Lancaster boss Mark Fell thinks Northern Premier League season is at risk of being declared null and void

Lancaster City boss Mark Fell believes it is almost certain that the 2020/21 Northern Premier League season will be declared null and void.
Mark FellMark Fell
Mark Fell

The Dolly Blues have played just seven league games since the campaign began in the middle of September.

After playing for around six weeks, the season was brought to a halt at the beginning of November when the country went into a second national lockdown.

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Since then the Dolly Blues, – like the majority of other teams at their level – have not kicked a ball in anger.

News that the Government has now implemented a third lockdown at the start of 2021 means this season is now in serious jeopardy.

Fell said: “There are only two options left.

“We either split the Premier Division into two, have a March 1 deadline to get going and then have a 15-week season to play 20 games.

“That’s fairly straightforward but that can only happen if the National League will accept two winners of two separate divisions to be promoted.

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“If they won’t accept that then null and void the season now – there’s no point wasting any more time. The other caveat to that is if we can’t get going again by March 1, then null and void it.

“The fact that we are currently in a lockdown – and I think we will be in lockdown now until Easter – means I am 80 to 90% certain that the season is going to be null and voided.

“I know all the relevant parties are in talks this week, there’s meetings going on about what to do.”

While the likelihood of any more football taking place at Giant Axe looks a long shot, Fell said a 20-game season would provide excitement.

“A shortened league season would be great,” Fell said.

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“I think we would all enjoy that. The chance of getting involved in a mini-league and seeing how we would go in an intense period of games, I think that would be exciting.

“It would almost be like a play-off environment.

“You would be playing Saturday-Tuesday, there would be loads of football and it would produce a different type of football – a more expansive type of football because you would need to win games and you might not get a better chance of getting promoted.

“But the probability of that happening looks very unlikely.

“Whether the National League will agree to it, they will want to look after their member clubs.”