The football pyramid is in danger of collapse... what are you going to do about it then, Prime Minister?
ALL eyes will be on the Prime Minister’s road map out of lockdown on Monday but football’s pathway back to normality is at a dangerous crossroads.
As a champion of grassroots sport, I make no excuses for banging the drum again.
It is imperative that if kids go back to school next month, as is widely forecast, they MUST be allowed to play football again recreationally.
If households are going to mix in classrooms again, there can be no justification for extending the ban on junior clubs resuming organised training and games at grassroots level.
There is minimal scientific evidence to suggest the Covid19 virus is transmitted on football pitches in fresh air, so let’s not play roulette with our young people’s physical and mental well-being any longer.
When schools go back, grassroots sport should resume – with all Covid protocols in place.
The football pyramid is already in danger of collapse, or at least needing urgent scaffolding to prop it up, after National League North and South clubs voted to declare the 2020-21 season null and void. That is the most worrying sign yet that clubs are struggling to survive the pandemic if they cannot see a way to fulfil their fixtures.
It means York City, who have only just christened their brand new stadium, will have to wait another six months to play there again.
It means the likes of Darlington – who only played 11 games in National League North before the New Year lockdown – will not be playing 31 of their scheduled 42 fixtures.
But most worrying of all, it also means no promotion into the National League and no relegation from the fifth tier, either. Clubs like Torquay, Stockport and, my hometown club Wrexham, chasing a place back in the EFL mainstream, will be relying on clubs near the bottom end of the division to remain competitive consistently.
I’m not suggesting anyone would compromise the integrity of the promotion race. But when the prize of getting into the Football League is such a holy grail, it is vital every National League game is a contest, not a hard-fought battle one week and a walkover the next.
What happens further down English football’s ladder remains to be seen but
I fear some clubs will not survive. That’s where my Savage
Foundation – free access to football for all five to 12-yearolds, irrespective of background or ability – could have an important role to play.
And that’s why we have to look after the grassroots.
I believe sports minister Nigel Huddleston, Secretary of State Oliver Dowden and Health Minister Matt Hancock recognise the importance of kids playing recreational sport.
The Government pledged that grassroots sport was last to be shut down and it will be the first to reopen, so let’s see them put words into action.
When the schools go back, let’s make sure our children have access to physical activity as well as face-to-face learning in the classroom.
And if we go back into a tier system, let’s make sure they are allowed to cross tier boundaries to train and play with their team-mates.
We have all learned over the last 12 months grassroots sport is a powerful aid for kids’ mental health.
Physical activity can improve immunity, concentration in the classroom and aerobic fitness.
There have still been NO reported cases of on-pitch transmission in men’s or women’s professional football.
The British Journal of Sport and Exercise Medicine this week published similar findings after a study of rugby league, where there is far more physical contact.
If anyone can show me evidence it’s unsafe for groups of kids to train and play in organised sessions, while observing safeguarding and social distancing protocols, I will accept the scientists’ advice.
But there is virtually no proof of Covid transmission on pitches. It’s important to stay within the rules but as the evenings grow lighter, just as important to let the children play again.