With the coronavirus pandemic putting a halt to all sporting events, fans began to speculate what would be happening for the rest of the league season.
Steps three to seven of non-league football has already been null and voided, meaning the past season has all been for nothing and there will be no alterations for the club's league next season. This spelled bad news for the likes of South Shields FC, who looked firm favourites for the title after a fantastic season in the BetVictor Northern Premier League, but were mocked by Bradford Park Avenue on social media, as the FA's decision meant Mark Bower's men were safe for the time being.
However the top two tiers of non-league went for a different option, opting to cancel the season's remaining fixtures but a decision is yet to made regarding the future of the league; will Barrow reach the promise land of the EFL? Could York City finally be on their way back with promotion to the National League? It is still yet to be decided.
But with Bundesliga football returning this weekend, it has meant that the Premier League is beginning to prepare for a return, with training already in their sights and a plan in place as it is becoming clearer that the FA appear to care more about finances than the players and staff's health and wellbeing.
Nevertheless, all eyes turned to the EFL to see what was in store as today a meeting took place for the League One and Two clubs to make an agreed decision regarding the remainder of the season, and how they would deal with the financial aftermath of the coronavirus, with the likes of Macclesfield Town and Oldham Athletic both facing dissolving and extinction in the ruins of the global pandemic. However, League Two clubs were able to come to an agreement that the rest of the season should be decided by a points-per-game method, which would even out for those with games in hand. It was also decided that play-offs would continue as usual, with or without the fans, with two semi-final legs before the final taking place as the monumental Wembley Stadium. Whilst promotion and relegation is yet to be finalised, it heavily depends on the neighboured leagues, as the National League are yet to decide on the fate of Barrow and whether if they should be granted promotion to the promise land that is the EFL and replace Stevenage who have had a dire season at the foot of the table. It is also believed that the central focal point for the League Two's decision to end the season now could be to do with the fact that most League Two clubs cannot afford to fund the coronavirus testing equipment or for the players to come off of furlough as it would financially deplete the clubs.
The clubs of League One however are yet to come to a conclusion, with six clubs (Peterborough United, Oxford United, Sunderland, Fleetwood Town and Portsmouth) stating that they were determined to fulfil the league's remaining fixtures and therefore the meeting has been forwarded to next Monday, the 18th of May. Of course, the League One decision will be crucial to League Two as the likes of Swindon Town, Crewe Alexandra and Plymouth Argyle cannot be promoted unless it is confirmed that teams will be relegated from League One.
However, the EFL and FA are yet to ratify the decision, but it would mean that Swindon, Crewe and Plymouth would be promoted with Cheltenham Town, Exeter City, Colchester United and Northampton Town would contest in the play-offs.
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