Any lingering hopes that Scarborough could be playing in the Football league next season have been dashed.

The League have said that any League clubs in administration who cannot put their affairs on order will be expelled from the League - but not replaced.

Four clubs, Chester City, Luton Town, Crystal Palace and Portsmouth, have been told by League secretary David Dent that they will not be allowed to start next season as a Football League club unless they have drawn up plans to get out of receivership. Dent said: "If one or more of the clubs has to be removed from the League after compilation of the fixture list, but before the season starts, then the divisions will not be reconstituted."

This means the League could run with gaps in their fixture list of one of the troubled clubs fails to meet the deadline, which has now effectively been set at the day before the season starts on August 7.

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