One topic that does come up every once in a while is the subject of summer football and for a variety of reasons. Over the course of this blog I’ll take a look at why it can be viewed as a good idea but also why I think it’s very much unworkable at non-league level let alone higher than that.
Now, who doesn’t want to watch football in the sunshine? The end of August, balmy September and late April/early May is pretty much the only times you’ll be there in a t-shirt and shorts, contrast that with the cold and wet of the winter, the freezing November nights and dark afternoons and you can be forgiven to think hang on this isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
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Granted the season would start in some kind of milder weather but the majority would be if the British summer plays ball with lush conditions for those on the sidelines and I doubt many would disagree with that.
On the plus side too would see the disappearance of postponements, no pitch inspections needed and you would pretty much expect a season to end on time with no need for movement to accommodate the extra games, it seems like it could be a winner and a no-brainer.
But, and of course there is a but, well there are a few at the very least. Let’s start with that temperature, lovely for those grabbing a tan with their beer and burger but Saturday afternoon kick-off’s would have to become a big no-no. Blistering temperatures if they arrive aren’t going to suit those on the pitch and certainly would dilute a game as players tire in the hot conditions.
The pitch itself is fine if it’s a 3G or 4G, but when would pitch repairs take place for everyone else? Grass needs sun as well as water to grow of course and there won’t be enough during the winter and spring to see a decent playing surface ready for a new season, summer is the perfect time for repairs to a worn out surface, the same for stadium and ground repairs, I can’t see too many volunteering in the colder months when the rain is lashing down and you’re trying to paint the stand.
A lot of football folk take an interest in summer sports such as cricket and athletics and would then need to make a choice as to which they follow if it all moved around, money and time then becomes thinly spread for each individual including those who dabble in playing more than one sport.
Holidays at that time of year would also cause undue problems in trying to get a team out each week, it becomes hard for some teams in pre-season now let alone if it was part of a full season, do players then make a choice of either letting down team-mates or family? Not really fair is it when you remember most players lost two years of their career when football was halted twice over for many and most unable to travel anywhere.
The biggest problem comes with the entire football calendar in England. Football is primarily an Autumn/Winter sport going into the Spring from the Premier League all the way down. If the non-league pyramid decided to move themselves into a different part of the year to play then timing is going to overlap.
A league season runs from August to May, ten months almost so how is that going to be fitted into the calendar in order for those promoted into the professional game to change systems once again? It’s impossible for it to happen and there would have to be an overlap in seasons, imagine League Two kicks off but two sides whoever they end up being will have to play catch up once they get promoted and subject their players to what could amount to 18 months of continuous football.
Others would say it can work much lower down with smaller leagues which would fit the timeframe better, but should players sacrifice half a season just so it fits in for a few others to benefit?
Unless the whole game moved in one go I can’t see how it would ever work and the preparation before hand would mean a truncated season before just to make it fit properly for the first season, that’s never going to happen in the world of the rich at the top of the table plus would likely mean the end to their pre-season money making overseas tours which are now becoming the norm for Premier League clubs.
For me, the sunny and warmer months where we get a bit of football beginning or ending is the reward for those cold nights and afternoons during the Autumn and Winter months, leave it where it is please……….
