Leader: Television moved the goalposts

IT IS one of the great ironies of Scottish football that the arrival of television riches from the live broadcasting of matches has left our game a poorer place.

Thursday night's 5-0 demolition of Hearts by Spurs was a painful experience not just for supporters of the Edinburgh club, but for anyone with the interests of Scottish football at heart. The Scottish club could not compete, with the Europa League match effectively over after just 12 minutes. And we have a second leg to endure next week in London. Take courage.

It wasn't always this way. Our proud football clubs, and our equally proud national team, could once compete with the best of them, and relished nothing more than a tilt at opposition from south of the Border. Now that sense of anticipation has been replaced by trepidation.

When football embraced live television, the goalposts were moved, and for our clubs the frames have been shifted so far they are out of sight. Satellite television subscriptions are sold on the back of live football coverage, and the huge cash injections received by English football have bankrolled relatively modest clubs way beyond the means of "bigger" clubs such as Celtic and Rangers. It is difficult to see this as anything other than an irreversible process.

But although we are at the mercy of the broadcasters, can we really accept that this is as good as it will ever get for us? Scottish football is in a rut, and it will take time to get out. Passion for our game continues to burn, and desirable players still emerge. How to harness our own talent is the key to the game's future.