Morecambe veteran Kevin Ellison looks to the future

The substantial cost of the testing programme that would be required to resume, along with the implications of playing without fans, was the main determinant behind the decision.

For owners, the result provided clarity – putting an end to the drawn-out deliberations that had dominated the agenda of English football in recent months – and gave some breathing space to those wanting to re-evaluate their financial position

For Morecambe’s Kevin Ellison though, a man with a two-decade career and a Premier League appearance at Old Trafford on his CV, the decision offered little solace.

“It’s worrying because it’s been 10 weeks now since football stopped. I’m 41, coming to the end of my contract and find myself spending a lot of time thinking about what’s next,” he said.

Morecambe is one of the League Two clubs yet to publish a retained list, and while Ellison is yet to hear from manager, Derek Adams, on whether his contract will be renewed, he is expecting his nine-year association with the Shrimps to come to an end.

He said: “I don’t know where I stand, but I hadn’t featured since January before all of this.

“The manager has been ringing all the players every other week to check in, but apart from that, there’s not been much communication.

“It’s been hard for the club to tell us what’s going on because they only know what we all see on the television, and at the moment, it isn’t a lot.”

The current dearth of transparency leaves the experienced Ellison, and a further 1,000-plus players throughout the EFL, trudging closer towards the expiration of their contracts on June 30.

That excludes a plethora of academy players who will be searching for new clubs in the upcoming months.

Ellison’s immediate concern though, is providing for his kids, Charlie (14) and Ava (10).

He said: “It’s a really daunting time, not just for me, but for everyone.

“I’ve got two kids to support and I’m constantly thinking about how I’m going to put bread on the table.

“Of course I want to stay in the game, but I will do anything – any type of job – to provide for my kids.

“With the impact that Covid-19 has had, it’s really opened up my eyes.

“I find myself thinking ‘Am I really going to be playing professional football again with almost 1,100 other players out of contract?’”

It is a question posed by many.

The EFL’s recent discussions around administering new financial regulations has left a sea of footballers in limbo.

Reports suggest that there will be a future salary cap in Leagues One and Two with the aim being to tackle over-expenditure and to standardise the general output of wages across both divisions.

That means, for established lower league players like Ellison, there will be a radical reduction of earnings.

There is also ongoing speculation around limiting squad sizes to 20 players aged over 21, which would inevitably trigger a rise in unproven academy players breaking through and a downturn in older professionals.

“Coming to the end of my contract at 41 and wanting to continue playing professional football was always going to be a tough ask, even before all of this,” Ellison said.

“But I just feel like age will go against me now. It won’t be anything to do with my fitness or anything like that, it will all come down to age and finances at the end of the day.”

Without the luxury of cash reserves, the vast majority of lower league footballers transition into a different line of work beyond retirement.

With the abrupt curtailment of League Two, Ellison – along with many of his peers – has started to think about an alternative profession much sooner than anticipated.

Although he is desperate to stay in the game, he is also bracing himself for the worst case scenario.

Prior to Ellison’s £50,000 move to Premier League outfit Leicester City in 2001, he juggled part-time football with work.

“Yes, I’ve definitely thought about it (a career change),” he said. “I’ve done it before. I worked and played football at the same time, so I know what it’s all about.

“The big problem at the moment is that there are hundreds of thousands of people losing their jobs on a daily basis, so for all of us (footballers), getting a job isn’t going to be that easy.”

Over the past two years, Ellison has been a keen advocate of supporting mental health.

In preparation for his transition away from the game, he has begun studying for a counselling qualification through the PFA so that, one day, he can pass on his experiences to a new generation of footballers.

He said: “With all the mental health issues recently, I thought it would be a good idea to do a counselling course to go alongside my coaching badges.

“I’d like to go down that route in future. The recent rise in mental health issues since the lockdown began has made it clear to me that more can be done.

“From experience, I know that if a player is struggling mentally then they won’t be able to perform at their best.”

The most recent PFA study revealed an alarming spike in depression cases since the lockdown period began.

Of the 262 members surveyed, 182 – 69 per cent – admitted that they were worried about their future football career or livelihood, while 72 per cent were regularly aware of feelings of nervousness or anxiety.

The winger, who has suffered with mental health issues throughout his life, revealed how he too has found the current circumstances tough to deal with.

“If I’m being honest, I’ve struggled,” he said.

“Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been back in touch with the PFA to get some help.

“I was sitting there watching the news every day – people losing their jobs and lives – and football clubs struggling.

“It made me realise the situation that I’m in and I began to overthink things.

“I will be out of contract in a couple of weeks, and I’ll need to find a job to support the kids. It’s daunting.

“I feel a lot better for getting things off my chest, but unfortunately, I think there will be a lot of others struggling who won’t speak to anyone about it.

“It’s the stigma that surrounds mental health in football, and the perception of being weak that stops a lot of people expressing how they feel.

“People worry that managers will say ‘don’t touch him’ if they speak up, and in the current climate, nobody wants that.”