By Paul Jones
Newport County plan to inform fans this week about refunds for this season after Leagues One and Two were brought to a premature end.
The club have issued a statement saying they will soon reveal intentions for dealing with season ticket holders for the current 2019-20 season as well as those who have bought individual match tickets.
They will also update on details over which players are being retained for next season as well as plans for a new kit supplier for the new campaign, which may not begin until September and is still likely to involve no fans.
The moves come as Football League chairman Rick Parry has warned clubs are still at risk of going bust.
Leagues One and Two were ended yesterday after clubs voted overwhelmingly in favour of cutting short the campaign and determining the final table on an unweighted points-per-game basis.
But it doesn’t mean clubs are out of the woods, with the financial burden of the coronavirus pandemic still weighing heavy on many.
“We still have a massive shortfall,” Parry – who has warned of a £200m black hole – told BBC Sport.
“My estimate was based essentially on the loss of matchday income, which still remains the case. There is still no prospect of games taking place in front of crowds in the near future.
“Having spent many hours over the last few days and weeks getting clarity on this season, now we can start to turn our attention to the challenges of next season. But those challenges have not diminished in any way shape or form. There is a major problem still facing us.
“The aim is to make sure all the clubs survive and and we will be working 24 hours a day to make sure they do.
“We can’t give guarantees. Who knows whether we have seen the end of this crisis or whether there is going to be a second spike. But our aim, our avowed aim, and we will be giving it our very best shot, is to make sure the EFL comes through this stronger than we are at the moment.”
The ending of the season left Newport in 14th place in League Two, with a final tally of 58.78 points, based on a points per game basis.
That was almost 14 points short of the play-off places, which will be the only games scheduled to still go ahead.
The play-offs will still be played across both leagues beginning next week, with finals due to be held at Wembley Stadium at the end of the month. Promotion and relegation are also set to go ahead as planned.
With League One coming to an end, Coventry City will be promoted back to the Championship as League One champions, along with Rotherham United.
Wycombe Wanderers, Oxford City, Portsmouth and Fleetwood Town will enter the play-offs for the final promotion spot, with the EFL to confirm when the play-offs will take place.
Tranmere Rovers meanwhile will be relegated to League Two alongside Bolton Wanderers – who failed to recover from a 12-point deduction for going into administration last year – and Southend United.
The announcement to end League Two, which received the backing of all but one club, will see Swindon Town crowned champions under the formula, which clubs agreed would consist of an unweighted home and away record multiplied by the number of outstanding games each club has remaining in the 2019/20 season. Crewe Alexandra and Plymouth Argyle will join Swindon in League One next season, with the top of the league table remaining as it was when the season was suspended in March.
With relegation going ahead as planned, Stevenage are set to be relegated to the National League. However, that could change if Macclesfield Town receive a further points deduction after the EFL brought misconduct charges against the club for failing to pay March salaries.
The League Two play-offs will feature Cheltenham Town, Exeter City, Colchester United and Northampton Town to determine which side is promoted to League One, with first-leg ties getting underway next Thursday and concluding with a Wembley final on Monday 29 June.