Spring News

Rumours on other green sites about in's and out's.

Staying....Mayor, Mcfadzean...plus Hardie leaving Blackpool for Argyle full time.

Going.....Sarcevic (that's a pity), Taylor, Canavan, Joe Grant, Conor Grant.

Sarcevic has confirmed he want's to be up north with his family....possibly to Salford....or as mentioned elsewhere Argyle's 'B' team.

 

Here's some news..................

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52738597

 

Further to the above......

LEAGUE ONE VERDICT NEXT WEEK.

League one's season is set to be decided next week. At it's weekly board meeting, the English Football League concluded that a vote will be held on whether the campaign is played to a finish or if the league should opt for a points-per-game method to decide promotion, the play-offs and relegation. Promotion contenders Peterborough have already threatened legal action if the season is curtailed, while other clubs in the promotion race have said they want to continue the campaign to its finish. If the season is concluded by points per game, Wycombe would jump up from eighth place to third and replace Peterborough, who would fall to seventh, in the play-off places.

Daily Telegraph Sport.....21/05/2020.

My thoughts.....This sounds as if it could get very messy.....there is enough problems because of Covid-19....without throwing in possible law suites to the mix as well.

 

Good for bringing young players through the ranks....but do we need a level playing field regarding wages....so all clubs have the same ceiling....so richer clubs and poorer clubs can only pay up to the same amount ?.......Div One a ceiling of £2.5 million total wage bill....and Div Two only a ceiling of £1.25 million.

Who would choose to play for a Div Two club when they can only in principle earn 50% of a Div One club player

 

Yes I agree: an arrangement whereby clubs can pay X% of their trading income is much better. There's no real reason why that percentage shouldn't be the same from the Championshop down to League 2, although the huge jump up in TV rights and European competition in the EPL makes it different.

The problem is that the regulators don't seem to be able to come up with a robust definition of what trading income is and then enforce the percentage cap proactively.

In well run industries, the accounting bodies sit down with the businesses and agree how accounting standards will be implemented in the sector. In football this would have to cover how player purchases and sales are accounted for, related party transactions with shareholders etc.

All clubs would then have to produce comprehensive financial statements using these rules, irrespective of whether the clubs are technically private limited companies. They may be private companies but the clubs are community assets and must be protected.

The financial statements should lead directly to a set of disclosures to fans, so that the fans can have confidence in what they are being told.

Is that going to happen? Of course not, so this is second best.

 

More news although much as we understood it before I think, except this implies Stevenage would go down.

https://www.pafc.co.uk/news/2020/may/efl-update/

Top 3 are:

Swindon
Crewe
Argyle

Playoffs

Cheltenham
Exeter
Colchetser
Northampton

 

Mr Barry Fry at Peterborough is a touch hysterical about the EFL comments today....which would drop Peterborough out of the play-offs and dear old Wycombe into them.

Also they state that promotion and relegation will go ahead in all divisions and play-offs will consist of only four teams.....so Stevenage could well be relegated

 

Poor old Barry. He always looks like he will explode any minute anyway. I think it is exactly as it should be. Not sure about the play offs being conducted but nevertheless it is still the fairest way. Wycombe obviously benefit but so what. They would go up if this happens so a huge jump from eighth to third.

I don't particularly agree with a wage cap or a limit of a cash amount for player expenditure. I think that the old way of a percentage of your turnover is the right one. Why should a club like ours be penalised because it gets 4 times more through the gates than another. It is up to clubs to promote themselves to increase fan base and not the job of the FA to knock those who are good at it. If you can't attract players by paying them better than another team then whats the point. Why would a player come this far away from the hub of teams and have to move house when they can buy one on the doorstep of a dozen clubs and earn the same. I do think location would play a part if they do this.

 

I can't provide a link as I'm on my phone, but PAFC's financial statement to the fans is up on the club's website.

The period covered is for 6 months only to 30 June 2019 as the year end date is moved from December to June to align with the football season. This period included the change in manager and construction of the grandstand and so the loss is bigger than it would otherwise have been - but we were still losing money on ordinary operating activities.

I expect that would still have been the case in the year to June 2020 although the opening of the grandstand and decent gates as the team played well would have started to help. The shutdown will have driven a coach & horses through that when we see the next report.

