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View Full Version : SPL reconstruction, Hughes, contracts & TV money



PaulSmith
03-10-2010, 01:55 PM
There has been a number of sound bytes from Hughes about what is going on at the club behind the scenes and the bigger picture.

Could it be that Petrie is already aware that the SPL will vote for a 16 team league in a few weeks which will mean no relegation but more importantly that SKY/ESPN might exercise their right to walk away from the current TV deal and leave Scottish football facing another financial nightmare.

That being the case it would make complete financial sense not to offer anyone an extended contract until we're sure of what kind of league we'll be in next season and what/if any money will be on offer from SKY/ESPN. That could also explain the vibes that Hughes will be given to Christmas as well.

There are also the recent comments about Hibs/Hearts/OF entering teams in the lower reaches of the Scottish Leagues, how does this effect Hibs and their strategy of producing their own players.

BEEJ
03-10-2010, 02:02 PM
I've wondered about some of that myself.

But even if there was no relegation this season, how long could the Board persist with a manager presiding over such abject team performances as we are seeing now? How far would they be content to watch our attendances dwindle before acting?

The_Todd
03-10-2010, 02:09 PM
I'd say Petrie would need to be 100% certain the vote would go in favour of the expansion for him to be not bothered about finishing bottom. He's not really a gambling man, and I'd say this was a big gamble.

--------
03-10-2010, 02:31 PM
There has been a number of sound bytes from Hughes about what is going on at the club behind the scenes and the bigger picture.

Could it be that Petrie is already aware that the SPL will vote for a 16 team league in a few weeks which will mean no relegation but more importantly that SKY/ESPN might exercise their right to walk away from the current TV deal and leave Scottish football facing another financial nightmare.

That being the case it would make complete financial sense not to offer anyone an extended contract until we're sure of what kind of league we'll be in next season and what/if any money will be on offer from SKY/ESPN. That could also explain the vibes that Hughes will be given to Christmas as well.

There are also the recent comments about Hibs/Hearts/OF entering teams in the lower reaches of the Scottish Leagues, how does this effect Hibs and their strategy of producing their own players.


If he's thinking that way - and I'd be rather surprised if he were, not least because as The_Todd says, it would be quite a gamble, and RP doesn't strike me as the gambling type - he's wrong.

It's not just about whether Hibs go down this season - though I very much fear we will if Hughes is still in the job come Christmas - it's about the immediate and long-term future of the club.

The business plan depends on Hibs producing young talent. These young players fill places in the first team, thus avoiding the need to pay transfer fees to other clubs, and when they move on they produce revenue in the form of transfer fees coming in, thus allowing the club to improve its salary structures and thus attract better players when we DO need to bring experienced players in. This is the way an EFFICIENT club can compete at a decent level, even if their fan-base is relatively small.

Hughes patently hasn't a clue about tactics and team preparation. Nor is he the man to whom I would comfortably entrust the future of any youngster I cared about. He comes over to me as a self-obsessed bully who thinks he can talk his way out of any tight corner his incompetence gets him into.

He needs to go - there will be no betterment for Hibernian until he does go.

And WHEN he's gone - which I pray will be VERY VERY SOON, the first thing Rod Petrie and the board need to do is to SIT DOWN AND CARRY OUT A STRINGENT REVIEW OF THEIR RECRUITMENT PROCEDURES AND CRITERIA.

Because it's not just about Hughes being the manager he is - it's about why we've had 7 managers in the last 10 years, and why the good work on finance, East Mains, and the stadium are now being endangered by the antics of The Clown Without A Clue.

Gatecrasher
03-10-2010, 02:38 PM
There has been a number of sound bytes from Hughes about what is going on at the club behind the scenes and the bigger picture.

Could it be that Petrie is already aware that the SPL will vote for a 16 team league in a few weeks which will mean no relegation but more importantly that SKY/ESPN might exercise their right to walk away from the current TV deal and leave Scottish football facing another financial nightmare.

That being the case it would make complete financial sense not to offer anyone an extended contract until we're sure of what kind of league we'll be in next season and what/if any money will be on offer from SKY/ESPN. That could also explain the vibes that Hughes will be given to Christmas as well.

There are also the recent comments about Hibs/Hearts/OF entering teams in the lower reaches of the Scottish Leagues, how does this effect Hibs and their strategy of producing their own players.
i hope not that would suck more than 12 teams imo

Houchy
03-10-2010, 02:48 PM
There has been a number of sound bytes from Hughes about what is going on at the club behind the scenes and the bigger picture.

