^The S'ona needed Starfleet because it's a Federation planet.
Its in Federation Space, in an area that once there they could pretty much do what they wanted unless a Starfleet survey ship came along which didn't look like would be too much effort to deal with. Its not like it seems to hard to wander round Federation Space until you come across a Federation planet or base. Space is big so there could have been a way for the S'ona to get their people in place.
The reason I am now thinking they didn't was time, if the collector had only recently been developed then time would be of the essence for at least some of them, time they didn't have to slowly move into position. Of course your right about needing to get there they needed Federation approval as they could have settled far, far away from the Patch.
I can never figure out what Starfleet were doing with the holoship. Its like why did Marcus put 72 augment-laden torpedoes in the Enterprise in nuTrek.
The holoship brings up another problem, the cloaking device which could have led to the Romulans siding with the Dominion. Then again the Duck Blind also uses some form of cloaking technology, or possibly its based on holo technology which would solve the Romulan issue with both the Blind and the Holoship.
As for Marcus; deal with Khan, get rid of the remaining evidence and start a war at the same time… another topic though.
Sorry I've asked this before but if Dougherty was doing something dodgy why would he get Data involved. Why not just call Picard and Riker in as well ? Why did he need Data there? Why not just have a bunch of flunkies?
Data being there makes as much sense as Troi or Crusher or Worf IMO?
I think the script or novel (or both) suggests that in the original story Data was needed because of 'environmental anomalies' which obviously wouldn't effect him, the question was asked by Troi or Riker and answered by the other in the original library scene.
This is a lot more in-depth discussion than this film deserves.
You're absolutely right. 
Its not much more discussion than some other topics which really haven't needed discussing before.
know from The Augment trilogy that the Briar Patch belonged to the Klingons two hundred years prior so they may have had a claim on it long before that.
Actually from the Augment trilogy it sounds like the Klingons either had only recently moved in to the area (which was a century after the Ba'ku moved to the planet) or were just not interested in it (The Briar Patch is a crappy piece of real-estate) as it was said that they hadn't mapped the region at that point.
They had been there long enough to give it a name and know there were some planets there but obviously took little interest in it otherwise.
The holoship could be a bit of standard long-term observation kit. You've got the duck blinded, and then holoship for sims or other research.
Couldn't they have incorporated that into the Duck Blind? Plus bit random for a Holoship to be part of the standard equipment on such a mission and then hide it at the bottom of a lake.