EFL chief sees no need to call a circuit-breaker
EFL chairman Rick Parry has responded to calls to pause the football season following a mass of postponements this weekend.
There were 19 games called off from Championship to League Two on Saturday and six more in the Premier League. Burnley’s fixture against Aston Villa was called off on Saturday less than two hours before kick-off.
There is guidance in place about what will trigger a postponement – and clubs with at least 14 available players will carry on.
Parry insists there is no evidence to suggest taking one or two weeks out would be any benefit.
He told Football Focus: “If we think a circuit breaker will help we will do it but, at the moment, there’s no scientific evidence to suggest that it will help.
“We’ve got to stick together, stay calm and keep making balanced decisions on the basis of the latest information.”
He added: “We wondered if a short sharp circuit breaker this weekend would help but, frankly, it wouldn’t.
“There is no science to suggest it would help and, if you look at the geographical spread, there are areas where games can go ahead and where they can’t.
“There’s talk of the Government having a two-week lockdown after Christmas, so maybe that will be taken out of our hands.
“We are getting more information listening to the scientists. They need more data to try to work out exactly where we are going with this new strain. It is too early to tell.
“Next week we might be in a different position.”
In the lead-up to the weekend’s fixtures, the EFL said in a statement: “Throughout the pandemic, supporting the health and safety of players, staff and supporters has been the EFL’S primary priority and supporting the wellbeing of the country with the rise of the Omicron variant is vital.
“To help protect players, the EFL moved to implement a regime of enhanced training ground protocols and increased testing, alongside encouraging all eligible players and staff to get fully vaccinated and a booster jab to help protect colleagues and minimise the risk of fixtures being postponed.”