Latest on Burton Fixture this weekend

FY16JJ

Well-known member
Jimmy Hasselbaink's side, who are without eight players and staff due to the outbreak, will now be tested again on Wednesday.

Hasselbaink says that if the game against Blackpool does go ahead it gives his team precious little preparation time.

“The club is closed down now and we are not allowed in until Wednesday when we all be tested again," he said.

"Once we get the results back they will say what will happen. The club will be disinfected and all that kind of stuff to make sure the bug is out of the club.
 
I'm sure there will be fingers crossed in Burton-upon-Trent after seeing our result last night.
True but if they wait we only have even more players coming back, some key ones too like Dougall and Ward etc.

More time for Simms to get comfortable in the side even further. A fitter more settled Stewart. More fitness for those who played last night who haven't regularly.

I want the game on Saturday but just something to think about.
 
There is no excuse for them providing no more positive tests.
When you look at our situation on Tuesday morning.
The majority wanted our game postponed!
 
There is no excuse for them providing no more positive tests.
When you look at our situation on Tuesday morning.
The majority wanted our game postponed!
Yeah and I wanted the match on last night but was coming round to thinking that we may be better with our key players back.

But I did say critch can't really say he wants it off as we have people out, as the idea is that the squad are all capable and if you dont play, it it sends the message that he doesnt think they are up to it.

I'm glad it did go ahead and boy did they step up. Really happy for the lads and it improves sharpness, confidence is higher, its wins all round.
 
I think there is a process but as with all things managed by the EFL, it is unclear and easily bypassed. Burton need to be careful as not playing just means the gap gets bigger, hopefully they all return negative tests and we can give them a good hammering also.
 
Whether caused by Covid, or Injury, our casualty list last night read as follows:
Turton
Ballard
Ward
Dougall
Garbutt
Mitchell
Anderson
Hamilton .
Not one of those players could be called a “fringe player”. They are all in the First Team squad.
Burton are no worse off than we are.
 
Whether caused by Covid, or Injury, our casualty list last night read as follows:
Turton
Ballard
Ward
Dougall
Garbutt
Mitchell
Anderson
Hamilton .
Not one of those players could be called a “fringe player”. They are all in the First Team squad.
Burton are no worse off than we are.
Don't forget the Viking was missing as well!
 
Surely it shouldn't be upto them if the results are clear when tested. There has to be some sort of process to follow. Cant just have sides saying we don't fancy this one.
Bolton got away with saying that by not playing Doncaster last season. I don’t think there was ever any sanction for that.
 
True but if they wait we only have even more players coming back, some key ones too like Dougall and Ward etc.

More time for Simms to get comfortable in the side even further. A fitter more settled Stewart. More fitness for those who played last night who haven't regularly.

I want the game on Saturday but just something to think about.
7 tricky games in Feb. Saturday needs to go ahead really, Potentially 6 points to gain from next 2 home games.
 
And October/November had some tricky games and we ended up being the form team. I won’t mention Xmas/New Year against lower table teams because we’re always crap during this period, well almost.
 
From someone within the game "Providing XX can put a team out including scholars then game goes on or you can postpone yourself and be investigated usually just resulting in a fine if any breaches of protocols"
 
Surely it shouldn't be upto them if the results are clear when tested. There has to be some sort of process to follow. Cant just have sides saying we don't fancy this one.
I agree it shouldn't, but what if half a dozen of them are "showing symptoms" despite a negative test? They could claim it's a false negative and ask for another test to be sure
 
I walked into Burton's this morning and they've never heard of JF Hasselbaink, although they suggested Greggs , which I did but only picked up a couple of steak bakes on the way out.

Can you guys buy Peter Sayer if he's still playing?
 
Tom Hamer and Terry Taylor are signing for them so they should have no problem with having players available for the weekend unless tests come back positive
 
EFL need to give clear instructions on these matters to stop all this speculation and differing levels of commitment to play these games. Looks to me like some clubs like to call games off if the squad is depleted when others will make more of an effort even if this means playing players that would not normally come close to the starting 11.
 
I walked into Burton's this morning and they've never heard of JF Hasselbaink, although they suggested Greggs , which I did but only picked up a couple of steak bakes on the way out.

Can you guys buy Peter Sayer if he's still playing?
Suits you sir.
 
I like the way we have just got on with it without using the COVID excuse, fair play Critch. Sets an example to Burton and others, if the tests are clear Wednesday then the game surely goes ahead, otherwise why bother waiting till then to cancel.
 
