I remember that game for the fact that Barcelona, one of the best teams in the world, couldn't get the ball off Damien Duff. They couldn't get near him. Phenomenal player here and in his first year or two at Chelsea.

I think the one thing you can criticise the EFL for is leaving the decision on whether they wanted to finish the season in the hands of the Clubs. Realistically only the 3 Clubs currently in the relegation places and the ones in say 7th -11 th are going to want to carry on staging games BCD with stringent testing at a huge loss therefore if you only need a 51% majority the vote is a foregone conclusion. That said if the EFL had ordered the Clubs to complete their fixtures (which would have been nice) it really would have been incumbent upon them to secure the funding and maybe that really wasnt available. Or maybe they didn't try. Who knows.

As we've said a million times before this is an unprecedented situation and no one solution is completely fair or will keep everyone happy. It all boils down to the fact as to whether it's fairer to scrap a season that's been 80 % completed already or use what has happened thus far to calculate finishing positions. I can't even begin to understand why anyone would think the first option is fairer but each to their own I suppose. To answer one or two of your points: - obviously things can change, but there's probably been times when a team has fallen into the bottom 3 for the first time on the final day of the season and on the face of it that doesn't really seem particularly fair either. It's just a different cut off point this season due to necessity. - You can't relegate and promote based on bare positions when the season was stopped as some teams had played more games. PPG goes some way to addressing this. - whilst there might be a slight variation in run ins if you're in the bottom 3 after 37 or so games it's basically because you've been rubbish all season. It's not because all your hard games were weighted up front and the easier ones are yet to come. - one of my main gripes is that teams in danger of being relegated Ifrom the top 2 leagues seem to want to complete their fixtures to secure their TV revenue and hopefully play their way out of trouble. Then if they're not good enough and that doesn't work they want to claim that any Clubs below them who haven't completed their fixtures (through no fault of their own) should not be promoted. They want to have their cake and eat it.

It's not difficult to understand. The fairest outcome is for any League that can afford to do so to complete its fixtures. The Championship can afford to so, Leagues 1 and 2 have decided they can't. If Luton Barnsley or Hull finish bottom after 46 games they fully deserve to go down irrespective of what happens below them. As far as the Leagues below are concerned, if needs must, it's much fairer to finish a season that has already been 80% completed on a PPG basis than ignore what has happened altogether. Far from ideal, but by far the least worst solution imo. It's infinitely fairer to finish 2 Leagues fairly and take the next best solution for the other 2 Leagues through financial necessity than have an absolute travesty of justice in all 4 Leagues by scrapping them and completely ignoring what's gone on in a season that's already been 80% completed.

The voting system is flawed as turkeys won't vote for Christmas and Clubs are obviously going to vote according to their own self interest. However if Society as a whole is ordered to be overly cautious in emerging from lockdown and football in particular has to endure a stringent testing regime before it can even emerge BCD, then surely it would be even more undemocratic for the EFL to order the Clubs to return when they can't afford to do so. The only other thing the EFL could have done imo is to secure a package of financial support from Government or the PL which would have enabled all their members to finish this season. Whether enough was done to explore that possibility I've no idea. Looking forward the EFL and the Clubs probably need to agree a rule to cater for what is to happen if something similar happens in future. It would obviously be unfair if teams were to be promoted or relegated having played only five or six games but to my mind it's equally unfair to expunged records with around 80% of the season completed so Clubs will have to decide on a fair and reasonable point at which results should stand. All subject to the proviso that if at all possible the season should be completed obviously.

Fitness will be absolutely key for this run in, any side that could somehow find a way to come back in physically and mentally sharper than everyone else could absolutely breeze through the last few games. Not holding my breath based on what I've seen of us in the past but you never know.

Always someone else's fault with Lambert. Now he'll be able to point to the fact the season never finished and pretend they were about to come with a late run and deflect attention away from the fact they had a monumental collapse. Teflon man.

It's even unfairer to scrap the season meaning that team's efforts are unrewarded if they've done well or they've got away with it if they've tanked. The fairest solution is for ANY League that can afford to do so to play the League out in full. If any other Leagues can't afford to do so that's a mutually exclusive issue and needs must unfortunately. Just say for the sake of argument that Norwich played 38 games and finished in the bottom 3 and the Championship can't finish for some reason and final positions there have to be allocated on a PPG basis. To me it's still a lot fairer that Norwich and the other bottom 2 still go down and the teams that finished in the top 3 places on a PPG basis go up from the Chamionship to replace them than they get away with it.