Could it be that Petrie is already aware that the SPL will vote for a 16 team league in a few weeks which will mean no relegation but more importantly that SKY/ESPN might exercise their right to walk away from the current TV deal and leave Scottish football facing another financial nightmare.

That being the case it would make complete financial sense not to offer anyone an extended contract until we're sure of what kind of league we'll be in next season and what/if any money will be on offer from SKY/ESPN. That could also explain the vibes that Hughes will be given to Christmas as well.

There are also the recent comments about Hibs/Hearts/OF entering teams in the lower reaches of the Scottish Leagues, how does this effect Hibs and their strategy of producing their own players.

I alluded to this on a different thread. I jokingly said that Petrie may not view relegation as a bad thing as the last time we were relegated, the following season, our attendances were, IIRC, the 3rd highest in Scotland. This would mean that he could keep Yogi on for another year and thus the compo payment for getting shot of him a year down the line would be lower.

I'm not saying that he'd take relegation but if there was a league restructuring which meant no relegation???

What you say about the league re-structuring has actually got me worried that I wasn't too far off the mark. Surely he couldn't be thinking along these lines, no matter how much of a businessman he is... Could he???:hmmm::Ummm::paranoid:

Jones28
03-10-2010, 02:48 PM
i hope not that would suck more than 12 teams imo

At least you wouldnt be playing the same teams 3 times a season (four with the split)

hibee4life1983
03-10-2010, 03:11 PM
No chance of a 16 team spl, stadiums are too poor and fall short of the ten thousand seats law. Teams like dundee, would anyone actualy want them back playing top flight? I no i wouldnt, then theres the question of how theese teams are picked? Who decides? Cant see it imo.

CropleyWasGod
03-10-2010, 03:13 PM
No chance of a 16 team spl, stadiums are too poor and fall short of the ten thousand seats law. Teams like dundee, would anyone actualy want them back playing top flight? I no i wouldnt, then theres the question of how theese teams are picked? Who decides? Cant see it imo.

Why not? They have a fan base that's bigger than much of the SPL.

PaulSmith
03-10-2010, 03:16 PM
No chance of a 16 team spl, stadiums are too poor and fall short of the ten thousand seats law. Teams like dundee, would anyone actualy want them back playing top flight? I no i wouldnt, then theres the question of how theese teams are picked? Who decides? Cant see it imo.

There is no 10k seat law only criteria that is set by the SPL and the SPL are voting on some massive and historic changes in the next 10 weeks.

You can bet that the SPL chairmen will already have canvassed opinion and will be sure what will go through and won't.
SFL and SFA also involved in these talks.

Gatecrasher
03-10-2010, 03:22 PM
At least you wouldnt be playing the same teams 3 times a season (four with the split)

if there were to be 15 home games per season i would expect a comparitive drop in ST prices (i cant see that happening some how)

there was even rumours of an 8/8 split :rolleyes:
this sounds worse than what we have now!

i would be willing to give it a chance but can see this killing the game even more

why cant we have an 18 team league with home and away for each team and thats it?

with the OP in mind it could explain the new signings being on short contracts!

Mary Hinge
03-10-2010, 03:32 PM
if there were to be 15 home games per season i would expect a comparitive drop in ST prices (i cant see that happening some how)

there was even rumours of an 8/8 split :rolleyes:
this sounds worse than what we have now!

i would be willing to give it a chance but can see this killing the game even more

why cant we have an 18 team league with home and away for each team and thats it?

with the OP in mind it could explain the new signings being on short contracts!

I certainly agree with an 18 team league, playing alternatively home and away every Saturday with a 3:00pm kick off.

**** the TV companies, let's get the stadiums filled :agree:

PC Stamp
03-10-2010, 03:42 PM
There is no 10k seat law only criteria that is set by the SPL and the SPL are voting on some massive and historic changes in the next 10 weeks.

You can bet that the SPL chairmen will already have canvassed opinion and will be sure what will go through and won't.
SFL and SFA also involved in these talks.

:agree: The 10000 seat rule was done away with some time ago IIRC and amended to 6000 or such. St Mirren only have an 8000 capacity. Hamilton 6078. Falkirk 8000 permanent seats with about another 1000 temporary.

David@EasterRoad
03-10-2010, 04:22 PM
A guy i know who is a scout for an spl team told me that almost two thirds of the pro players in the uk are out of contract next summer. Not sure if its true but might explain why the club are holding back, lots of players out of contract means a bit more power to the clubs.

