Anger over cup draw shambles
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In a shambles of an SFA draw, Brora Rangers were handed the cruellest of outcomes when eventually, after a re-draw, they were paired away to Stranraer in the third Round of the William Hill Scottish Cup.
During the draw held in Montrose and conducted by Derek Sim and Archie Knox, Brora were originally ball nine in the hat, and were drawn at home to Queens Park.
However, as the draw progressed, ball nine was drawn again and this time away to fellow Highland League side Buckie Thistle.
Recognising their mistake, SFA officials immediately pulled the plug on the live Facebook coverage, and hastily announced a total re-draw.
Brora club chairman William Powrie was most concerned with the chain of events, which will lumber the club with substantial travel and accommodation bills to fulfil the long distance fixture.
Powrie told the NT: “The SFA must immediately look at the organisation and hosting of future cup draws as the process of the draw travelling around and being undertaken by local worthies does not work and shows the SFA in a very poor light indeed.
“We were delighted to be in the hat for the third round draw and we still travel to Stranraer with confidence. However having originally been paired at home to Queens Park only for that to be taken away, we have been left with an expensive sour taste in our mouth.
“Genuine mistakes can happen but the cup draw is far too important to be left to amateurs and should be undertaken by SFA officials, at HQ preferably midweek following the Saturday ties.
“This would allow plenty of time to ensure all procedures are correct and that due diligence undertaken to prevent the type of shambles we have seen this season.
“The screening of the draw live on Facebook also needs looking at, as simply pulling the plug when an issue arises does nothing to enhance the experience at all.”
Brora Rangers progressed into the third round, after a professional 5-0 win over Lowland League side Civil Service Strollers in Edinburgh.
Manager Ross Tokely was delighted with the performance.
He said: “We knew they would be a difficult team to break down and they beat the Lowland League winners last week. However we were determined to take the game to them from the start and our plan worked.
“All the boys put in a great shift, as they understood the importance of the club getting into the next round draw. It’s a real shame that we now have to go all the way to the other end of the country as a result of the shambolic draw, but we will be fully prepared and looking to progress further.”
