Rangers average one Scots starter as panel debates youth problem
Peter Martin counted the Scots starting for each Premiership club over five games, and Gordon Parks doubts clubs will invest in home-bred players.
By Peter Martin,
Rangers have started an average of one Scot across their last five Premiership games, according to a count Peter Martin brought to The Football Show. The figure opened a wider debate about why Scottish clubs do not put young Scots first.
Martin went through the Scots starting for each Premiership club over that run. St Johnstone came out top with an average of 5.8, with Falkirk close behind on 5.6. At the other end sat Rangers on 1.0. One line from the programme summed up the mood: "That stat suggests the death knell for Scottish football."
Barcelona and La Masia
Hugh MacDonald and Gordon Parks joined the discussion, which began with whether Hearts should blood some young players this season. The panel then turned to Barcelona, La Masia and 20 Spaniards, before asking why clubs here do not change their approach, with Craig Mulholland and European football part of that conversation. The advice to "Go and visit La Masia" was also aired.
The panel considered whether playing young Scots is a gamble, looking at Armstrong, Christie and the loans that shaped their careers. McCowan, Connor Barron and Lyall Cameron were also discussed.
Immigration, academies and grassroots
The conversation widened to Dutch wonderkids, Paisley and immigration, and to France and the banlieues of Paris. The panel also covered academies and the habit of being out with a ball every night.
Closer to home, Easterhouse and the "4x4 club" came up, along with the description of youth football as a "direct debit affair". The SFA's white paper was also part of the discussion.
Parks was not optimistic. He does not think clubs will invest in home-bred players, or that the way Scotland coaches its children will change.