Annan: Good or bad

Earlier in the week Club X was revealed. Annan Athletic are the latest new recruits to the SFL. As the days passed it became quite clear that Spartans were not everybody's favourite to claim the spot in the league that I had thought would have been a formality. Obviously I'm not privvy to what went on at Hampden on Thursday and I'm sure there are good reasons why Spartans performed so poorly when the voting started, but I haven't seen or heard any logical explanation. Surely it can't be simply that their ground was not going to be ready at the start of the season. So, while it is always quite exciting to have a new team in the league, and a new ground to visit, I can't help but wonder what exactly Annan are going to bring to the party. To me they seem like another fair to middling to team, from a relatively small town, with little prospect of generating decent crowds and, generally, I can't see them improving the quality and attractiveness of the league. For me, while Spartans may not be the best supported at the moment, surely if it is done properly, there is room for Edinburgh to accomodate an SFL club? As I said before, I am not at all clear why Spartans were so far away from winning the election. I have no idea who Stenhousemuir were backing although I can only presume that in the final voting we went for Annan. I think Cove Rangers managed to poll 12 or 13 votes, which interestingly, is about the same number of clubs north of the Forth! The process does seem to have a degree of farce about it where self interest rules. There is, as ever, talk of introducing a pyramid system to Scottish football, but I can't help thinking this is simply a sop to the gallant losers earlier in the week. The reality is at some point you simply reach the bottom and there is nowhere else to go and as far as senior football in Scotland the bottom is the 3rd division. Se despite it all, I'm looking forward to my first visit to Galabank, which unfortunately won't be next month but instead early February. Wonder if the novelty will have worn off by then?!