Former Pompey star’s plan for post-pandemic football return: Let’s merge League Two and the National League

Hawks boss Paul Doswell recently said he believed regionalisation was the way forward, starting with League One and League Two being merged in the same way as the old Division 3 North and South system scrapped in 1958.

Doswell also advocated the National League being split into North and South divisions with the top 12 teams from the NL North and South tables invited to make up the two tiers of what would be fourth step of the English ladder.

O’Hara, manager of Hawks’ NL South rivals Billericay, is also in favour of radical change once the pandemic crisis passes.

He suggests a merger between League Two and the National League is the way forward, creating two fourth tier leagues.

His plan is identical to one mentioned in a national newspaper last weekend revealing there had been informal discussions about merging League Two and the National League on a regionalised basis – thereby creating four divisions under the EFL umbrella.

‘They should merge the Conference with League Two and make it a north-south division,’ said O’Hara, Pompey’s player of the season in 2009/10. ‘That’s what I think needs to happen.

‘It would give teams less travel so they can invest more money in players, there’ll be more local derbies and more fans.

“There’s too much travel in League Two, the money is not there and players are going to lose out.

‘Teams normally have a squad of 25 players, they’re only going to have 18 players next season, that’s how it’s going to be.

‘What I would say to players out of contract in League Two is consider dropping down into the non-league.

‘Play part-time football, get another job and you can make up your money. Play football for a season to keep yourself ticking over and get back (to League Two) when the money gets back into it.’