Butcher Launches Broadside

Last updated : 19 January 2011 By Caleyjagsadmin

CALEY JAGS boss Terry Butcher launched an amazing broadside against the proposed SPL reconstruction.

Butcher not only criticised the SPL's proposals for reconstruction, which involve a 10-team top tier and a 12-team second tier, but also the clubs that are showing "weakness" at allowing the plans to go through.

Last week, Inverness released a club statement announcing that they felt misled by the SPL's 10-team SPL plans.

The club believed that the SPL Strategy Group was looking to choose between 12 and 14 clubs and it was a shock to them that the SPL came forward with a proposal to reduce the SPL to 10 clubs.

And last night, manager Butcher starkly reflected the feeling in Inverness that they and the other smaller clubs are being bullied and conspired against in a frank radio interview.

Butch told BBC Scotland: "If you're looking at reconstruction, you're not looking at deconstruction. Deconstruction's a 10-team league, it's going back to the dinosaur era.

"I think it's a disgrace. I think we're being bullied; my chairman's being bullied by the SPL and by other clubs as well. Other clubs have shown their weakness by conforming to the Old Firm and to the SPL.

"It goes against all the public wishes, they do not want to see us return to a 10-team league. They're saying that it might increase the finance but there's been no clear indication as to how much of an increase going down from the SPL.

"Three clubs go down from the SPL if this comes to play. We went down (in 2009), lost about £1.5m, lost a lot of staff, lost the heart and soul of the club and were luckily able to come back up in one year. Other clubs won't have that luxury and it could mean the end or administration for a lot of clubs in the future.

"And with administration, local businesses suffer, the innocent suffer. People are not aware of that, they don't know what they're voting for when it comes to the Armageddon of relegation. We do, we've been there, we know what it's like. Yet, no-one has consulted us, no-one even spoke to us about it.

"So, therefore we feel really strongly and I actually feel that the SPL don't want Inverness Caley Thistle in it because we're up there, geographically out of the way, out on a limb. Who cares about Caley Thistle?"

TO HEAR THE FULL INTERVIEW, VISIT BBC SPORT SCOTLAND WEBSITE CLICK HERE: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/scotland/9366087.stm

 

Follow CaleyJagsMad on Twitter