In my opinion, if we ever manage to get promotion again, we would tend to be a yoyo club. I don't think we have the resources or Premier player pulling power to sustain a place in the top flight. When we were last in the Premier league, after we won the Scottish Cup, that was the time to push on, but we didn't, we've regressed. We couldn't keep that squad together, and most of the players that were brought in just didn't match up to the ones we lost. That was our golden era at the club, and fear we will never see the likes again, all the planets aligned then, and if we couldn't attract a better quality of player and increase our attendances after coming third in the league, winning the Scottish Cup and playing in Europe, when will we.
County are a different fish, they have the financial pulling power, and teams like St Mirren and Livingston are in the central belt and most Scottish players don't want to relocate their whole family North for what might be a two years contract, we couldn't even hold on to thirty-eight year old Broadfoot, who was travelling up and back on his own from the South.
I agree with Dougal, I can see us going the way of Arbroath, as year after year that we remain in the championship, the more our resources and talent are depleted. We are not alone, bigger clubs than us, with much bigger fan bases and pulling power are struggling in leagues below us, Dunfermline and Falkirk being two, and to a lesser extent, our opponents last Saturday, Brechin City, were our league rivals a few seasons ago, before dropping down and down until they eventually ended up in the Highland League. And with the Highland League now attracting former Scottish League players to their ranks, with the likes of our former players, Meekings, Warren, Mchattie and Mcdonald, who probably earn more from their day jobs and football money than we could pay them as full time pros, we are on a hiding to nothing.
The times are changing, ambitious Highland and Lowland league club can now offer better packages to players and are gaining good sponsorship and are becoming more professional.
This for me is the season we must get promotion, or I can see us going the Arbroath way, being a good championship club with dwindling attendances and sponsorship, looking for Highland League players, like we used to.