Summer term back on agenda
JUNIOR football chiefs are in talks which could finally drive the grade towards a summer season following another campaign of weather carnage.
Every single junior fixture in Scotland today has been postponed after the Beast from the East left a snowy trail of destruction across grounds.
The whiteout adds further weight to an already creaking backlog of fixtures across the three regions.
This column called for a switch to summer football last week but it remains a subject which splits opinion among supporters, players and coaches.
However, we can reveal the SJFA have drafted a paper to be discussed at their next management meeting looking at the pros and cons of a switch away from the current calendar.
Discussions are at an early stage but up for debate is the prospect of the season running through May, June, July and August with March the likely start.
SJFA chief Tom Johnston said: “Summer football is on our agenda and we have put together a paper looking at the pros and cons of moving season.
“That will be discussed at our next management meeting but it’s not something that will happen overnight.
“We will continue to discuss the matter before putting it to the clubs.”
We told last week how a number of junior sides are struggling under the strain of the deteriorating weather.
The worst cases have seen some clubs including Girvan, Fauldhouse, Johnstone Burgh and East Kilbride go three months without a home fixture.
Incredibly, Forth Wanderers haven’t played at their Kingshill ground since August. Club spokesman Stewart Barrett admitted the future of the 114-year-old club was in danger due to the lack of income through the gates.
And he said: “We are on our uppers. There are no two ways about it. I know a lot of football fans are traditionalists but there comes a time when you simply have to admit we need to move to a summer season.”
The SJFA stepped in to help with the postponement crisis eight years ago by handing out £160,000 of grants to member clubs.
But Johnston admitted the governing body is not in a position to do so again.
He said: “This can’t be far off being the worst season on record for postponements. But you can’t just say we will move to a summer season. It definitely splits opinion.”