First Team
Match Report | Rangers 1-1 Dundee United
23rd November 2024
Dundee United and Dunfermline Athletic have announced that, after further consultation, their resolution to the SPL in respect of Inverness Caledonian Thitle has now been withdrawn.
Following extensive discussions with Inverness Caledonian Thistle (ICT) and bearing in mind the important part that football clubs play in their local communities, a proposal had been put forward by Dundee United and Dunfermline Athletic that, assuming promotion for ICT was agreed, we would support their case to play their home games at Inverness. It was agreed after Tuesday's SPL Board Meeting that a further 'sounding out' process would take place quickly to obtain the updated views of ICT and all other SPL clubs on this matter.
Following the long drawn out promotion/relegation debate, it would appear that a number of SPL clubs no longer wish to pursue this proposal. With the fixture list being announced today and any further SPL discussion on the Inverness issue not likely until mid July, it was considered by a number of SPL clubs that any further change of venue could only bring more attention to an already confused situation.
Also on the minds of a number of SPL delegates was the potential of legal action from other clubs who, in the past, had not been granted advantages (such as proposed for Inverness) on their stadia criteria and therefore these clubs had to invest heavily in their own grounds.
We have spoken at length to Ken Mackie, the ICT chairman, whose position is that the Club would obviously prefer to play at Inverness in the new season but who accepts the reality that this is unlikely to secure support of a majority of SPL clubs.
Ken Mackie said, "Given the information that SPL clubs are unhappy about the implications of a third vote, and indications that we would not be likely to win one, we must reluctantly accept that Dundee United and Dunfermline are withdrawing their proposal. We appreciate their reasons and thank them for their efforts.
"We now look forward to ground sharing with Aberdeen while maintaining our commitment to develop Caledonian Stadium to meet the SPL criteria."
It has been agreed, therefore, that now is the right time to withdraw the proposal and let everyone move on from here with the issuing of today's 2004/05-fixture list. It is with regret that Dundee United and Dunfermline Athletic have now had to come to this conclusion as we believed the right decision for the benefit of Scottish football would undoubtedly have been to allow ICT to get the real benefit from their promotion to the SPL by being allowed to play their SPL games at their own ground, in their own community, in front of their own fans.
Following extensive discussions with Inverness Caledonian Thistle (ICT) and bearing in mind the important part that football clubs play in their local communities, a proposal had been put forward by Dundee United and Dunfermline Athletic that, assuming promotion for ICT was agreed, we would support their case to play their home games at Inverness. It was agreed after Tuesday's SPL Board Meeting that a further 'sounding out' process would take place quickly to obtain the updated views of ICT and all other SPL clubs on this matter.
Following the long drawn out promotion/relegation debate, it would appear that a number of SPL clubs no longer wish to pursue this proposal. With the fixture list being announced today and any further SPL discussion on the Inverness issue not likely until mid July, it was considered by a number of SPL clubs that any further change of venue could only bring more attention to an already confused situation.
Also on the minds of a number of SPL delegates was the potential of legal action from other clubs who, in the past, had not been granted advantages (such as proposed for Inverness) on their stadia criteria and therefore these clubs had to invest heavily in their own grounds.
We have spoken at length to Ken Mackie, the ICT chairman, whose position is that the Club would obviously prefer to play at Inverness in the new season but who accepts the reality that this is unlikely to secure support of a majority of SPL clubs.
Ken Mackie said, "Given the information that SPL clubs are unhappy about the implications of a third vote, and indications that we would not be likely to win one, we must reluctantly accept that Dundee United and Dunfermline are withdrawing their proposal. We appreciate their reasons and thank them for their efforts.
"We now look forward to ground sharing with Aberdeen while maintaining our commitment to develop Caledonian Stadium to meet the SPL criteria."
It has been agreed, therefore, that now is the right time to withdraw the proposal and let everyone move on from here with the issuing of today's 2004/05-fixture list. It is with regret that Dundee United and Dunfermline Athletic have now had to come to this conclusion as we believed the right decision for the benefit of Scottish football would undoubtedly have been to allow ICT to get the real benefit from their promotion to the SPL by being allowed to play their SPL games at their own ground, in their own community, in front of their own fans.
