The SPL fallout: Stand and be counted

Football Writer

Thursday 14 June 2012

THE first decision St Mirren supporters might have to make should their proposed takeover of the club become a reality could also turn out to be the most significant.

St Mirren fans could be required to steer their club's vote on whether to admit a newco Rangers. Picture: SNS

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Graeme Macpherson

A Community Interest Company (CIC) hoping to buy out the 52% shareholding put up for sale by a consortium of directors will know by midnight tomorrow whether their bid has succeeded. The proposal requires significant financial contributions from its members who in return they will be given the opportunity to vote on all major matters affecting the club. And then some.

First on the agenda could be the trifling matter of whether to permit a newco Rangers direct entry to the Scottish Premier League. Should the CIC takeover go through they will assume ownership of the club on July 4 and, with the SPL vote on the newco issue not likely to take place before June 29 at the earliest, there is every chance the change of ownership at St Mirren could occur just in time for the new fans' co-operative to have a major say in the biggest story to impact on Scottish football for decades.With any newco needing to secure an 8-4 majority to gain admission to the top flight, every one of the dozen votes could be crucial. St Mirren's input, therefore, could well be the greatest example of fan empowerment Scottish football has ever seen. The CIC are, understandably, using this as a carrot with which to entice more fans to support them, but with it comes a warning straight from a Spiderman movie: with great power comes great responsibility. Supporters of the other 11 SPL clubs have been fairly forthright in their opposition to the prospect of a newco being allowed entry to the league. It is an emotive issue and fans, in general, can act without any real consideration of the consequences of their actions. They will not be the ones who have to balance the books and keep their club running. The situation at St Mirren, therefore, could see two worlds collide. Supporters, who nearly always act with their hearts and not their heads, will become accountable for what happens as a result of their decisions. The natural reaction of the fans instructing the new CIC board, who in turn will guide the interim football board, will be a desire to punish Rangers, and to ensure the concept of sporting integrity is maintained. Such is their right in a one member, one vote arrangement. But, as the CIC have warned, if the fans choose to vote no to newco, then they must be aware that their actions could impinge greatly on St Mirren's financial health. "It would be the obligation of the board to clearly explain the financial implications that a yes or no vote would have on the club," reads the CIC's manifesto on the newco issue. "For example, a no vote may affect our income by up to £500,000 a year. The board would have to provide definitive options as to how that could be handled to allow the club to stay solvent."A yes vote could be on the condition that club voting reform happens thus enabling the expansion of the SPL without the blocking vote of only two clubs. Hopefully this demonstrates to all our members and SMISA [St Mirren Independent Supporters Association] the CIC is governed by its members' voice and that the power of that voice is much greater than a single fan representative on the board that has let down many other clubs over the years. The club will be owned by the community and governed by the fans."With the Rangers story evolving on a daily basis and St Mirren still in a state of flux, there are alternative scenarios that could play out. The CIC are still short of reaching the level of financial support they need to demonstrate they can meet the selling consortium's £1.5m asking price and Stewart Gilmour, the club chairman, told Herald Sport last week that there are other bidders waiting in the wings. Gilmour's response to the Rangers question yesterday – "it's very early days, there are still a lot of balls to land" – could well have been referring to his own club. The two other parties thought to be interested in buying St Mirren are based overseas and may have little interest in the moral argument of the Rangers issue and be more concerned over what it means from a business sense. If there is no change of ownership by the time the SPL vote comes around, then it would surely be in Gilmour's best interest to act in a manner that makes the club more attractive to potential investors.A third scenario could see the CIC takeover go through but the SPL board meeting called before they assume ownership on July 4. Gilmour would likely still cast the St Mirren vote as one of his last acts as chairman but could well be influenced by the CIC's interim board – Gordon Scott, Tony Fitzpatrick, Richard Atkinson, Chris Stewart and Brian Caldwell – who may advise him of the likely wishes of their members. It is them, after all, who will have to live with the consequences.

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The SPL fallout: Stand and be counted

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