Town have proposed the consideration of “alternative play-off formats” should League One clubs vote to end their season early at next Tuesday's EGM, as is widely expected.

In the event of clubs voting that the campaign isn’t played to its conclusion, it’s understood the Blues want their fellow EFL clubs to look at extending the play-offs to eight clubs based on the current top 10, which would include Town who are 10th as things stand, or be expanded to a wider 10-team tournament also involving the top two with three sides winning promotion.

Peterborough United chairman Darragh MacAnthony initially proposed the expansion of the play-offs to eight clubs last month.

According to the Daily Telegraph, the Blues also put forward the suggestion that the season be settled on where clubs were after 22 matches when they had played one another once, which would have seen Town into third place. This idea is reported to have been rejected.

The Blues are among the teams who have consistently stated their keenness to play the season to its natural end behind closed doors.

Most of the clubs in and around the play-off places also want the campaign completed, while most of those in the bottom half, as well as top two Coventry and Rotherham, are understood to be in favour of it being ended now, in the main due to concerns regarding the cost of funding staging the games and coronavirus testing.

Clubs were given until yesterday at 2pm to submit proposals to the EFL ahead of Tuesday’s EGM which should finally confirm how League One will finish. At the same meeting the Championship’s return on June 20th is set to be rubber-stamped as is League Two’s curtailment.

Tranmere have made a proposal for a points per game system which includes a margin of error, while Lincoln City are also arguing for tweaks to the EFL’s preferred unweighted points per game solution.

Championship Barnsley are lobbying for relegation to be scrapped if the season isn’t played to its end but this appears unlikely to receive much support. Stevenage, bottom of League Two, have suggested an amendment which would see no relegation to the National League.

It’s widely expected that the number of League One clubs who will vote for the season to be cut short is more than the required 51 per cent.

And despite the amendments proposed by the Blues and other clubs, it’s anticipated that sides will then vote for the EFL’s unweighted points per game proposal regarding placings, promotion and relegation.

Photo: Action Images

BeattiesBackPocket added 18:45 - Jun 4 How desperate are we looking!? And I think Gillingham May have something to contest on that having played one game less than us who could've over taken us of won! Also Rabbit you're calling someone out for staying a fact that Evans has done a p!ss poor job even you can't say different surely? And then can't see the difference in what Ashley did you what Evans has done. Facts are there Newcastle were in debt he has spent 250 million of his own money bought a manager in the calibre of Benitez to get them up and established and stopped spending as he wanted to make them self sufficient in the premier league they now have no debt and this is why they are an noticing offer to overseas buyers. So Over to our owner who has sent us the other way out the championship upped the deficit by 110 million in that time with nothing to show for it and mediocre managers in charge in an average league one team with 5 at most players who could play higher! I'm not a fan of Ashley and the Newcastle fans only wanted him out more past couple of seasons because he won't spend and won't take them any further to their expectations. But it's ok our fans yourself included settle for league one. We're the only club that seem to have fans who tolerate this sort of thing even the likes of charlton did demos to let the owner know they weren't happy and they've gone a league higher than us now! I'll wait for you reply on this it'll probably be ‘give us an alternative' zzzz

4

therein61 added 19:00 - Jun 4 So we are trying to sneak in the back door(after a good start and then abject failure) not on Town you are losing as much respect as you did matches since January Management(starting the ridiculous rotation policy) and senior players( so called pros going through the motions whilst sorting out the hair do) are culpable for the position we are in a few people need a rocket up the rear end(and for their lucrative income to stop now) and to leave for the station on a one way ticket these are the so called pros who have made this season a disaster and as a result(oh for a few since January) we deserve to remain in this division

1

Linkboy13 added 19:05 - Jun 4 The season needs to be finished to a conclusion that's the only fair way. The following season will start late meaning two games a week and possibly doing away with the cup competitions apart from possibly the FA cup which the smaller clubs rely on for some revenue.
3

Dissboyitfc added 19:08 - Jun 4 i think this is rabbits point! Please keep News Comments on topic. To make wider points, visit the forum
3

ITFCsince73 added 19:11 - Jun 4 Is that official or not official Dissboy...?
0

Dissboyitfc added 19:14 - Jun 4 ITFCsince 73 i marked your post down, how can you promote 3 from league 2 and relegate nobody from league 1 ? How does that work?
0

runningout added 19:18 - Jun 4 ‘therein61' Our start to season was deceiving..
1

Saxonblue74 added 19:21 - Jun 4 I'd be a little embarrassed if by some miracle we gained promotion! We're way down (if not bottom)in the form table. Bluearmy81, perhaps Evans will walk and invest in one of the many clubs likely to go out of business soon.....food for thought.
1

jas0999 added 19:24 - Jun 4 I'd like nothing more than seeing us promoted to the championship. But, it would be undeserved. The manager, owner and players have underachieved big time and we are where we are on merit. Mid table. We haven't been good enough and this desperate attempt to salvage something from a very poor season is baffling, even by Evans standards.
5

Pencilpete added 19:24 - Jun 4 The easiest way to resolve this is take a vote on who wants to keep playing, if you vote no then your season is voided and you forego the right to go up, unless you are in the relegation zone and you go down. Then promotion places will be earned on merit and not on any other way .... let's see how many vote to end it then!!
3

Dissboyitfc added 19:27 - Jun 4 Pencilpete... a little controversial perhaps, but i like that idea!
0

MickMillsTash added 19:38 - Jun 4 Can we expand it enough so my team in the fat men in massive shorts Friday night kick around league gets a chance ? 1 hour max, hockey goals, ringers allowed
1

