Dev

Looking ahead:

£10 million lifeline from the National Lottery for National League football announced by Culture Secretary National League clubs are to receive National Lottery support to keep them afloat through pandemic following unique deal brokered by government Published 18 October 2020 From: Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and The Rt Hon Oliver Dowden CBE MP Will help much-loved local teams play this season and allow clubs to continue vital work in their communities UK Government now working with the National Lottery to ensure similar initiative with Welsh, Scottish and Northern Ireland FAs Government work continues to expedite the safe return of fans in England Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden has today announced that National League football clubs will receive £10 million funding as part of a unique partnership with The National Lottery. The support will benefit the 66 clubs in the fifth and six tiers of English football, so that they can continue to play behind closed doors after the return of fans was paused due to rising infection rates. Alongside the support for clubs, National Lottery players will also get a range of benefits – including free tickets once stadia are safe to reopen, grassroots football opportunities, and VIP experiences at Wembley Stadium. It comes after the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport assured the National League that emergency financial support would be forthcoming so that it was able to start the season earlier this month. All 66 clubs are playing football this season as a result. The £10 million emergency support package, which will reach clubs quickly via the Football Association (FA), is in recognition of the important role National League clubs play in their local areas – being a source of pride to their towns, giving children opportunities to get active, and being at the heart of their communities. Many clubs and their supporters have also been very active in their areas throughout the pandemic, rallying round to help the elderly and isolated, and raising money for front-line charities. Oliver Dowden, Culture Secretary, said: Nigel Railton, Chief Executive of National Lottery operator Camelot, said: Mark Bullingham, FA Chief Executive, said: This initiative is with the FA and National League, and the UK Government is now working with the National Lottery to ensure similar initiatives with the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland FAs. Funding will be distributed to each of the 66 National League clubs to help cover their lost gate revenue from the delay to fans being permitted to return, that was originally scheduled for 1 October. The decision was taken to pause this relaxation of the rules on 22 September, in order to stem rising coronavirus infection rates across the country. Work continues to ensure fans can return to sporting events as soon as the public health picture allows. This includes the Sports Technology Innovation Group (STIG) – made up of medical experts including Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jonathan Van-Tam, sports authorities, and representatives from the tech sector – which is looking at innovative solutions to enable the return of spectators without the need for a coronavirus vaccine. The STIG will make recommendations to the government. Today’s announcement builds on support the government has already given the sport sector to help it stay afloat during this difficult time. Sport England announced a £210 million emergency fund, largely enabled by National Lottery funding, for grassroots clubs, and earlier this year the Government stepped in to protect rugby league with £16 million in emergency loans. These interventions were on top of the multi-billion pound package of business support from the Treasury that enabled many sports clubs to survive, including the furlough scheme and business interruption loan scheme. From 1 November, businesses can claim under the new Job Support Scheme, which has been extended to help those required to close due to coronavirus restrictions, including sports venues. The Government is also working at pace with sports governing bodies and clubs across the country to fully assess what support is needed as a result of the decision to postpone the return of spectators from 1 October. ENDS Notes to Editors: The money for the initiative is coming from a National Lottery promotional fund. It is not being funded by money allocated for National Lottery Good Causes or by Camelot.

I hear that the National Lottery may have provided some help in Northern Ireland. Has anyone-else heard this? It was talked about at the end of the TNS v Haverfordwest game yesterday on the Welsh TV Channel S4C. Cracking game too.

Been switched to Darvel !!!

Maybe you're right but doesn't look much like it when covid hasn't been halted or held back by the SG policy re football.

No. Since pre-season. It's the biggest outside sporting activity, isn't it?

