CoronaVirus and Season 2019/20

Ideally we'd like to see the season completed, we've potentially 5 more home games if we made the top 6, including another one against Celtic, so potentially that's about £600,000 we'll lose if the season finishes now, and league placings are decided on where we are all currently sitting. Good for us getting 5th place prize money right enough, that'll help compensate a bit.

Something needs sorted quickly though, there will be clubs in danger of going bust, having no gate money for the next 3 weeks, or even more if this runs onto after the summer months. Players contracts will be coming to an end too, as well as clubs needing to plan for next season, signing new players, and needing to know where they'll be playing (Hearts).

I saw a piece about Marvin Bartley, mentioning players having commitments in June/July, and hoping they'd be consulted before anything was decided. Some have weddings, or holidays booked, however, what he's maybe not thinking about, is if this is still going on, then weddings, and holidays abroad, will prob be cancelled. Holidays certainly will, as flights are already being hit with bans to other countries, and businesses like catering will be in danger too.

Never seen anything like this in my life, so have no idea what happens next, all we can do for now is take as little risk as possible of being infected, and hope to feck a drugs company comes up with something to immunise folk. So we can get back to some sort of normality.

I think the season should be ended now and the placings clubs are in now should stand. There should be one relegation and one promotion in each league with no play offs. It's the fairest way to do it. If the season is declared null and void then 30 games will have been played and fought for for no reason.
Obviously Hearts will be unhappy but they had 30 games to show what they can do.
If as some are suggesting the season is finished later in the year then clubs like Hearts can strengthen in a way they can't now. Conversely clubs like Livi could lose out of contract players or sell Dykes.
Increasing the number of teams in the league should be carefully thought out and not decided as a knee jerk reaction to the present crisis.

Unsurprisingly both Hearts and Sevco are against the league finishing as it is, Hearts' Anne Budge is threatening legal action, but afaik football is a law unto its own and no legal action can be taken, or you're breaching their rules, so the SPFL could tell them they'll be booted out of the league if they do.

Sevco preaching to us about sporting integrity just can't be taken seriously, how they have the neck, or can keep a straight face mentioning that is unreal, only reason they care is to stop Celtic getting 9 in a row this season, which would've happened had games been able to be played.

This could go on to September, just how are clubs meant to go into suspended animation till then, no guarantee the season would be able to resume after that either. Now we're being told not to go to pubs, cinemas, theatres, concerts etc, and to self isolate if you're over 70, or come under a high risk category with health issues, so Budge and the like need to get a grip and stop acting like arseholes, this isn't anything normal that's happening.

Worryingly I'm with Sevco on this. The league fixtures must be finished even if it takes to Christmas.

Next season is next season but there's no need to play each other four times; why not have a compressed season of just 22 games?

As for players contracts this is for the footballing authorities to sort out; they could allow all sides to extend player contract by six months if needed - all details.

Ultimately you cannot allow the season to become void; the fallout could be enormous.

I tend to agree that the season should continue when it becomes feasible to do so the problem at the moment is we cannot see when that will be.

I definitely agree that the season should NOT be declared void.

A potential solution would be to finalise on current positions - but rather than direct relegation & promotion, have play offs including the teams in the automatic positions. Not ideal but better than adversely affecting teams that would normally have a chance of survival. Celtic would be champions because in all honesty Rangers won’t catch them.

Alternatively, as Durnford says, when it’s deemed safe to return, play out the rest of this season.

Next season could then start within a couple of weeks once the fixtures are compiled & either be a truncated season or extended into early summer - Scotland probably won’t be in the Euros anyway.

Problem with that is some clubs might be bust by then, trying to live in suspended animation for 6 months, how PT clubs will manage is beyond realistic expectation. Players will be out of contract, and the likes of Hearts will be able to strengthen further during the summer window, so if you're going down that road the window should be suspended so they are having to play with the players they currently have. Although that brings in another problem, the likes of Hamilton have players out of contract, some may not want to have it extended, what happens then? This is a complete mess and brings in all sorts of complications if you want to leave everything as it is until the league can be completed. Some teams will be worse off player wise, some will be better off, whichever way you want to play it, the integrity of the sport will be compromised.

Whatever happens, I'd suggest that whatever the last placed club's prize money is, should be paid out to every club in that league, that's the least they'd be getting anyway, and they'd at least have some income coming in.

