Football League Suspended

[Stuart]

13 minutes ago, chaddyrovers said:

on Sky there is a channel just for La Liga which is 5.99 pounds per month. Via Premier Sports. 24 hours of La Liga coverage

Which is what I said. ??‍♂️

[AllRoverAsia]

I got caught by the HK flu as a teenager. oddly enough whilst staying at my Grans in Blackburn using that as a base to go to Uni interviews. I never got to any of them.

Anyway the Human race survived as it will this one.

How many football matches were canceled?

I am not belittling this outbreak. If I get it I'm a goner. We used to call social distancing common sense.

Summary of the key characteristics of influenza pandemics from the past one hundred years.

Pandemic Name	Year	Strain	Suspected Origin of Outbreak	Approximate Number of Deaths
Spanish flu	1918–1920	H1N1	China	40–50 million
Asian flu	1957–1958	H2N2	China	1–2 million
Hong Kong flu	1968–1970	H3N2	China	500,000–2 million
Swine flu	2009–2010	H1N1	Mexico	Up to 575,000

[roversfan99]

18 hours ago, chaddyrovers said:

 

No I don't turns a blind eye to other views but Football is coming back and Its positive news about only 2 positive tests in the entire Championship players and staff

I'm not interest in the atmosphere when I watch it on TV. 

Well hopefully we will be back in stadium by January with this vaccine and hopefully it works. The UK Government has ordered 100 million doses of it. 

UEFA wont allow it's Euro's and Champions league/Europa League to be affected. 

I think you are in a bit of denial as to the part supporters play in football and how different it is without them. Maybe their impact will only dawn on you when you watch a few games without them. And its different watching a one off game with them because you know they will be back in the next game. I really dont think youll feel the same even when Rovers win.

European football and players travelling from country to country should be last on the agenda and there is no flimsy reason of trying to financially save clubs with it being the biggest ones.

I dont live in a dream world thinking a vaccine is imminent, indeed I am skeptical that one will ever come, I suspect that the time that supporers will be allowed back in will be when the threat ie the rate of infection has dropped low enough for the risk to be greatly reduced. But with the cost of testing players being huge and no supporters coming in, is it sustainable to have half or most likely a full season behind closed doors? At the moment these seasons are being rushed to completion. And surely the football league certainly cannot go ahead financially.

16 hours ago, RevidgeBlue said:

Fair comment, I certainly didn't mean to imply that you wished anyone harm rather that you would expect from any sample size of 1000 of the population 5 -10 people to be positive and for those people to make a swift and complete recovery in the absence of any underlying age or health factors.

There were one or two (literally) concerns raised about returning in Germany from players with partners who had serious health conditions but nothing like the hand wringing and agonising which has gone on here. Former Wimbledon and Man Utd striker who is now a football correspondent in Spain said on the radio last week there hadn't been a single objection to returning from players there either.

Certainly as regards to football, in othercountries where Governments haven't jumped the gun and banned all sport until a certain date, there seems to be a general acceptance that seasons have to be finished and everyone is just getting on with it.

To be fair the players that have mainly shown reluctance are ones who either themselves or their family fall into high risk categories.

[chaddyrovers]

46 minutes ago, roversfan99 said:

think you are in a bit of denial as to the part supporters play in football and how different it is without them. Maybe their impact will only dawn on you when you watch a few games without them. And its different watching a one off game with them because you know they will be back in the next game. I really dont think youll feel the same even when Rovers win.

I have said before that I've seen behind closed doors closed games before. 

Of course Supporters play a huge part inside a football ground when you are there. But this is a new normal for the next few months. This is unprecedented times in our lifetime 

Trust me, I will feel the same when Rovers win. Nothing could change that. 

47 minutes ago, roversfan99 said:

European football and players travelling from country to country should be last on the agenda and there is no flimsy reason of trying to financially save clubs with it being the biggest ones.

We havent much from UEFA on anything. 

47 minutes ago, roversfan99 said:

 

 But with the cost of testing players being huge and no supporters coming in, is it sustainable to have half or most likely a full season behind closed doors? At the moment these seasons are being rushed to completion. And surely the football league certainly cannot go ahead financially.