Inverness Athletic announce partnership with Clachnacuddin: https://www.invernessathleticfc.co.uk/news_article.php?id=473 Friday, October 23rd, 2020 Inverness Athletic FC are excited to announce a new partnership with our Highland League neighbours Clachnacuddin FC. The partnership will see both clubs working together to develop the array of excellent young football talent in the city, with young players on the edge of the Clachnacuddin first team getting invaluable game time with Athletic in the North Caledonian League. The partnership also gives Inverness Athletic players the opportunity to progress to Highland league level with a fantastic club, should they impress at North Caledonian level. The link also now gives Inverness Athletic the ability to offer players from the age of 8, through our link up with Balloan FC, a alternative pathway all the way to Highland League level, which is a fantastic step forward for the club. Manager Jason Golabek said about the partnership, “The two clubs have decided to make a link together and Jordan has got players not playing at the level he wants them to be at the moment. We can bring them to play with us in the North Caledonian League and hopefully we can send them back to Clachnacuddin as better players. Our club is only four years old and we are obviously not as big or well known as Clachnacuddin are so for Inverness Athletic to have that association with Clach is a great relationship to have.” We also got a word with Clachnacuddin Manager Jordan Macdonald, “We have a high number of players who are under 20 at the club, some are ready for Highland League and some aren’t but have the ability and a future at our club. This is a chance for these boys to be playing men’s football every week. Our boys can continue to play under-20’s football, but that doesn’t get you used to the standard of the Highland League and I want these boys to play in the North Caledonian League. There are a good standard of teams where they will come up against difficult players so It is the perfect opportunity for those players who we think will play in our first team eventually. They will learn a lot playing with Inverness Athletic and for me this is a match made in heaven.” Chairman’s Sandy Stephen said, “This is an exciting partnership and one that we as a football club are delighted to be a part of. As Jason said we are only four years old as a club and to have a link with an established Highland league club is amazing. It is fantastic that along with Balloan FC we can now offer players an alternative pathway from youth football all the way to Highland League, which can only be a good thing. Thank you to Alex and everyone at Clachnacuddin for agreeing to the partnership and we look forward to working with them for many years to come.” Clachnacuddin chairman Alex Chisholm, manager Jordan MacDonald, Inverness Athletic manager Jason Golabek and chairman Sandy Stephen. Picture: Donald Cameron

Didn't see it on here/don't read the Daily Record.

The football that has been played has had no fans present so it's just players, match officials and club officials who've moved around. Try comparing that with a visit to a shop or a pub or kids going to school or students to college and university. ..... so how many people have become infected due to football matches taking place this season? Serious question. Seems to me that football, in particular, has become the SG's scapegoat.

The League has just announced the main Sponsors :

Does the SG really believe that clubs are so incompetent that the clubs cannot put in place and manage pre-agreed numbers of fans attending matches in a covid-safe way?

A good idea from Edinburgh United. Good old fashioned league table charts showing the promotion and relegation positions and with slots for each club etc. Enthusiasts can follow the progress of their team over the season, moving up and down their Division's table as the season goes by.

Here is a good example of why the IMG do their job.

If clubs follow the guidelines/laws re covid then it would be mighty difficult to pin the blame on them for a player getting the disease, wouldn't it? The disease can be picked up elsewhere!

Then the decisions were based upon the economics not so much player welfare?

The decision about promotion came directly from the SFA as they wouldn't approve an increase in numbers in the Premier Division Conferences for 2021/22 i.e. with no relegations from the Premier Division Conferences also agreed. It was put the SFA. They didn't want to take on additional clubs from the Disciplinary point of view!!

It would make sense to regionalise the Div.1 Conferences if there's no relegation at stake.

Yes it is a dumb idea to show support for your local team when times are so difficult. Of course, local people will completely forget that your business stepped-up even though times are so tough for businesses too. Have you ever even run a business? It is about making a profit so you can pay yourself enough to live as well as possible. That means you need to know your market and, frequently, that means you need to show you are tied into your community. One way to do that is to support local good causes and that may include your local football club. Not so hard to understand is it??

They are! Ever heard of caring for your club?

I hope that no-one gets the disease but, if they do, and if they are a young person who is fit then the stats show that they still carry a risk of being badly affected by the disease. However, the stats say that the risk is much less great than for older people and the players understand that. They're usually highly aware of what's going on via social media etc. They are not fools. Your point about employers not being happy to lose workers for a period of illness is fair, obviously. The self-employed are even more vulnerable. The only consolation, if there is one, is that the age group which plays outdoor adult football in winter is, as mentioned above, aware of the risks. Having said that once they've had the disease it does appear that they are not likely to catch it again - although they could still spread it. It's about risk assessment and everyone has to figure out their own situation as best possible.

You go on about the health of players as though you are completely unaware that they can choose whether or not to play football or to do any other activity. They can choose to play or not under the current circumstances. It is not for you or I to tell them that they must not even if it is out of a deep genuine concern for their well-being, as I am sure it must be.