In general, with so much movement of players and managers these days is there much point in Hibs giving out long term deals to players over 24?

hibee4life1983
03-10-2010, 04:50 PM
It will not happen imo, regardless of the stadium criteria, must have missed the change in rules, stella!!lol

Nameless
03-10-2010, 05:37 PM
If we had a 16 team top league, I think Dunfermline, Dundee, Raith Rovers and Ross County would be good additions. All these teams have a decent home support, and have a massive potential support if you look at the numbers they have taken to SC semi's/finals in the last few years. Also, each team has a good stadium and, with the exception of Dundee, are very well run clubs. A potential re-jig of the league cup format with games played on a Saturday could make up the shortfall in games.

Kaiser1962
03-10-2010, 05:46 PM
The league needs to have 30 games to meet European criteria. It could be argued that Dunfermline, Raith Rovers, Dundee and Falkirk all should be given the opportunity to hump us on a weekly basis. Raith in particular have suffered after stretching their finances to make Starks Park "SPL compliant" and are only now looking like challenging to get into the top flight. Change needs to happen and i would like to think that our board will have us in as good a position as any to meet any new challenges. The downside of a 16 team league is that clubs would have 4 less home games a season. I dont know if this is the answer or not but something needs to be done.

jdships
03-10-2010, 05:51 PM
if there were to be 15 home games per season i would expect a comparitive drop in ST prices (i cant see that happening some how)

there was even rumours of an 8/8 split :rolleyes:
this sounds worse than what we have now!

i would be willing to give it a chance but can see this killing the game even more

why cant we have an 18 team league with home and away for each team and thats it?

with the OP in mind it could explain the new signings being on short contracts!

I can go along with your take 100% :thumbsup:
No splits , no gimmicks , lets just play each other home and away .
This would allow " the devil take the hindmost" and be relegated .
Makes sense surely ?

:bye:

.Sean.
03-10-2010, 06:41 PM
I can't see many teams voting in favour of expanding the SPL - Simply because more teams means less TV money in the coffers as Sky/ESPN won't offer any more cash and the money would have to be split more than 12 ways.

broonie27
03-10-2010, 08:59 PM
If he's thinking that way - and I'd be rather surprised if he were, not least because as The_Todd says, it would be quite a gamble, and RP doesn't strike me as the gambling type - he's wrong.

It's not just about whether Hibs go down this season - though I very much fear we will if Hughes is still in the job come Christmas - it's about the immediate and long-term future of the club.

The business plan depends on Hibs producing young talent. These young players fill places in the first team, thus avoiding the need to pay transfer fees to other clubs, and when they move on they produce revenue in the form of transfer fees coming in, thus allowing the club to improve its salary structures and thus attract better players when we DO need to bring experienced players in. This is the way an EFFICIENT club can compete at a decent level, even if their fan-base is relatively small.

Hughes patently hasn't a clue about tactics and team preparation. Nor is he the man to whom I would comfortably entrust the future of any youngster I cared about. He comes over to me as a self-obsessed bully who thinks he can talk his way out of any tight corner his incompetence gets him into.

He needs to go - there will be no betterment for Hibernian until he does go.

And WHEN he's gone - which I pray will be VERY VERY SOON, the first thing Rod Petrie and the board need to do is to SIT DOWN AND CARRY OUT A STRINGENT REVIEW OF THEIR RECRUITMENT PROCEDURES AND CRITERIA.

Because it's not just about Hughes being the manager he is - it's about why we've had 7 managers in the last 10 years, and why the good work on finance, East Mains, and the stadium are now being endangered by the antics of The Clown Without A Clue.

Much as I hate selling off ALL our talent at the VERY FIRST given opportunity I totally agree with your post.

Woody1985
04-10-2010, 10:16 AM
In the same way we sold fletcher to Celtic at the first opportunity. Oh, wait...

bawheid
04-10-2010, 10:40 AM
Because it's not just about Hughes being the manager he is - it's about why we've had 7 managers in the last 10 years, and why the good work on finance, East Mains, and the stadium are now being endangered by the antics of The Clown Without A Clue.

The Clown Without A Clue. Good one. Are you here all week? Hopefully now that we've shafted another manager the personal stuff can stop.

Maybe the reason the Board are better at the infrastructure stuff is because the Hibs supporters allow them to get on with the planning and organisation that is required. This takes time, but because some goon isn't booing from the top of his lungs that the new stand hasn't been built yet, the job gets done.

PaulSmith
04-10-2010, 03:13 PM
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11452434

Plus awaiting outcome of this case against pubs showing SKY on foreign channels

broonie27
04-10-2010, 09:41 PM
In the same way we sold fletcher to Celtic at the first opportunity. Oh, wait...

Did Celtic actually make a bid? Regardless, that's a single instance when we didn't cave - got any more?