 

This is where owners and their finances come in possible. Could the EFL afford it? Doubtful. Every Championship clubs can afford it I would guess. Below the Championship I dont know. How often would testing be need in September tiime. 

Tbh, we have to get through this season 1st before thinking of next season. 

[roversfan99]

22 minutes ago, chaddyrovers said:

I have said before that I've seen behind closed doors closed games before. 

Of course Supporters play a huge part inside a football ground when you are there. But this is a new normal for the next few months. This is unprecedented times in our lifetime 

Trust me, I will feel the same when Rovers win. Nothing could change that. 

We havent much from UEFA on anything. 

This is where owners and their finances come in possible. Could the EFL afford it? Doubtful. Every Championship clubs can afford it I would guess. Below the Championship I dont know. How often would testing be need in September tiime. 

Tbh, we have to get through this season 1st before thinking of next season. 

I think you are living in a fantasy land if you think that football in what you correctly point out has to be "the new normal" is going to feel exactly the same. It is essentially going through the motions until we can return to normality.

[chaddyrovers]

5 minutes ago, roversfan99 said:

I think you are living in a fantasy land if you think that football in what you correctly point out has to be "the new normal" is going to feel exactly the same. It is essentially going through the motions until we can return to normality.

Well that's opinion. 

I will be exactly the same for me..maybe yourself 

[Mattyblue]

It’s all about what you think a football club is.

For me, fans ARE the club. Players aren’t the club, Venky’s aren’t the club, the executives they appoint aren’t the club. WE are the club. We are the custodians that pass the ‘club’ down to the next generation. It’s why AFC Wimbledon are the spiritual successor of Wimbledon FC, not MK Dons that were it’s legal successor.

Players largely come and go, which is fine, as whilst they are here they are employed to hopefully progress the club. But watching players with very little real connection to the club or the area playing out fixtures in empty grounds for months on end I imagine won’t be the same for me. Yes they are still wearing our shirt, adding points to the league table, but what does any of it mean if the connection to the supporters isn’t there?

I get it will only be temporary (well let’s hope so) but months (a year?) of seeing journeymen/mercenaries play behind closed doors IS different and I imagine I won’t be having the same buzz.

But who knows, maybe I will and let’s hope the team adapts well as a promotion, even in these circumstances would be fantastic for the long term future of the club.

[roversfan99]

17 minutes ago, Mattyblue said:

It’s all about what you think a football club is.

For me, fans ARE the club. Players aren’t the club, Venky’s aren’t the club, the executives they appoint aren’t the club. WE are the club. We are the custodians that pass the ‘club’ down to the next generation. It’s why AFC Wimbledon are the spiritual successor of Wimbledon FC, not MK Dons that were it’s legal successor.

Players largely come and go, which is fine, as whilst they are here they are employed to hopefully progress the club. But watching players with very little real connection to the club or the area playing out fixtures in empty grounds for months on end I imagine won’t be the same for me. Yes they are still wearing our shirt, adding points to the league table, but what does any of it mean if the connection to the supporters isn’t there?

I get it will only be temporary (well let’s hope so) but months (a year?) of seeing journeymen/mercenaries play behind closed doors IS different and I imagine I won’t be having the same buzz.

But who knows, maybe I will and let’s hope the team adapts well as a promotion, even in these circumstances would be fantastic for the long term future of the club.

Absolutely. Say the best case scenario of us winning the play off final. Of course there is going to be some happiness as there would always be, but successful seasons dont come around that often, and wed be missing out on the experience of getting into the play offs, then winning the semi final to get to Wembley, then winning at Wembley where we havent been for 28 years, then much if not all of a first season of Premier League football as a reward.

[rigger]

22 minutes ago, Mattyblue said:

It’s all about what you think a football club is.

For me, fans ARE the club. Players aren’t the club, Venky’s aren’t the club, the executives they appoint aren’t the club. WE are the club. We are the custodians that pass the ‘club’ down to the next generation. It’s why AFC Wimbledon are the spiritual successor of Wimbledon FC, not MK Dons that were it’s legal successor.

