Rules for Curtailment of the Season

[Hitthebar22]

Martin Zeigler , Football correspondent of The Times has run an on-line piece this evening which begins as follows :

All three divisions of the National League are likely to vote to terminate the season as early as this week rather than take on loans from the government’s rescue package, according to club representatives.

The National League will send out resolutions this week to all the 66 clubs asking them to vote on whether to continue the season or end it without any promotion or relegation.

What a great thing that we were promoted

[xerxes]

Despite the initial confusion around trying to understand these resolutions if you pick your way through them it becomes apparent that they are pretty much designed to facilitate a certain outcome - this being that the NL continue and the NLN/NLS dont.

It's possible, however, that NLN & NLS could vote to continue whilst NL don't!

[Suffolk Blue]

Despite the initial confusion around trying to understand these resolutions if you pick your way through them it becomes apparent that they are pretty much designed to facilitate a certain outcome - this being that the NL continue and the NLN/NLS dont.

It's possible, however, that NLN & NLS could vote to continue whilst NL don't!

There are a number of potentially wacky scenarios and this being the NL, I wouldn't entirely rule them out. It would have to get really weird however for the NL to vote to null & void.

[HenneysKnee]

Gloucester City Chairman says regular Covid testing will start at national league level within the next fortnight and at no cost to clubs; that’s one less reason they can use to vote null and void.....

[Steeley]

Dover have furloughed all players and staff.

[MisterPleasant]

Dover have furloughed all players and staff.

Interesting: http://www.doverathletic.com/news/club-statement-11/

Will others follow suit? Their decision presents a challenge to the National League.

[Suffolk Blue]

Dover have furloughed all players and staff.

Interesting: http://www.doverathletic.com/news/club-statement-11/

Will others follow suit? Their decision presents a challenge to the National League.

See also attached. https://www.kentonline.co.uk/dover/spor ... re-242471/

An interesting furlough story that doesn't involve us!.

The relevance of this to us? Well the current set of resolutions still being considered by the NL members, whilst they appear complicated, are essentially designed to generate one of three "clean" outcomes: everyone stops, everyone continues (both unlikely) and the most likely NL national continues and NLN/NLS don't. With each of these outcomes the NL could claim it had at least acted as a unified body leaving it available to continue to assert that because of due process it should still be allowed to promote teams into the EFL - though this has yet to be challenged.

Any solution that ends up with a fragmentation of the Leagues (and specifically the NL National League) significantly weakens this argument. Can you really have promotion from a League that itself has no relegation AND allows some of its clubs to arbitrarily stop playing?

In truth this may be a bit of a masterstroke by our old friend and owner of Dover Mr Jim Parmenter who until his recent resignation was a stalwart of the NL board. For those who are not aware, the NL has made a statement in the last few days to the effect that it is not proposing to take action - at this time - against any club that decides that it cannot in the current circumstances fulfill its fixtures. Again this was aimed at maintaining at least the appearance of control over its members although it was specifically aimed at NLN/NLS clubs. Dover have significantly raised the stakes by (a) furloughing all players and staff - a perfectly legal step to take if a little dramatic in the middle of a season and (b) they've done it after the NL has tried to sidestep the issue of accountability and punishment.

My instinct tells me that this step is meant to put pressure on the other NL clubs and the NL board to find a way of bailing out Dover and getting the season in totality at least to a point whereby they could assert a PPG conclusion - although even what that might be is unclear. If the NLS elect to stop then the NL board would have no option but to nullify their season - no promotion or relegation. You might try and expel Dover in these circumstances but that might be legally tenuous. As Dover are pretty likely to be relegated anyway, this therefore could be quite a smart move.

For the NL this is yet another potential nail in its administrative coffin. Clearly it is desperately trying to convey the view that its in charge of a unified set of members. This event shows how ridiculous that notion is. We are moving towards a situation whereby it will become more likely that the top half a dozen clubs in the NL National effectively begin to use their power and position to assume effective control and start to lobby the EFL on behalf of themselves.

[whitty1969]

Interesting: http://www.doverathletic.com/news/club-statement-11/

Will others follow suit? Their decision presents a challenge to the National League.

See also attached. https://www.kentonline.co.uk/dover/spor ... re-242471/

An interesting furlough story that doesn't involve us!.

The relevance of this to us? Well the current set of resolutions still being considered by the NL members, whilst they appear complicated, are essentially designed to generate one of three "clean" outcomes: everyone stops, everyone continues (both unlikely) and the most likely NL national continues and NLN/NLS don't. With each of these outcomes the NL could claim it had at least acted as a unified body leaving it available to continue to assert that because of due process it should still be allowed to promote teams into the EFL - though this has yet to be challenged.

