Will the YT's be awarded the title?

Late this afternoon, the EFL issued a statement confirming that all remaining fixtures in the Youth Alliance were cancelled, as well as those in the Central League (in which the Under 23s compete) - thus bringing an end to the 2019/20 campaign.

It's a sensible decision and, in my opinion, a precursor for what is going to happen with the Championship, League One and League Two seasons at some point in the next month to six weeks or so. I simply cannot see those leagues resuming, or football in general in the United Kingdom, anytime soon.

However, what the EFL's statement, which you can read here, didn't specify was exactly how the season would be concluded in terms of deciding league positions - leaving speculation and multiple scenarios about what to do next, open to debate. The only thing for certain following today's statement is that any mini-league, play-off type games or anything else along those lines which will decide trophies/titles at academy level will now definitely not happen.

Therefore, it leaves the title hopes for Doncaster Rovers' youth team, who I've watched all season and were 11 points clear at the top of the table before football was suspended on March 13th, very much in the balance for a while longer. If anyone is reading this and wants to read/learn about their progress from a footballing perspective over the course of the season, then click here and there's various blog posts on the games which I've watched.

Having taken some time to digest the EFL's statement, my view is they now have three realistic options available to them as to how to conclude the season:

1) Void all results; no champions

This might be an attractive option for the EFL on the basis that 'if a season can't be fulfilled then how can teams be declared champions?'

It's a solution that isn't without controversy though and critics would argue that the players who've competed for teams near the top of the table deserve recognition for their efforts. By voiding the season some lads would feel, correctly or not, that they've been stripped of medals when under usual circumstances they would most likely have gone on to win their league. So the EFL might take a sympathetic view (given this is youth/academy level football and the memories created at a professional club will stay with the young lads for a lifetime) - thus deciding against the option of just simply 'voiding the season'.

To throw a spanner into the works, however, should the current senior seasons under the EFL's umbrella be voided altogether with results annulled, they might also want to do the same with the academy divisions to keep things 'in line' and show consistency within their organisation. Furthermore, teams in the Southern Youth Alliance leagues, which split mid-season into two divisions, were only 3-4 games into their 'new campaign' so expunging results there and pretending it never happened will no doubt be the most likely outcome. But as a counter-arguments, lads at southern-based academies have already completed their 'initial' league season (before the split) which was in January,

Although a different governing body altogether, the FA recently expunged and voided all results in non-league football (from Step 3 downwards) to conclude the season. The Dutch FA followed suit with the top two tiers in the Netherlands only last week.

2) Things are decided on a points per game ratio

Just like the first option, this is likely to be another attractive option for the EFL and one which they may quite well choose to implement.

Although there were still several games left to be played when the season was suspended, it's impossible to argue that around 70-75% of it was completed (if not more for some teams) and every side had achieved a 'points per game' ratio reflective of where they were in a footballing sense.

Critics may argue 'the season hasn't been completed so how can standings be decided'. There's also the unique case of Fleetwood Town in the North-West League who found themselves six points adrift of table-toppers Salford City, albeit with two games in hand, at the time of the suspension. Mathematically, wins in all of those matches would have seen them go to the top, but adopting a points per game ratio would see them fall short by the smallest of fractions. So it's a method that isn't without it's issues.

This method has already been used, however, as the French Football Federation (FFF) did it to decide the final standings in Ligues 1 & 2, only this week.

3) The last standings remain as they are

This is a solution which isn't too different from the last one - the standings remain only there's no points per game ratios to decide them.

As stated above, it's another option which would be frowned upon by Fleetwood Town for reasons outlined, though this method has already been adopted in Scotland - despite the fact it caused friction with Partick Thistle who had a game in hand which, if they won it, meant they would have hoisted themselves out of the relegation zone.

Given that this is youth/academy football where nothing too much is at stake and the threat of legal action would be virtually non-existent if a youth side didn't see a favourable outcome, it may also be an attractive solution for the EFL in how to conclude the season.

4) The halfway table is the final table

It's highly unlikely this solution will be implemented, though it was mooted in the Netherlands before the Dutch FA scrapped the season, and it takes some explaining anyway.

Under usual circumstances, each team plays their opponents twice - home and away, and given that the season was around 70-75% completed on the suspension date, then in most cases there will be at least one result to show against all other teams in the division. That result (say, for example, it's taken from the first league game involving whichever two clubs) goes towards what now becomes a final league table for the 2019/20 campaign. 

EDIT: Having initially believed Scunthorpe would be the beneficiaries of this method (as their early-season form was excellent), it appears they didn't face Burton Albion at any point during the season so no league table could be concluded for the North-East League. Furthermore, Fleetwood (challengers in the North-West) never played Morecambe or Walsall so again it wouldn't be able to work for that division - rendering the solution useless for these leagues.


If you've got any suggestions or alternatives on how you think the divisions might be concluded, then drop a message in the comments section as it's always good to hear different views. Realistically, my personal gut feeling is that the EFL will choose either Option 1 or Option 2, but I don't think this will be confirmed for a few more weeks to come.