Matt Scrafton explaining it here - unfortunately I've used my 5 free articles and so can't tell you what he's said!

Some fixtures have gone ahead, even when a club might be missing a number of players, while others in similar circumstances have been postponed.

There have been instances where a game has been played when as many as five or six players are absent and self-isolating, while other games have been scrapped despite only one player going down with coronavirus.

Some fixtures have gone ahead, even when a club might be missing a number of players, while others in similar circumstances have been postponed.

There have been instances where a game has been played when as many as five or six players are absent and self-isolating, while other games have been scrapped despite only one player going down with coronavirus.

The decision, which was announced on Christmas Day, came after Dale informed the EFL they were unable to fulfil the fixture after one player had tested positive for Covid.

On the face of it, this seems a little unfair on Blackpool, who had two players themselves self-isolating. But I’m led to believe a further nine Rochdale players had to self-isolate, which might go some way to explaining their decision.

Nevertheless, Blackpool’s hierarchy were certainly disgruntled with Rochdale’s decision. They were ready to play, even with Chris Maxwell and Matty Virtue absent.

It’s my understanding there were concerns raised over a potential breach of guidance, something that continues to be investigated by the EFL. This is, however, denied by Rochdale.

As we've seen, the EFL will investigate the circumstances behind every postponement to determine if any Covid guidance has been breached.

This is helpful, but I wouldn’t expect to see a decision or potential sanction, if any wrongdoing has been proven, to be handed down until at least two or three months after the postponement.

The only club to have been sanctioned so far is Grimsby Town, who were given a suspended fine for a breach.

It was found former Blackpool boss Ian Holloway, in charge of Grimsby at the time, had been playing darts with his players at the club’s training ground. Players had also been car-sharing to and from training sessions, the investigation found.

The outbreak at Blundell Park caused three matches to be called off back in September, yet the club didn’t discover their punishment until January.

Blackpool boss Neil Critchley has made it abundantly clear in his interviews this season that his players minimise their contact as much as possible. They arrive to training in their own kit, train, then drive home with lunch provided by the club in takeaway boxes. When team meetings take place, all players are socially distanced.

There’s no doubt Blackpool are taking this seriously and rightfully so. Are other clubs following suit though? There’s no doubt some clubs are more stringent than others.

There’s a lot of ‘whataboutery’ from supporters, asking why their games have either gone ahead or been cancelled while others haven’t. While the frustration is understandable when no clear guidelines have been given, it must be stressed that no two postponements are the same.

As for those Blackpool fans questioning the difference between the Rochdale postponement in December and why the midweek game against Wigan Athletic went ahead, despite the Seasiders being without six players due to Covid, there’s one main reason.

Back in December, players weren’t being routinely tested. Now they are. Until the first week of January, some clubs hadn’t done any testing since November, with cost playing a major factor in that.

It was only at the beginning of 2021 where mandatory, twice-weekly testing was introduced thanks to funding from the PFA. Why this wasn’t introduced at the start of the season though is a major bone of contention for managers and club executives.

So prior to Tuesday night’s game at the DW Stadium, a further round of testing took place on Monday, with the test results taking 24 hours to come back. Had Blackpool returned any further positives, chances are the game would have been called off.

As for the FA Cup, this is a different competition with different rules. The FA has stipulated that if you have 14 available players, then cup ties should go ahead.

Blackpool had more than 14 players available for their recent trip to Brighton, so the game had to go ahead. Pool, nevertheless, still had to include three youngsters to fill their nine-man substitutes’ bench.

That brings us to this weekend, where the chances of Blackpool’s game against Burton Albion going ahead remains up in the air.

This comes after Burton postponed their midweek game against Shrewsbury Town after eight players tested positive for Covid.

The Brewers were due to be tested again today, with results expected back on Thursday. If further positives are returned, Saturday’s game could be in doubt.

Since returning their initial positive tests, Burton boss Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink revealed they had to close down the stadium and the training ground and have everything deep cleaned.

Hasselbaink, whose side are bottom of League One, is still concerned about a lack of preparation time should the game go ahead.

“The players who are infected can’t do anything; the ones who aren’t can only do a bit of fitness work,” Hasselbaink said.

"We can do nothing as a group and if we come back after Wednesday, we only have two days and if the game goes ahead, they will be open for injuries as they have not trained and still have to then put that amount of stress on their bodies.

“But we will see what they say on Wednesday and take it from there.

“We have eight people affected and eight in our squad that is a lot of people. The danger is of it escalating, which is why everyone needs to be away from each other to stop it going any further.”
 
