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SPL - How good a standard is it?
- Thread starter Mellotron
- Start date
ATFC Seagull
Aberystwyth Town FC
Did you make this up, or do you genuinely believe that Willo Flood, Barry Robson, Kris Boyd and Scott Macdonald (might give you that one) were the best players in the SPL?
Are you seriously arguing that Kris Boyd has not been one of the top strikers in that league in the past 5 years?
ATFC Seagull
Aberystwyth Town FC
Scored a lot of goals - often dropped by Rangers and overlooked by a succession of Scotland managers...
Yes, but according to you, the highest scorer in the history of the SPL is apparently not one of the top strikers there.
And his international record is 7 in 16 appearances, so clearly a tidy player by Scotch standards.
Don Quixote
Well-known member
- Nov 4, 2008
- 8,362
Rangers and Celtic could easily be in the premier league if they joined.
ATFC Seagull
Aberystwyth Town FC
Yes, but according to you, the highest scorer in the history of the SPL is apparently not one of the top strikers there.
And his international record is 7 in 16 appearances, so clearly a tidy player by Scotch standards.
I think the 16 appearances bit says more than the 7 goals. If I remember rightly, one reason he left Rangers because he wasn't happy with often being on the bench.
Anyways, I can give you that Boyd and Mcdonald came to the Championship with good SPL records, but to suggest Boro signed 6 of the best players in the league is way off the mark - and not really here nor there when talking about Rangers & Celtic overall.
Gully
Monkey in a seagull suit.
The standard was pretty average when I watched games up there from 97-00, though there were a few half decent players (Mols at Rangers and Larssen at Celtic spring immediately to mind), but I don't think it has improved at all since then. I reckon back then Rangers and Celtic might have stood a chance of survival in the Premiership, now I think they might struggle in the Championship...as for the rest of the Premier league, the bottom two or three aren't much above Conference standard. Having seen Crawley play last Monday I would fancy them to give the likes of Hamilton and St Mirren a good game.
Sorry, I haven't finished yet.
Lets talk about Barry Robson. Scored more than 1 in 3 while at Dundee United, which prompted Sellick to spend well over a million for him. Again, I'm not sure how that squares with your contention that he wasn't one of the SPL's better players. Would he have walked into ten of the 12 SPL squads up there? Clearly, yes he would.
So that's 3 quality (by SPL standards) players at Middlesbrough and 3 average ones, and 'boro are absolutely shithouse this season.
Gully
Monkey in a seagull suit.
I had an argument with someone a while back about the standard of Scottish footballers, my view was that their days of producing World class players like Dalglish were well behind them. He maintained that there were loads of talented Scottish footballers in the Premiership, I asked him to name one, his response was Darren Fletcher at Man Utd. The argument ended as quickly as it began.
ATFC Seagull
Aberystwyth Town FC
Thats the 32 yr old Barry Robson that played in less than a third of Celtic's games during his spell at Parkhead due to injury, yes?
Charlie Austin
New member
- Mar 13, 2010
- 40
Piss poor, anyone who thinks otherwise is deluded.
Celtic/Rangers - Championship standard
The rest - Leagye 1/2 standard
It gets worse and worse up there.
Celtic/Rangers - Championship standard
The rest - Leagye 1/2 standard
It gets worse and worse up there.
And Steven McManus, the CAPTAIN of the SPL CHAMPIONS...
Tooting Gull
Well-known member
- Jul 5, 2003
- 11,033
I'd agree with that (with the caveat that the rest might be crap League One teams, rather than decent). Wasn't always the case, both Rangers and Celtic have been better than that in the past, and at various times might have challenged the top six in the Premier League. Celtic at times under O'Neill, and certainly Rangers in the Souness era.
But now they are both skint. Celtic signing a Scunthorpe striker in the summer says it all, it's all they can get.
f*** me, you're clutching at straws - I'm astonished you didn't realise that good players (or "good" players, in this case) do actually get injured from time to time.
So yes, the very same Barry Robson who walked into Celtic's team when he wasn't injured, scored for fun at Dundee United and cost Celtic £1.5m. Yes, him.
ATFC Seagull
Aberystwyth Town FC
f*** me, you're clutching at straws - I'm astonished you didn't realise that good players (or "good" players, in this case) do actually get injured from time to time.
So yes, the very same Barry Robson who walked into Celtic's team when he wasn't injured, scored for fun at Dundee United and cost Celtic £1.5m. Yes, him.
Hmm, if you say so. Barry Robson has no doubt been a cracking player, but was allowed to leave Celtic because he was getting on a bit and had had injury problems - to say a guy who was brilliant in the SPL at the age of 28 who is now struggling in the Championship at 32 therefore proves the Championship is better seems to making a MASSIVE logical jump.
ATFC Seagull
Aberystwyth Town FC
Deposed captain, who wasn't starting and a lot of Celtic fans were very glad to see the back of.
Despite what another poster thinks, I'm not trying to be ridiculously picky - just think the Boro thing is not really a reflection of the level of the SPL, as the players there are for the most part on a downward spiral in their careers, and not in any way the best Rangers/Celtic have to offer.
Sorry ATFC, but you are fighting a hopeless cause. The FACTS are that Robson, Boyd, McDonald and McManus have all been TOP SPL players in the very recent past, and are now the backbone of a team fighting relegation in the Championship. The rest is all waffle.
ATFC Seagull
Aberystwyth Town FC
Fair enough, but I think its a shame you don't have the open mind to listen to an opposing point of view from someone who follows the league closely - all of those players you mention left Scotland under a bit of a cloud. Yes they have all been top players very recently, but I think we all know that in football ability and form can change overnight - especially in the late 20's/early 30's age bracket.
Personally I'd say that it was actually fairly unusual for decent players to suddenly turn shit, around that age, when they should be at their peak. Maybe that's what playing in a poor league does to you?