The O and M board decided on Friday morning to dump Saturday's round 13, following Victoria's COVID lockdown.

Should the five-day lockdown end as scheduled on Tuesday night and the league is allowed to re-start on July 24, the O and M will pick up with round 14.

The decision to axe the round means the O and M will now be a 17-round season, so not all clubs will play each other once.

The grand final will still be held on September 19, which could have avoided a clash with the Albury Wodonga Football Association Cup final at Lavington Sportsground on September 26.

COVID has forced all sporting bodies to think 'outside the square' with a 'left field' option discussed in the past 36 hours by some club presidents.

"There was talk that maybe we could cut the regular season and extend the finals to a top eight competition," Wodonga co-president Mauro Stefani said.

"By having a top eight allows for extra games to be played, which allows the lost revenue back into clubs.

"The league would divide the extra money from the extra games back to the clubs, who've missed out on potential revenue."

O and M general manager Craig Millar confirmed the suggestion had been raised when Victoria had one of its earlier lockdowns of 2021.

"At the time of that lockdown, consideration was given to a number of scenarios and it revolved around what might happen if we weren't able to play a full round of the first nine games," he explained.

"There was talk of a possible top eight, but once every team played each other once, that has not even been in the discussion."

Cricket Albury-Wodonga scrapped its traditional top six format for a top eight after more than 25 per cent of the season was impacted by rain or COVID.

Millar has been delighted with the support of the clubs.

ALSO IN SPORT:

"Some will now get nine home games, others eight, but they are committed to finishing the season on September 19, their cooperation has been exemplary."

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: