FOLLOWING another meeting with the RFL there have been two working groups established, one looking at the costs and logistics of playing behind closed doors whilst the other is looking at the potential income streams and benefits.

I have been asked to join the latter group and it is going to be very tough for this exercise to break even.

Clearly the most obvious thing to do would be to stream the games, but I am not convinced that there would be thousands tuning in.

It would only be right that our season ticket holders and sponsors would be given access for free and if we got a few hundred more it might just about cover the cost of testing the players.

Start to add in the costs for match bonuses, and no help from the Government’s job retention scheme, then it starts to look difficult.

However, I do not believe that we should simply dismiss the season.

We have been given a provisional fixture list that starts in July and ends in November but as the weeks go by this is becoming increasingly unlikely.

I have heard the views of several chairman and the vast majority are keen to have some sort of season.

Once lockdown is eased at the beginning of June then I believe that the time is right to start lobbying the Government for the return of outdoor sports with crowds.

It is surely obvious to most people that any type of cold or flu is more likely to be spread in a confined space indoors.

The chances of picking up the virus in an outdoor environment with sensible social distancing will be close to zero.

Clearly the Government must encourage anyone with symptoms to be quickly tested along with all the people they have been in contact with and you would want the public to apply common sense and not come out when ill, but at some point normality must return.

I would be in favour of putting a league season together whenever the Government were persuaded to allow those crowds.

Even if we were to start as late as September and run until early January, I still believe we can get a full season in for League One and a meaningful season with integrity for the Championship.

We could restart in March for 2021 and again could fit in a full season making use of the many gaps we currently have.

I think playing every week is what the supporters and players want anyway and there are too many weeks off as it currently stands.

If a Championship side does reach the Challenge Cup quarter final or semi-final, then they would just have to squeeze a midweek game in but let’s not just make it a blank weekend for all.

Clearly the above isn’t perfect and the short gap between seasons for recruitment will be tough but I think we owe it to our supporters and sponsors that we do everything possible to play the season.

I’m sure contracts could be simply extended to cover another couple of months and the prospect of Boxing Day and New Year’s Day games returning would be appealing I’m sure.