UEFAs proposed changes to the make-up of the Champions League could irreversibly damage Scottish football and other leagues across the continent, according to Scottish Professional Football League chief executive Neil Doncaster. The Champions League is set for an overhaul from 2018, with the top four divisions given four automatic qualifying berths to the group stages, with the move coming about to placate any talk of Europes biggest clubs forming a breakaway competition.The decision, which is yet to be fully ratified, could see the Scottish champions miss out on qualification to what Doncaster claimed would become a closed shop Champions League competition. The threat is very real, very significant, he said at the Leaders 2016 conference held at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday.We are only talking about the cycle of 2018-21 but the direction of travel that UEFA have embarked upon is a very dangerous route. UEFAs proposed Champions League changes are set to favour the big leagues It threatens the very future of very top-level football and it is vital that a line is drawn in the sand now and the EPFL (European Professional Football Leagues) take the firm stand that is required and start the pulling back of the very damning proposals.It is important to be a domestic champion club, that is the same across Europe, it is about access to the top-tier of European competitive football with the other champions of European football. Remove that and you fundamentally remove what is important about being a champion in a domestic contest. You would damage irreversibly the mid-level domestic leagues.You would see interest in all the leagues that are excluded inevitably declining and that would damage the game.Asked about the proposed changes, Doncaster added: I have been in the game 20 years, I have never seen the game in Europe as united against a set of proposals. It is unique that you have representatives of the small, large and medium-sized leagues against damaging proposals from UEFA. Toni Kroos in action for Real Madrid during a Champions League game with Borussia Dortmund The closed-shop is the direction of travel a number in Europe would like to see and it is outrageous that UEFA can preside over a situation where that is the direction of travel.The fear is that we end up with a closed-league situation. I was at the Celtic v Manchester City game last week, probably one of the best group games and a fantastic spectacle enjoyed by many across the world.You remove that romance and it is all about money and that is to the detriment of the game, not just in Scottish football but across the world.While the Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga and Serie A are all set to benefit from the new proposals, Lars-Christer Olsson - the chairman of EPFL - has claimed UEFA have broken their memorandum of understanding with the EPFL by not consulting them over the planned changes. SPFL chief Neil Doncaster (left) fears a negative impact for the Scottish game That has led to a threat from the EPFL to renege on the memorandum and allow their member associations to schedule domestic fixtures that clash with Champions League and Europa League matches. The EPFL will reconvene on 21 October to decide on their next move. The current agreement means, for example, the Premier League could not go head-to-head with the Champions League by arranging a league game for the same kick-off time as a round of European fixtures.Last year, Arsenals FA Cup fifth-round replay at Hull kicked off at 19.00 only after a compromise with UEFA was found as the tie was played in a week in the European calendar. The EPFL are keen to see the Champions League continue to be inclusive for smaller nations But member associations of the EPFL would be free to organise matches at any time if Olsson sees through his threat to alter the current agreement, something he has said could happen if UEFA do not return to the table to discuss the Champions League changes.This is why we are reacting as we are now, they (UEFA) are setting all the conditions for a private, closed league in the future, he said.Theoretically it is a free market, so if a number of clubs would like to set up their own competition they can do that. I dont think they will because domestic competitions are much more important.In my opinion UEFA has forced EPFL to act because UEFA has broken the agreement, we were not at all consulted. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just ￡6.99. No contract. The process has not only been wrong, it has been slow. We have to come to a conclusion fairly soon for the best solution for European football and that can only be made by talking to each other.Olsson did say there would be no instances of a team in the Champions League being made to choose between playing in the continental competition or fulfilling a domestic fixture.You have to remember that we are a union of clubs representing the clubs in Europes competitions, he added.We would not create problems for our own clubs because that would not be sensible. We are reasonably well-educated.You can watch Englands tour of Bangladesh, plus Premier League football and the Japan Grand Prix on Sky Sports. 