THE Aire-Wharfe League have drawn up contingency plans for if and when they can start their season in their six divisions.

The first five options, which involve beginning on either July 4, 11, 18, 25 or August 1 and finishing on varying dates in September, would give each club 11 matches, with an increasing number of Sunday games the later the campaign commences.

In all of these cases, clubs have been given the option of whether they wish relegation and promotion to be part of the scenario.

Some clubs have been in favour of 'ups and downs' and some have been against, but all of the replies are not yet in, so a decision will be taken by the league management committee when all clubs' views are on the table.

However, if the Covid-19 affected 2020 season does not start until August 8, there would definitely be no promotion or relegation and teams would be split into two mini leagues per division.

They would then each play five matches, before a play-off involving the two teams finishing first, the two teams finishing second etc etc.

Any start date beyond August 8 would mean no competitive league competition in 2020, with teams being able to arrange friendlies to suit.

In any circumstances, though, there will be no cup competitions this season.

Option one for the leagues is for a July 4 start and playing on 11 successive Saturdays, with a finish on September 12 using the original fixture dates.

If the season commenced a week later, there would still be 11 Saturday dates and a conclusion on September 19 (the July 4 matches would be played then), while option three is a July 18 opener and a final Saturday of September 26, with the matches for July 4 and 11 being played on September 19 and 26 respectively.

Any later start, such as July 25, would only allow for 10 Saturdays, with the extra date being made up on Sunday, August 9 (July 18th's matches, with July 4th and 11th's fixtures again being played on September 19 and 26), while option five is an August 1 commencement and, again, a September 26 conclusion, with Sunday fixtures on August 9 (July 18th's games) and September 6 (original July 25th's matches).

Mini leagues would mean an August 8 start and a September 12 finish - the date of the play-off matches.

As for third teams, there can be nine matches and a play-off on September 13 if the season begins on either July 5 or 12. If the opening matches are on July 19, nine matches and a play-off can still be fitted in but the season would be extended by a week until September 20.

If the Sunday third-team games cannot start until July 26, only eight matches and a play-off can be fitted in, with the season ending on September 27, while a commencement on either August 2 or 9 would mean only six matches and a play-off.