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Dulwich Hamlet and Coronavirus

Several clubs, including Hamlet, have confirmed their contracts became invalid this season if the league formally halted. Presumably some clubs have failed to include that clause otherwise I doubt 15-20 tier two clubs would fancy playing on.

Presumably for the clubs with that clause, playing contracts ceased the day the vote was confirmed - plus any notice.

Edited to say I think Gavin confirmed the contracts in a newspaper interview rather than the club formally stating it.
 
An interesting one out my way. Aldershot's manager was a little critical in the local press of the decision to permit Hereford"s visit in the Trophy on Saturday. He felt this placed Shots at risk as they were testing and Hereford weren't. (If he's right that means the league still haven't delivered Hereford the promised testing kit.)

Shots have just confirmed their next two games are off and the first team squad / those close to it are in self isolation due to positive Covid tests.

No comment on where they think the infection occurred yet. Could be interesting.

The league had better get some testing kits to Hereford now as the person/ people could have been infectious on Saturday, if that wasn't when the infection occurred.

Hopefully this won't impact Hereford's FA Trophy semi-final, that would be brutal.
 
Havant, another club keen to continue in the vote from memory, have confirmed they won't enter the mini league, if it happens

I find it incredible that clubs were keen to force others to play on yet they now decide it's a bit too expensive when offered the chance to play on themselves.

They bring no credit on themselves for their willingness to force others towards an abyss they have now looked at and pulled back from. What exactly has changed since they voted? A few buses up north will drive costs up a bit but surely any club that close to hitting financial trouble should have played safe and voted null and void?

To be fair Havant also cite the players being on furlough so they are likely to be uncompetitive if they restart. I'll be generous and assume this is genuine. However; it still makes them total hypocrites. They were one of 16 clubs to sign an open letter saying the league needed to play on due to integrity, mental health and so on. Nowhere in the letter can I find the caveat 'subject to us being competitive.'

It'll be interesting to see whether St Albans enter...
 
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Roger D said:
Havant, another club keen to continue in the vote from memory, have confirmed they won't enter the mini league, if it happens

I find it incredible that clubs were keen to force others to play on yet they now decide it's a bit too expensive when offered the chance to play on themselves.
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On the issue of clubs being forced to play on, let's remember that 7 National Division clubs (including Dover, who seem to have downed tools and are facing possible expulsion from the league) have been forced to do just that. Even with a two thirds majority wanting to play on, that simply doesn't work if those other 7 clubs don't have any money left and are unable to generate matchday revenue because we're still playing behind closed doors.

You can't really blame individual clubs for arguing for their own preference, no matter how senseless it may seem to the rest of us. That's where the League Management Committee is supposed to come in, isn't it? They need to take an objective and dispassionate view and play it safe during a time of great uncertainty. Instead, for the last 12 months now, they seem to have been bending over backwards to accommodate the wishes of those who favour the gambler's approach of "let's get started and hope for the best".

scousedom said:
If we knew this thing would be with us for five years, what would we (or rather a responsible League management) do? Probably, some or all of:
  • Change the season timing to Mar-Oct to maximise the chances of playing games when not in lockdown and therefore in front of crowds (because lockdowns are more likely to occur in autumn/winter).
  • Either agree to play seasons to a finish, even if that took five years, rather than cancelling one half way through every year.
  • Or rearrange the fixture scheduling so that every team plays each other once and if you have to call a season halfway then you can.
  • Adapt new standardised contract wording to enable seasons to be extended over lockdowns without incurring huge extra wage costs.
  • Hold any Government support money centrally, and distribute only on basis of need, and only to clubs who can show clearly that their budgets are sustainable based on their "normal" income - excluding sugardaddy top-ups.

So on the basis this thing will be here five years (or however long this Government lasts), we should start getting on with this. Otherwise we'll just have five more unfinished seasons and a lot of bankrupt clubs.
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Some of those points are so obvious it's incredible that they weren't addressed before this season was allowed to begin.

I'd add another another criterion to that list:

No more matches played behind closed doors. Minimum 30% of standard ground capacity and if government rules that it's not safe enough for that number of spectators the matches are postponed or cancelled.

We also need to see the contents of the Bernstein Report. Those responsible for leading everyone into this mess should be fully scrutinised and held to account. Will anyone really be surprised if the same rogues gallery is still in place on the National League Board next season?
 