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"How many innings was that?" he wondered.If we were playing "Jeopardy" the answer would be Bronson Arroyo. The question might blow you away, as it did me. Who is the winningest pitcher in the National League since 2006? Yes it is the Reds 36-year-old right hander. Arroyo has chalked up 104 victories since joining Cincinnati in 2006. He also happens to be a free-agent at the end of this season. Im not advocating the Blue Jays go right out and sign him, but maybe they should take a look at the overall success and health of the Reds pitching staff, especially over the last two seasons. A year ago, the Reds only had to use, six starters all season long. Four of the five regulars pitched 200 innings and the other, Mike Leake, reached 179. Oddly enough the other starter was current Blue Jays right hander Todd Redmond, who made all of one start for the Reds. The Reds staff made 98 quality starts and they had an ERA of 3.34, helping boost the club to a 97-65 record. The Blue Jays on the other hand in 2012, had to use 12 starters. They lost three, Kyle Drabek, Drew Hutchison, and Brandon Morrow for a substantial part of the season. The Jays only had 75 quality starts, a staff ERA of 4.64 and not a single pitcher who reached 200 innings. They also finished with a dismal 73-89 record. So have things changed that much this season, for either team? Not really!. The Reds has used eight starters this season, in part because the man whos arguably their ace, Johnny Cueto, has been injured for much of the season. Check out their other four main starters though, Matt Latos is (13-5), Mike Leake (11-5), Arroyo (13-9) and Homer Bailey, who threw a no-hitter earlier this season, is (9-10). All four are on pace to throw over 200 innings. On top of that all four have less than 50 walks apiece. The Reds top prospect, lefty Tony Cingrani came up to fill in for Cueto, and has built a (6-3) record with 16 quality starts in 21 outings. With the exception of Arroyo (36), all of the Reds starters are 27 years old or younger, while Cingrani is only 24. All-together, if you throw in Cuetos five quality starts, the Reds have 89 quality starts in 134 games, which takes a lot of pressure off the bullpen. Cincinnati has only issued 354 walks. The only teams to have allowed fewer in the Senior Circuit are Atlanta and Washington who share the lead with 342. The Blue Jays on the other hand have given up 430 wallks.dddddddddddd The Blue Jays staff ERA is 4.40, exactly one run higher than the Reds. Though R.A Dickey hasnt pitched like a Cy Young winner this time around, he hasnt been a total wash-out either. He has 15 quality starts, and with 182.2 innings, is in easy range of 200 for the campaign. Mark Buehrle, whos been the Jays most consistent and best starter this season, has a 10-7 record and 15 quality starts, tied with Dickey for the team lead. He only needs 28 more innings to crack the 200 mark. Again the injuries have done the Jays staff in. Brandon Morrow, J.A Happ and Josh Johnson have all missed significant time, and Johnson and Morrow are done for the season. Why have the Reds been so successful the last two years while the Jays have not? Hard to say. The Reds play in essentially the same kind of home stadium as the Jays. In other words, fly balls can turn into home runs easily. The Reds try to combat that by employing hard throwing strikeout type pitchers. They also have Bryan Price as their pitching coach, whos reputed to be one of the best in the business. The Blue Jays best two starters this year are Buehrle and Dickey, who dont blow you away with hard stuff. Theyve both had troubles with the long ball, Dickey giving up 29 and Buehrle 20 with the bulk coming at Rogers Centre. The Blue Jays, largely because of the injuries, havent had the power arms to augment them. The Jays also have a rookie pitching coach, at least at this level , in Pete Walker which also may be a factor, but all of the above explains why GM Alex Anthopoulos said this week that his top priority in the off-season is to fix the starting rotation. One brilliant decision the Blue Jays made this season was getting an agreement to put their Triple "A" affiliate in Buffalo in the International League. The Bisons, though unlikely to make the playoffs, drew 16,998 fans for their final home game Thursday evening, on "Fan Appreciation Night". They averaged 8,273 fans per game according to the Buffalo News, which was an increase of 12.25% over 2012, when they were the Mets farm club. It is the largest year to year increase in attendance in their current ballparks history. Just one of the reasons, the Jays have extended their deal with the Bisons and Buffalo for another two years, covering them thru 2016. ' ' '