WYCOMBE Wanderers will not play football again until May but manager Gareth Ainsworth insists that the health of the club and wider community takes priority, writes Robert Folker.
The resumption of the Premier League, English Football League (EFL) and women’s professional game has now been pushed back until Thursday April 30 following the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Chairboys were looking to gain promotion to the Championship with their last fixture meant to be played on Tuesday May 5.
The club however must wait on what league they will be starting in next season, but Ainsworth is focused on the well-being of everyone involved with the club.
The manager told the Bucks Free Press: “The football comes second at the moment. People have got to make decisions on health and that’s people more qualified than me at the top of the EFL.
READ MORE: EFL to meet this week to discuss a possible return to football
“They’ve got to make decisions on the health side of things and we will be guided by that.
“I’m not going to try and influence people one way or another by saying what I want, but we will be guided in either situation and we will be ready to handle whatever is thrown at us.
“At the moment the guidance is that these games are going ahead and yesterday (Thursday) it came out that they want to try and finish the season.
“I have to keep my players as healthy as possible without risking any contamination, firstly at the football club and secondly the wider community.
“We’re being as stringent as we can and putting in policies about the training ground, really strict on who can and can’t come there, how the boys have got to look after themselves.
READ MORE: Wycombe Wanderers make plans for a B-team to improve the pool of available players
“There’s no hugging and the closeness, and it’s hard because they’re such a tight knit group, but we can only follow advice on any symptoms.
“We’ve had a modified training programme but that’s all I can say.”
Ainsworth revealed that some players are not able to train due to government guidelines but could not disclose which players these were.
He said: “We have players staying away. We will follow the guidelines set by the government and that’s all we can do.
“Believe me, we’re taking this as serious as anybody, and if these games are going ahead it’s important for me to have the strongest and fully fit squad I can have available.
“All the measures we possibly can do, we’re putting in place at the training ground. The deep cleans and all the advice were getting.
“I’m sure the government itself will have the overriding say on what happens, so we wait for that.”
The Chairboys manager is planning for the rest of the season as voiding the season has not yet been discussed.
Ainsworth said: “Nothing’s been talked about, the situation seems to change hour to hour. We’re definitely planning forward but we’re not worrying about which way it’s going to go. At the moment, we’ll deal with that whichever way it happens.
“As it stands, I’ve got a game on the weekend of the April 30 and that’s what I’ve got to prepare for unless told otherwise.
“It’s an unprecedented situation, which I think is the first time for all managers to handle, so we’ll do the best we can under the guidelines that are given to us. I don’t want to risk anything.”
Wycombe Wanderers still have 10 games to play this season with the possibility of making the playoffs that could involve a trip to Wembley.
The club continue to prepare for the beginning of May but will follow any new measures set out by the government to control the outbreak of COVID-19.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here