ITFCsince73 added 20:10 - Jun 4 L1 currently 1 team short Dissboy. So it evens L1 out. L2 have agreed to end there season. They have agreed that top 3 go up. L1 can't decide what to do. There's issues from Tranmere regarding relegation. The top current 2 in L1 may not have been top 2 if remaining games would have been played. To void L1 would be the better outcome all round.
-2

Billybobblue added 21:21 - Jun 4 League table doesnt lie, what ever way you look at it we dont deserve to be playing for anything. Given the current pandemic I would rather the league ended now and preparations were made by Ipswich to start the 2020/21 season in September/October and sort the squad out or manager. The season has been poor so happy to put this one behind us and look to the future. In regards to season tickets etc, I think everyone moaning about not getting anything for the money you have two options, cancel your Direct debit or dont renew your season ticket if your that hit up about it. The club is a business, it needs the money and for a club I've supported all my life I'm happy to keep funding it as long as my personal situation allows me to do, which I would think would be every fans intention. Its a tough time for all currently so lets not dwell on something thats out of our control and wait for the numptys at EFL decide how the season will end and then we can discuss what will happen going forwards. When the good times hopefully come again, it will make that moment extra sweet when you look back on all the rubbish we have put up with over the last 16 - 17 years! COYB

3

blootheref added 21:33 - Jun 4 Of course we don't really deserve to be a part of the play off proposal, and I think we should finish the season properly. Think outside the bubble folks; time to bed in our emerging talent before next season begins, and to be fair to teams at the top and bottom, a fair ending to decide their promotion and safety hopes. If not, the court rooms will soon get very busy!

0

62WasBest added 22:51 - Jun 4 Play it or bin it. No other solution makes any sense whatsoever. Clubs cannot be rewarded or penalised on the basis of an incomplete season. Nobody planned for Covid 19 to disrupt the season, but so be it. If the majority of clubs can't afford to play behind closed doors that is understandable. Nobody wants to see them go under. The remaining clubs though shouldn't be treated as if they have finished in the promotion/play-off places or the relegation zone. The latter would be a complete injustice and can't be balanced out by rewarding those only sitting near the top by virtue of being there at the point of the suspension, with many games remaining unplayed. That is just a phony and messy decision not based on any logic at all.

0

bobble added 08:15 - Jun 5 why not have 2 barrels one with win/lose /draw tickets and the other with numbers, toss a coin and see which team gets to pick from the win/lose/draw barrel, ifs its a win they get 2 picks at the numbers barrel to decide what the score was in their favour, the opposite would stand if they picked a lose, and if its a darw the other team gets to pick the numbers for how many goals in the game ?

1

bobble added 08:19 - Jun 5 or just have bloody penalty shoot outs ?
1

budgieplucker added 08:45 - Jun 5 The safest thing for Paul Lambert is for the season to end now. I then doubt any clause in his new 5 year contract of not finishing in the top six could be contested by his lawyers as he didn't have the opportunity to fulfil the entire fixture list. ME would be very wary if exercising this clause.
0

Cloddyseedbed added 09:02 - Jun 5 Premier league can start and thats a football game isn't it? Just hate all these double standards that are starting to appear. Protesters protest in large groups of 100's or thousands not adhering to social distancing. There should be one rule for all football clubs and it should be followed, but for now what is it? This is like death by a 1000 cuts with people in charge of div 1. There are no leaders they just keep asking others what they think, that is not leadership!

3

dirtydingusmagee added 09:13 - Jun 5 this is a bloody sad state ,we start off the season top with games in hand, and end it going round with a begging bowl, pathetic , as is Barmy posting his same Evans Out plea to every thread regardless .
1

rabbit added 09:59 - Jun 5 BeattiesBackPocket, it is kind of you to watch Bluearmy_81's back and try and answer questions on his behalf, however this is not a thread to discuss either ME or Mike Ashley but I wouldn't want you to think that I am not interested in your opinion. However Mike Ashley spent circa £135mil buying Newcastle, having bought the business he then discovered that it owed well over £130 mil that he was not aware of having failed in his due diligence, at a later date, to prop the business up, again he paid in a further £20mil, in reality the loans he has made are less than £200mil, purchase price is obviously not a loan. ( my figures are from memory, so feel free to challenge ) His unpopularity to Newcastle supporters has been since 2008 when the Chairman ( Ashley's corporate lawyer with no football experience ) Dennis Wise and himself constructively dismissed Kevin Keegan. He has a appointed and got rid of at least eight managers ( again this is from memory feel free to challenge ). With regard to your other assertions I have answered you on these before but my response to you is not reflected in what you now accuse me of. For the record I have no particular feeling on the Ashley rumour, but when someone say's, and I quote “He would be infinitely better than Evans” having insulted an ITFC supporter for another opinion, then it would seem feasible to assume that the author of that comment will be able to offer a viable opinion, other that Evans is hopeless, as to why he holds that opinion.

0

TJS added 10:22 - Jun 5 Totally and utterly embarrassing - the collective shambles that is the owner, manager and players need to come to terms with the fact that they have had yet another appalling season and start thinking about how they are going to put it right next season.
0

Nobbysnuts added 10:33 - Jun 5 For gods sake just give it up. We dont deserve to be anywhere near any playoffs. We are where we are because we are sh#te. Mid table garbage. Move on..........
1

ITFCsince73 added 10:44 - Jun 5 Was hoping to hear back from captain Chambo this week, but looks like, next week now he can sum up our 1st season in L1. Resulting in our worst overall showing ever. After the embarrassment and unforgivable showing from previous season. This week Skuse has popped up in the EADT, with regard to our collapse this season. Of which he has been rewarded with a new contract. Keeping in line with how we continue to reward failure.

1

Blogs 296 bloggers

Ipswich Town Polls