Re: Gateshead

By ChrisHFC21/5/2019 15:57Tue May 21 15:57:35 2019In response to Re: Southern Premier Next Season

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The FA are keen to avoid the upheavals of last year following the publication of the 2018-19 league allocations, when Shaw Lane Aquaforce folded and various clubs were moved between leagues and/or were given reprieves.

Three FA officials were interviewed by the Non League Paper for publication in mid to late March, in which they said that if a club folds after this year's publication of the league allocations, i.e. after the Sunday just gone, then the league concerned will have to run a club short. If that league covers more than one step, then it may internally promote the playoff losing club with the best PPG (points per game) record to fill the vacancy, and retain the vacancy at the league's lowest level. It may not fill the vacancy with a club from another league.

It will be interesting to see if the FA follows this published policy if Gateshead fold. If they stick to the policy, then Aldershot will be reprieved, but Truro won't, as they are now in a different league, and the National League South will have to run a club short.

If Gateshead remain in existence but are demoted to the Northern Premier League (possible), then Aldershot should still be reprieved; after that it's anyone's guess, but further club moves should only affect the National Leagues and the Northern Premier League. FWIW in this case, my guess is that Aldershot are reprived from NL South to NL, either Gloucester City or Oxford City are moved from NL North to NL South to replace Aldershot, and Warrington are promoted from the NPL to NL North to replace Gloucester or Oxford City as the playoff losers with the best PPG record.

it should be noted that each year the FA publish lengthy regulations on promotion and relegation for the following year, and also what happens if and when a club folds. The FA's League Committee, which makes the allocations, is quite likely to ignore the FA regulations in certain cases, as they did this time last year with some of the promotions and relegations, and sideways moving of clubs from one division to another.

if Truro are reprieved, then the FALC are not following the FA policy published in the NLP in March.

All this is just a long-winded way of saying - who knows?