..... but the SG says it's necessary for Youth games to go ahead e.g. for mental and physical health reasons, presumably, as youngsters are less hurt by the virus, even though youngsters can easily pass on the disease (without knowing they have it). If the parents were allowed into the ground then they could watch at appropriate distances apart i.e. social distancing. Keep them out and you can get scenes such as those shown by Bonnyton. There will always be people breaking the rules (covid or not) but if you allow controlled access to matches, for all football, you can get people to watch at safe distances. There will always be those that won't do that. It's a fact of life, but the SG doesn't trust its own judgment on this let alone ordinary people. If you're taking the SG view that, for business reasons it's been ok to socialise in pubs etc, even though it is difficult for pubs to keep people who've been drinking alcohol apart, then why hurt people who wish to support good physical activities e.g. football? Is it more difficult to keep people apart if they're attending a football match than a Bar, or a restaurant? One argument I've heard is that Governments are afraid that football supporters gather before matches and socialise in groups in Pubs, Bars, etc. If the Pubs and Bars within an agreed distance of a match venue is not allowed to open or sell alcohol via an Off-Licence on match days/before matches then that risk could be controlled to a certain extent. The other thing is that people need to be able to socialize, if at all possible. Isolation affects mental health. This affects people in all communities and these people need help right now. Watching sport and doing other outdoor activities can help! The bottom line is that no-one is forced into watching sport live. Don't go to matches if that's the right decision for you or your loved ones but don't hurt others who don't agree with your point of view. There's two sides to every story and the SG can only think of football at Professional levels and doesn't reach beyond that. They don't even consider, let alone understand, that sport below professional levels is different because it is directly tied into its' local community. Maybe they think there's more votes in supporters of Pro clubs so the others aren't worth bothering with?

The important point coming out from today's announcement is that the SFA ..... "stated, that we must retain the format that was negotiated at the very beginning of the season, which is: Premier Division of 20 clubs reducing to 16 by 2022/23 at tier 6. Tier 7 was to consist of 3 Conferences playing to become 3 Linear Leagues by 2022/23." The SFA also "agreed that it would be unfair to punish any team wishing to withdraw from playing". Hence no relegations. Hence also, when the two together: no promotions (within the league). SFA didn't see the need for flexibility over these issues so WoS hands tied.

The Latest from the WoS. The key part may be: The Scottish Football Association ........ stated, that we must retain the format that was negotiated at the very beginning of the season, which is: Premier Division of 20 clubs reducing to 16 by 2022/23 at tier 6. Tier 7 was to consist of 3 Conferences playing to become 3 Linear Leagues by 2022/23. October 13, 2020 The following is an email sent to all WoSFL member clubs at 10.50am on the morning of 13th October 2020 by Kennie Young, Secretary of the Interim Management Group. To All Clubs, As Secretary of the Interim Management Group of the West of Scotland Football League it is my duty to update you on the plans for starting the Leagues. We have had intense discussions, throughout the weekend, including talks with the Scottish Football Association on possible scenarios surrounding the results of our recent ballot. These meetings and discussions culminated in a Zoom Meeting last night lasting almost three hours. Our over-riding principle in all this is protection of each and every one of our 67 clubs. In line with the decision taken by the Lowland League, we also decided that we would not force any team to take part in a competition that had the potential to bankrupt them due to no income from fans, or that forced them to ignore their duty of care to their players and staff. Therefore we offered the teams the option to withdraw from the league without penalty. Relegation is a form of penalty. So we cannot relegate a team for not playing and also we could not relegate a team for playing whilst allowing non-playing teams to retain a spot for next season. The Scottish Football Association have accepted that due to the current circumstances we are quite correct to consider the welfare and survival of all of our clubs and that we have to consider all aspects and implications of any decision we come to. They completely agreed that it would be unfair to punish any team wishing to withdraw from playing if they were concerned for their players, staff, committee and their fans. Also, that the clubs had to consider the financial implications of closed door matches. They also informed us that due to a number of clubs withdrawing from playing and without penalty, that it was right and proper that the full 4 league structure from this season should rollover to the next season. However, it was also stated, that we must retain the format that was negotiated at the very beginning of the season, which is: Premier Division of 20 clubs reducing to 16 by 2022/23 at tier 6. Tier 7 was to consist of 3 Conferences playing to become 3 Linear Leagues by 2022/23. All teams must start Season 2021/22 in the League they are in at present. For clarification, this means that there will be no promotion and/or relegation between tiers 6 and 7 in accordance with the Q&A document emailed to every member club on Monday 5th October. This was subsequently fully discussed at the online meeting held on the evening of Tuesday 6th October, three days before the closing time of the vote. We considered every option and outcome, we also considered the emails, messages and phone calls from a small number of clubs that contacted us with various suggestions. Since the result of the Ballot being published we have received emails from 9 clubs informing and confirming that they wish to withdraw from competing in this season’s League Competition. This has been implemented and the Premier League will commence on Saturday 24th October with 15 Clubs. It has been decided that we will run with a fixture list of 28 Games where each team will play the other 14 teams on a home and away basis. The 3 Conferences will run with the remaining teams and will also be played on a home and away basis, we may if required adjust these Conferences to try to achieve a balance across the leagues. Titles, Trophies and Medals will be assigned to all competitions. I now have to inform you, that, should your club wish to take up the option of withdrawing from playing in any of the Leagues and be able to do so without penalty, you will have until 8PM on Friday 16th October 2020, to confirm via an email to myself, of that decision. After that deadline passes all clubs that have not informed me of their withdrawal will be considered as playing. A fixture list will be produced as soon as possible thereafter and the clubs will be expected to complete those fixtures. However, we have also decided that due to some of the results from the earlier club survey, we have also added a period of grace to still withdraw without penalty. If you feel your club cannot continue due to the restrictions that are in place at that time, we will allow clubs to inform me via an email of their desire to withdraw from playing. The deadline for that stage will be 8PM on Saturday 14thNovember 2020. Please note, that any club that has not withdrawn from playing by that deadline will be considered as playing and will be expected to complete their commitment to the League by playing all fixtures as set out. Any club withdrawing after that deadline will be considered as having withdrawn from the WoSFL and may be sanctioned for that withdrawal. Finally, a reminder once again that the closing deadline for any club to withdraw without penalty from the Soccer Shop Challenge Cup is Saturday 17th October. Regards, Kennie Young Secretary Interim Management Group of the West of Scotland Football League

