

Killie

St Mirren

 

Celtic

Hibs

Hearts

St Johnstone

 

I'd advocate Celtic being in the Hibs/Hearts group and us replacing them in the Glasgow/Ayrshire one as they have a fan base from all over the country and can wreck stadiums regardless of where they are.

 

New Year is Derby Day, it doesn't need to be as I think you'd generally get a higher attendance for any fixture as more people are off work. However the four teams in each group would give you the fixtures for Boxing Day, New Year, 28th/29th

 

There may be some movement over the years as teams drop out and come up, you would imagine in 2 years time Celtic would be in the same group as the promoted currants which would result in us switching to the Edinburgh one or if Ross County were to drop, then St Johnstone would switch into their group.

 

If fans could accept that over that period there was a good chance you would tend to see the same teams wither it be home or away, would that upset many on here?

[Frazzie]

Not in the slightest, but common sense tends to upset those in power in the Scottish game unfortunately.

[sbcmfc]

The travelling support we took to firhill shows what could happen if this common sense approach was adopted!

 

Playing Aberdeen on Boxing Day was never going to attract a crowd. Most folk are spending time with family, there's no public transport etc.

 

I was actually wondering if the Boxing Day and New Year's Day fixtures are an outdated tradition?

 

Is Boxing Day even a traditional fixture in Scotland? Or did we adopt that from the English?

[Sup3rw3ll]

Welcome to the wonderful world of the 12 team league! There will be more of this at the end of the season when the split comes around.

If we had a normal football league of 18 to 20 then we'd play teams only once home away and none of these issues.... but that'll ruin Scottish fitbaw!

I'm also Sure I read on the old official spl site that the computer did the first run of the fixtures, then they were hand tweaked as required for various reasons before release.

[Frazzie]

I think Xmas falling on a Wednesday has an impact too. With the trains being off, I would have driven up if I could have dumped the car at a hotel, had a few beers and stayed overnight but I was back at work the next day and I imagine a few folk were in the same boat.

[Goggles & Flippers]

Welcome to the wonderful world of the 12 team league! There will be more of this at the end of the season when the split comes around.

If we had a normal football league of 18 to 20 then we'd play teams only once home away and none of these issues.... but that'll ruin Scottish fitbaw!

I'm also Sure I read on the old official spl site that the computer did the first run of the fixtures, then they were hand tweaked as required for various reasons before release.

 

You'll have to explain why having 18 teams opposed to 12 would result in fixtures being generated that don't result in us being sent on a 300 mile round trip the day after Christmas.

 

I don't think a 18 team will ruin Scottish football, it'll certainly fuck it up for 5 years or so until the standard of the 6 promoted teams improve and the top 12 adjust their budgets and playing staff to take account of the loss of established visiting fan revenues and TV money.

 

Keep the blue sky thinking going though, don't let me stifle your creativity.

[MainStandPigeon]

Hi folks just joined

 

Noticed as well after we play Aberdeen on the 25th of Jan we won't play again until the 15th of Feb. Inverness have the League Cup Semi on the 2nd of Feb and the Scottish Cup on the 8th then back to normal on the 15th. Doesn't look like we'll be playing them any time soon, guessing we might play them between the 22nd of Feb and the 1st of March.

 

Wouldn't be surprised if McCall arranged a game between the 25th Jan and 15th Feb to keep the players ticking over.

[Onthefringes]

Hi folks just joined

 

Noticed as well after we play Aberdeen on the 25th of Jan we won't play again until the 15th of Feb. Inverness have the League Cup Semi on the 2nd of Feb and the Scottish Cup on the 8th then back to normal on the 15th. Doesn't look like we'll be playing them any time soon, guessing we might play them between the 22nd of Feb and the 1st of March.

 

Wouldn't be surprised if McCall arranged a game between the 25th Jan and 15th Feb to keep the players ticking over.

Hopefully in sunnier climes as some of us are in need of a holiday

[Sup3rw3ll]

You'll have to explain why having 18 teams opposed to 12 would result in fixtures being generated that don't result in us being sent on a 300 mile round trip the day after Christmas.

 

I don't think a 18 team will ruin Scottish football, it'll certainly fuck it up for 5 years or so until the standard of the 6 promoted teams improve and the top 12 adjust their budgets and playing staff to take account of the loss of established visiting fan revenues and TV money.

 

Keep the blue sky thinking going though, don't let me stifle your creativity.

 

that was my attempt at sarcasm, i guess it didn't work! : ) 18 team league would provide more variation and competition. the whole story that we'd have to divide the money thinner is urban legend talk to keep the 4 O.F games going. You would take the money for the top six Championship places and add it to the SPFL so there was the same money going round. Then add the other 3 leagues together to form 2 larger leagues and rerarange the money pro rata. People would be quick to point out less money in lower leagues, but the quality of said leagues has just went down so naturally it has less value and therefore obvious the prize money in those leagues go down.

 

the 18 team league would mean you'd only play aberdeen twice and so that 1 visit away would have less change happening on boxing day. there are also more teams that we could have been drawn against in a bigger league.. but we might still have been screwed over and went up on that day.. still a win's a win!