INVERNESS Caledonian Thistle finally claimed their place in the Bank of Scotland Premierleague yesterday after member clubs voted 10-2 in favour of their groundsharing proposal with Aberdeen.
The decision means Partick Thistle, whose appeal to the Court of Session for an interim interdict to block the ballot was turned down, will now be relegated to the Bell's Scottish League Division One.
The saga appeared to have ended last night, two days before the fixture list for next season is published, when Partick said they would not exercise their right to appeal against the decision.
The club said they need stability as they prepare for the new season and hoped their supporters would understand.
Inverness looked to have been denied their place in the top flight earlier this month when the same groundshare proposal failed to secure the required eight votes from member clubs.
However, Hearts and Hibs then tabled a new resolution for a second ballot citing confusion over groundshare deadline criteria, which was carried yesterday. The Herald understands that Dundee joined Partick in voting against the proposal.
Ken Mackie, the Inverness chairman, said: ''I'm delighted and hope this is the end of it because it has been a long-drawn out affair for both ourselves and Partick Thistle. But I'm always slightly cautious now as there have been so many twists and turns.''
Despite yesterday's decision, Dundee United have tabled a resolution, backed by Dunfermline Athletic, for Inverness to be allowed to play their home games at their own Caledonian Stadium next season.
Yesterday's meeting also voted to reduce the 10,000 seat criteria to 6000 for the start of the 2005-06 season, and the Highlanders now claim they could meet the new criteria by the end of August this year.
Mackie added: ''Our preference will be to play at the Caledonian Stadium next season. If Eddie Thompson [the Dundee United chairman] is prepared to carry that [resolution] on then we can get our stadium up to 6000 seats by a couple of weeks into the season. It would save us money but it would also save our fans a 200-mile round trip.
''I'll speak to Eddie Thompson to establish what the mood was like in the SPL meeting towards the resolution. We'd need to know that it would have a realistic chance of success. I'm beginning to look at it as a long shot.''
Partick, who spent heavily to meet the 10,000-seat criteria when promoted in 2002, still have the option to lodge an appeal to the Scottish Football Association (SFA) against the SPL's decision.
But co-manager Gerry Britton said last night: ''We had a meeting and we have decided that we are not going to appeal against the decision. Obviously we are disappointed about the goings-on but we feel there has been too much instability and we need to move on. We will be playing in the first division next season.
''I hope the fans will accept our decision. The situation has affected player signings and even the players we have already signed up. Season tickets have been hampered and the whole game has been dragged down.''
Tom Hughes, the Partick Thistle, chairman, said earlier: ''There is a board meeting arranged for Friday because we really have to allow all the board members a say. They backed our course of action 100%. But we have to start concentrating on the football side.''
The news of Inverness's promotion was warmly welcomed by Chris Robinson, Hearts' chief executive. ''It is a good day for football. Inverness Caley Thistle's name is on Thursday's fixture list.''
Keith Wyness, the Aberdeen chief executive whose club stand to gain about (pounds) 600,000 from the groundsharing agreement with Inverness, said common sense had prevailed and that this would help restore some credibility.
The confusion over stadia requirement deadlines was also dealt with at the meeting. Clubs will now have to submit groundsharing proposals by June 1, while the existing March 31 deadline will continue to apply for clubs to ensure that their own grounds meet the criteria.
Yesterday's decision is also the last to be made by all 12 SPL member clubs. A five-man SPL board will now take over the decision-making process.
Hughes said he was confident Partick's case had led to a welcome clarification of the SPL's rules and regulations. ''A lot of hard lessons have been learned and I think you will find the rules will be tightened and improved. We have achieved a lot for smaller clubs in Scotland. On the face of it, it is a defeat for Partick Thistle but I think it is a victory for football and common sense.''
Like Partick, any plans Inverness had to bolster their squad had been put on hold. Their manager, John Robertson, now faces a race against time to assemble a squad capable of competing in the SPL before the new campaign begins.
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