HARRIS: FANS LEFT IN LIMBO
New Covid guidelines change everything
MARK HARRIS, the Pitching In Northern Premier League chairman, says local lockdowns in north England shows crowds in football grounds are on a knife edge.
At midnight on Thursday, restrictions were introduced in the north-east aimed at halting the rise in coronavirus cases.
Then, on Friday, similar measures were announced for large parts of Lancashire coming into force until Tuesday, while Yorkshire and the Midlands are also seeing restrictions.
The responsibility lies with local authorities meaning there can be inconsistencies in different regions.
A joint-statement from the Northumberland FA and the Durham FA confirmed football below Step 6 in the Sunderland, Gateshead and South Tyneside areas is not allowed.
Clubs at Step 6 and above can play on for now but there is a possibility the 30 per cent capacities could be reduced back to 15 per cent.
NPL chief Harris believes it also is a reminder of the importance of following the rules and protocols to keep stadiums open.
“What this shows is that we are absolutely on a knife edge,” Harris told The NLP. “Returning to phase one capacities of 15 per cent in some areas is a possibility. What we’re trying to do is keep the thing going. Clearly no one wants to see capactities reduced to 15 per cent, but the worst thing I think can happen is either authorities forcing clubs to play behind closed doors – which clearly isn’t viable – or losing football altogether. So things are poised very much on a knife edge in terms of football showing it can deliver.
“But the biggest problem is we can’t control two things. Clubs can’t control what fans are doing before and after games and they can’t control what’s happening in society.”
Integrity
As part of the measures, people are “advised not to attend amateur or semi-professional sporting events as a spectator”, which has only added to a confusing picture.
“It’s the confusion caused by unclear guidance,” Harris said. “Currently clubs are not being told they can’t play games.
“Then they are being “advised” which puts them under an impossible choice to make. As a league we are certainly encouraging our clubs to push back on that because obviously we want the games to be played.
“Obviously if an authority comes to a decision that says a club cannot play on its ground, we have no powers to overturn that. In a situation like that we will deal with requests to reverse fixtures or postpone fixtures in the best way we can.
“We also need to bear in mind the bigger picture that if we build up a large backlog of unplayed games the we run the risk that IF the season is curtailed early again – although a decision hasn’t been made whether it would be Points Per Game or not – it could have a big influence. We’re not looking at that at the moment. The priority is to get as many games as we can and help our clubs through this.”
Northumberland FA’s Acting Chief Executive, Andrew Rose-Cook, said: “Football is hanging by a thread here in the North East. We know how important the game is to our football community and we urge everyone to stick to the guidelines. The alternative is that football will be suspended.”
Durham County FA’s Chief Executive, John Topping, added: “We hope that all connected with the game will adhere to the restrictions so that we can get football back to the way it was. I would urge you all to follow the guidance this weekend so that we can continue to play the game we all love.”