The Failure of the EFL, Wanderers Wonder On and Boring Cup Draws – Talk the Football League Co
- Sam Greasley-Machin
- Aug 30, 2019
- 3 min read
The past week has been a dark week for the football league as Bury were expelled from the division, no thanks to the EFL. Where financial problems doomed one club, another managed to fight another day (just) as Bolton survive thanks to a late bid. Both of those stories covered along with reaction to the Carabao cup draw and Lee Bullen’s position at Sheffield Wednesday in this weeks edition of the Talk the Football League column.
The failure of the EFL
The end of Bury FC in the Football League, for now, came this week no thanks to the failures of the league AS well as two horrendous owners. There have been suggestions the league were simply looking to make an example of Bury, but it simply down to their incompetence alone.
First of all how the league came to a decision to approve Steve Dale to take over despite 43 of his previous 51 businesses liquidating is simply disgusting. In the minds of most people Dale probably wouldn’t seem ‘fit and proper’ to a run an ice-cream van let alone a football club, but somehow he passed the EFL’s ‘fit and proper’ test.
Expulsion to non-league will destroy livelihoods’ around the club and the EFL failed to ever help, if anything they antagonised them with the constant match suspensions, which only punished the club not the owner. The final nail in the coffin was despite calls from even MPs to delay the deadline for the league expulsion the EFL still did not. There was suggestions of a series of late bids and not just the one predominantly reported which withdrew last minute. If this is true the league should have given more time and it is nothing short of an abomination with the clubs seemingly up against the EFL.
Wanderers wonder on
In a week where Bury were excluded from the EFL as were nearly Bolton. The club has managed to survive thanks to a last minute takeover bid from a business named Football Ventures.
There are still difficult times ahead with the club manager less and without a first team, not to mention currently on -11 points, but and its a big but this is a step in the right direction, a new start for a new team with new owners and new management. There will be a huge transition period for the North-West side to get back on their feet, perhaps even with another relegation, but for now the Wanderers go wondering on.
Nat Lofthouse Statue, Bolton Wanderers FC, credit geography ( David Dixon)
Dismal cup draws
The highlight of the cup draw is no doubt the South Coast derby between bitter rivals Southampton and Portsmouth who haven’t met since a 2-2 draw in the Championship in 2012. But simply when that is the best draw it is very much a lack-lustre round of fixtures.
The big six all meet lower league opposition, surprisingly, only one of which is in the Championship as Nottingham Forest face Arsenal (again). Colchester have been rewarded with a good tie for them against Spurs although the winner seems pretty obvious. As much as everyone loves an upset, it doesn’t look like there will be many, if any, at all this round.
Manager less Sheffield Wednesday
The Owls are still yet to appoint a first team manager following Steve Bruce exchanging Hillsborough for St. James’ Park with Newcastle. As a result Lee Bullen was appointed caretaker manager and enters his sixth game in charge, in that time he has overseen wins against Reading, Barnsley and Luton seeing them place seventh in the table.
The owners of the Yorkshire club had originally stated they would take their time in finding a new manager and that they have, and some. It seems quite apparent they weren’t initially clear on appointing Bullen but as time went by and results came in it looks like their minds have changed in favour of the bookies favourite and rightly so! Wednesday need a bit of a rebuild and that comes from within, appointing Bullen is man who knows the club, someone the players are willing to play for and a manager who the fans respect, so just get on and appoint him and bring some stability.
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By Sam Greasley-Machin
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