When Thursday comes

Last updated : 26 July 2009 By Firparkcorner

TV rules the schedule
TV rules the schedule
It may be because the SPL season is not yet underway or because the games have taken place in the traditional holiday period but it seems that we have adjusted to this unusual timetable without much complaint.

Traditionalists may still shudder at the thought of football taking place on any of the seven days but in the era of subscription television we have accepted that the TV scheduler calls the shots. Plans for $ky/ESPN coverage of the first few weeks of the new season have called for a changes to eleven games already.

Fans of Dundee United and Hearts are to be deprived of their season opener on the first day of the new campaign. Instead they wait until the Monday evening for a 7.45 kick off with the consequent reduction in attendance. Celtic supporters will have an early start if they are to get to Aberdeen for their Saturday lunchtime affair and our own first meeting with Rangers at Fir Park will take place at 1215. (As ever, the broadcast schedule is geared to the Old Firm audience. Eight of the eleven TV games feature one of the pair and none will be beamed from Ibrox or Parkhead.)

Still, there will be few grumbles from fans of the Mighty 'Well if our run of Thursday evening entertainments carries on for a few weeks yet. If we can cause a bit of an upset and progress to the last round before the group stage the matches then our diaries will have to accommodate August 20 and August 27. That would cause movement of the SPL fixtures against Kilmarnock and Aberdeen to move back 24 hours to Sundays!

The problems of success…..