INVERNESS Caledonian Thistle chairman Ross Morrison has accused the SPFL of trying to coerce clubs into voting in favour of ending the 2019/20 season early by “holding a gun to our heads”.
Morrison revealed his Ladbrokes Championship club had opposed the governing body’s controversial resolution on Friday because they were unprepared to consign Hearts, Partick Thistle and Stranraer to relegation.
However, the Dundee-based property developer admitted he was deeply unhappy at the lack of dialogue between the six-man board and representatives of the 42 member clubs over the proposal.
He also believed that presenting clubs who are facing uncertain financial futures due to the coronavirus pandemic and football shutdown with just one option and handing them two days to vote – the SPFL set an optional deadline of 5pm on Friday - had pressurised them to accept it.
“I felt there was a gun to our heads from the SPFL,” said Morrison. “I don’t think we were given enough time by the SPFL. It was presented to us as a fait accompli and that’s not good enough. There was no dialogue.
“We weren’t given the 105 page resolution until 10 minutes after we actually started the conversation on Wednesday. We were on a Championship Zoom call at 1pm and I think we got it at 1.15pm. It is hardy good planning.
“I would find difficulty in reading and understanding 105 pages in two days. I just felt we should stick the brakes on it for a wee whiley.
“Hearts, Partick Thistle and Stranraer were going to be relegated and we didn’t feel it fair to relegate these clubs, put people out of jobs and lose them huge amounts of money in the exceptional circumstances we are living with today. We were turkeys voting for Christmas for these people and that’s not good enough.”
Rangers accused the SPFL of trying to bully and coerce clubs into voting in favour of the resolution on Friday and Ibrox interim chairman Douglas Park called for chief executive Neil Doncaster and legal adviser Rod McKenzie to be suspended pending an independent investigation on Saturday.
Morrison, whose Highland club had been in second top spot in the Championship and in with a chance of winning promotion through the play-offs before football was suspended last month, claimed unnecessary pressure was put on them.
“If you are told you can only get the money once this thing was voted on I think that is coercion is it not?” he said. “There was no dialogue. If you have got to consider a resolution of 105 pages and you get it 10 or 15 minutes after you are supposed to be chatting about it, there is a clue in there.
“We were never given the chance to do anything else. We were told we could put resolutions through, but then we were told they would take a week or two weeks or whatever it was. It was made difficult. It wasn’t made easy for us to reconsider the thing. That is why we were a little concerned about it.
“I felt Caley Thistle had a point of principle. Everybody has their own thoughts on these things and they are absolutely entitled to their own opinion. But we were given a free vote and we took the line that we have always taken.”
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