Tonbridge Angels boss Steve McKimm is one of many managers left frustrated with the end of the National League South season and has expressed his disappointment and annoyance that it abruptly ended for a second season.

McKimm acknowledged the reasons for the announcement and told KSN, “a lot of teams are community owned as we are and the owners didn’t want the club to get into trouble, and we had to go with the vote to null and void the season.”

“But when we re-examined the position and the budget along with the furlough system coming into play, we managed to get a team together that was ready to play against Hemel last Saturday.”

“So, we showed that it could be done as players at the moment whose League aren’t playing at the moment are willing to play for nothing.”

“Would it have been a fair reflection on how the League would have finished? Probably not as you’d have been playing inferior sides against those who are well established and have been for a while, but there are a lot of people who just want to play football!”

The Angels boss then made a point that has been overlooked by many. “What actually caught my imagination recently is that not a lot has been mentioned about COVID itself,” he asked.

“It has been all about the funds and no grants and no loans – not from everybody – but for a lot of people COVID appears to have been put on the back burner.”

“So, let’s get it right, from the start of the season with the COVID situation, should it have started without funding? No! Did it start? Yes! Now it’s all about the funding and I get it, but you’ve got to look at it the other way – let’s get teams together of players who want to play football that can’t play at the moment. And that’s what we did proving that it could be done!”

“We’ve now got a lot, lot longer to find our players because the season’s over now. We probably won’t start back until July assuming that the League will start in August and if that is the case, we’ve got the extra months to prepare. The board have got a few months to try and get a budget together. If fans are still not allowed in, what happens then? Do we start again, or wait?”

“What the League could have done is to pause the season instead of cancelling it – let’s get it right, the COVID situation isn’t over but is improving by the day. So why not suspend it and extend the season, so you don’t have to finish in May – you finish in June or July!”

“The whole thing is a farce – how can you have a governing body (the National League) let teams in one division vote against what the other two divisions can do? That’s almost like the Championship voting against Leagues One and Two as they’re all part of the EFL – it’s ridiculous and should never happen!”

“If the authorities had halted the League last season when they did and restarted that in October, we would have finished one season completely.”

“Last year it ended being points per game and teams got promoted despite the season not finishing – the League below didn’t do points per game – and it’s the same this year to determine promotion and relegation.”

“I think it was a case of what suits the League at the time. My main gripe is how you can have one part of the League – the “Premier” – vote against the North and South, when we all play in the same League… there’s no consistency to it whatsoever!”