Smaller clubs must be allowed play their part

This Saturday's meeting of the Eircom-sponsored National League's 22 clubs at the Citywest Hotel has the potential to be remembered as a major turning point for the game here. There are, however, clearly enough divisions between some of the main parties to ensure difficulties between this weekend and the summer, when any firm decisions will be taken. The current debate was sparked off by the League's own blueprint document which was circulated to clubs prior to Christmas.

Having originally intended to propose a switch to what would effectively have been summer soccer, with the season running from early spring to late autumn, Merrion Square officials felt the need to water down the proposal and opt instead for the replacement of the current three-month break with two six-week rest periods, one of which would take in the Christmas/January period.

In fact, there has since been widespread support for the original idea and it now seems possible that a complete overhaul of the league season's timing will be one of the less controversial innovations considered this weekend.

Likewise the proposal of revamping the youth structures within clubs where the blueprint envisages the establishment of a new league for under-18 players has been enthusiastically greeted. The replacement of the current reserve division with a new competition is now almost certain as are new regulations aimed at ensuring that less experienced players are given opportunities at first-team level.

The issue which has inevitably become of central importance again ahead of this week's meeting is that of the league's size and structure.

The majority of the bigger clubs, led by Shamrock Rovers, Shelbourne, Bohemians and Derry City, favour a reduction in the number of top-flight sides from 12 to 10 with simultaneous changes to the promotion/relegation rules.

This would ensure greater long-term stability for those elite clubs looking to secure long-term investment. It's hardly surprising that clubs like Drogheda, Galway and Waterford oppose such changes and there are a considerable number that favour a 16-team or even larger Premier Division.

A push for a reduction is likely to succeed for if the main clubs are serious about their threat to breakaway they will get their way one way or another.

However, the bigger outfits need to be very careful. By and large the gap between the largest clubs here and those at the upper end of those who stand to be excluded under the proposed system is not so great as in somewhere like Scotland, where this sort of move has already been successfully carried out.

Celtic and Rangers have recently been talking of joining the proposed Atlantic League and Shelbourne have been talking about that, too. But there is scepticism in Glasgow about the willingness of Rangers and Celtic to actually take the leap into the dark. And it's much harder to believe that there's a place for the Dublin club in the new set up.

Scottish Premier League officials say that their understanding is that the new league would be played at weekends, would involve its members dropping out of their domestic leagues and would allow for promotion and relegation.

The initial talk is that the bottom two in the Atlantic League would take on the best two clubs from the various domestic leagues, to be decided by playoffs.

The upshot would appear to be that what Shelbourne are applying for might well end up involving resignation from the National League. Back at home Shelbourne have been at the forefront of the campaign for the 10-team Premier Division. Their critics have pointed to the fact that such a structure would be dominated by the Dublin club and there is a great deal of truth in this.

There is a need for a strong geographical spread of the senior clubs, exploiting the potential that exists most obviously in the north west, north east, Waterford, Galway and Limerick.

While the frustration of many clubs with the present situation is understandable they should be careful not to be blinded by the short-term gains which losing a couple of top-flight sides might offer.

Major change is long overdue here but now that we appear to be on the brink of instigating it, it's important that everybody gets the opportunity to play their part.

Due to pressure on space, Paddy Agnew's column has been held over.