Players largely come and go, which is fine, as whilst they are here they are employed to hopefully progress the club. But watching players with very little real connection to the club or the area playing out fixtures in empty grounds for months on end I imagine won’t be the same for me. Yes they are still wearing our shirt, adding points to the league table, but what does any of it mean if the connection to the supporters isn’t there?

I get it will only be temporary (well let’s hope so) but months (a year?) of seeing journeymen/mercenaries play behind closed doors IS different and I imagine I won’t be having the same buzz.

But who knows, maybe I will and let’s hope the team adapts well as a promotion, even in these circumstances would be fantastic for the long term future of the club.

I spent years watching journeymen/mercenaries. The games might not have been behind closed doors. But some of them may as well have been. I still got a buzz, every win.

[Mattyblue]

As have I, and most weeks in recent times with this past decade of largely rubbish. Not quite a year behind closed doors though, is it?( even if some midweek games have felt like it...)

Edited May 25, 2020 by Mattyblue

[rigger]

Did we start training today?

[Stuart]

Looking like shops are opening on 15th June.

Let the season recommence.

[phili]

11 hours ago, arbitro said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52790371

An interesting piece from the Huddersfield owner who reckons 50 or 60 clubs could go bust. I haven't a clue on the numbers but I can see some clubs going to the wall or perhaps part time. The salary cap proposal for Leagues 1 and 2 is really sensible going forward but the defining period for lots of clubs will be between now and the time that paying customers can come back. Worrying times for football.

 

A very good article indeed. I would not be a 100% certain that we won't be one of those clubs.

Rumours in India are that the Government is going to have to inject significant amounts into Bank of India to keep it going so I can see the Raos being very short of cash pretty quickly in the next few months.

[chaddyrovers]

2 hours ago, rigger said:

Did we start training today?

Yes

 

[chaddyrovers]

Premier league restart

 

[RevidgeBlue]

11 hours ago, Parsonblue said:

I'm opposed to resources being wasted on football rather than where they are needed.  I appreciate that you have been opposed to the lockdown from day one but I look at the growing number of deaths and really don't regard football as all that important in the greater scheme things.

Behind closed doors football is going to be the norm for the foreseeable future.  Our way of life before the virus hit is not going to return until there is a vaccine and that may be a year or two away, if indeed one is created at all.  Social distancing is here to stay with all the ramifications it will bring.  Football, like the rest of society, is going to have to adapt to the new reality and, sadly, many clubs are going to find that impossible.

I suspect you may be right, unfortunately, but the Government's aim all along has been to suppress the spread of the virus so that the NHS did not become overwhelmed, rather than aim to eradicate it completely which is obviously impossible in the absence of a reliable vaccine.

I just wonder whether later in the year rates of new infections and deaths might get so low  that the medics calculate there is no plausible scenario under which tne NHS could become overwhelmed and that therefore there is no valid reason why crowds could not return to football.

As I've said before, imo, people should not necessarily expect social distancing to be the future norm nor for it to carry on ad infinitum nor for the focus to suddenly  switch to an unrealistic target of eradicating the virus completely.

The focus for me should be on living our lives as normally as possible whilst keeping the impact of the virus under manageable proportions rather than curtailing our lives as much as possible to reduce bare numbers of infections to an absolute minimum.

I appreciate you may not agree.

 

 

 

[RevidgeBlue]

1 hour ago, chaddyrovers said:

Premier league restart

 

Don't see how you can hold some of the remaining games at neutral venues and some at home grounds, that skews the competition  even more than if they were all held at neutral venues.

What's a "high risk" game when it's at home? Is it one where they fear fans may gather outside?

Not sure how you can worry about that unless it actually happens. If it does they'll have to figure out how to deal with it and warn of appropriate sanctions in advance.

[RevidgeBlue]

5 hours ago, Stuart said:

Looking like shops are opening on 15th June.

Let the season recommence.

That's the spirit!

[AllRoverAsia]

4 hours ago, RevidgeBlue said:

Don't see how you can hold some of the remaining games at neutral venues and some at home grounds, that skews the competition  even more than if they were all held at neutral venues.

What's a "high risk" game when it's at home? Is it one where they fear fans may gather outside?

