DISGRACE!
CLUBS’ FURY AS EFL END SEASON
EFL clubs have voted to curtail the League One and Two seasons, in a move that has infuriated some of those who feel they have missed out.
Following ballots yesterday, both divisions’ seasons were cut short after an ‘ overwhelming majority’ opted to vote for a points-per-game method to decide promotion, relegation and the play-offs.
That decision has enraged many who have been negatively impacted in the third tier. Peterborough United director of football Barry Fry, whose club dropped out of the play-offs and whose season was instantly ended, branded the EFL ‘a disgrace’.
The club’s owner, Darragh MacAnthony, told Sportsmail he was too angry to speak and would say something he regretted. MacAnthony had earlier tweeted: ‘Bravo to the four clubs who did vote to play on. The EFL and League One s*** show draws to a close.’
However, sources at several clubs who voted for the season to continue have admitted that any legal challenge is highly unlikely.
As a result of the curtailment, Coventry and Rotherham have been promoted to the Champions h i p , and Wycombe, Oxford, Portsmouth and Fleetwood will contest the playoffs, with the dates for those matches to be fixed in due course.
Tranmere — who had proposed an alternative framework to the one chosen — have been relegated to League Two, along with Southend and Bolton.
Sunderland and Ipswich, who were in the hunt for a play- off spot, were the other two teams who voted to continue in League One, along with Peterborough and Tranmere. Many of those who voted against a restart were influenced by the substantial cost of taking players off furlough to play matches with no gate receipts.
Ipswich owner Marcus Evans said: ‘A decision had to be made and, while we don’t agree with the outcome, we do fully understand that the cost of finishing the season for many clubs was prohibitive.’
In League Two, Swindon, Crewe and Plymouth have been promoted, and Cheltenham, Exeter, Colchester and Northampton will contest the play-offs, with the first legs of the semi-finals taking place next week.
As things stand, Stevenage will be relegated to the National League, but Macclesfield could yet finish bottom if they incur further points deductions for alleged breaches of EFL regulations.
Should next season’s National League not be played, the relegated side would win a reprieve. Leaders Barrow are expected to replace expelled Bury, as the National League — who were waiting for the outcome of the EFL talks — will now make a call on their campaign. The Championship is set to play on, with a start date set for June 20.
‘The EFL have been a disgrace throughout this process,’ Fry told the Peterborough News. ‘Just last week they arranged for four clubs they knew were going to be in the play- offs to be tested for coronavirus.
‘They did this before today’s vote and those clubs had returned to training before then. What on earth was the point of the vote when the EFL knew what the result would be?’