MX23RW : Saturday, May 4 22:18:54| >> :120:34151:34151:

Carlisle chief calls for discussions over season extension

United have had plenty of postponements this season.

Extending the season to cope with a fixture backlog cannot be ruled out, according to Carlisle director of external affairs John Nixon.

Carlisle are among the clubs to have been badly affected by postponements, with Saturday's game against Crawley one of many in Sky Bet League Two falling victim to freezing conditions this weekend.

And although Nixon stressed that extending the season is not currently under discussion, the EFL board member said no options would be off-limits.

"It's definitely a topic that's there to be discussed," Nixon said in an interview on Carlisle's official website.

"In terms of getting our season completed as a league, absolutely no topic is a non-starter when it comes to helping us all to facilitate that.

"At Carlisle United we were ready to kick off at 2.30pm the other day for a Tuesday game, so that shows that there's flexibility and that people are willing to listen if sensible and common-sense solutions are put forward.

"Everyone hopes the vaccines will lead to the virus situation easing, but if clubs do have fixture backlogs to contend with then talks about an extension are definitely not going to be taken off the table.

"Look, being honest, and for a lot of good reasons, extending the season isn't desirable, but when you see clubs who have small squads, as we have at Carlisle, it will bring pressure if they have to play Saturday-Tuesday and then have to squeeze other games in on top of that as well.

"A lot of clubs have full weeks between now and May at the moment, and they'll all face similar pressures, so the EFL will monitor how things are going very closely."

Nixon also highlighted that clubs are currently not receiving expenses to cover travelling costs when games are postponed.

"In our own case we've been to Harrogate twice, and halfway to Newport, and we haven't kicked a ball at any of them," he added.

"That incurs significant costs, which is frustrating when there is no end product. Other clubs are in the same boat, so it's something we will be looking at.

"To be clear, nobody is actually talking about a season extension as things stand, but we do know that different clubs are facing different issues and we need to be constantly aware of that."

ID:434969: cacheID:434969:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:3513:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Wycombe Wanderers's Darly Horgan shoots during the Championship clash with Stoke City on December 2, 2020
Read Next:
Cambridge chief says clubs who welcome fans back are "ambassadors for football"
>
Read more about John Nixon Football
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Result
Swiatek
Sabalenka
7 4 79
5 6 67
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CPortsmouth462813578413797
3Bolton WanderersBolton462512986513587
4Peterborough UnitedPeterborough462591289612884
5Oxford UnitedOxford Utd4622111379562377
6Barnsley4621131282641876
7Lincoln CityLincoln4620141265402574
8Blackpool4621101565481773
9Stevenage4619141357461171
10Wycombe WanderersWycombe461714156055565
11Leyton Orient461811175355-265
12Wigan AthleticWigan462010166356762
13Exeter CityExeter461710194661-1561
14Northampton TownNorthampton46179205766-960
15Bristol Rovers46169215268-1657
16Charlton AthleticCharlton461120156465-153
17Reading461611196870-253
18Cambridge UnitedCambridge461212223961-2248
19Shrewsbury TownShrewsbury46139243567-3248
20Burton Albion461210243967-2846
RCheltenham TownCheltenham46128264165-2444
RFleetwood TownFleetwood461013234972-2343
RPort Vale461011254174-3341
RCarlisle UnitedCarlisle4679304181-4030


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!