Any solution that ends up with a fragmentation of the Leagues (and specifically the NL National League) significantly weakens this argument. Can you really have promotion from a League that itself has no relegation AND allows some of its clubs to arbitrarily stop playing?

In truth this may be a bit of a masterstroke by our old friend and owner of Dover Mr Jim Parmenter who until his recent resignation was a stalwart of the NL board. For those who are not aware, the NL has made a statement in the last few days to the effect that it is not proposing to take action - at this time - against any club that decides that it cannot in the current circumstances fulfill its fixtures. Again this was aimed at maintaining at least the appearance of control over its members although it was specifically aimed at NLN/NLS clubs. Dover have significantly raised the stakes by (a) furloughing all players and staff - a perfectly legal step to take if a little dramatic in the middle of a season and (b) they've done it after the NL has tried to sidestep the issue of accountability and punishment.

My instinct tells me that this step is meant to put pressure on the other NL clubs and the NL board to find a way of bailing out Dover and getting the season in totality at least to a point whereby they could assert a PPG conclusion - although even what that might be is unclear. If the NLS elect to stop then the NL board would have no option but to nullify their season - no promotion or relegation. You might try and expel Dover in these circumstances but that might be legally tenuous. As Dover are pretty likely to be relegated anyway, this therefore could be quite a smart move.

For the NL this is yet another potential nail in its administrative coffin. Clearly it is desperately trying to convey the view that its in charge of a unified set of members. This event shows how ridiculous that notion is. We are moving towards a situation whereby it will become more likely that the top half a dozen clubs in the NL National effectively begin to use their power and position to assume effective control and start to lobby the EFL on behalf of themselves.

Alright Suffolk.
The Dover stance could have a massive influence on a Null and void season in the Non League pyramid.
So could end up involving Barrow in the near future.
If we dont get our fingers out we are heading back there.
Might be the only thing that preserves our league status.
Of course I hope we grind out the results and pull clear but this news may help us.

[Bingo]

Dover wont be the only club to do this in the national league and it makes a complete farce of the whole competition especially if some clubs field only players that play for nothing if the league isnt competitive how can it remain viable. Obviously from Barrow point of the view I'm sure we can stop up anyway but this would take the pressure off

[Suffolk Blue]

Dover wont be the only club to do this in the national league and it makes a complete farce of the whole competition especially if some clubs field only players that play for nothing if the league isnt competitive how can it remain viable. Obviously from Barrow point of the view I'm sure we can stop up anyway but this would take the pressure off

True. If Dover aren't sanctioned why would I continue on if I were Kings Lynn or Weymouth or Barnet - especially if the NLS/NLN votes to end its season.

Also it screws up the PPG minimum position. Dovers games are still valid and unlike Maccs probably cant be scratched. They've 29 league games to play so wont have even played some sides at all. Their unplayed games represent about 6% of the total scheduled to be played in the NL this season. So when you set a minimum viability level for PPG technically it now has to be a percentage of the entire number of potential games (including Dovers unplayed games in which case the working minimum PPG level would effectively rise from say 75% to 80% of the games that can be played or you consider all the points gained from Dover games as ineligible. And that is the situation with only one club defaulting. If a couple more decide to stop then it would quickly make an acceptable PPG calculation virtually impossible.

And thanks Whitty for boiling my blog down to four sentences. Essentially you're spot on. For my sins I just love the smell of football politics. So underhand and yet so transparent.

[HenneysKnee]

National League Premier to continue
National League North/South declared null and void

[Bingo]

Be interesting to see if the league remains competitive for those teams in the lower half, temptation would be to furlough all the players and let some local lads have a kick about

[McMark]

https://www.thenationalleague.org.uk/na ... esol-65151
Funding still remains an issue as far as I see it so who knows how some of the clubs are going to address this going forward!

[HenneysKnee]

Be interesting to see if the league remains competitive for those teams in the lower half, temptation would be to furlough all the players and let some local lads have a kick about

Exactly what will happen. It will be a farce

[Suffolk Blue]

Interestingly NLS voted to continue. However by the rules of the vote the votes of the NLN/NLS had to be aggregated so overall their season is now terminated. Seven votes against continuing in the NL plus Wrexham's abstention. That was actually closer than I thought.

Not the end of the story. Just this chapter. What happens next may depend upon what action is taken against Dover. If they cant be persuaded to recommence then the NL will have to expel them or face the possibility that others will simply join them if not now then at some point in the near future. Their results will also have to be expunged if they wish to retain the possibility of a PPG related outcome.

There is also a growing prospect of some clubs furloughing their first team squads and playing on with non-contract (i.e. local) players. There doesn't appear to be an option available for the clubs to take a loan in excess of £5k without busting the NLs own rules. So what happens from hereon in may depend on factors such as how long lockdown lasts and when crowds may be allowed back into grounds against how long some clubs are prepaed and capable to sustain losses.