Raith boss rages at 'bullies'

Raith chairman Turnbull Hutton has hit out at the treatment of Scottish Football League clubs as they meet to discuss Rangers' future.

The 30 SFL clubs are discussing on Tuesday Scottish FA proposals that would see newco Rangers play in the First Division for the upcoming season.

A document sent to the clubs last week also put forward an option for an SPL2, and Hutton is furious about the way they have been treated.

"(We are being) bullied, rail-roaded, lied to," Hutton told reporters outside Hampden on his way into talks.

"We have been threatened and bullied. It's not football as I know it.

"It was a ridiculous document that came out last week whereby that threat was there if we don't vote for an acceptance into the First Division a breakaway SPL2 will come along and all those clubs that didn't vote won't be invited. What kind of a game are we running? Corrupt."

Frustrating

Most other club officials that spoke were keen to gather more information - including clarity on claims that £16million could be lost to the game if Rangers are relaunched in the Third Division, before stating their position.

Some were arguing for a fairer distribution of wealth among the 42 league clubs before considering the proposal.

Dunfermline director of football Jim Leishman, whose club finished bottom of the SPL but would not be reinstated under the First Division proposal, spoke of his frustration over the extent of the crisis.

"For me it's gone on too long," he said.

"It's no one's fault that it has gone on so long but we start training for next season and I want to be sitting with the manager, Jim Jefferies, today.

"I want to be talking about pre-season training and who is fit and instead we don't know what league we're going to be playing in next season.

"For me that's very, very frustrating."

It remained unclear whether a simple majority of clubs or 66 per cent or 75% vote was needed should the proposal go to a vote.