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Ontario Football on hold until April 30, delay will mean shortened gridiron season
April 9, 2020 · 0 Comments
By Brian Lockhart
It is going to be a short gridiron season this year.
The Ontario Football Alliance, along with Football Canada has suspended all events for the month of April.
The governing bodies of football originally suspended all activities through to April 4, however that has now been revised.
In a statement issued on their website, the Ontario Football Alliance said “the Ontario Football Alliance suspends all face-to-face meetings, gatherings, training, practice and play for all members indefinitely due to the issues surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Minor football usually starts the season during the May long weekend.
The suspension has meant that spring training has not been taking place.
The Orangeville Outlaws Football Club normally holds indoor spring training through April to introduce the sport to new players and allow veteran plays to brush up on their skill. They move to outdoor training when the weather is suitable.
The spring training period allows for scheduling and putting together the five divisions of teams the Outlaws will be entering in competition for this year.
With the training period moved back to at least May, and possibly longer, the League will have to make adjustments for the summer football season.
This will most likely include a shorter season for all divisions.
As it now stands, if the League decided to start allowing for training and practices in May, there is no guarantee that they will have a place to carry out their functions as all private sports facilities and public sports venues are closed with no current estimated date of when any groups will be allowed to resume activities.
Outlaws executive members are monitoring the situation and will keep players and parents notified through social media of when activities can resume.
The current situation applies to every other sports league who play through the summer months.
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