Coronavirus: National League crowds rise without elite football
- Published
Five of the six National League matches played on Saturday saw rises in attendances from their previous home Saturday league fixture
The coronavirus outbreak has wiped out most of the world's sporting schedule in the past few days, but people were able to get their weekend football fix at some of England's non-league grounds on Saturday.
Fixtures in the Premier League, English Football League and Women's Super League have been postponed until 3 April at the earliest.
The National League decided against such action in their three divisions for now, and six games in the fifth tier went ahead as scheduled on Saturday - a decision which has been criticised by several club managers.
Attendances at five of the six National League matches rose in comparison to the most recent Saturday home league fixture staged at each respective ground.
The only exception was Notts County, with 132 fewer people at Meadow Lane for their 4-0 win over Eastleigh than the Magpies' draw with Woking on 15 February.
Both Maidenhead United and Sutton United recorded their second-highest attendances in the league this season.
There were decent attendance figures lower down the league pyramid, too. In the seventh tier, a crowd of 3,274 watched South Shields face FC United of Manchester in the Northern Premier League.
Late on Saturday, National League side Barnet announced that four members of staff were in self-isolation, two since last Thursday, showing signs of coronavirus.
The rest of the squad is now in self-isolation as a precautionary measure, Barnet said, and their upcoming home match against Barrow on Tuesday had been called off.
Home team | Most recent Saturday league gate | 14 March attendance |
|---|---|---|
AFC Fylde | 1,310 | 1,668 (+27%) |
Dover Athletic | 1,180 | 1,214 (+3%) |
FC Halifax Town | 1,995 | 2,154 (+8%) |
Maidenhead United | 1,296 | 1,662 (+28%) |
Notts County | 5,074 | 4,942 (-3%) |
Sutton United | 1,842 | 2,126 (+15%) |
Notts County v Eastleigh was one of six National League matches to go ahead on Saturday
Notts County won 4-0 in front of 4,942 spectators at Meadow Lane
Remy Clerima was one of the Maidenhead players who greeted fans with a touch of elbows on his way out onto the field before facing Stockport
Several sixth-tier matches went ahead as planned, including the game at Dulwich Hamlet in National League South...
... and Bradford Park Avenue in National League North