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Post by Tom Bowen on Jul 2, 2020 10:21:10 GMT
Health and safety is paramount at all times, especially amid this pandemic.
However, reading Spencer Day's article in the NLP recently made me wonder when clubs at this level may get back to a proper season - or at least some normality. Of course all of the teams are the same for next season, but as Spencer said, he can't see things get back to "normal" before the 2021-22 season!
I think he could be right. I can't see fans getting back to football any time soon. We are lucky that at Cherrywood we have the highest stadium capacity in the league and would have the space to observe social distancing where possible, but some grounds such as Hartley Wintney just wouldn't be able to do that!
On another note, clubs at this level would find it impossible financially to maintain the club and carry out testing to all players and staff as they do with the top levels. It would be a huge juggling act at this level and as I said, I imagine would be almost impossible.
Reading the article did make me wonder, what is going to happen to grassroots football? What about next season and the fixture schedule? Will the players be ok to play? At this level, the pandemic is throwing a lot of questions up into the air, and ones which we are unable to answer and judge whether we are getting them right or not!!
I'm sure all of us would love to see the Boro play again, and as we've previously said "watch some real football"! But of course, health and safety is the priority, and if that means that there is no football for another few weeks, months, or whatever, then that's what it should be in my opinion.
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Admin
Administrator
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Post by Admin on Jul 2, 2020 12:02:05 GMT
Health and safety is paramount at all times, especially amid this pandemic. However, reading Spencer Day's article in the NLP recently made me wonder when clubs at this level may get back to a proper season - or at least some normality. Of course all of the teams are the same for next season, but as Spencer said, he can't see things get back to "normal" before the 2021-22 season! I think he could be right. I can't see fans getting back to football any time soon. We are lucky that at Cherrywood we have the highest stadium capacity in the league and would have the space to observe social distancing where possible, but some grounds such as Hartley Wintney just wouldn't be able to do that! On another note, clubs at this level would find it impossible financially to maintain the club and carry out testing to all players and staff as they do with the top levels. It would be a huge juggling act at this level and as I said, I imagine would be almost impossible.  A doomsday scenario may occur. It may not. No one knows at the moment. I believe it is perfectly possible to resume football at our level in the not too distant future, provided the impending lockdown relaxations don't spark a significant uplift in new infections from the current low levels in this part of the UK. We shall see about that soon enough. If pubs and bookies can open then sports grounds can open too if appropriate safeguards are in place. Clearly attendances would have to be restricted and pinchpoints (such as loos) actively managed. On the staffing/playing side a requirement for frequent testing isn't feasible, so alternative measures would need to be introduced to reduce risk to acceptable levels. Examples would be players and match officials turning up and going home in their kit, taking players' temperatures on arrival, changing rooms being put out of use and a room being repurposed as a matchday treatment room with a high standard of cleanliness and availability of PPE to cope with any injuries. No doubt plenty of other measures would be needed, but where there is a will I reckon clubs at our level have sufficient resources to manage them effectively. That said, we are in the hands of a government that, to put it politely, has a chequered record in its management of the pandemic. Also it is on all of us to behave with due consideration for others. There will always be the rulebreakers who will carry on regardless no matter what the government says, but we have to hope they are sufficiently few in number that they don't mess it up for everyone else.
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Post by borobob on Jul 2, 2020 17:08:53 GMT
I agree with much that you say Nigel, but the organisation required to 'police' all areas, toilets, tea bars, stand and terrace segregation, turnstiles etc would require a massive increase in stewarding and costs!!
Players and officials arriving, and going home in kit will cause horrendous problems also, especially on foul weather days!! I assume they would be required to launder the kit as well?
Plus it would only work when there is a definite and settled squad that you know will be coming back again for training nights, something that Clubs at this level would seriously struggle with due to the huge regular turnover of players. Kit would rapidly disappear without doubt. Another expense.
Nightmare scenarios at every turn, and with the best of will, I cannot see them being overcome in the short term. Very worrying times.
Lets hope some good news comes soon and the Covidiots on beaches, marches and raves etc don't spoil it for the rest of us!
As an example, I went to the local stores earlier today, parked up, put the mask on, in to Halfords and then PC World, NOT ONE other mask in site, and saw no one using the hand sanitisers provided at the doors, and as for the 2/1 meter rule?? forget it!! Utter madness!!
Wait for the screams when we get another 'Leicester' lockdown on our doorstep!!!
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Admin
Administrator
Posts: 917
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Post by Admin on Jul 3, 2020 6:38:16 GMT
Update from the manager:-
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Post by borobob on Jul 3, 2020 11:10:22 GMT
Can't link to Spencer's update Nigel.
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Admin
Administrator
Posts: 917
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Post by Admin on Jul 3, 2020 11:22:37 GMT
To put this conversation into perspective, in Hampshire the number of new cases per 100,000 population over the seven days to 28 June is 0.44 (Source: Public Health England).
If this figure is extrapolated to the combined population of Rushmoor and Hart it would mean less than one new case in a population of 191,000. There can be no conclusion other than lockdown has worked in this area (so far).
With the lockdown rules being further relaxed from tomorrow, we are moving to a phase where focused actions will be taken at very local levels to combat outbreaks. In other words UKGov has cottoned on that acting similarly to how South Korea and Singapore have been managing COVID19 outbreaks from the start might be a good idea. In Australia, the Victorian government is currently doing exactly the same to suppress an outbreak in some suburbs in Melbourne.
Although the Leicester thing has been another cock-up, it's reported today* that UKGov, PHE etc have already realised where things went wrong and have changed how they will address local spikes in future.
*Quote from source:
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Post by borobob on Jul 3, 2020 11:23:08 GMT
Sorry Nigel, I thought you had left a link to it, but I now realise it was on the main site, sorry!
Sensible report, and just goes to show the depths of organisation, required to fulfil games anywhere at our level!!
We are probably very lucky, but I fear for many others!!
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pugh
1st team regular
Posts: 143
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Post by pugh on Jul 3, 2020 13:54:40 GMT
I see Spencer reckons that the start of the season might not happen until October. I'm getting a distinct feeling of deja vu
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Post by borobob on Jul 3, 2020 14:26:38 GMT
October is a bit early for us Mick!! Usually wait till we are out of all cups and then 'rebuild for the next season' starting in January!! Joke, before anyone gets upset!! its been pretty good and stable squad wise the last couple of seasons. The padlock didn't come off the spinning door much at all!! Might creek a bit this time though!!
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