Dave Parker
WITH EACH day and week’s passing and no firm news yet on Steps 3-6 having their seasons declared null and void for the second year running owing to the pandemic, Brighouse Town manager Vill Powell has invited nine west Yorkshire clubs to join his club for a competition with a possible commencement date of Saturday April 3.
First aired in Echo Sport last month, Powell has now moved forward with the dates and rules to the following clubs, Campion,. Eccleshill United, Emley, Garforth Town,Golcar United, Ossett United, Steeton, Liversedge and Thackley.
The clubs will each play five home and five away games and then the top two from each section will play semi-finals ahead of a final on May 29.
The first three games for them will be over Saturdays and then they will also then bring in midweek games and be able to have sixteen players on duty for each game and use five substitutes.
Once the Town manager knows for certain the competition can go ahead and with spectators and hopefully clubhouses open, he will send out the fixtures with each game being worth the normal three points for a win, a point for a draw and zero for a defeat. Goal difference will come into play after the final games if teams are level on points. The semi-finals if tied on 90 minutes will go straight to penalties and also on final day.
Not only will this give the players something to look forward to after months of inactivity for a second season running but also referees and linesmen who have also been without fixtures since December.
Powell will be able to play his suspended wideman Shiraz Khan who still has four games top serve of a five match ban with it not being a NPL or FA competition.
The competition gives each manager the opportunity to look at their playing registers ahead of what will be a short closed season with talk of extra preliminary and preliminary round FA Cup ties being scheduled for the first week of August or even last week of July.
The players involved in this competition would probably only have three weeks of June off before being called back in for pre-season training.
With the NPL’s ground grading team due for a visit to the Yorkshire Payments Stadium, work recommenced on Tuesday morning under Ray McLaughlin’s guidance after 10 days of inactivity owing to the freeze-up.
“There is quite a bit of outdoor work to do on the terracing and behind the quarry end goals and this was impossible with the temperatures and the mixing of cement and, of course, working in those temperatures,” informed the Life Vice President and former chairman.
