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Morpeth Town manager Stephen Turnbull is keen for a firm decision to be made on the future of the league as soon as possible.
Although going through the decision-making process, the NPL are yet to confirm the final outcome of the current season, with plenty of views aired in an information gathering exercise designed to get the opinion of all clubs affected.
One solution being suggested is to null and void the league for a second time, a choice favoured by the league itself. They now have the vast majority of club opinions and will progress the matter further. But for Turnbull, clarity is key.
“I think this season is finished; it is the sensible thing to do,” he said of a season which has been massively impacted by Covid-19 related disruptions.
“We can’t expect chairman to keep putting money in which they can’t get back. People would love to play football but it isn’t safe at the moment.
“There’s a bigger issue than football and we need to get on top of that before we get back to the joys of life, like holidays and football.
“I would just like a decision. A few people have messaged saying it must be tough as a manager, in a football sense, and it is.
“Look at our season; we started well, then we had lockdowns and then another and another. Until you can do it properly, I don’t see playing football at this level being possible.
“We need to get on top of it and start again in the summer; let’s do it properly.”
A firm decision either way would signal the green light for discussions about next season in relation to squad development.
Whatever the outcome of this campaign, the Highwaymen will face a tough challenge in a hugely competitive division, a fact the Town supremo is all too aware of.
“You’ve always got to look to improve and if you keep the same squad, when everyone is improving, then you’re going backwards,” added Turnbull.
“I would like to add one or two but I’ve got to have those discussions with the chairman and the CEO first.”
