26-04-2016, 09:23 AM
Andy B, I think its fair to say that your views about the Richardson's are the typical view of most top players, which includes Adam, Hamish, yourself and many others. I think your summary is true in that it is far from a National Cup, and it is an elitist cup. I am not criticising that, if that's what the top players want, that's what they want.
This might be the very thing that is however, holding the Spens back from being a successful competition, because the 2 separate events have always been banded together in how they are generally formatted. Maybe the time has come for the 2 different events to be separated? Is there argument for letting the Richardson's 'top players' organise their own event and have control over its future, and play it in Dundee or wherever (as that's what people seem to want). And let CS get on with reviving the Spens without the ties and constraints of trying to manage 2 struggling events with one single solution.
I have no idea if the Richardson's is really sustainable when 7-8 teams is pretty much all that enter, and 8 teams being the minimum to keep it a meaningful competition. There is a big question mark at the very least. The Spens on the otherhand with just 6 teams this season, where 2 matches could potentially win you the Cup is clearly a step closer to administration and seems worthy of reviving it in the form of a true National Cup, and with a central venue.
This might be the very thing that is however, holding the Spens back from being a successful competition, because the 2 separate events have always been banded together in how they are generally formatted. Maybe the time has come for the 2 different events to be separated? Is there argument for letting the Richardson's 'top players' organise their own event and have control over its future, and play it in Dundee or wherever (as that's what people seem to want). And let CS get on with reviving the Spens without the ties and constraints of trying to manage 2 struggling events with one single solution.
I have no idea if the Richardson's is really sustainable when 7-8 teams is pretty much all that enter, and 8 teams being the minimum to keep it a meaningful competition. There is a big question mark at the very least. The Spens on the otherhand with just 6 teams this season, where 2 matches could potentially win you the Cup is clearly a step closer to administration and seems worthy of reviving it in the form of a true National Cup, and with a central venue.