Highland League secretary Rod Houston believes it’s important not to lose perspective as they hope to complete the season.
Football in Scotland below the Championship has been suspended since January 11 and will remain so until March 1 at the earliest.
The Highland League is still keen to complete the 2020-21 campaign, if possible, when circumstances allow.
But secretary Houston says it’s not a case of trying to bring back football at all costs during the pandemic.
He said: “There is a widespread wish among clubs as and when circumstances permit, so this is not ‘we’re having football irrespective of what’s going on’. As and when circumstances permit, there is an overwhelming feeling clubs want to play football.
“They want to get their players back, get themselves used to it, remind themselves what gameday is like and if nothing else get ready for next season, decide on where they might want to recruit and players they might want to keep.
“There are all sorts of reasons for doing it (trying to finish the season).
“Also we feel we owe it to the public so if we can get played games with the public in attendance then fine.
“If it’s a case of streaming it on pay-per-view then at least people have a chance to see their football.”
When Highland League football returned last October with the completion of the 2019-20 Highland League Cup, before the current campaign kicked off in November, clubs had to put stringent protocols in place to keep those involved as safe as possible.
Houston appreciates the importance of football, but says minimising the risks for those involved is paramount.
He added: “You must not lose perspective. Football has an important place in the life of this country.
“The Highland League has a huge place in the communities which house the clubs, there’s no getting away from that.
“Even the people that don’t attend have an interest in it. You just need to look at when a club has a good season, people come out of the woodwork and there’s interest there.
“The extent to which people speak about when we can get going again shows there’s a desire there.
“We have to to take that into account, but not at any price. We have a responsibility that we must make sure, when we make moves and make decisions, that they are the right ones in the wider context and we don’t just think it can be football at any cost, because it can’t be.
“I haven’t visited my mother in the old folks’ home for months because I’m scared of inadvertently taking it (Covid) in and I think everyone has that fear.
“One of the judgements we’re continually trying to make is – have we done everything we possibly can to minimise the risk?
“This is a very clever virus which will pop up, but if we’ve done everything we possibly can to minimise the risk of transmission then I’m not sure there’s a lot else we can do in the circumstances.”
