Partick Thistle 'can not accept' SPFL league plans

Partick Thistle have said that the SPFL plan to finalise the league, which would see them relegated to League 1, is unacceptable and unfair.

All Scottish senior clubs were told on Wednesday that the league body did not believe that the coronavirus crisis would allow the remaining games of the season to be played in good time.

Instead, it proposed an end to the season for the Championship and Leagues 1 and 2, with the current points being treated as final and all titles, promotion and relegation based on an average points per game.

Thistle are at the foot of the Championship table and would be relegated under that scenario. However, Ian McCall’s side only trail Queen of the South by two points and would have every chance of climbing out of trouble is fixtures were played out.

As a result, the club say they are unhappy with the SPFL proposal, and also criticised the linking of the league positions to the release of funds.

A club statement read: “Following today’s SPFL announcement, Partick Thistle FC will simply not accept this proposal as it stands. We believe that the proposal requires significantly more discussion, scrutiny and debate before any vote can be taken.

“We are now engaging with others to amend the proposal to identify a fairer and more equitable solution to address a number of inequalities it throws up.

“At an unprecedented time for football, we believe that it doesn’t meet the basic principle that no club should be left worse off by this important decision.

“It also seems to link acceptance of the proposal before payments can be made to hard-pressed clubs but, in our opinion, the two things do not need to be linked. Money to clubs is a priority, the proposal could be debated in slower time.”