Also players wont want to play during the months they normally have off, so that's another problem, though the way this is expected to go, they wont anyway, it'll be Sept before this gets sorted.

Some clubs may not last that long, Hearts being one of them would be poetic justice, same goes for Sevco, they must be up shit creek with their wage bill and no gate money coming in.

Players will want to play - that’s what they do. There should certainly be interim payments made to help all clubs financially.

The SFA/SPFL & Players Union should make a statement that all contracts will extend by the same amount of time as the enforced break.

Bertie Bassett wrote:Players will won’t to play - that’s what they do. There should certainly be interim payments made to help all clubs financially.

The SFA/SPFL & Players Union should make a statement that all contracts will extend by the same amount of time as the enforced break.

https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/interview-marvin-bartley-why-extending-season-june-would-be-unpopular-players-2450947

Interview: Marvin Bartley on why extending season into June would be unpopular with players

I’m sorry but they “make sacrifices” during the season? I might just lose respect for him for that comment alone.

What about everyone that has had their holidays cancelled because of this outbreak? My missus is due to go to the country that Cana(da) be named at the end of April & might not (probably won’t) get to go. None of this is popular with anyone but we are all having to face up to it & try to live through it & we ALL will make sacrifices.

Rant over...

I do like his solution though, end this season at the start of next & truncate next if necessary. That to me seems the most logical thing to do.

Weddings will already be cancelled due to this, flights are already being cancelled, I doubt very much it'll be cleared up by June/July, so the players are in the same boat as the rest of us.

I see there has been a 1.5M pay out from the SPFL, which is meant to be shared between the 42 clubs, may well help the PT clubs with low wage bills and little overheads, drop in the ocean to the rest of us. Why aren't they taking the lowest prize money from each league's bottom team, and dishing that sum out to every team in each league. Once the season is concluded the teams from 2nd bottom to Champions can get what they'd still be due.

Meanwhile Hearts are asking their players to take a 50% wage cut or move on, bet Halkett is loving life at Hearts.
As I said in a prev post, I can't see clubs lasting till possible Sept, and having to keep paying players wages, overheads, and whatever other bills they have with no gate money, sponsorship, or prize money coming in.

Also, starting back playing, whenever that may be, and finishing the league before starting next season, that brings all sorts of problems. Forgetting the financial ones, players will have left, and new ones come in, fitness levels will have dropped, pre season wont have the same preparation it usually does, so finishing the league will have a totally different outcome from what it would if this hadn't happened. The sporting integrity argument for finishing the season just doesn't hold water for me, there are too many moving parts from now till then for it to play out fairly.

Liviforever wrote:

Bertie Bassett wrote:Players will won’t to play - that’s what they do. There should certainly be interim payments made to help all clubs financially.

The SFA/SPFL & Players Union should make a statement that all contracts will extend by the same amount of time as the enforced break.

https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/interview-marvin-bartley-why-extending-season-june-would-be-unpopular-players-2450947

Interview: Marvin Bartley on why extending season into June would be unpopular with players

I really think he would have been better advised not to have given that interview. No good can come of it.

On a far more positive note, the club statement on the OCS was encouraging & the charitable offer of meals was a very positive thing to be doing. Well done all at LFC.

Liviforever wrote:Weddings will already be cancelled due to this, flights are already being cancelled, I doubt very much it'll be cleared up by June/July, so the players are in the same boat as the rest of us.

Agreed - even if Boris' optimistic assessment that we could be over the worst after three months that still means nothing can be arranged before July.

If those players with weddings planned during July chose to rearrange for a midweek slot I'm sure venues would bl00dy bite their hands off. With all the cancelled weddings since March they'd have no problem refilling the vacancy AND get a midweek booking as well - its a win win for them whilst they're struggling to recover.

It also needs to be remember that as well as being a sport; football is also an entertainment. Footballer's at least are getting paid; many of those in the performing arts are paid by performance; they'll likely get nothing over the next three months.

To be honest though I suspect Weddings (and theatre) wont be back on until at least September

The 3 month thing may well be accurate- it started in China in December & they seem to be coming out the other side now

Yeah but China took radical steps to get it under control, we're still fannying about with folk thinking it's ok to go to pubs, and walking about shops coughing. Even the advice about testing, testing, testing is slow to come about. China were testing folk at their doors and dragging them out their houses and sealing up the doors. China didn't mess about with snippets of advice here and there, they told folk what to do and enforced isolation on them. That isn't going to happen here but we need to get clear decisive action from the government.

