Step 3-6 football ended with expected null and voided situation

It’s been announced that England’s non-leagues teams at steps 3-6 have agreed to curtail the 2020/21 season as null and void for a second consecutive season despite the news from the government on Monday that football can return.

The news comes despite the announcement by the government that fans will be allowed to return to stadiums in May but it had been widely expected that the likes of the Isthmian League, Northern League amongst many others would see their seasons end in due course as a result of issues involving pitches, contracts of players and the opening of clubhouses which meant a possible restart would’ve have to be done without fans.

In a statement made by the Football Association:

Submissions were made by 99.1 per cent of clubs at Steps 3 and 4, and 95.8 per cent of clubs at Steps 5 and 6. We would like to thank the clubs for submitting their views and the time taken in providing responses during what we appreciate is an incredibly challenging period for everyone.

The results of the survey showed that over 76 per cent of all clubs across Steps 3-6 indicated a preference to curtail the 2020-21 league season if it could not be restarted with limited spectator numbers and hospitality before 1 April 2021.

During this process, taking into account views of clubs and leagues, it was decided that extending the 2020-21 league season beyond the end of May 2021 would not be a viable option. This was due to various considerations, including the financial implications for many clubs, player contracts and the extent of the fixture scheduling issues caused by the national lockdown and various postponements which had resulted in there being 81 per cent of matches left to complete for Steps 3 and 4, and 75 per cent at Steps 5 and 6.

Taking into account the survey results and the ongoing impact of Covid-19, which continues to adversely affect incomes for clubs due to restrictions on both spectators and hospitality, our alliance and leagues committees have reached a consensus that, subject to the approval of FA Council, the 2020-21 league season for Steps 3-6 of the NLS should be curtailed with immediate effect, with no further league matches taking place this season.

The committees will now present their collective recommendations to the FA Council for ratification.

It has also been decided that, subject to FA Council’s decision regarding the curtailment of the season at Steps 3 to 6, both committees will revisit discussions around a potential restructure at Steps 4-6 of the NLS, which was previously agreed and has been on hold since the 2019-20 season. A further update on this will be provided in due course.

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However all is not lost for those in non-league football as Sunday league football and Step Seven football have been permitted to restart. This tweet by the Essex Olympian League who operate below Step Six sparked a mixture of both optimism and criticism by people involved in the game.

Following this past Mondays announcement, the EOFL League will be restarting on 03 April with a full programme of matches.

— eofl (@eofl) February 24, 2021

Analysis

The end of what has been a very quiet situation having started back in December has now ultimately come to a rather conclusive end with not much controversy in sight either as a result of it unlike last weeks ruling by the National League to null and void their North and South divisions amid protests from a number of their member clubs.

When lockdown came along in December, it was expected that such a decision like null and voiding the season would be the outcome as preferred by many teams across the country. It was just all about when it would be announced by the FA that was stopping the season from carrying on into any further timeframe or month if being truthfully honest.

Unlike last year as well, there doesn’t seem to be much unrest following the news. Whilst some will be happy at the outcome, some will be angry and disappointed there wasn’t another way to finish the season whether it be via Points Per Game or even finishing the season as it stood today.

With normality looking likely come August following the proposed roadmap out set by the government, it looks like the last two seasons of null and voiding may become a thing of the past in due time as we enter this new world where non-league football in itself is now playing some massive catch up time with its restructuring of the various leagues like expanding to an eighth Step Four division that was meant to start this season whilst also finally filling up the Step Five leagues with 20 teams as per the quota set by the FA several years ago before Covid came along.

August will see teams starting back for a third campaign to begin following the last 18 months of madness in hope it won’t be null and voided once more and rightly so. In the meantime, go and support your local Sunday league and Step Seven sides in action as they’ll appreciate the support when they start in the coming weeks.

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