Page 4 - Deal Round Up My/June/July 2020

The Hard Times In
Football Have Been
Harder
By The Editor

There is no doubt that the Corona Virus is bringing hardship to our nation the likes of which
we probably have not seen since the Second World War. The Government, to be fair, are
doing their best in these uncharted waters and we can have nothing but praise for our Na-
tional Health Service workers and the many other key workers and front line staff that are
going ‘above and beyond’ to keep the country going.
So to focus on hardship being felt in our National game could be argued as a secondary
concern and I accept that, I just offer this as a football article of interest and the fact that
I have space to fill and time on my hands!
When the FA announced that all football would be declared null and void at the end of
March from Steps 3 to 6 with no promotion to Step 2 or Step 6 (and no relegation the other
way), it raised a few questions. If a club folded and dropped out of a league in Step 3 to 6,
would that vacancy be filled and if so how would the ‘promoted’ club be selected with the
qualifying seasons records having been expunged?
To highlight this problem the news came through at the beginning of April that three ‘grass
roots clubs have already folded as a direct result of the virus. Step 5 clubs Brackley Town
Saints and Marlow United of the Hellenic League and Midland League Division 1 club NKF
Burbage from Step 6. These three joined Step 5 Greenwich Borough from the Southern
Counties East Premier Division that folded earlier in the season. So there are four vacancies
that will need to be filled from lower leagues. The FA had planned further re-structuring
of the pyramid for next season but this has now been postponed because of the current
situation.

Four clubs have
folded already,
there may be more
to come!

The hardship is being felt at every level. From Step 7 and below where most players play
for the love of the game, they will be no different from the general public, many of them
being self-employed and all will be feeling the uncertainty that the ‘lock down’ creates the
longer it goes on. The club administrators have the worry of finding rent, utility payments
and the day to day expenses that they inevitably incur. The higher the level the higher the
expenses.
As you go up the levels to the semi-professional game, many of the players are on contracts
that may need to be honoured. These clubs may have some volunteers helping with the
running of the club particularly on match days.
Then moving into the Football League and National League and full-time football, to use a
footballing pun, it becomes an entirely different ball game! Many of these clubs will have
contracts with suppliers that will need to be paid plus other full or part time permanent staff
that will also need paying. They may have Supporters Clubs that can offer some financial
help but everyone is feeling the financial pinch. Many of these full-time professional clubs
will be using the Government Job Retention Scheme and furlough these workers.
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