U's fan Si Collinson with his thoughts on Colchester United

UNFORTUNATELY, the common theme in football these days is the ongoing situation off the field, rather than what happens on it.

You can't watch the news or browse social media without the topic coming up about EFL clubs needing a cash boost or else some will be going out of business very soon.

Unfortunately, it's not just another business going bust - most football clubs are steeped in history and a central point to towns and cities up and down the country.

There are numerous ideas floating around, most of which have the English Premier League putting the cash up to sort out the situation.

While this seems the very logical solution, with the amount of money they are able to bring to the table, there are a number of bigger issues that I feel may be slipped under the carpet if they do produce the cash.

Firstly, is it down to the powerhouses of the football pyramid to save the day?

Are Costa Coffee bailing out the the smaller local coffee shops?

As Sean Dyche said, is it really the job of the EPL to support the EFL?

Now, I understand this is a little different to the high street coffee shop business.

But, in all honesty, are the top sides really going to put more money downwards without having something in reply.

It has already been spoken about to maybe include ‘B Teams' lower down, like they do in Europe.

But this will have the opposite result and, instead of saving clubs, it might replace them or move them further from where they are now in the system.

Harwich and Manningtree Standard:

Wise words - Robbie Cowling has expressed his frustration

This will just allow the big boys to get richer and our local teams to be more likely to drop to non-league.

Another idea is to reduce the number of top-flight teams from 20 to 18, again with a cash injection to lower leagues.

But I feel that all this will do is make the top six or seven teams even more powerful and start to sow the seeds of a European super league in place of nation leagues in the likes of England, Spain, Germany and Italy.

So whatever is offered and put on the table, there needs to be a lot of reading between the lines and ensuring the short term is not at the expense of selling out the long term.

One solution I’m sure, as fans, we can agree on is the return of supporters.

It feels like a lifetime since I was last sat at a ground watching Colchester play.

Surely, as Robbie Cowling has said, there are things allowed that are more risky, so why can’t football have its fans back?

It will be good for us all, including my household pets who seem very unsure about me watching iFollow and the random shouts at the TV.

We understand that away games are off the cards, but please can we attend home games and support not only our teams but also our local economy.

Colchester racked up another draw on the road last weekend.

I’m running out of room to talk too much about that, but we're still unbeaten and now we need to build on this to get the wins under the belt.

We have signed the new striker the fans were asking for and, by all accounts, once he is up and running he will be an asset to the club in front of goal.

Let's hope for three points on the long road up to Carlisle and, more importantly, the chance to watch the lads in person on their return to action at home against Harrogate Town on the 24th. Up the U’s.