Non League Blazers do it again

[mooro]

I've just been checking back on some of the non-league forums and sites that I discovered during the Conference years, and have discovered that the powers that be have come up with an absolute corker of a process for promotion and relegation between Steps 3 and 4 for this season.

There are now 4 Step 3 Leagues (step below Conf north and south) - 1 x northern Premier, 2 x Southern Premier (Central & South, 1 x Isthmian
There are now 7 Step 4 Leagues - 2 x Northern, 2 x Southern and 3 x Isthmian.
So what they have decided is that they will relegate 3 teams from the Steps 3 league = 12 and promote 12 from Step 4.
Except of course that with 7 leagues, this means 7 winners but only 5 play off winners can go up.
AND in their infinite wisdom, they have chosen to address this by deciding the 2 that miss out will be those with the lowest points per game figure from the league season. In other words, some teams are going into the playoffs KNOWING for certain that even if they win their semi and their final, they still won't get promoted. In fact some of the semis will be completely pointless as neither team will be able to go up....

(and this is before all the normal hoo-ha about teams dropping out, being repreived, being moved sideways across levels etc)
MADNESS

 

[Jerome'SAle]

Its the FA now, not non-league blazers.

To be fair it is a one off - all part of trying to fix they pyramid so that this sort of thing doesnt happen, ie to turn it into a true pyramid with consistent promotion and relegation across the board.

To do that there is a major fundamental problem in that 7 into 5 doesnt go. So they had to do something. BUT the decision for it to be decided on spreadsheets rather than on the pitch was ridiculous. You can see what they are trying to do, ie the strongest teams over the season go up, but if thats what you want why have playoffs at all? Its basically an exercise in turning a brilliant thing into a demeaning end of season friendly. Surely they could have done devised some sort of play off system that got the number down to 5.

 

[Marked Ox]

Add into this they've got super play offs between the winners of Step 3 League play off winners to get into the Conference North and South as well iirc. They should have just added a relegation spot to each of the Conf North/South leagues.

 

[mooro]

Best 3 on PPG go up - other four play each other to give the other two = the simplest answer

I shall have to try and find the proposal for where the extra leagues will be shoehorned into the pyramid (anyone got a link?) but I worry that it will still be out of balance between the steps meaning that boundaries will continue to move and clubs re-allocated at regular intervals.

 

[Marked Ox]

Best 3 on PPG go up - other four play each other to give the other two = the simplest answer

I shall have to try and find the proposal for where the extra leagues will be shoehorned into the pyramid (anyone got a link?) but I worry that it will still be out of balance between the steps meaning that boundaries will continue to move and clubs re-allocated at regular intervals.

I wouldn't read up on the reorganisation of steps 5/6 if you think steps 3/4 is messed up.

 

[mooro]

I know it's always been completely out of synch, but I just wonder what the latest nonsensical theory is...!

I always favoured a fixed border, flexible number of teams per league option, so that there was a hard linear path for every team up and donw the ladder isntead of the fixed numbers, flexible borders approach which as actually iused.
Brings clarity and balance to everyone, instead of certain clubs being hindered by the risk or actuality of being moved sideways across a level at very short notice.

 

[Jerome'SAle]

Clubs are mostly dependent on gate money at this level.so leagues with reduced numbers of teams and therefore matches are very unpopular with the clubs.