Are we out of the intertoto?

[Northern_jaggie]

are we out of the intertoto folks?

i thought rangers had to get second and hibs fourth, rangers aint gona do it now.

[Scotty]

My understanding is yes, thats how it needs to finish .....

Top two teams in SPL qualify for Champions League (Celtic, Hearts). If one of them also wins the cup (Hearts ?), then because they are already in the CL, the cup runners up (Gretna ?) get one of our two uefa cup places and the team that finished 3rd (Rangers) will get the other. Because Hibs finished ahead of us and also applied for Intertoto they will get the qualifying spot not us.

If Rangers were still to finish 2nd, which now looks unlikely, then Hearts would get UEFA spot as cup winners (if they won it !!) and Hibs would get 2nd spot .... we would then get into Intertoto.

[Guest Sam]

I would have thought that it also depends on Hibs wanting to take up the Intertoto place... they may decide they don't want to. Who knows.....?

[Kingsmills]

Apparently, there is also the remote possibility that Scotland may still be awarded a second Intertoto Cup place.

[RossP]

Do you maybe think there is a loophole that could get us in above Hibs?- i.e. the team with the most points who've applied for Intertoto will get it, that could still be us; despite us being in the bottom 6.

There may not be a law written into the Intertoto entry requirements that takes into account league splits?

Wishful thinking i know!!

[Scotty]

straws and clutching spring to mind ..... if Scotland gets a 2nd Intertoto place that will be good .... not every country takes up their allocation and UEFA divvy it up to other countries !! .... If not, then good luck to Gretna in the UEFA cup ... what a fairytale .....

I am starting to like Gretna just a little bit ... ok they bought their way up the leagues in a similar fashion to Livi, but after hearing a few interviews with the chairman, who seems down to earth, and noting what he did for our very own 'Charlies Angels' that fact doesnt bother me as much as it did when it was Livi ....

[L_G]

There are 2 opportunitys for Scotland to get a 2nd place in the Intertoto, but nothing is certain. They just get together and decide who gets the places once all the teams who qualify have confirmed their participation. There is one space up for grabs now and there will be more up for grabs at the 2nd round (scotlands entry level) Clutching at straws is right though Scotty.

I don't have the same problems with Gretna as I had with Livi. Firstly Brooks Mileson hasn't put that much money into the club. I think he picks up the wage bill for the year and has bought a couple of players. He is building a good business though for the club. And he can afford it. Livi spent much more and never paid most of it back. If Brooks walked away tomorrow Gretna wouldn't be in any debt. They wouldn't have any players technically speaking, but they wouldn't owe money. They have quite a large back room staff and they are all very friendly and give the impression that they are really fans of the club and that it's not just a job.

He said on the radio tonight that Romanov invited him along to the Hearts Celtic game last week, but he said he couldn't make it as he wouldn't have managed to feed all his animals in time to make the journey. Priorities !!

[Kingsmills]

I agree about the comments regarding clutching at straws but I'm afraid I still find it difficult to warm to Gretna.