Roger D said:
The league had better get some testing kits to Hereford now as the person/ people could have been infectious on Saturday, if that wasn't when the infection occurred.

Hopefully this won't impact Hereford's FA Trophy semi-final, that would be brutal.
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I think league run or club testing is frankly a red herring now. Testing is available in the community to anyone that is required to go into work and can't work from home, e.g. footballers. This is available for any organisation with "fewer than 50 employees, a sole trader, self-employed or a member of the general public" - so actually the last criteria encapsulates all the former. In Southwark this is available at the Damilola Taylor Centre and London Bridge station - Book a free COVID-19 test.
 
pompeydunc said:
I think league run or club testing is frankly a red herring now. Testing is available in the community to anyone that is required to go into work and can't work from home, e.g. footballers. This is available for any organisation with "fewer than 50 employees, a sole trader, self-employed or a member of the general public" - so actually the last criteria encapsulates all the former. In Southwark this is available at the Damilola Taylor Centre and London Bridge station - Book a free COVID-19 test.
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There's a big test centre in Belair Park too if that qualifies as suitable.
 
Not sure if this should be in a new thread but the London FA have stated that ALL Adult Cup Competitons will be played to a conclusion once competitive football is permitted to be restart. Dulwich were due to be away to Dartford before Christmas but I know that was postponed but can’t recall whether it was Covid or something else. Should be interesting how clubs at “Elite” level source players though I suppose the sensible thing would be to make use of Academy players Cups
 
Article below on Hamlet's players being ineligible for furlough. It seems really odd to make the cut off point the penultimate day of the month when a lot of employees get paid on the final day of the month.

londonnewsonline.co.uk

Dulwich Hamlet player-coach Michael Timlin wants non-league version of PFA to give players greater financial protection

Dulwich Hamlet player-coach Michael Timlin wants improved financial protection for non-league players after several members of the South Londoners’ squad were left without furlough support.
londonnewsonline.co.uk londonnewsonline.co.uk
 
Paula_G said:
Not sure if this should be in a new thread but the London FA have stated that ALL Adult Cup Competitons will be played to a conclusion once competitive football is permitted to be restart. Dulwich were due to be away to Dartford before Christmas but I know that was postponed but can’t recall whether it was Covid or something else. Should be interesting how clubs at “Elite” level source players though I suppose the sensible thing would be to make use of Academy players Cups
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Can withdraw with no penalty by 22 March...
 
I doubt it will go ahead - but should it - I fear it will make Nigel Lawson propping up the pound on black Friday look like fiscal responsibility
 
PartisanDulwich said:
I doubt it will go ahead - but should it - I fear it will make Nigel Lawson propping up the pound on black Friday look like fiscal responsibility
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I'm still rather baffled as to why so many clubs want to play this league from scratch behind closed doors. Their main argument seems to be that sponsors and season ticket holders have already paid up front and will otherwise expect to be refunded, but all the anecdotal evidence I've seen online suggests most supporters of all clubs are willing to write off their spending as a donation. Surely sponsors will accept the same if they actually support the club? Alternatively perhaps clubs should accept rolling over sponsorship deals for next season, or offering lower rates, just like we had to accept playing without matchday revenue this season.
 
The plan is now formally subnitted. Voluntary entry. All teams to play each other once. Champions up, one promotion spot via play offs. No clarity on relegation from tier one, it seems likely that won't happen and tier one will play with an extra team next year. Unless Dover get thrown out
 
www.borehamwoodfootballclub.co.uk

SPORT ENGLAND SAY NO

It is very disappointing to report that, despite assurances given to the club by representatives from both Sports England and the National League, we have subsequently been turned down for the Wint…
www.borehamwoodfootballclub.co.uk www.borehamwoodfootballclub.co.uk

A potential twist - Boreham Wood's loan application has been turned down, despite apparent previous assurances that it would be granted - which they're suggesting might have been to get them to vote to continue playing.

Seeing suggestions from supporters of other clubs that they were one of the major beneficiaries of the original funding distribution, so could be an attempt to level that out, but if other clubs who were expecting the loans get similarly turned down it could start getting interesting.
 
