What does this mean for the SSML? and non league ⚽?

[Winslow Boy]

1 hour ago, Rhodes said:

Obviously yesterday's announcement by the Prime Minister has caused a stir on another Forum and the 'Provisional Resumption Dates' thread, here's one of the suggestions, if you can call it that:

Provisional resumption dates | Page 22 | NonLeagueMatters Forums

Ok lets try and be optimistic! It would mean all steps 3-6 scrapping what's happened so far, and new set of fixtures seeing everyone play each other once. If things have improved by end of February, there could be a two week window for training/friendlies and then start with new fixtures on March 13th running through to May 22nd. This gives 11 Saturdays and 10 midweeks, a total of 21 fixture days which would cover most leagues. Then from Monday 24th May to 31st May any play-offs could be settled. Of course this doesn't into account clubs involved in Trophy and Vase (so some clubs may end up playing Tuesday and Thursday in some cases). County Cups and League Cups would have to go. All leagues would have to agree for consistency across the country for the FA restructuring to happen. Feel free to pull apart!

Nice idea but it wound work as a) we still won’t have enough time and b) I can’t see people agreeing to it, especially after last season was nearly complete and they just binned it. Strangely I did actually suggest this from the start to a few people as it was obvious we would be in this position, just have a shorter season each side playing each other once, but you can’t do that once the season has started otherwise you have to wipe the games played and start fresh to do it fairly. 

[Savagebee]

1 hour ago, Winslow Boy said:

Nice idea but it wound work as a) we still won’t have enough time and b) I can’t see people agreeing to it, especially after last season was nearly complete and they just binned it. Strangely I did actually suggest this from the start to a few people as it was obvious we would be in this position, just have a shorter season each side playing each other once, but you can’t do that once the season has started otherwise you have to wipe the games played and start fresh to do it fairly. 

Spot on WB.

[Rhodes]

On 23/12/2020 at 02:05, Rhodes said:

I see that former FA Chairman David Bernstein has spoken out over the National League bailout money and has condemned the handling of the whole sorry affair particularly the setting up in November of an Independent Review Panel to look into the allocation of the £10 million of National Lottery funding, rightly calling it 'pointless'

National League Club's are naturally worried about where the next tranche of funding will come from and Chester have written a letter to the League asking for an update. There is also an article on the BBC website today, the initial £10 million grant to cover the first three months of the season has now run out and Club's have not been informed what funding is available for January and beyond, if any, it's all very worrying:

National League clubs concerned over cost of finishing season - BBC Sport

[Savagebee]

Yep big trouble ahead ?

[Rhodes]

3 hours ago, Savagebee said:

Yep big trouble ahead ?

You mean there may be trouble ahead:

 

Edited January 6, 2021 by Rhodes

[Savagebee]

9 hours ago, Rhodes said:

You mean there may be trouble ahead:

 

Without a doubt ?

[Rhodes]

National League South Slough Town have made a lengthy statement on their website questioning whether it is morally right to expect Club's to continue playing given the current situation and with Covid cases in Slough and surrounding Berkshire areas escalaiting:

Club statement | The Official website of Slough Town FC - latest news, photos and videos

Whilst much of the nation works from home, frontline key workers continue to fulfil their essential roles. Footballers, of course, cannot work from home. Now is the time once again where the footballing world must ask itself whether it can justify putting its people at risk. Is football essential?

We have a duty of care to our players and managers, and that responsibility sits with the clubs as employers and not with The National League, The FA or the Government.

[Winslow Boy]

I don’t see how football at any level can continue, while people are being made to stay at home and folks are losing their businesses how can they justify a game of football? 

[Savagebee]

3 hours ago, Winslow Boy said:

I don’t see how football at any level can continue, while people are being made to stay at home and folks are losing their businesses how can they justify a game of football? 

Ha Ha that's true it's crazy when you think about it but so much of this is just plain crazy. #The✈✈✈stillflyinandouteveryday

[Rhodes]

I see that the County FA’s will liaise with the Regional Feeder Leagues, at Step 7 level, as to how they may decide on the best options available in order to conclude their campaigns, unfortunately that doesn't sound too hopeful for the SSML Division Two being completed does it:

[Rhodes]

The Southern League have made a statement and it makes depressing reading, Club's must be losing money hand over fist:

[Munchkin]

On 08/01/2021 at 22:25, Rhodes said:

I see that the County FA’s will liaise with the Regional Feeder Leagues, at Step 7 level, as to how they may decide on the best options available in order to conclude their campaigns, unfortunately that doesn't sound too hopeful for the SSML Division Two being completed does it:

It’s pointless, we will be led by whatever the Step 3 & 4 leagues want to do just like last time.

