Scottish FA CEO Stewart Regan "defended the scheduling of Saturday's World Cup qualifying tie against England despite a request by police to have the fixture moved to another date," according to Paul Forsyth of the LONDON TIMES. The Group F match at Hampden Park, due to kick off at 5pm, will be protected by "one of the biggest security operations in the history of Scottish sport due to the recent terrorist attacks in London and Manchester, as well as the potential for hooliganism." Police Scotland last month communicated to the SFA its concern that the late start on a Saturday would "increase the risk of alcohol-induced crowd trouble," but the governing body, in consultation with UEFA, declined the request to reschedule. Regan said, "They expressed concern about the fixture taking place on a Saturday afternoon and at 5pm. ... We made representations to UEFA, and their view, like ours, was that this match had been in the calendar since 2015. It is still going to take place on a Saturday, and to shift the kickoff in our opinion wouldn't have made a material impact" (LONDON TIMES, 6/7). In London, Stephen McGowan reported Police Scotland confirmed "discussions" with the SFA over Saturday's "high-risk" fixture before the recent terrorist attacks in Manchester and London. Asked when police raised concerns over the date and time of the match, Regan said, "Three or four weeks ago." Insisting Police Scotland and stewards will "throw a ring of steel around Hampden to provide assurance to fans," Regan added, "Certainly it's the most heightened or up-weighted security operation I've been involved in during my time in Scotland" (DAILY MAIL, 6/6).
'NO REGRETS': The PA's Gavin McCafferty reported Regan insisted he has "no regrets" over the way the financial collapse of Scottish football side Rangers was "dealt with" after Craig Whyte was acquitted of fraud. Regan declined to express any reaction to the jury's decision following a six-week trial at the High Court in Glasgow. Regan said that Whyte will not be allowed back into Scottish football -- "despite being cleared of any wrongdoing by the courts." He said, "The fact that five years on we are still talking about it shows just how long the process has taken. It has had a telling effect on Scottish football. We found Craig Whyte not to be a fit and proper person several years ago. He won't be coming back, he won't be involved with any football club, he won't be involved with any member of the Scottish FA" (PA, 6/6). In Glasgow, Michael Gannon reported Regan also confirmed returning Rangers Dir Alastair Johnston will "have to pass the fit and proper persons test before his place on the Ibrox board will be rubber stamped." Johnston was in the club boardroom from '04-11 -- with the last three years as chair -- and will "undergo the same scrutiny" that fellow former Dirs Paul Murray and Dave King received when they returned to the club in '15. Regan said, "Every director that comes through on an official return will be considered and the club themselves will have to make representation that any director doesn't fall foul of any breaches in the articles" (DAILY RECORD, 6/7).
'WELL-POSITIONED': The BBC reported Scottish Professional Football League CEO Neil Doncaster said that Scotland is "well-positioned" to accommodate more cross-border football. Teams from the Republic of Ireland will join existing counterparts from Northern Ireland and Wales in competing for next season's Irn-Bru Cup. Doncaster believes cross-border tournaments "could become more prevalent across Europe in the coming years." He said, "A number of territories have looked at cross-border competition, and UEFA are clearly open-minded about where that might lead in future." When asked whether league competitions, as well as knockout tournaments, could become cross-border in the future, Doncaster "stressed the need for objectivity." Doncaster: "The whole concept of cross-border is something we have to keep an open mind to" (BBC, 6/7).
