Lincoln City manager Danny Cowley gave an angry and passionate response to a question about the Bolton and Bury situation last night following his side's 2-1 defeat at MK Dons.

Cowley, who had just seen his side's 100% record taken away by a resolute Milton Keynes, was asked live on BBC Radio Lincolnshire about Doncaster Rovers having the midweek fixture postponed, giving them time to recover ahead of the Imps' visit at the weekend.

He admitted it was a huge disadvantage for the Imps, but then gave a thorough and damning verdict on the current situation in League One.

“It’s a huge disadvantage for us, there’s no hiding place," said the 40-year-old.

"No doubt Darren Moore was here watching us tonight. They’ve had a free week; we’ve now had five games back to back, we play nine games this month and I’ve only got eighteen players myself, two long term injuries.

[ad_pod ]

“So, what do I do Friday? What do I do? Do I cancel the game Friday night and let everyone know by social media? I’m really perplexed and disappointed.

"I genuinely feel really sorry for Bolton and Bury, I feel sorry for them as football club, I feel sorry for their staff and players. I feel sorry for the people and the communities because I know how important these football clubs are to the community."

He went on to outline how he felt his club had already suffered having played MK Dons and questioned whether the competition was fair any more.

"This situation now is hugely affecting the integrity of the competition. I feel sorry for Doncaster. On the back of Bolton playing Tranmere at the weekend and Tranmere winning 5-0, there is a good chance Doncaster would have won tonight.

“I feel sorry for us; we’ve already been affected tonight. MK Dons have played 25% less than we have because they didn’t play Bury first game of the season. There are huge issues with the integrity of the division. A league should be a level playing field and there’s not a level playing field here."

Bury have until 23rd August to prove their financial viability, or they will be expelled from the league. The situation at Bolton is unclear, but they postponed their fixture with Doncaster Rovers over fears for young player's welfare.

The Verdict

Cowley is clearly not happy at the situation and rightly so. The integrity of the competition is being brought into question; Bolton will surely face stiff penalties for postponing their game, whatever angle they've used.

It makes a mockery of the competition. Had they drawn with Tranmere at the weekend would they have been as keen to cancel the game?

As for Bury, the situation there is not fair on their fans or other teams. The whole league is being affected and in dragging on it's causing a huge amount of disruption to supporters, opposition and the integrity of the competition.

It's a sorry affair all round and incredibly sad for the fans of the stricken clubs.