 

Will less well off clubs go to the wall....or maybe go semi-pro.....back to the 1950's Isthmian League style of a fiver (or five £1 notes...fivers were quite large in those days) stuffed in your shoe at half-time....maybe not quite that bad because that was senior amateur football days.....I used to know two Bromley players in those days.....Len Wager (centre half) and Denis Studley (centre forward)....worked with one of them.....I can still find a reference to Len Wager when he became manager later on, on Wiki.

 

I see the idea of League Division 1 South and League Division 1 North is being touted as a means of bringing clubs back from the brink post Covid19. Wouldn't object myself...............

 

Probably make it easier to get out of the southern section.

 

Yesterday's weekly EFL board meeting spent most of their time talking of restarting the Championship season in mid to late June ?

The future for League One and Two was also discussed at yesterday's meeting, but the outcome on how to finish the season remains up in the air.

Daily Telegraph Sport...28/05/2020.

It just need some decisions to be made from the top....just goes on and on.

 

I think it'll be different solutions for different divisions. The money at stake in the Championship is such that they may play on behind closed doors. There's a real problem there as Wycombe would leapfrog from 8th into the playoffs at the expense of Peterborough under a PPG method. Down in League 1, big names Sunderland and Ipswich want a chance to play on.

League 2 have made it clear that playing behind closed doors would be a financial disaster. With a PPG driven promte and relegate solution being the EFL's favourite surely they wouldn't make League 2 play on even if the rest did wouldn't they?

 

This current situation shows which clubs give not a fig for the rest and are only concerned with themselves. Those clubs in league one who are pushing to play on will drive others out of business but they don't care. If, before you knew which clubs they were, you could select the ones you thought would do that how many of them would you have got right. Most is my answer.

 

The Premier League is set to restart on June 17 with Aston Villa v Sheffield United and Manchester City v Arsenal. Thereafter it's wall to wall coverage to get the fixtures done.

Four live games will be shown free-to-air by the BBC.

 

The BBC will broadcast live top-flight games for the first time since 1988 as armchair fans prepare for a feast of summer football.

All of the remaining 92 Premier League fixtures will be screened live, Sky will show the lion's share, with 64 matches.....25 of which will be free to air.

BT Sport has confirmed it will show 20 matches which means the BBC and Amazon Prime will broadcast four apiece.

The Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Oliver Dowden, welcomed the news so many matches would be available free.

" Positive to see further steps on the return of football today," he said. " I've been pushing for as many games as possible to be free to view and for the return of the top league to support the whole football family,"

Daily Telegraph Sport...Friday...29/05/2020.

The article also said.....The Premier League stressed that June 17th was a provisional restart date, dependent on the effects of Covid-19, but it is two days earlier than expected and means the clubs will have around three weeks of full training to prepare.

My worry is that allowing for BBQ's and gatherings of up to six people will maybe get out of hand as the alcohol flows and the passing of food....plus the hygienic use of toilets will fall by the wayside....and the control of six only at these get togethers will be leniently looked upon.....and then the Covid-19 spike that could easily occur....resulting in the R number going above one again....and a return to full lockdown....which as we know was abused by many who continued to mix with others and visiting other households.

PS.....The BBC showing four games from a total of ninety two is personally underwhelming.

 

I'm unclear what the regulations mean.

So we can have gatherings of 6 people, outdoors.

We have a family of Mum, Dad and 1 child. It's Friday today and it's going to be sunny all weekend, so to celebrate, paternal Granny and Grandad come round for a BBQ. On Saturday, best friends Adam and Eve come around with their youngster so the kids can play in the garden and the adults catch up. On Sunday, maternal Granny and Grandad come around for Sunday brunch....... etc etc.

No group is larger than 6 but 10 individuals have been involved over 3 days. Is that OK?

 

I assume so ?......remember the two metre ruling....and distributing your BBQ around must be well organized.....and the cleaning of the loo after each visitor must be observed.....and don't let those children enjoy themselves too much...they might end up only 1 metre 90 cm apart.....heaven forbid it.....need a drone allotted to each garden BBQ gathering....you'll need a bit of paper to confirm your gathering....plus a head count.....two small children cannot be passed off as one adult....sorry.

Covid-19...R number going up over one territory seems very possible.

PS......and if you have trouble with your BBQ....can you nip indoors and use the cooker ?

 

F A CUP...rescheduled.

Q/F....weekend of 27th/28th June

Leicester v Chelsea
Newcastle v Man C
Sheff U v Arsenal
Norwich v Man U

S/F....weekend of 18th/19th July

Final.....1st of August