National League chairman: ‘I don’t think we’ll be playing non-league football this year’

‘The options regarding the sporting outcomes of the 2019/20 remain under timely and careful consideration.’
Ronan Curtis in action for Portsmouth during their FA Cup win at Harrogate last November. Photo by Daniel Chesterton/PinPep.Ronan Curtis in action for Portsmouth during their FA Cup win at Harrogate last November. Photo by Daniel Chesterton/PinPep.
Ronan Curtis in action for Portsmouth during their FA Cup win at Harrogate last November. Photo by Daniel Chesterton/PinPep.

That was the statement from the National League on Wednesday after a majority vote amongst clubs ended with the remaining games cancelled.

That left Barrow four points clear of Harrogate Town at the top of the NL’s top flight and now left to sweat on whether they will return to the EFL for the first time since 1972. It also leaves the Yorkshire – who gave Pompey a scare in the FA Cup last November – wondering if they will be promoted to the Football League for the first time.

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It left Hawks three points behind NL South leaders Wealdstone, having played a game more but with the only unbeaten away record in the top six tiers of English football and confident they could overhaul the Stones in their remaining eight matches.

And it left York City two points clear at the top of NL South, but having played two more games than King’s Lynn.

The NL will now ask the 68 clubs how they want to bring 2019/20 to its ‘sporting conclusion’.

There are a handful of options now open to them - and inevitably not a single one will please everyone.

Null and void

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This was the option the FA chose to end all non-league football between steps 3-7 in 2019/20.

No doubt the clubs in mid-table and those fighting relegation either couldn’t care less or were mightily relieved by the governing body’s ruling.

For those clubs aiming for promotion, though, it was a different story - and some have now got lawyers involved in a bid to overturn the decision.

The same scenarios will apply in the National League.

Normally, two clubs would be promoted from the National League - the champions automatically and one through the play-offs. The same applies to the South and North divisions.

Points-per-game

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There are two obvious ways of working out a final table based on a points per game system.

The first is just dividing each club’s points tally by the number of games played.

The second is the one used by the RFU to work out the final placings in their grassroots rugby union leagues.

Their methodology was working out average home and away points and applying them to the remaining games.

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For example, if a team had 40 points from 10 home games their PPG average was four. If they had 20 points from eight away games, the average was 2.5.

If that club had two away games left and one at home, they would be awarded an additional nine points.

With regards to National League South, Wealdstone’s current PPG average is 2.12 compared to Hawks’ 1.97.

If the RFU system was adopted, the Stones would be awarded an additional 18 points - they still had four home games left and five away.

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Under the same system, Hawks would bank an extra 15 points - they had four games left at Westleigh Park and four away.

Either way, Paul Doswell’s men would finish second behind Wealdstone.

In the North division, it is a different story - Kings Lynn, second when the season ended, would jump above York City into top spot on PPG.

There are obviously other options, including just promoting the champions automatically and still keeping the play-offs in some form.

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The Press Association news agency have reported that ‘promotion play-offs are under serious consideration - ideally with crowds should coronavirus regulations and timings permit - and only after that plan is considered will they look at other ways to determine league standings.’

The National League will obviously be guided by what the EFL do, due to the close links between the two organisations.

If the EFL eventually up end null and voiding, the NL could well follow. But no decision on when the remaining EFL games will be played looks forthcoming for several weeks yet.

‘A lot of things will have to be decided on what happens in the EFL’ said Dagenham & Redbridge managing director Steve Thompson.

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‘What happens if they don't finish their season? I am not saying they won't but it's a possibility.

‘If the EFL don't finish the season it might be decided that no one goes up.’

But another additional point to consider is that League 2 currently only has 23 clubs due to Bury’s withdrawal last September.

If the EFL were to null and void, would Barrow - as current NL leaders - be automatically promoted to fill that gap? And if they were, how would that affect 2020/21 as the NL would be one club short unless they promoted from below - and so on and so on.

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Hawks will certainly be voting against null and void, but one man who will take a different view is Danny Hunter, chairman of NL top flight club Boreham Wood.

‘I don’t see how you can have promotion, play-offs or relegation,’ he said.

‘People have to accept things for how they are. Would we be a loser because we’re in a play-off spot? Yeah we would be, but there’s a worldwide pandemic.

‘The one thing I’ve managed to do is keep my staff safe, keep them paid and keep them on board. That’s far more important than a play-off game. I’ve got a duty of care to my players, my staff, my town and my community.’

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While the likes of Doswell had previously said they would be happy to restart fixtures in June, July or even later, Hunter is less confident of a relatively quick return to action.

‘I don’t think we’ll be playing non-league football any time this year,’ he remarked.

‘If you’ve got £750m at stake in the Premier League and they can’t tell us how they’re coming back, what chance have little old Boreham Wood got of being able to open our stadium?

‘Everything in football is about emotion and people. We can’t pay our players if there’s no-one in the stadium.’

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Maidstone were two places outside the NL South play-off zone when the season was first halted in mid-March.

Stones owner Oliver Ash is another who will vote to null and void 19/20.

‘I am not thinking about this season, for me this season is dead and buried,’ he stated.

‘Anybody who thinks it should be revived hasn’t got a sufficient dose of reality.

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‘There is no perfect solution to this but I have been clear in my mind for a few weeks. We have to say that this terrible crisis is bad luck but let’s wipe this season out.’

Dover chairman Jim Parmenter admitted his club’s money had run out towards the end of last month. Like Hawks, the Dover players were furloughed.

Parmenter is one of eight men on the National League’s board. Six of the board members belong to NL top flight clubs, with one representing the South clubs and one representing the North clubs.

The South’s representative is Richard Parsons of Hampton & Richmond Borough.

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Prior to Wednesday’s announcement by the NL, Parmenter had said: ‘Many of you will know I am involved in the governance of the National League so my thoughts on how league matters should be brought to conclusion must remain my own for the time being, but I do intend to speak out when the time is right.

‘All I can say is that I find the staggering self interest being displayed by those who can afford to continue to pursue gain from the season by threatening legal action if they don’t get their own way against good people trying to do their best in unprecedented circumstances disgusting beyond further words.’

Chorley were 18 points adrift of safety at the foot of the NL when the season was halted. With only eight games left, they were virtually down.

Now they will be voting to null and void the season, but chairman Ken Wright insists which league the club are playing in in 2020/21 is not a priority.

‘Wherever we will be playing next season does not really matter at this stage of proceedings when people are losing their lives and the country is in such a state,’ he said.