Coronavirus continues to disrupt schedule as Grimsby-Bradford clash is postponed

Another EFL match has fallen victim to Covid-19 after the league announced Grimsby’s League Two game against Bradford this weekend had been postponed.

The Lincolnshire club has players and staff still self-isolating, which forced their match against Cheltenham on Saturday to be called off as well.

The EFL said the circumstances surrounding the postponement would be the subject of an investigation, as was the case for the Cheltenham game.

Leyton Orient’s match against Walsall last weekend was also postponed, with the Os having to forfeit their Carabao Cup tie against Tottenham last Tuesday.

EFL chairman Rick Parry said over the weekend that the competition was “reviewing” the testing policy adopted for the season.

He told the Daily Mail: “We obviously had a major problem at Leyton Orient. I don’t think we needed a wake-up call but it has given us one.

“We were following the medical guidance and there were so few positive tests last season in the Championship that the advice was you don’t need to be testing all the time if you are following the protocols. If you are monitoring symptoms, then testing all the time isn’t essential.

“We are now reviewing, particularly now that the infection rate is rising. There is no room for any complacency. We will do some increased testing. Maybe it will be random, maybe it will be periodic.

“But, again, the real message is everyone has to stick to the protocols and observe them. If you don’t then things can go quickly wrong. The infection rates being what they are, you have got to think of the nation and we can’t put pressure on the NHS again.”

Stevenage’s League Two game at Bradford on Saturday afternoon went ahead despite Covid-related issues affecting that match.

The Hertfordshire club discovered two players had tested positive for coronavirus when they tested all players and staff in the wake of an initial positive case being recorded on Thursday.

The club’s chairman Phil Wallace and Rochdale chief executive David Bottomley both called for weekly testing last week, with the latter saying it was essential for the continuation of the competition.

Grimsby and Hull announced their EFL Trophy tie on October 6 had also been called off, but this postponement has yet to be confirmed by the EFL.