Tonight's football thread

I'm not saying I want them to end the season for most (if not all of the Leagues). I'm saying it's what I think will happen.

WP, your point about having fans in the stadiums for the lower leagues in July definitely won't happen. They're talking about no fans in stadiums for the rest of the year. It's very difficult to see many lower league clubs surviving in these circumstances it has to be said.

If the leagues don't resume, it is probably fairer to base it on average points gained per match rather than current position or even flex it based on home and away games played. Whatever method is picked, somebody won't be happy if it means their club is adversely affected.

Yes i'd also much prefer the season to be resumed... but i just can't see it realistically happening. Maybe for the Premier League... but the lower divisions can't really afford to do it without crowds in the ground.

ps anything which relegates Villa suits me down to the ground...

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Originally Posted by Muddy Retriever

WP, your point about having fans in the stadiums for the lower leagues in July definitely won't happen.

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If you can open the Trafford Centre etc, you can have fans in grounds. If you can still fly, which you can with more flights announced today, you can have fans in grounds.

It's outdoor. You can have sensible arrangements for spacing if capacity is reduced.

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Originally Posted by Witton Park

If you can open the Trafford Centre etc, you can have fans in grounds. If you can still fly, which you can with more flights announced today, you can have fans in grounds.

It's outdoor. You can have sensible arrangements for spacing if capacity is reduced.

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These are all valid... but when has logic came into it? We have to stay at home, but flights come into the country unchecked...

We can go back to an office full of random colleagues who may or may not have the virus, but can't interact with our families.

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Originally Posted by Travs

These are all valid... but when has logic came into it? We have to stay at home, but flights come into the country unchecked...

We can go back to an office full of random colleagues who may or may not have the virus, but can't interact with our families.

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I do disagree with the family contact. I think they should let us decide.

But I do see the logic. It's about number of contacts on a national scale.

I made this point to a relative yesterday who queried the property market opening up but no family contact. Someone comes to your house for a viewing. They are in and out in 10 minutes never to be seen again.

If my daughter comes with her partner and my granddaughter, they'll be here for a few hours, use the facilities and then later I'm off to see Mum & Dad, maybe pop in to see one of my brothers whilst over there and on a statistical contact counter, it probably rocks up several times more than a house viewing, and doesn't give any economic, back-to-work sort of impetus.

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Originally Posted by Witton Park

If you can open the Trafford Centre etc, you can have fans in grounds. If you can still fly, which you can with more flights announced today, you can have fans in grounds.

It's outdoor. You can have sensible arrangements for spacing if capacity is reduced.

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Much as it pains me to say it, I think July would probably be too soon to allow fans back into stadiums. I think the number of new infections would have to reduce significantly from where it is now. Official figures are now below 4,000 daily but that is only the number for those tested. I've read that the real figure is estimated to be more like 20,000.

True, football is outside and you could reduce capacity to space people about a bit. But what about the congregation on the concourse, which is inside, the cram in toilets etc. Plus the stadiums of lower league clubs by and large are even less well equipped to handle it than those in the Premier League. It seems to me that it would be impossible to maintain social distancing, even if you could rely on all fans to be disciplined enough, which you can't.

I hope fans can return in the autumn, as the implications for many clubs without the revenue are absolutely dire. But as I said yesterday, it wouldn't surprise me if the Government doesn't allow it until next year. I hope I'm wrong.

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Originally Posted by Muddy Retriever

Much as it pains me to say it, I think July would probably be too soon to allow fans back into stadiums. I think the number of new infections would have to reduce significantly from where it is now. Official figures are now below 4,000 daily but that is only the number for those tested. I've read that the real figure is estimated to be more like 20,000.

True, football is outside and you could reduce capacity to space people about a bit. But what about the congregation on the concourse, which is inside, the cram in toilets etc. Plus the stadiums of lower league clubs by and large are even less well equipped to handle it than those in the Premier League. It seems to me that it would be impossible to maintain social distancing, even if you could rely on all fans to be disciplined enough, which you can't.

I hope fans can return in the autumn, as the implications for many clubs without the revenue are absolutely dire. But as I said yesterday, it wouldn't surprise me if the Government doesn't allow it until next year. I hope I'm wrong.

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I think when we had 5000+ cases and were only testing 10-20k per day, it was clearly in the community among the general public and we don't yet know how long ago it first came in to the country. Quite probably pre Xmas.

Now we have <4000 cases, but testing is close to 100k each day. Most of these cases are from care homes and hospitals.
They won't tell us how many, but the whole of East Lancs, 6 parliamentary constituencies so circa 500,000 people are not really breaking in to double figures anymore.
It is almost entirely in care homes.

That's not to be dismissive, that needs sorting, but as I think I said earlier, if I attended a match at Turf Moor, my odds of being within spitting distance of a COVID carrier would be less than my odds of getting run over by a boy racer walking the mile from the car park to the stadium.

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Originally Posted by Witton Park

That's not to be dismissive, that needs sorting, but as I think I said earlier, if I attended a match at Turf Moor, my odds of being within spitting distance of a COVID carrier would be less than my odds of getting run over by a boy racer walking the mile from the car park to the stadium.

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Granted you'd probably be alright at Turf Moor, but what about grounds where they have a lot of fans? ;)

Sorry.

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Originally Posted by Muddy Retriever

Granted you'd probably be alright at Turf Moor, but what about grounds where they have a lot of fans? ;)

Sorry.

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especially when none of them are from the locality :p - I think Burnley is the best supported club per head of population from their hometown area.

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Originally Posted by Witton Park

especially when none of them are from the locality :p - I think Burnley is the best supported club per head of population from their hometown area.

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Well it would be irresponsible for the average Man Utd fan to travel so far to attend their home games. 😂