Because they can just about afford not to and League 1 and League 2 Clubs can't. Too much self interest at play. More Clubs with nothing left to play for this season than ones with anything at stake. A desperately sad day for the integrity of the game and the current pyramid in general imo. Wonder if we'll ever see a lot of those Leagues 1 and 2 clubs again. Mind you it's hard to have too much sympathy with any Club who voted to finish the season early out of self interest who subsequently find themselves staring down the barrel.

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You can't judge sporting stars of yesteryear by today's fitness standards. If the '66 side were about today, there's no reason to suspect they'd be any less fit than anyone else; therefore all things being equal they'd wipe the floor with Mowbray's Rovers. Similar sort of argument applies to golf. The players are physically much fitter than they were and the modern equipment and ball have taken a lot of the skill out of it. On the whole however I'd say the likes of Nicklaus, Player, Trevino and Watson were way better players than the majority today. Next up: George Best: Was he as good as Elliott Bennett? ?

I'm in the same boat as you Paul on this. I'm not particularly IT or social media orientated. I don't even know if as a season ticket holder I automatically have some sort of online account or not, I've never needed one - when I renew my Season ticket I nip down to the Club Shop to do it. When I want to buy some merchandise, I nip down to the Club Shop to get it. I've never watched a match on I Follow. My mate's son orders away tickets for the three of us. Said mates son was laughing at me at the weekend saying "You'd better not leave it until five to three before the first game." All of this will be no problem of course as long as the streaming actually works and I'm aware of the steps needed to set it up. I don't think the Club should underestimate though that a large percentage of the fan base might be technological dinosaurs like myself and will need very clear guidance on what to do. I have an active e-mail account and I don't seem to have received any texts or emails from the Club regarding this. All I saw was something on Sky Sports indicating that ST holders would be able to stream all the remaining games for free. (Which I think is exceptionally fair) My first thought was "how does that work; how do they know who's a ST holder or not?" The second was, ""What the hell do I do next?" Over to you Rovers!

Fake crowd noise isn't for me but I cant see what the issue if you have the option to turn it on or off! I think it could be quite interesting if you can catch a bit of what is coming from the respective benches once our Leagues return.

That's really excellent from Derby, like you say, something for everyone. Not sure how anyone could complain at that although I'm sure Stuart would have a damn good try. ? I'd take option 5 (and renew to whatever's on offer). I wonder how Clubs would deal with a situation whereby the season starts BCD then switches back to normal half way through? Would it have to be two prices advertised in advance, price A for a streaming pass whilst games are BCD and price B once things have gone back to normal? That would work for supporters paying monthly by DD which can be altered but how do you cater for fans wanting to pay it off upfront?

I don't think there's any absolute right or wrong opinion on this, on balance it seems to me to be an entirely sensible move to try and protect players from muscle injuries following a curtailed "pre season" . And that the benefit far outweighs any potential unfairness.

Just on that point I understand there'll be three windows only during which each side can bring on up to five players so that in terms of disrupting or stopping the game it won't be any different from previously.

I'm sure you're right. I'd say there was more than enough reason for a lot of people not to renew on the basis the entertainment is s***e alone without any of this.

I don't expect a refund from the Club as the situation isn't their fault. Indeed I'd go as far as saying I wouldn't dream of asking for one. However I accept that that isn't everyone's position and that technically people are entitled to refunds even if I personally would feel very uncomfortable requesting one. I think the deafening silence from the Club on the issue is really poor. Rather than say nothing I'd have a lot more respect if they were up front and honest and said that whilst they would like to be in a position to offer refunds, they're simply not in a position to do so. All boils down to the players at the end of the day. Maybe if they'd said some time ago that they were going without their wage or at least accepting a very substantial reduction for the forseeable rather than a piddling little deferral, I might feel more minded to consider asking for a refund.

Yes, there's no doubt that across the game as a whole, paying to watch BCD games on a stream even temporarily, won't be for everyone. This is where we will see if Waggott is really worth his corn. Will he be able to come up with anything innovative, or will his solution be to do what he's done thus far, squeeze the everdwindling hard core even harder?.