They aren't even testing NHS workers here, some doctor was getting a testing kit sent from a friend in China to do it himself.

Just seen this, just to prove my point about us being nowhere near getting Covid-19 done.



Lets get together and spread it around, after being told by both Boris and Nicola not to go out to pubs & clubs last night.

Yeah; there are always imbeciles & given it's Airdrie it’s not that surprising.

There was an idiot coughing uncovered in our local Morrison’s this morning, felt like punching some sense into him but don’t think I’d have gotten away with it.

Firstly,apologies for being off the boards for a while.Been perusing the various posts over the last couple of weeks and without sounding brain sozzelled by it all some good points put over by the fans.So much to digest in these trying times but a terrific gesture by the club to donate their food to those in need the most of which im sure there are plenty,so well done Livi.Im still unsure as to how we go about resolving the league issue and there are so many options that have been muted.I guess we will eventually have to go with whatever the powers that be decide what would be the best outcome for everyone concerned regardless of how unpopular it may be to some.We will all have to make sacrifces one way or another for the foreseeable future as im some of you already have.Ive already cancelled my easter trip down south as i felt it was the only sensible thing to do and my group agreed.For me its a no brainer to follow the Govs guidlines and keep both ourselves and our loved ones from possibble harm.Yes i miss my football and everything that goes with it,but the one thing thats keeping me going personnally is the thought of seeing our beloved back on that park regardless of how long that may be.Keep safe guys and remember Livi till we die,though not for a long time yet!!!.LOL. T.

Bertie Bassett wrote:The 3 month thing may well be accurate- it started in China in December & they seem to be coming out the other side now

China haven't got it under control per se; they've suppressed it for the moment by everyone staying indoors. The disease is still there and once they start circulating it will start again.

As things stand the spread needs to be controlled so that the health services aren't overwhelmed. Either we need a cure which the authorities are saying is two years away; or infections need to progress at controllable levels so that we can presumably develop some form of immunity.

I'm guessing we're at least 6 months away from seeing any live football again.

Beautiful day for going to the football.

I even had a dream we were beating Hearts 5-1 last night, feck I miss the footie.

Slow news day for the DR doing a story on ex con Beurskens having consulted for Livingston fc, wonder how long they've been sitting on this story that they waited till today before putting it out there, poor choice of days with it being buried under the PM's announcement putting the Country into lockdown.

Nice line here

A crook who was jailed for embezzling an elderly couple’s life savings is advising Livingston Football Club.

Sure i read a few weeks back John Ward mentioning he'd asked him about something to do with dealing with the Council, when the license for European competitions was being looked at, i presume that's where they based all their facts about him being a consultant for Livi in this story came from.

Too many good stories about us recently, DR had to try to muddy the waters.

Just read it - really is a non story. Of course an anonymous “fan” raised the issue with the paper.

Big Dec, Wee Davy, a player that was on the sex offenders list & now this... lets just change the club name to Livingston Excons just to please all the Holy Wullies out there.

Not forgetting Dykesy, he’s an Aussie, must have Ned Kelly in his family history surely?

Yes - I read it - is asking someone a few questions and paying them for their time really grounds to call them a consultant. If that's the case then surely half of Glasgow's criminal underworld are consultants for the Daily Record?

Bertie Bassett wrote:Too many good stories about us recently, DR had to try to muddy the waters.

Just read it - really is a non story. Of course an anonymous “fan” raised the issue with the paper.

Big Dec, Wee Davy, a player that was on the sex offenders list & now this... lets just change the club name to Livingston  Excons just to please all the Holy Wullies out there.

Not forgetting Dykesy, he’s an Aussie, must have Ned Kelly in his family history surely?

To be honest the name Dolly Menga does sound like a bootleg gangster from the 20's as well. Not to mention Steven Lawless as well.

Pretty sure Jacking your Hamilton is also illegal.

Good news on the finances with the record profit announcement & the statement from the chairman on the OCS as well as the pledges to help the club. All points towards a well run club.

Hope all you regulars out there are staying healthy & all you healthy bars staying regular

Seriously, hope all are well in these trying times.