Ross County boss Kettlewell optimistic that Scottish football can flourish after difficult period
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Ross County manager Stuart Kettlewell knows the next few months will be challenging for Scottish football – but he believes the game can come out the other side stronger.
Announcements this week from both the Scottish and UK governments triggered panic for many as it was confirmed fans would not be returning to stadiums any time soon.
That will have a significant knock-on financial impact on football clubs up and down the country, many of whom have already been forced to slash budgets because of the pandemic.
The reality of the situation is not lost on Kettlewell, but he is trying to stay optimistic.
So he reckons that if clubs work together to find the best way forward for all, Scottish football can flourish in the end.
“For me personally, I see this as being another hurdle, and I think we all have to be intelligent and make sure that we stick together – both as a club but also as a body of football in this country,” Kettlewell explained.
“I know there has been talks in our club to try and help others along the way.
“I think what it does is galvanise us all. It puts us all in check, but I sincerely hope that everybody can come through this.
“I don’t have a magic wand to wave to come up with a solution, or to be able to help every single club, but I think that we’ve been through an exceptionally difficult period, and I would sincerely hope that we can stand together to see if we can get ourselves through.
“If we can do that, I’m always an optimist, then I would love to see Scottish football flourish at the end of it.
“It does seem a long way away just now, but it’s a case of trying to be as robust as we can over the next couple of months and hopefully we can see some shoots of positivity at the end of that.”
For County specifically, the latest setbacks are even more disappointing given that they ran a successful pilot for getting fans back into the Global Energy Stadium two weeks ago.
Financially, the Staggies have prepared for a season without fans since March though, so there will be no doomsday scenario in Dingwall.
“We had a Plan A, a Plan B and a Plan C, and Plan A was that there wasn’t going to be any supporters in the ground,” Kettlewell added.
“That was how we budgeted, and anything else that came on top of that was always going to be a bonus for us.
“That’s a very pessimistic view, but at the time we felt it was a realistic view.
“Things started to improve, but it was always in the back of our mind that it could change as it has done.”
Read the full edition of today's North Star here.