Not sure how you can worry about that unless it actually happens. If it does they'll have to figure out how to deal with it and warn of appropriate sanctions in advance.

I read somewhere that in the Bundesliga there was a threat of points deduction if fans turned up at grounds on a matchday. I do not know if that is genuine or how it can be monitored, checking whose fans they actually are. So far games in Germany appear to have taken place without fans gathering at the grounds.

[Guest]

15 hours ago, roversfan99 said:

Absolutely. Say the best case scenario of us winning the play off final. Of course there is going to be some happiness as there would always be, but successful seasons dont come around that often, and wed be missing out on the experience of getting into the play offs, then winning the semi final to get to Wembley, then winning at Wembley where we havent been for 28 years, then much if not all of a first season of Premier League football as a reward.

Couldn't agree more. A win in the play-off final at Wembley is never going to feel the same running around the garden as it would running around the streets of London with my fellow supporters! Anybody suggesting that wins, draws and losses will feel *exactly* the same is living in dream world. Of course we all want Rovers to win, but watching them do it from a distance is never the same.

At one point or another every member of this forum has missed a game for a holiday or a meeting or a trip or whatever (if you usually go every week), and from my own experiences missing two vital home games this season, it's just not the same. Watching a small screen 200+ miles away. Nothing like as fun or rewarding when you win.

[Guest]

11 hours ago, phili said:

I can see the Raos being very short of cash pretty quickly in the next few months.

Absolutely not. The Rao family are what I can only describe as "proper" rich. The type of rich where things like this don't have a huge long lasting effect, where buying a football club is just a side thing you can do and not really worry or care about. They won't experience much financial difficulty. They may have to go around some things, and do a few things differently, but they aren't going to struggle as a family.

Blackburn Rovers accounts report for the next financial year? Yes, that will look poor. But that's different.

[Stuart]

9 hours ago, RevidgeBlue said:

Don't see how you can hold some of the remaining games at neutral venues and some at home grounds, that skews the competition  even more than if they were all held at neutral venues.

What's a "high risk" game when it's at home? Is it one where they fear fans may gather outside?

Not sure how you can worry about that unless it actually happens. If it does they'll have to figure out how to deal with it and warn of appropriate sanctions in advance.

Sounds to me that, as one of the chief reasons for the restart (after money - which L1/L2 have had to stomach) is to ensure Liverpool ‘cleanly’ win the League, they are worried about throngs of fans mobbing Anfield and creating one of the exact problems that scrapping the season would avoid.

Moving a few other ‘big games’ just makes it seem like it’s being fair to everyone and something about integrity (ha!).

But it’s irresponsible to say “we shouldn’t worry about something unless it happens” - it’s too late then!

We are relying on Liverpool fans behaving sensibly during a moment they’ve not had for 30 years - so well beyond many of their fans’ lifetimes - to avoid a spike in NWcases which could lead to a catastrophic second spike. This is the kind of thing that absolutely needs planning for.

As many of those fans are teens and twenties, I don’t trust that they are taking this seriously even now. Which is a bit of a generalisation but telling them to stay away from Anfield and don’t have group gatherings? I doubt it.

At least with this restart we get to see who was right and wrong about it. Believe me when I say that I hope you (and Chaddy) are right, because if you are wrong it doesn’t bear thinking about.

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, Stuart said:

As many of those fans are teens and twenties, I don’t trust that they are taking this seriously even now. Which is a bit of a generalisation but telling them to stay away from Anfield and don’t have group gatherings? I doubt it.

Personally I haven't found it's people of my age who are the biggest breakers of lockdown. I'd say socially I "know" maybe 20 people of that age group well enough to tell you what they've been up to recently, and not a single one has broken lock down rules. I know quite well about 10 people aged 40 and over (not including my Mother), and three of them continuously break lockdown rules.

[Mattyblue]

Pretty much every lad I know in his teens/ Early 20s has stopped bothering with it (if they ever did).

[Crimpshrine]

2 hours ago, JoeH said:

where buying a football club is just a side thing you can do and not really worry or care about.

Exactly. Venky's may own Rovers but they don't worry or care about Rovers. Anything could happen in the coming months.