Steeton manager Roy Mason fears disillusioned Non League footballers could turn their backs on the game following the curtailment of the 2020/21 campaign.
Although the FA have not expunged the records – as they did with last season – pretty much everyone’s efforts have gone unrewarded for the second consecutive year.
Mason believes many involved within the game are feeling disenchanted and could make their way towards the exit doors.
“I’ve never known so much apathy and people losing interest in football as they are at the moment,” Mason told Non League Yorkshire.
“I think you’ll get some players who will think ‘I’ve not played football for a year, I don’t miss it, I’m going to do something else’.
“Even managers might have the same view. I was talking to an ex-manager earlier today and he was asking how I’d got on in lockdown and I said that it is only when it is taken away from you that you realise how much of your life is absorbed by football.
“I think some people will think ‘actually there is life outside football and football takes so much time up I’m going to do something else’.”
With those thoughts in his mind, Mason added that the pressure is on the FA to avoid a further debacle in the next 12 months.
“The FA need to look at all levels and look at what it is like logistically like for all clubs,” he said.
“Finances are very limited for clubs. It is getting harder and harder to get sponsorship in.
“They also have to come up with a plan for next season; scenario b, scenario c.
“If it gets to July and there is a danger there won’t be a full season again they have got to make it regionalised football or teams playing each other just once.
“You can’t have a third season of meaningless football.
“It is not just at our level either.
“The teams I feel sorry for are the likes of Ilkley Town (in the West Yorkshire League).
“You look at the money invested in the facilities to get onto the semi-pro ladder; I would dread to think how time and money has gone into that.
“Now on-the-pitch they were having two good seasons and probably would have got promotion.
“They’re in a position where what do they do if it is another null and void?
“Some of their players who have bought into their journey and want to go into Non League football with Ilkley; they might think ‘hold on, I don’t want to do another season in the West Yorkshire League, I want to be playing semi-pro football, I can’t wait any longer so I’m going’.”
Mason was firmly against starting a full season from the moment the FA planned to start one.
He said in early August: “Anyone who thinks they’ll be playing a 38-game full season, I think they are deluded. I think the way it is going; we’re going to have a series of lockdowns and it is going to be stop-start-stop-start. The season has got more chance of stopping than it has of truly starting.”
He was absolutely spot on and he was not alone in expressing his view that it was foolhardy with the likelihood of further lockdowns.
Steeton’s league, the North West Counties League, were one of the only leagues in the country to publicly express concerns and they delayed their start date to October 3rd.
During the four weeks of North West Counties before the November lockdown, Bootle managed to play three league games for instance and the Isle of Man did not even take to the field.
Mason admits the botched campaign was effectively a pointless exercise for his club.
“The news is the best thing because it has drawn a line in the sand and hopefully fingers crossed we can start in August and we can enjoy a full season and everything is back to normal,” he said.
“When you look back retrospectively if they had hanged fire for a bit with the null and void decision (last March) we could have actually completed last season and then we wouldn’t have the predicament of two seasons being null and void.
“I know it has been curtailed, but I think curtail really means it is null and void but ‘we’ll keep it all in the record books’.
“Me and you had numerous conversations about this (whether the season should start) and I was always in the boat that it wasn’t going to finish.
“We were wise in even starting? I think the North West Counties had the same view as me.
“But the FA were dammed if they didn’t start it and dammed if they did start it. If they hadn’t started it they would have got a lot of criticism.
“They have tried to get it going and it hasn’t worked.
“It is demoralising for everyone. Equally as well the costs incurred for teams this season are high.
“We’ve had six away games where we have had to pay all the travelling costs and for what?”
Steps 3 to 6 clubs across the country are still hoping to participate in some form of football in April, once restrictions are lifted.
Steeton have to put their hand up in favour of playing matches, but Mason is overly-enthusiastic about it.
“I’d like to think we can get some localised regionalised football going,” he said.
“Brighouse have been looking at the possibility of local teams coming together and playing games. I think ourselves, Silsden, Thackley and Eccleshill have all said yes.
“On the one hand I do think it would be good to get some competition going, but equally if it is friendly games is there going to be the appetite for people to do it?
“There is also the costs of playing friendlies as well so I’m massively open-minded on it.
“I spoke to another manager the other day and he’s in the camp of ‘let’s just start again in August’. They weren’t really interested in playing cup or friendly games.”