Edinburgh City boss James McDonaugh laments fate of 2020 and 'farcical' return of football

The Citizens were sitting second in the table and still in the running to be promoted as League Two champions when the world was brought to a halt by the coronavirus pandemic in March. The season was subsequently ended by the SPFL a couple of months later.

Cove Rangers, now plying their trade in League One, were promoted as league winners with City left to wonder just what might have been.

Ahead of tomorrow's visit to Central Park to play hosts Cowdenbeath, McDonaugh, whose side currently sit in fifth, said: "I was really looking forward to pushing Cove as hard as possible. I never felt the league was over despite the lead they had. We had them still to play with a game in hand and even if we hadn't caught them, we were so far clear that we would have been in the play-offs. I was really excited about 2020 as I felt we had a good chance of going up either way. But just like everywhere else in the world, other things took over. I really think the season should have restarted when football got going again.

"But since Covid took hold it has been a disaster in many forms. Even with football back, you can't get into a rhythm, there's no consistency and you can say it's the same for everyone else but I don't think it has helped us at all. It's been as bad a year as I can remember.

"I have to be honest and say I haven't enjoyed getting back to football. You can't even get your players in the same dressing room, do much in the way of analysis, every game feels flat due to the lack of fans so it's just not been enjoyable. It kind of feels as if you're just having to get through it because you don't know what it's going to be like in a fortnight's time. I think the season so far in many ways has been a farce."

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