Firstly, and most importantly, I hope this letter finds you and your family safe and well.
We live in challenging times and I am acutely aware there are more important topics than football at present. With many uncertainties around the game in Scotland, I feel it is appropriate for the club to set out our plan for the coming seasons.
Our move to professionalism at the end of last year was driven, in the main, by:
- the increased and emerging competition the club faced in protecting our SPFL place.
- a desire to create a pathway to professional football for our youth academy players.
- our move from the National Stadium to Lesser Hampden meant our ability to attract players, particularly on an amateur basis, would be diminished greatly.
The move to professionalism changed our outlook and meant we could take a more progressive and ambitious stance. Our plan was, and is, to transition our first team group to a full-time model, if we could achieve appropriate commercial sponsorship. This sponsorship has been secured. We are now ready to maximise the opportunity to progress upwards and provide a robust pathway for our youth players to showcase their talent.
Covid 19’s arrival has interrupted that plan somewhat. The early curtailment of the season meant we were denied the chance to compete for a play-off spot. League reconstruction talks, together with health and safety implications on restarting football, has made it extremely challenging for all clubs to prepare for the coming season.
The health of our nation, and the emergence from lockdown is the ultimate priority right now. The survival of football clubs up and down the country is at risk. As President of Queen’s Park, all I can do is provide as much certainty as I can, in the circumstances, about our place in Scottish football.
We are committed as a club to participate in competition next season, whenever it starts and at whatever level we are asked to play.
Stay Safe
Kindest Regards
Gerry Crawley
President, Queen’s Park Football Club