Some fixtures have gone ahead, even when a club might be missing a number of players, while others in similar circumstances have been postponed.

There have been instances where a game has been played when as many as five or six players are absent and self-isolating, while other games have been scrapped despite only one player going down with coronavirus.

Some fixtures have gone ahead, even when a club might be missing a number of players, while others in similar circumstances have been postponed.

There have been instances where a game has been played when as many as five or six players are absent and self-isolating, while other games have been scrapped despite only one player going down with coronavirus.

The decision, which was announced on Christmas Day, came after Dale informed the EFL they were unable to fulfil the fixture after one player had tested positive for Covid.

On the face of it, this seems a little unfair on Blackpool, who had two players themselves self-isolating. But I’m led to believe a further nine Rochdale players had to self-isolate, which might go some way to explaining their decision.

Nevertheless, Blackpool’s hierarchy were certainly disgruntled with Rochdale’s decision. They were ready to play, even with Chris Maxwell and Matty Virtue absent.

It’s my understanding there were concerns raised over a potential breach of guidance, something that continues to be investigated by the EFL. This is, however, denied by Rochdale.

As we've seen, the EFL will investigate the circumstances behind every postponement to determine if any Covid guidance has been breached.

This is helpful, but I wouldn’t expect to see a decision or potential sanction, if any wrongdoing has been proven, to be handed down until at least two or three months after the postponement.

The only club to have been sanctioned so far is Grimsby Town, who were given a suspended fine for a breach.

It was found former Blackpool boss Ian Holloway, in charge of Grimsby at the time, had been playing darts with his players at the club’s training ground. Players had also been car-sharing to and from training sessions, the investigation found.

The outbreak at Blundell Park caused three matches to be called off back in September, yet the club didn’t discover their punishment until January.

Blackpool boss Neil Critchley has made it abundantly clear in his interviews this season that his players minimise their contact as much as possible. They arrive to training in their own kit, train, then drive home with lunch provided by the club in takeaway boxes. When team meetings take place, all players are socially distanced.

There’s no doubt Blackpool are taking this seriously and rightfully so. Are other clubs following suit though? There’s no doubt some clubs are more stringent than others.

There’s a lot of ‘whataboutery’ from supporters, asking why their games have either gone ahead or been cancelled while others haven’t. While the frustration is understandable when no clear guidelines have been given, it must be stressed that no two postponements are the same.

As for those Blackpool fans questioning the difference between the Rochdale postponement in December and why the midweek game against Wigan Athletic went ahead, despite the Seasiders being without six players due to Covid, there’s one main reason.

Back in December, players weren’t being routinely tested. Now they are. Until the first week of January, some clubs hadn’t done any testing since November, with cost playing a major factor in that.

It was only at the beginning of 2021 where mandatory, twice-weekly testing was introduced thanks to funding from the PFA. Why this wasn’t introduced at the start of the season though is a major bone of contention for managers and club executives.

So prior to Tuesday night’s game at the DW Stadium, a further round of testing took place on Monday, with the test results taking 24 hours to come back. Had Blackpool returned any further positives, chances are the game would have been called off.

As for the FA Cup, this is a different competition with different rules. The FA has stipulated that if you have 14 available players, then cup ties should go ahead.

Blackpool had more than 14 players available for their recent trip to Brighton, so the game had to go ahead. Pool, nevertheless, still had to include three youngsters to fill their nine-man substitutes’ bench.

That brings us to this weekend, where the chances of Blackpool’s game against Burton Albion going ahead remains up in the air.

This comes after Burton postponed their midweek game against Shrewsbury Town after eight players tested positive for Covid.

The Brewers were due to be tested again today, with results expected back on Thursday. If further positives are returned, Saturday’s game could be in doubt.

Since returning their initial positive tests, Burton boss Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink revealed they had to close down the stadium and the training ground and have everything deep cleaned.

Hasselbaink, whose side are bottom of League One, is still concerned about a lack of preparation time should the game go ahead.

“The players who are infected can’t do anything; the ones who aren’t can only do a bit of fitness work,” Hasselbaink said.

"We can do nothing as a group and if we come back after Wednesday, we only have two days and if the game goes ahead, they will be open for injuries as they have not trained and still have to then put that amount of stress on their bodies.

“But we will see what they say on Wednesday and take it from there.

“We have eight people affected and eight in our squad that is a lot of people. The danger is of it escalating, which is why everyone needs to be away from each other to stop it going any further.”
Thanks for this.
 
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