Big News: https://www.scottishfa.co.uk/news/scottish-fa-statement-on-new-government-guidelines/?rid=13929 Thursday 8 October 2020 Following the latest update from Scottish Government on Thursday, 7 October, the Scottish FA can today confirm the impact on Scottish football as a result of government guidance. OVER 18s ALL football activity for those aged 18 and over is not permitted in the following areas: Ayrshire & Arran Health Board, comprising East, North, and South Ayrshire; Forth Valley Health Board, comprising Clackmannanshire, Falkirk, and Stirling; Greater Glasgow & Clyde Health Board, comprising Glasgow City, East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde, Renfrewshire, and West Dunbartonshire; Lanarkshire Health Board, comprising North and South Lanarkshire; and Lothian Health Board, comprising the City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian, and West Lothian. Scottish Government travel guidance is that individuals who live in a high risk local health board area should not travel outside their health board area. This guidance applies for players travelling for training or matches. Clubs NOT located within the five high risk local health board areas noted above can continue to train and play in line with the current Phase 3 Route Map Guidance. However, matches cannot be organised with any clubs located within the five high risk local Health Board areas. Exemptions for over-18s are outlined below. EXEMPTIONS Please note, Scottish Government have advised of an exemption for professional sport. This covers teams who take part in the following competitions - Scottish Professional Football League, Highland League, Lowland League, SWF PL 1 & 2, West of Scotland Leagues, East of Scotland Leagues, South of Scotland League, North Caledonian League and SJFA Leagues. These competitions can continue in line with relevant guidance and protocols. This exemption also covers Scotland National Team fixtures at Men’s A, SWNT and Under-21 level. UNDER 18s Teams, with players aged 17 and under, located within the five high risk local Health Board areas can only take part in training or matches within the same local health board area. Players who live within a high risk local health board area should not travel out with that local health board area for training or matches as per Scottish Government guidance. Teams, with players aged 17 and under, located in any non-high risk local Health Board areas can organise training or matches within any other non-high risk local health board area. Players who live within a non-high risk local health board area can travel into other non-high risk local health board areas for training or matches. Players who live within a non-high risk local health board area should not travel into a high risk local health board area for training or matches. These restrictions are in place from Saturday 10 October and will remain in place until midnight on Sunday 25 October at the earliest.