AIRDRIE, the football club that died two months ago, is alive and ready to play again at the expense of another famous name in Scottish football, Clydebank.
The Lanarkshire club, which fought a battle against insolvency before going out of business in the absence of a buyer, is to buy out Clydebank, which was also in severe financial straits.
The move by Jim Ballantyne, the man behind the newly-formed Airdrie United, has been given the backing of the six-man committee of Scottish Football League.
Clydebank supporters condemned the decision, which will see the end of the second division side.Paul Cummings, of the United Clydebank Supporters (UCS) group, said he burst into tears on learning the news, adding: ''It is a very sad day for Clydebank. I am disgusted at the way the league management committee has treated us. In accepting Jim Ballantyne's offer the committee has turned the league into a franchise.
''They have set a dangerous precedent and have opened the door for clubs like Carlisle United to join the Scottish Premier League through a side door by buying over Motherwell.''
Jack Steedman, the former From Page 1
SFL president who, along with his brother Charlie, founded Clydebank in 1966 before selling the club in 1997, expressed his surprise at the league's decision.
''I am astonished that the management committee have agreed to this. It sets a precedent whereby a struggling club can be bought over, removed it from its base, and its place in the league taken up. I am certain it would not have happened in my day.''
Airdrie, who were in the Scottish first division last season, spent 25 months in administration but had to concede defeat, and although Mr Ballantyne stepped in to form a new club, they did not win approval for the place in the league made available by their own demise.
Instead, the league's management committee opted to give that slot to Gretna.
Clydebank have been in administration for 18 months. Yesterday's decision means Airdrie United will play in the second division in the new season, taking up the fixtures that would have been filled by Clydebank.
Peter Donald, SFL secretary, said: ''We have discussed the matter fully and decided in principle that we have no objection to the offer moving on to the next stage. The name Clydebank will not continue in Scottish football and that is a matter of great regret, as Clydebank had a great role to play for many years.''
Les Jones, a spokesman for the Airdrie supporters, said last night: ''This is a great day for Airdrie. I feel totally relieved. I just expected it to all go wrong again. Obviously we sympathise with everyone involved at Clydebank. We would have preferred it if they could have survived as well. But it wasn't possible.''
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