[Rhodes]

On 06/01/2021 at 17:47, Rhodes said:

Chester have written a letter to the League asking for an update. There is also an article on the BBC website today, the initial £10 million grant to cover the first three months of the season has now run out and Club's have not been informed what funding is available for January and beyond, if any, it's all very worrying:

Has anybody been to Chester's  ground out of interest, I went to the iconic Sealand Road, where the Club played for 84 years between 1906 and 1990, but not the new Deva Stadium. Sadly Sealand Road was sold to developers in 1990 and, surprise surprise, turned into yuppie flats as Chester was 'a place to live' back then as Winslow Boy will know being in the Hollyoaks soap opera for four years, albeit not until much later:

Edited January 10, 2021 by Rhodes

[Winslow Boy]

54 minutes ago, Rhodes said:

Has anybody been to Chester's  ground out of interest, I went to the iconic Sealand Road, where the Club played for 84 years between 1906 and 1990, but not the new Deva Stadium. Sadly Sealand Road was sold to developers in 1990 and, surprise surprise, turned into yuppie flats as Chester was 'a place to live' back then as Winslow Boy will know being in the Hollyoaks soap opera for four years, albeit not until much later:

Chester is lovely, played at the deva a couple of times, nice ground. Worked and played with a lad that’s a Chester City legend Matthew McGinn, scored a screamer that sealed their return to the conference but had to leave as he couldn’t commit to turning full time pro. 

[Rhodes]

There's a thread on another Forum entitled 'FA way forward for 20/21 (steps 3+ and feeders)' and it's quite sad in a way reading some of the comments and wild speculation, a lot of the posters seem to have little or nothing more in their lives than the beautiful game, I think some of us are bad enough but not that bad and have families and other distractions to keep us sane whilst all this is all going on:

FA way forward for 20/21 (steps 3+ and feeders) | Page 2 | NonLeagueMatters Forums

One thing we should factor in to this discussion is the new Covid variant with its higher infection rate. I don't think the scientists have yet figured out exactly what that means for transmission, but logically some things which were safe last summer may be ruled to be unsafe this year. So we can't assume that any form of bar re-opening other than takeaway will be viable, and in a worst case it may even be that crowds won't be permitted even at tier 2. All that makes it very hard to plan and I don't envy the FA and the leagues their responsibility.
Ultimately, if the volunteers who run the clubs prefer null and void then they should be listened to, IMHO. But I think the FA should seriously consider running next season as a season of two halves, as is done in some European countries, with the possibility that if the virus intervenes again the 21/22 season may have to be decided on the positions as they stood at half-way. That would mean leagues setting up the fixtures for each team to play all the others once in the first half, which interferes with scheduling of derbies, but we need to bite the bullet or there's a risk of 3 straight seasons with no outcome.

[petethegreek]

Surely before a ball was kicked this season the FA should have had some rules in place for another incomplete season?

To leave the leagues in limbo again is ridiculous. 

[Winslow Boy]

4 hours ago, petethegreek said:

Surely before a ball was kicked this season the FA should have had some rules in place for another incomplete season?

To leave the leagues in limbo again is ridiculous. 

Yep, but this is the FA we are talking about, so it’s hardly a surprise we are in this position. 

[Rhodes]

A joint statement has been issued today from twelve National League Club's however I'm sure the feeling is mutual right across the board. As the letter says the initial bailout package of £10 million was to cover the first three months of the campaign with the clear understanding that grants would continue until it was safe for crowds to return to grounds, there was no mention whatsoever of loans at the time:

Edited January 12, 2021 by Rhodes

[Rhodes]

Has anybody seen the Football Association's 'Strategy For 2020 - 2024' document entitled 'Time For Change', what a total waste of time:

FA Strategy 2020-2024: Time for Change | The Football Association (thefa.com)

[Rhodes]

I see that the Women's FA Cup is currently suspended during the lockdown, why is that out of interest if the men's FA Cup is still going ahead, surely that can be construed as discrimination. The FA say 'it's exploring a number of options on how best to complete the competition' however that's their standard line for every disrupted competition this season isn't it, and last season:

2020-21 Vitality Women's FA Cup to remain paused during lockdown (thefa.com)