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AveryDave said:
www.borehamwoodfootballclub.co.uk

SPORT ENGLAND SAY NO

It is very disappointing to report that, despite assurances given to the club by representatives from both Sports England and the National League, we have subsequently been turned down for the Wint…
www.borehamwoodfootballclub.co.uk www.borehamwoodfootballclub.co.uk

A potential twist - Boreham Wood's loan application has been turned down, despite apparent previous assurances that it would be granted - which they're suggesting might have been to get them to vote to continue playing.

Seeing suggestions from supporters of other clubs that they were one of the major beneficiaries of the original grant distribution, so could be an attempt to level that out, but if other clubs who were expecting the loans get similarly turned down it could start getting interesting.
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They had the smallest average attendance in the National Division last season, around 750 I think. Their net gate receipts can't be more than £10k per match (I'm being generous) so for 23 home games they wouldn't have banked more than about £230k. They were given £246k from the lottery funding for the first three months of the season.
 
The FA Alliance Committee discuss the proposed Tier Two mini league tomorrow. If they approve it, it goes to the FA Council for their approval.
 
The property speculators will be disappointed - as some of those Clubs would have undoubtedly folded trying to reach Nirvana
 
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AveryDave said:


And the mini league proposal is rejected.
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Bloody right too. At last the FA has shown some authority and consigned this absurd pirate competition to the dustbin where it belongs. The fact that the National League humoured these clubs for so long represents yet another entry in its ongoing litany of mismanagement.

This league has long since turned into a farce ever since the season began behind closed doors, rapidly followed by the lottery funding scandal. It appears to have become a sponsors' and benefactors' league where policy is dictated by tinpot owners who wish to play matches in a bubble for their own amusement and with little regard for their clubs' supporters, or other clubs. It still remains to be see how much damage could be done to some of those National Division clubs forced to compete the season behind closed doors under duress. I can't find the link now but I saw the King's Lynn chairman quoted as saying his club could be left £300k in debt.

Incredibly the league's main sponsor Vanarama has just agreed a 3 year extension. I can only assume they subscribe to the adage that "all publicity is good publicity"!

Let's not forget that we still await the publication of the Bernstein Report
 
Pink Panther said:
The fact that the National League humoured these clubs for so long represents yet another entry in its ongoing litany of mismanagement.
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The refuge of the useless and the cowardly - letting someone else make a decision they could and should have made themselves, presumably to try and avoid further criticism from those clubs bankrolled by individuals or groups who have more money than sense and could be provoked to challenge them further.

They clearly want all this Step 2 stuff to go away so they can finish Step 1, move on to next season and hope they never get held to account for the absolute shambles they've presided over this season.
 
Imagine Vanarama were worried about negative headlines “Sponsor abandons nonleague football exacerbating cash crisis” etc. They may have reduced the amount, who knows, I’ve not seen details anywhere.
 
AveryDave said:
The refuge of the useless and the cowardly - letting someone else make a decision they could and should have made themselves, presumably to try and avoid further criticism from those clubs bankrolled by individuals or groups who have more money than sense and could be provoked to challenge them further.

They clearly want all this Step 2 stuff to go away so they can finish Step 1, move on to next season and hope they never get held to account for the absolute shambles they've presided over this season.
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It's difficult to know exactly who is responsible for what, but there appears to have been a dearth of leadership since the early part of the season. Chairman Barwick seems to have gone missing in action. (I think it was officially announced that he's standing down this summer, so it looks like he's just collecting his salary while doing as little as possible when he should have gone with immediate effect.) CEO Ives was only appointed on an interim basis after his predecessor Tattersall jumped ship, so he inherited a mess, but in kicking the Bernstein Report into the long grass he hasn't been proactive enough in rectifying the damage that was already done.

Of the League Board members, Parmenter of Dover has already stood down leaving a vacancy. My impression is that being a league board member is a bit like being a local borough councillor. Most people won't really know what they do, or even know (or care) who they are, until something goes wrong and they want someone to blame. I would imagine it's relatively easy to get a representative of your club onto the board if you're determined enough, at least for the National Division clubs who make up the bulk of the group, but serving must be a thankless task.

They're clearly desperate to promote clubs to the Football League as usual but I think they've fallen into a trap of becoming a poor version of the leagues above instead of playing to their strength as the pinnacle of the non-league game, which so many supporters prefer precisely because it's different to the Football League and Premier League.
 
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