THE Vanarama National League North has been suspended for two weeks with immediate effect meaning Bradford (Park Avenue)'s fixture with Kidderminster Harriers this weekend has been postponed.

It comes as no surprise with clubs up in arms on Wednesday after discovering the £11 million, provided by the Winter Survival Package, would be in the form of loans instead of grants.

Last night, a dozen of clubs - AFC Telford, Alfreton Town, Avenue, Blyth Spartans, Curzon Ashton, Darlington, Farsley Celtic, Gateshead, Guiseley, Kettering Town, Southport and Spennymoor Town - banded together to call for an immediate suspension to allow the bodies concerned to 'find a solution that is acceptable to all'.

The statement added: "An inability to secure acceptable funding to cover Covid testing and the loss of fans will continue to render us insolvent and we are not prepared to prolong this beyond 29 January."

With the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) refusing to supply another grant, like the £10 million both them and the National Lottery provided to cover the first three months of the campaign, teams were left in a lose-lose situation.

Carry on the season and be riddled with debt for either the short-term or long-term, or end it now and leave supporters downbeat in these desperate times.

Park Avenue's games against Yorkshire rivals Guiseley and York City will also now take place on different dates.

Director of football Martin Knight said: "Every club needs money to complete the season whether that comes from a loan, a grant, or your own bank.

"We didn’t start the season on the basis that we would complete it on loans, we started it on the basis we would complete it on grants.

"Do you want to saddle your club with 10 years' worth of debt for the sake of completing the season?

"With the exemption of one, every club will be saying the owners are not putting the money in. You either gives us a grant or we null and void the season."

Avenue statesmen Mark Bower and Knight both believe clubs made a rod for their own backs by still going big on transfers.

Firstly, manager Bower said: "It is hard to ask for free money when you see teams in this league splashing cash on transfer fees. We have cut our cloth accordingly.

"Our lads are not here for the money this year; they are here to enjoy it. The younger ones to further their careers and get up that ladder.

"We are hoping for the money because that was the conditions to start the league. But I do not think we have done ourselves any favours in terms of what is going on in the world."

Knight added: "Whichever way you look at it there has been transfer fees paid in our league so how can you with credibly say we need the money if you’re still operating in that way.

"We had a wage budget put in place at the start of the season and we are operating below that. That was put in place with no fans but also on the basis we would get grants from the government."