Saint Mirren boss Gus MacPherson has condemned the SFA’s decision to Dundee United’s Scottish Cup match against St Mirren this weekend.
Dundee United requested a postponement of the match, after at least 8 of the first team came down with the flu over the past few days.
However, McPherson thinks that Dundee United should still have been forced to play the match and that the SFA might have opened a Pandora’s box with their decision.
“If it had been an SPL match, it would have been played. Nothing against Dundee United, they just made their case to the SFA,” said manager McPherson on BBC Radio Scotland.
“We all have injuries and illness. It was an incredible decision that sets a dangerous precedent.”
“The youth players in Cyprus could have been recalled, we have a youth team away in Cyprus as well at the moment, but we kept several players back because we knew we had a problem.”
Former Dundee manager Jim Duffy also backed up Gus McPherson’s view, by comparing Dundee United’s problems with every other side in the SPL.
8 out with flu, 3 out injured, 3 out onloan, the youth team away in Cyprus and a few other players unavailable, meant the Dundee United would have struggled to put together a side to play Saint Mirren in the cup.
Dunfermline have almost a full side out injured at the moment, and Duffy doesn’t understand why Dundee United were given preferential treatment even with 19 players listed as unavailable for the match.
“It’s an outrageous decision to cancel it, they should have been told to get on with it,” said Duffy.
“Players on loan could have been recalled, players do get injured, but the SFA should have made them play it.”
“St Mirren have been badly treated in this situation. Dundee United should have been made to play it, end of story.”
Who cares what MacPherson thinks, since he’s bound to want to play Dundee United’s youth team if he thinks it will take St Mirren into the next round of the cup. If the rolls were reversed, he’d be the first person to ask the SFA for the match to be postponed.