Some Clubs have always had stronger squad depth than others. That's just looking for things to complain about for the sake of it.

It might not be possible to compel Clubs to play but if they don't then surely you don't expect them to be able to keep money already paid for a service they haven't or can't subsequently deliver. If I've read you correctly your overall position on ST refunds is you would like one from Rovers to compensate for the games you'll be unable to view in the flesh. If you expect a refund off the Club, surely by the same line of reasoning the TV Companies should be able to get one off the Clubs as well!

Not sure I understand the logic behind this objection. It's the same for everyone so I can't see a lack of integrity there and it's surely a common sense move given the curtailed pre-season. Certain Clubs have always been able to unfairly shift the goalposts part way through a season by either poaching a star player at any point off a poorer rival or latterly by spending big in January. How is this minor temporary rule change any unfairer than that?

Not having a go at you in particular Parson, as I'm sure you're not alone by a long stretch, but I find it pretty bizarre that you no doubt accepted a three month or more virtual house arrest and curtailment of liberty on the advice of the Government and scientists without so much as a murmur of dissent or without even stopping to consider whether that was was proportionate, necessary or in reality likely to work. Yet when the same Government and scientists advise it is safe to start easing restrictions, you choose not to believe them! I also fully accept that football behind closed doors might not be for everyone and that they may choose not to renew a ST or purchase a streaming pass on that basis next season. However I think there's a big difference between not being a particular fan of the idea of BCD football but accepting it as a short term necessity, and being concerned about safety on the one hand, but on the other using BCD football as an excuse not to renew? Do you not think there's a distinct non sequitur or lack of logic there? It doesn't seem that long ago since me and you were both on a seemingly two man crusade on here to try and persuade people from turning their back on the Club as Venky's blundered from one disastrous decision to another. I really hope you don't use all this as a reason for breaking your long and illustrious association with the Club. I take the opposite view that whatever happens this Crisis will not be the thing that breaks my lengthy time watching the Club. The situation (for once) is not of the Club's making and out of their hands. If I ever decide to stop going, I want it to be on my own terms because I am so dissatisfied with what is being served up on the pitch in the name of entertainment.

I don't understand where you're coming from on this at all Stuart. Completing the season behind closed doors and hypothetically playing the next and the next BCD as well if it was necessary isn't about "throwing more money" at the Premier League, those sums would all have been agreed some time ago in the last round of TV rights. It's about those Clubs delivering what they have contractually agreed to do and not having to pay money which will already have been spent or committed back It's not as though we are starting from scratch from now and the TV Companies are chucking money about willy nilly at Premier League Clubs. Quite the reverse, I suspect the likes of Sky and BT are mortified by the current situation and that if there was any way they could wriggle out of the current deals they would do, because until things return to normal they are tied into paying the Clubs top dollar for an inferior product. You do also realise the Premier League and the EFL are two completely separate entities? If the EFL aren't satisfied with the deal that they negotiated with TV Companies and/or the PL then that is partly the fault of the Clubs themselves and their representatives and should have been sorted over the years with each successive round of TV deals. Who exactly are they going to walk away from, themselves? Who would give them a better deal? Would you subscribe to a Channel showing a lot of live League 1 and League 2 games? I wouldn't although I probably would if I supported one of the Clubs concerned. Overall though I suspect the demand from the neutral isn't there and that the potential numbers do not make it something broadcasters would be prepared to pay over the odds for unlike PL football.

It wouldn't affect my elation/enjoyment in the slightest. Of course it would be a shame if I hadn't been able to attend in person and I would have been particularly disappointed to have missed out on the chance to finally see us at the new Wembley. You probably also know my views on the crisis as a whole and the need or lack of it for ongoing restrictions going forward. I'd happily attend a game with crowds tomorrow but if that's deemed by the authorities to be impossible for the foreseeable future then it is what it is, there's nothing you can do about it and as with lockdown you have to get on with it and make the best of it you can. I think it would be more disappointing still if we somehow by some miracle scraped up through the play offs and we missed a sole season in the PL because the Authorities deemed it had to be thus but again what's the alternative? Surely if that did happen you wouldn't be saying "I wish this had never happened in the first place because in principle I don't agree with the concept of football BCD?"